“Dorna working hard to give teams a lot of confidence” - Aspar

Jorge Martinez Aspar has praised Dorna’s handling of events since the coronavirus crisis began saying the plans to get the 2020 MotoGP season underway gives teams ‘a lot of confidence’ they will ride out the current struggles.

Almost two months after the 2020 MotoGP season was supposed to kick off in Qatar, no wheel has been turned in anger for the premier class with nations around the world still grappling with the effects of COVID-19 and the new social measures being introduced to protect communities.

However, negotiations behind the scenes are now well underway to get a formal starting date in the planner for events that will be held without spectators and in a heavily monitored environment to prevent any further outbreaks.

Though the Red Bull Ring in August was originally highlighted as a potential start date, it is believed Dorna could bring together one or more of the Spanish venues up to July to mark the beginning of the season.

It is a timeframe Aspar – who runs teams in Moto2, Moto3 and MotoE – gives him confidence his outfit will be able to see through the current troubles and negotiate new sponsorship deals.

“[Carmelo Ezpeleta is] the best manager in the world of sports,” Aspar told Radioestadio del Motor. “Not only for what he has done in the last 28 years, making motorcycling great, but for what he is showing - professionalism, seriousness. He has three plans in mind, to run only in Europe, to run in Asia, to repeat Grand Prix on the same circuit if necessary ... it is appreciated. It gives the teams a lot of confidence and peace of mind.

“He is helping us a lot financially. He is making us a monthly income so that we can pay the workers and cover part of the expenses. The number one priority now is for the World Cup to start, because once it starts and we know how many Grand Prix it will be, we can talk to the sponsors and put the numbers on the table.

“You can negotiate with the sponsors to give them more space on the bike, pass a part of the initial agreement to 2021 or remove an amount from the agreement for this year.”

For now, Dorna is focusing its efforts on a Europe-centric start to the season focusing on his heartland in Spain to limit the concerns over cross-national logistics, with talks underway to hold races at the Red Bull Ring and also Brno.