As The Race reports, F1 owner Liberty Media has wasted no time shaking up the senior leadership structure at MotoGP by bringing in heavy-hitting executive talent with extensive backgrounds in Formula 1 and major North American and European sports. This leadership overhaul follows Liberty's completion of its acquisition of MotoGP parent company Dorna Sports in July last year, a massive deal reported to be over $4.5 billion USD.
The commercial department gets a fresh face with the appointment of Ryan Norys as chief commercial officer, stepping into a post that has remained vacant since former NBA executive Dan Rossomondo departed after only a short spell in the role. Norys arrives from English Premier League football team Tottenham Hotspur, where he currently serves as chief revenue officer. His departure has been described as a major blow to the team. Norys’s four years in his role included helping Spurs move into its new stadium - although it’s been reported that, with a lengthy notice period to serve, it could be months before he is in his MotoGP position.
These appointments are an important step in building the team that will help shape MotoGP’s future,
Media and strategy operations are also receiving a serious injection of outside expertise. Sameer Pabari steps in to strengthen the media team, leaving his position as managing director of international media at the NFL. Pabari brings a rich resume that includes spells as director of media at Manchester United and vice president of business development at Discovery. Meanwhile, Denitza Batchvarova arrives from UFC and WWE owner TKO, where she served as executive vice president for strategy and corporate finance.
Perhaps most interesting is the appointment of Louise Young, who joins as chief operating officer. She previously spent eight years working at F1, most recently as chief race promotion officer. That's a role she is likely to bring key experience from, as MotoGP prepares for a future calendar shake-up including changes such as the planned replacement of Phillip Island with a new parklands circuit in Adelaide for 2027.
“These appointments are an important step in building the team that will help shape MotoGP’s future,” said MotoGP deputy CEO Carlos Ezpeleta in announcing the new hires. “Ryan, Sameer, Louise and Denitza bring hugely valuable experience from leading sports and entertainment organisations that will strengthen our commercial, media, operations and strategy capabilities. Together with our existing team, they will help us deepen our connection with our fans, reach new audiences and create new opportunities for our existing and new commercial partners, building on the strong foundations of the sport.”
