The family photo on the MotoGP grid was delayed as it lasted longer than expected on briefing between the drivers and Race Direction at the offices of the Portimao circuit, where the 2023 World Championship starts this weekend. During the meeting, The team led by Mike Webb warned the drivers that this year they intend to be more severe with the penalties imposed on the drivers, seeking to prevent the driver who is going on a fast lap from finding others in the middle of the line rolling slower than normal. And this, in the past, has generated controversy, especially because it has not always acted in the same way.
The meeting generated moments of tension between the drivers and the competition referees, bringing to the fore last year’s maneuver at the end of the Montmeló straight, where Takaaki Nakagami took Álex Rins and Francesco Bagnaia without receiving any sanction. The pilots have shown how baffled they are at times with the different yardsticks for similar penalties, all being clear that no two actions are generally the same.
It will be necessary to be vigilant and get used to the new way of penalizing the Race Direction, theoretically more severe, and always taking into account that the penalties that they carry will not be fulfilled in the sprint races on Saturdays but in the conventional ones on Sundays .