The 2020 European motorcycle Grand Prix (officially known as the Gran Premio de Europa) was the thirteenth round of the

2020 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season The 2020 FIM MotoGP World Championship was the premier class of the 72nd F.I.M. Road Racing World Championship season. The season was notably characterized by the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, the absence of perennial title favourite M ...

and the twelfth round of the

2020 MotoGP World Championship The 2020 FIM MotoGP World Championship was the premier class of the 72nd F.I.M. Road Racing World Championship season. The season was notably characterized by the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, the absence of perennial title favourite Mar ...

. It was held at the

Circuit Ricardo Tormo Circuit Ricardo Tormo, also known as ''Circuit de Valencia'' and officially named ''Circuit de la Comunitat Valenciana Ricardo Tormo'', is a motorsport race track located in Cheste (Valencian Community, Spain) and built in 1999. The track is n ...

Cheste Cheste (Valencian language, Valencian: Xest) is a Municipalities of Spain, municipality in the Comarques of the Valencian Community, ''comarca'' of Hoya de Buñol in the Valencia (autonomous community), Valencian Community, Spain, located 26 ...

on 8 November 2020.

Background

Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic

The opening rounds of the

2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, COVID- ...

championship have been heavily affected by the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

. Several Grands Prix were cancelled or postponed after the aborted opening round in Qatar, prompting the Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme to draft a new calendar. A new calendar based exclusively in Europe was announced on 11 June. The organizers of the Valencian Community Grand Prix have signed a contract with

Dorna Sports Dorna Sports, S.L. is the commercial rights' holder for the motorcycling sport of Grand Prix racing. Established in 1988 as an international sports management and marketing company, it is headquartered in Madrid, with branch offices and/or subs ...

, owner of the commercial rights of the sport, to host a double stage at

, becoming the fifth circuit to host two consecutive races of the World Championship, and is the third time it takes place in

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

. But unlike the other double events of the season, the original Grand Prix will be preceded by the round introduced by the new calendar. The name chosen is that of the

European Grand Prix The European Grand Prix (also known as the Grand Prix of Europe) was a Formula One event that was introduced during the mid-1980s and was held every year from to , except in . During these years, the European Grand Prix was held in a countr ...

, which returns to the world championship for the first time since

1995 File:1995 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: O.J. Simpson is O. J. Simpson murder case, acquitted of the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman from the 1994, year prior in "The Trial of the Century" in the United States; The ...

MotoGP Championship standings before the race

After the eleventh round at the Teruel Grand Prix,

Joan Mir Joan Mir Mayrata () (born 1 September 1997) is a Spanish Grand Prix motorcycle racer riding for the Repsol Honda Team, who is best known for winning the 2020 MotoGP World Championship with Suzuki. He is the fourth Spanish rider to win the premie ...

leads the drivers' standings with 137 points, 14 more than

Fabio Quartararo Fabio Quartararo (; born 20 April 1999), nicknamed El Diablo, is a French Grand Prix motorcycle rider racing in MotoGP for Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP. Having won the 2021 MotoGP World Championship, he is the first French World Champion in th ...

and 19 more than

Maverick Viñales Maverick Viñales Ruiz (; born 12 January 1995) is a Spanish Grand Prix motorcycle racer. Viñales is the 2013 Moto3 World Champion, currently riding in MotoGP for the Aprilia Racing team, after five seasons as a MotoGP factory rider with the ...

Franco Morbidelli Franco Morbidelli (born 4 December 1994) is an Italian Grand Prix motorcycle racer in MotoGP, riding for Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP team. He became champion in the 2013 European Superstock 600 Championship, and the 2017 Moto2 World Championsh ...

, after the victory in the Teruel stage, gains two positions and is fourth with 112 points and has three points against

Andrea Dovizioso Andrea Dovizioso (born 23 March 1986) is an Italian former professional motorcycle racer. He raced with WithU Yamaha RNF MotoGP Team for the 2022 season but announced his intended-retirement after the Misano round in September. Dovizioso was t ...

, now fifth. In the constructors' classification, following the 50-point penalty imposed on

Yamaha Yamaha may refer to: * Yamaha Corporation, a Japanese company with a wide range of products and services, established in 1887. The company is the largest shareholder of Yamaha Motor Company (below). ** Yamaha Music Foundation, an organization estab ...

for failing to comply with the protocol that requires unanimous approval from the Motorcycle Sport Manufacturers Association (MSMA) for technical modifications (Yamaha would have changed valve specifications between the freezing of the homologation just before the abandoned round in Qatar and the opening round at Jerez),

Ducati Ducati Motor Holding S.p.A. () is the motorcycle-manufacturing division of Italian company Ducati, headquartered in Bologna, Italy. The company is directly owned by Italian automotive manufacturer Lamborghini, whose German parent company is Au ...

is the new leader with 171 points, followed by

Suzuki is a Japan, Japanese multinational corporation headquartered in Minami-ku, Hamamatsu, Japan. Suzuki manufactures automobiles, motorcycles, All-terrain vehicle, all-terrain vehicles (ATVs), outboard motor, outboard marine engines, wheelchairs ...

at 163 points and

, which has lost the championship lead and now third at 158 points.

Honda is a Japanese public multinational conglomerate manufacturer of automobiles, motorcycles, and power equipment, headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. Honda has been the world's largest motorcycle manufacturer since 1959, reaching a product ...

and

KTM KTM AG (Kraftfahrzeug Trunkenpolz Mattighofen, formerly KTM Sportmotorcycle AG) is an Austrian motorcycle, bicycle and sports car manufacturer owned by Pierer Mobility AG and the Indian manufacturer Bajaj Auto. It was formed in 1992 but traces ...

are fourth and fifth respectively at 143 and 117 points, while

Aprilia Aprilia is an Italian motorcycle manufacturer founded immediately after World War II in Noale, Italy, by Alberto Beggio. The company started as a manufacturer of bicycles and moved on to manufacture scooters and small-capacity motorcycles. ...

closes the standings with 36 points. In the team standings, Team Suzuki Ecstar leads with 242 points. Petronas Yamaha SRT and Monster Energy Yamaha, following the penalties of 37 and 20 points for technical modifications on their bikes, are respectively second (with 198 points) and fifth (with 156 points), the latter relegated by one position and overtaken by KTM Factory Racing by only one point. Ducati Team is third with 180 points.

MotoGP Entrants

Stefan Bradl Stefan Bradl (born 29 November 1989) is a German professional motorcycle racer. Bradl is best known for winning the Moto2 World Champion. Then he made the move to MotoGP in 2012 with LCR Honda. While in MotoGP, Bradl is best known for his per ...

replaced Marc Márquez for the tenth straight race while the latter recovered from injuries sustained in his opening round crash. * Aprilia test rider and former World Superbike rider

Lorenzo Savadori Lorenzo Savadori (born 4 April 1993) is a motorcycle racer from Italy, He was the 2015 FIM Superstock 1000 Cup winner and thItalia 2020 CIV Superbike Champion acting as test rider for Aprilia with occasional wild card race entries. For the 2021 ...

has been announced to replace Bradley Smith for the final three rounds in Valencia and Portugal, subsequently excluding

Andrea Iannone Andrea Iannone (born 9 August 1989) is an Italian professional motorcycle racer who competed in the MotoGP World Championship from 2013 to 2019. Iannone is a race winner in MotoGP, Moto2 and 125 cc World Championships. After winning 4 races ...

from a start in 2020. *

Iker Lecuona Iker Lecuona Gascón (born 6 January 2000) is a Spanish motorcycle racer, who currently competes in the 2022 Superbike World Championship for Honda Racing Corporation, on a CBR1000RR-R. He spent two seasons in MotoGP, from to with KTM Tech3. ...

is forced to miss the European Grand Prix due to Andorran quarantine rules, after his brother and assistant both tested positive for the SARS-CoV-2 virus.

Tech3 Tech3 is a motorcycle racing team competing in the MotoGP class World Championship under the name Tech3 GasGas Factory Racing. They also compete in the Moto3 World Championship under the name Red Bull KTM Tech3 and the MotoE World Cup under the ...

elected not to replace him on such short notice. * After delays to

Valentino Rossi Valentino Rossi (; ; born 16 February 1979) is an Italian former professional motorcycle road racer and nine-time Grand Prix motorcycle racing World Champion. Nicknamed ''The Doctor'', he is widely considered to be one of the greatest motorcyc ...

's SARS-CoV-2 recovery, Yamaha World Superbike rider

Garrett Gerloff Garrett Gerloff (born August 1, 1995) is an American motorcycle racer who has competed in the Superbike World Championship since 2020. He rides a Yamaha YZF-R1. He was a two-time champion MotoAmerica in the Supersport class after taking first pla ...

was announced initially to replace Rossi at the European Grand Prix. Gerloff completed the Friday sessions of free practice, before two subsequent negative tests from Rossi allowed him to return to the paddock beginning with the third practice session on Saturday.

Free practice

MotoGP

The first session, held in wet conditions,

Jack Miller Jack Miller may refer to: Military * Jack Miller (USMC officer) (1920–1942), American marine soldier * Jack Duppa-Miller (1903–1994), British recipient of the George Cross in World War II, originally called Jack Miller * USS ''Jack Miller'', ...

was the fastest ahead of

and

. In the second session, on a dry track, Miller confirmed his leadership in the standings ahead of

Aleix Espargaró Aleix Espargaró Villà (born 30 July 1989) is a Spanish Grand Prix motorcycle road racer. He was thSpanish 2004 FIM CEV 125cc International Champion and currently competes in the MotoGP class for Aprilia Racing team. Career Espargaró was bo ...

and Morbidelli. The third session, held in wet conditions,

Johann Zarco Johann Zarco (born 16 July 1990) is a French Grand Prix motorcycle racer, best known for winning the and Moto2 World Championships with his 2015 triumph being a record points total for the intermediate class. He rides for Pramac Racing. Zarc ...

set the best time ahead of

and

Takaaki Nakagami is a Japanese Grand Prix motorcycle racer, competing for LCR Honda Idemitsu in MotoGP. He won the Japanese Road Race Championship 125cc class in 2006 and J-GP2 class in 2011. Career Early career Born in Chiba, Nakagami joined the Japanese Ro ...

Combined Free Practice 1-2-3

The top ten riders (written in bold) qualified in Q2. Personal Best lap ;Notes *

participated in the first two sessions having been initially chosen by Yamaha as a replacement for Valentino Rossi (his best times were in FP1 1:43.645, in FP2 1:34.107). In the fourth session

Miguel Oliveira Miguel Ângelo Falcão de Oliveira (; born 4 January 1995) is a Portuguese professional motorcycle racer who competes in the MotoGP World Championship for RNF MotoGP Team, getting the step up from KTM Tech3,

was the fastest ahead of

and Miller.

Qualifying

MotoGP

;Notes * –

and

set identical times in Q2; Aleix Espargaró was classified ahead as he set his lap time before Miller. * –

received a 3-place grid penalty for ignoring blue flags. * –

received a penalty for the start of the pit lane for changing the engine and mounting the sixth of the season.

Warm up

MotoGP

In the warm up,

was the fastest ahead of

and

Race

MotoGP

Moto2

* Augusto Fernández suffered a foot injury in a crash during practice and withdrew from the event. * Jake Dixon suffered a fractured right wrist in a crash during practice and withdrew from the event.

Moto3

Albert Arenas Albert Arenas Ovejero (born 11 December 1996) is a Spanish motorcycle racer set to compete in the 2023 Moto2 World Championship, riding for Red Bull KTM Ajo. He won the 2020 Moto3 World Championship. Career Moto3 World Championship Arenas debut ...

was black flagged for irresponsible riding.

Championship standings after the race

Below are the standings for the top five riders, constructors, and teams after the round.

MotoGP

;Riders' Championship standings ;Constructors' Championship standings ;Teams' Championship standings

Moto2

;Riders' Championship standings ;Constructors' Championship standings ;Teams' Championship standings

Moto3

;Riders' Championship standings ;Constructors' Championship standings ;Teams' Championship standings

Notes

References

External links

* {{MotoGP 2020–29

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

European motorcycle Grand Prix The European motorcycle Grand Prix was a motorcycling event that was introduced as part of the Grand Prix motorcycle racing World Championship from 1991 to 1995. From 1996 onward the event was replaced by the Catalan Grand Prix. In 2020, the even ...

European motorcycle Grand Prix