Here is the thing about rider representation in MotoGP: when the championship brings a massive structural change to the table, you would expect the grid to show up. As Motorsport.com Italia reports, Francesco Bagnaia has revealed that when the new format was presented during the Safety Commission at Motegi, exactly four riders were in the room. The presentation was thorough, the small group agreed with it, but the glaring issue remains that the rest of the grid simply did not bother to attend for a matter of such importance.
That new format, officially unveiled recently, will introduce two distinct qualifying sessions starting in 2027—one for the Sprint on Friday afternoon and another for the grand prix on Saturday morning. Bagnaia is entirely on board with the change, calling a single qualifying session for two different starts a major limitation given how easily a session can be ruined by a crash or a yellow flag. In modern MotoGP, starting eighth or twelfth makes fighting through the field an uphill battle. When asked if a 22-rider Q1 session for the Sprint would be too chaotic, the Ducati Team rider shrugged it off, noting that the final fifteen minutes of Friday practice already operate in similar traffic.
Looking immediately ahead to the Mandalika weekend, expectations are naturally measured. Last year's Indonesian Grand Prix proved to be one of the toughest rounds of the season for Bagnaia, who admits that the DNA of last year's machine did not gel with the layout, allowing riders on older machinery like Aldeguer to fly. Even so, small steps forward made in Japan offer a glimmer of optimism, and Bagnaia acknowledges that despite historical struggles with pace at Mandalika, the layout itself is enjoyable, having previously yielded a win, a podium, and a Sprint victory.
Beyond qualifying, the 2027 shake-up will force a complete rethink of practice management, bringing shorter sessions and a revised allocation of tyres that makes FP1 an immediate priority rather than a throwaway session. Bagnaia supports the adjustment, emphasizing that as MotoGP riders, adaptation is simply part of the job. However, not every element of the upcoming rules sits comfortably.
The elimination of the Warm-Up session is the one major decision that leaves Bagnaia perplexed, as he believes heading straight into a grand prix without turning any morning laps is a risk, particularly for riders who might need to check machinery after a crash in the Sprint. Meanwhile, addressing the status of the Qatar Grand Prix amid ongoing Middle Eastern conflict and safety concerns, Bagnaia kept his thoughts measured while noting that if safety is truly the priority, events can sometimes wait, even if the race itself remains a fantastic, atmospheric night spectacle.
