“When you’ve won 10 grands prix and still trail by 24 points, something is off,” remarked Francesco Bagnaia.

While most riders’ complaints about race formats may sound predictable, Bagnaia might actually have a valid point. The introduction of sprint races has had a significant impact on his MotoGP title campaign.

Heading into the final round in Barcelona, Bagnaia finds himself second in the standings despite securing 10 grand prix victories. Jorge Martin’s advantage comes from his seven sprint race wins, compounded by Bagnaia’s unfortunate crashes on Saturdays.

Still, Bagnaia isn’t making excuses. He has openly acknowledged his struggles in the sprints and even praised Martin’s performance. “Jorge was just better on Saturdays this season,” Bagnaia admitted. His issues are partly due to his setup process; Bagnaia typically fine-tunes his bike over the course of the weekend, whereas Martin’s setup seems to work right from the start.

Looking back, Bagnaia might have benefited from a more conservative approach on Saturdays, aiming for consistency instead of risking crashes. However, many of his costly mistakes happened early in the season, when his advantage on Sundays wasn’t as evident.

Traditionally, MotoGP champions have been crowned based on grand prix victories alone. For 73 years, sprint races didn’t exist, and this heritage—celebrated at Silverstone—feels challenged by the new format. Riders like Valentino Rossi, Casey Stoner, and Marc Marquez all won titles in seasons where they secured 10 or more race victories. Bagnaia’s current situation contrasts sharply with this history.

The core debate revolves around whether mistakes in sprint races should carry such weight. Grand prix races, as the name suggests, are premier events that test a rider’s endurance and tire management skills. Sprints don’t require these same abilities.

If there is indeed an issue with the current system, MotoGP could consider reducing the points value of sprints, similar to Formula 1. Alternatively, they could detach sprints from the main championship entirely or even introduce a separate “Sprint Cup.”

Bagnaia’s perspective is thoughtful and well-articulated, even if somewhat self-serving. His arguments make a compelling case that the format may need some adjustments to better reflect MotoGP’s traditional values.