Show Notes
MotoGP is getting stale. Will new tires, and bikes fix it? Or should we be changing something else? Dorna (MSEG), are you listening!?Let's break down why the current MotoGP weekend format is "spoiling" the Sunday show before the weekend even starts. Between the high-pressure Friday afternoon sessions and a Sprint race that serves as a movie trailer for the Grand Prix, the sport is stuck in a predictable loop.We’re proposing a ground-up fix to the weekend schedule:The "Free" Practice Lie: Why Friday afternoon has become a "Pre-Qualifying" nightmare that ruins the narrative.The F1-Style Knockout: Our plan to move to a knockout qualifying system to keep the pressure on the track, not the clock.The Sprint Shake-up: Why we should use Sprint Race Lap Times to set the Sunday grid. Imagine a rider crashing out, getting back on track, and setting a flyer just to save their Sunday—that’s the drama we’re missing.Bonus "Spicy" Points: A 3-2-1 point system for the fastest laps to keep the mid-pack fighting until the checkered flag.We’ve taken your research and comments into account, from BSB to World Superbike, to build a format that prioritizes the fan experience without sacrificing the sport's integrity.Dorna, are you listening? Let us know your "crazy" ideas for fixing the format in the comments. Is our F1-style knockout the answer, or is there a better way?00:00 The Problem with MotoGP Fridays01:45 How the Current System Benefits "The Big Teams"03:10 Why the Sprint Race "Gives Away the Ending"04:20 Proposal: The F1-Style Knockout System06:15 The Twist: Lap Times vs. Finishing Position08:30 Bonus Points & Incentivizing the Mid-Pack10:15 Dorna, Are You Listening?#MotoGP #TheBrakingZone #MotorcycleRacing #MotoGP2026 #RacingNews #MotoGPAnalysis
More from CanyonChasers Podcast // The Braking Zone
Enter to win the Moto Guzzi V85TT: https://fanathem.com/canyonchasers - Ducati’s factory team just ran away with the most dominant World Superbike season ever, and we think it exposes a bigger problem. When the Panigale V4 R is basically a GP bike you can buy for $50k, why would Yamaha, Kawasaki, or Honda spend millions to show up and lose? We dig into the tech that makes the Ducati so good (twin pulse firing order, counter-rotating crank, electronics that add rear brake mid-corner), why fuel flow limits haven’t slowed it down, and what we’d do with the series if it were up to us. Spoiler: more power, fewer rider aids, worse tires.
Enter to win the Moto Guzzi V85 TT at https://fanathem.com/canyonchasers - Dave spent the week at Barber Vintage Motorcycle Days riding Honda's new CB1000F alongside Freddie Spencer, the only rider to win the 250 and 500 world championships in the same season. We get into how Honda deliberately tuned character into this engine (mismatched velocity stacks for a two-tone intake note, offset cam timing, carburetor-style fueling), why Dave came away liking it more than expected after his long-term time on the Hornet SP, and what it actually takes to keep pace at a press launch on a bike and road you've never seen.
There's a new bike in the garage: a 2021 Ducati Panigale V2, bought to replace an Aprilia RSV4 Factory as a club race bike. We talk about the first track days on a completely bone stock V2 (slicks only), what the Showa Big Piston Fork does well on the brakes and where it falls apart mid-corner, and why racers ditch BPF internals for cartridges.
Motegi wasn't an exciting weekend, but it was a fascinating one. A brand new track surface, a Michelin rear tire that came apart in the sprint, and a hard-carcass "safety tire" that not one rider mounted until Sunday warm up, which turned out to be the tire they should have been on all weekend.
Royal Enfield might be the heritage motorcycle Harley buyers think they're getting, and after 800 miles of Route 66 on a Classic 650, Dave has thoughts. The CanyonChasers Podcast is back.