You probably saw the news during the Misano Grand Prix: the MotoE championship (the electric category) will be put on hold at the end of the 2025 season. Even though I have never covered this discipline in my articles, it seemed important to me to come back to it because it could presage more worrying measures.
MotoE, and everything else; the idea of the century that convinces no one
Let's not kid ourselves: if you're reading this column, I doubt you're particularly interested in this championship. But before talking about the track and the results, I wanted to come back to an important point: If this decision proves one thing, it's that the electrification of vehicles is failing to please the masses. And it must be recognized that DORNA understood this phenomenon perfectly at the time and stopped before it was too late. When Formula 1 went hybrid in 2014, it was thought to be a step towards the future, followed by Formula E the same year. Ten years later, Formula E has not found a stable audience and is still struggling to impose its vision in the world of motorsports., despite what their communications team would have us believe. The same goes for MotoE, which ultimately never attracted an audience, while renewable – and soon synthetic – fuels could well represent the future while preserving the soul of motorsports. Moreover, in 2027, the gasoline used by MotoGP will be 100% non-fossil.
Apparently, the races aren't bad. Photo: Michelin Motorsport
This was the first point I wanted to make: we can congratulate the highest motorcycling authorities for having identified this flaw, and stopping it before the times required it. This was also the word of Carmelo Ezpeleta: “While we are constantly seeking to reinvent ourselves, both on and off the track, we must also listen to our fans and the new audience we are seeking to reach while observing the evolution of the market.”. I find this approach honorable, and at least this era ends in a dignified manner. I hope that this will be able to convince major car manufacturers, who, twenty-five years after the first Toyota Prius, force us to love hybrid and electric cars, each as uninteresting as the otherI digress.
The death of a championship
As you can see, this suspension of the program doesn't affect me much, just like you, I imagine. However, history teaches us that we should never rejoice at the end of a discipline, because it doesn't bode well. The teams present in MotoE, which are the same as those on the grids of the three main categories, will thus lose important sponsors, who, for their part, were banking on this green image. In addition, some people may find themselves on the sidelines, as Nadia Padovani, boss of Gresini Racing, said.
We must not forget that this was the landing point for very good riders, who deserved to race on the world circuits, but who no longer had opportunities in Moto2 or MotoGP. I am thinking here of Bradley Smith, Dominique Aegarter, Jordi Torres… and others, who started in MotoE, like Fermin Aldeguer (!) For them, and for those who come after them, it's a shame.
The MotoGP ecosystem is inherently very different from the Formula 1 ecosystem. Photo: Michelin Motorsport
Staying on our guard
Let's get to what I mentioned in the heading of this article.. Actually, this decision doesn't really surprise me, but the arguments used to legitimize it do alarm me. Let's take a moment to reflect on Ezpeleta's words: "We must also listen to our fans and the new audience," he said. This is probably a coincidence, but the MotoE's shutdown comes at the same time as Liberty Media's first decisions, which we will study later in the week, because there is a lot to say. What if tomorrow the “new fans” lose interest in Moto2 and Moto3? Should we do away with these categories where a few manufacturers reign supreme? Should we relegate them to the rank of promotional categories, which would not compete in the same rounds as the MotoGP? I remember a time when, at Laguna Seca, only the MotoGP races would race during the weekend. Today, that would be unthinkable, because DORNA has done everything to include as many small categories as possible in the big one. Show MotoGPBut tomorrow, with the announced separation of the paddocks and the creation of VIP areas, is there not a fear that Liberty Media will only focus on the premier category, thus making the other two classes invisible? Currently, many team managers are fearful of these measures.
This worries me a lot, and even if the Moto3 overhaul is expected to take shape in 2028, there is no guarantee of good exposure. Unlike single-seaters, the lower categories have always been an integral part of motorcycle Grand Prix racing, which is why we count the titles won in these categories when we talk about the achievements of our greatest champions. But couldn't Moto2 become Formula 2, a series? pay to win solely focused on developing new talent and with little media exposure? Personally, that's my fear.
Let us therefore remain vigilant regarding these major measures, and not rejoice too quickly at the disappearance of a series which, admittedly, has never interested us, but which had the merit of existing like Moto2 and Moto3.
I'm curious to know what you think about all this. Tell me in the comments!
As a reminder, this article only reflects the thoughts of its author, and not of the entire editorial team.
Cover photo: Michelin Motorsport
