Does a short season change MotoGP title outcome?

The MotoGP World Championship planned to hold its biggest ever 20-round season in 2020.

Instead, coronavirus disruption means the season is yet to start and Dorna is now aiming for a revised calendar featuring a minimum of "12-13 rounds".

Those races would all be held in Europe, with any additional overseas events to be decided by September and dependent upon the presence of spectators.

But how much impact would a shorter season have had on the MotoGP title outcome in previous years?

Considering the 12-round target recently quoted by Dorna CEO Carmelo Ezpeleta - but also that there is no minimum race limit under the present 'emergency' scenario - here is a look at the world championship leader after 6 races, 12 races and the full season for each year of the 'MotoGP' era.

The stats show that for 16 of the 18 years, the outcome of the world championship would not have changed had the title been awarded after 12 rounds. The only years where the leader after 12 rounds did not go on to be crowned champion was 2015 and 2017.

Surprisingly perhaps, for 13 of the 18 seasons, the champion would have been unchanged if crowned as early as round six.

Either way, 2020 will certainly be unique, with the 'traditional' order of the circuits shaken up, plans to hold two races at the same track (on consecutive weekends) and a tech freeze...

* Top but equal on points with Gibernau.
** Top but equal on points with Hayden.
*** Top but equal on points with Lorenzo and Stoner.