The promoter of the MotoGP World Championship announced on Thursday that the Qatar Grand Prix, at the Losail circuit, will kick off the 2024 season, probably from March 8 to 10. This year, the traditional inaugural meeting had to be postponed to the end of the year due to work.
Qatar returns to its opening round. Since 2007, the meeting has traditionally launched the MotoGP World Championship season each year. This had not been the case last year, but this was only an exception. In 2024, MotoGP will therefore resume its habits and the Qatar GP will once again kick off the season, again at night, as has been the case for sixteen years.
This Thursday, Dorna, the promoter of the MotoGP world championship announced that the first round of the 2024 season will take place in Qatar, at the Losail circuit, probably from March 8 to 10 (the dates will be submitted to the International Federation of motorcycling, which must validate them). This year, once again for exceptional reasons, it is the GP of Portugal and not Qatar which launched this season which was originally to have 21 dates but will finally offer only twenty with a drop in the curtain scheduled for the 26th. November 2023 in Valencia.
A first since 2006
Repair work having been planned for a long time on the Losail circuit, the Qatari event, usually inaugural, had been moved to the fall. It will therefore take place on November 19 and will be the penultimate round of the season. For the first time since 2006, MotoGP had therefore started its exercise in Europe. Note that Dorna also revealed on Thursday the provisional dates for pre-season testing for next year. The shakedown, which concerns only test pilots and rookies, will take place from February 1 to 3 in Malaysia, at the Sepang circuit. A few days later, first from February 6 to 8 and then later in the month, on February 19 and 20, two open practice sessions will take place, still on the same Sepang circuit (Malaysia).