The 75th FIM Road Racing World Championship - or MotoGP as it has been known since 2002 - is just around the corner. The race to be champion is a wide-open betting heat with four riders priced at single-figure odds to emerge on top at the end of the 21-race campaign.
A major revamp of the weekend format sees a Saturday sprint race introduced at every round with points on offer to the top-nine riders, adjusting to that will be key in deciding the fate of the championship.
There has been something of a changing of the guard in recent seasons, and the last four years have seen four different riders claim the spoils, but Ducati's Francesco Bagnaia heads the market to retain his riders title.
Here is all the information you need to know before the season kicks off in the Algarve at the end of the month.
| What | 2023 MotoGP season |
| Where | Across the world |
| When | Sunday 26th March - Sunday 26th November |
| How to watch | All races live on BT Sport |
| Odds | Francesco Bagnaia 2/1, Marc Marquez 13/5, Enea Bastianini 16/5, Fabio Quartararo 13/2, Jorge Martin 11/1 |
What is the 2023 MotoGP schedule?
Pre-season testing took place in Malaysia last month, with a further two-day test this weekend at Portimao ahead of the opening race at the same circuit on Sunday 26th March.
The 21-race calendar includes the series' inaugural visits to Kazakhstan in July and India in September, with the final round taking place in Valencia on Sunday 26th November.
MotoGP 2023 calendar
- 24th-26th March: Portuguese Grand Prix (Portimao)
- 31st March-2nd April: Argentinian Grand Prix (Termas de Rio Honda)
- 14th-16th April: Grand Prix of the Americas (Austin, TX)
- 28th-30th April: Spanish Grand Prix (Jerez)
- 12th-14th May: French Grand Prix (Le Mans)
- 9th-11th June: Italian Grand Prix (Mugello)
- 16th-18th June: German Grand Prix (Sachsenring)
- 23rd-25th June: Dutch TT (Assen)
- 7th-9th July: Kazakh Grand Prix (Almaty)
- 4th-6th August: British Grand Prix (Silverstone)
- 18th-20th August: Austrian Grand Prix (Spielberg)
- 1st-3rd September: Catalan Grand Prix (Barcelona)
- 8th-10th September: San Marino Grand Prix (Misano)
- 22nd-24th September: Indian Grand Prix (Buddh International)
- 29th September-1st October: Japanese Grand Prix (Motegi)
- 13th-15th October: Indonesian Grand Prix (Mandalika)
- 20th-22nd October: Australian Grand Prix (Phillip Island)
- 27th-29th October: Thai Grand Prix (Buriram)
- 10th-12th November: Malaysian Grand Prix (Sepang)
- 17th-19th November: Qatar Grand Prix (Lusail)
- 24th-26th November: Valencia Grand Prix (Valencia)
What happened in the 2022 season?
The early part of the season saw defending champion Fabio Quartararo battle Aprilia rider Aleix Espargaro for supremacy. The pair clashed in the Dutch TT, with Frenchman Quartararo retiring from the race and being handed a penalty to be taken at the next round, but the Yamaha rider went into the summer break with a 21-point advantage.
Ducati's Francesco Bagnaia got the bit between his teeth at this point, rattling off four-straight wins to move up to second in the standings, 30 points behind Quartararo with six races remaining.
Bagnaia's victory at the penultimate round in Malaysia would be the only subsequent race either of them won, but that result saw the Italian take the lead in the championship and ensure that his ninth-place finish at the season-ending Valencia Grand Prix was enough to hang on for the title.
Overall, seven different riders won at least one race, while a new record was set with ten different riders recording a pole position.
What are the rider line-up changes for 2023?
Enea Bastianini, who picked up four wins for the satellite Ducati team last year, is promoted to the world champion factory squad alongside Bagnaia. Bastianini replaces Australian Jack Miller, who moves to KTM.
Suzuki have withdrawn from MotoGP, but their riders Alex Rins and 2020 champion Joan Mir switch to the former powerhouse Honda factory team.
2023 MotoGP riders & teams
Ducati
Francesco Bagnaia
Enea Bastianini
Yamaha
Fabio Quartararo
Franco Morbidelli
Aprilia
Maverick Vinales
Aleix Espargaro
Honda
Joan Mir
Marc Marquez
KTM
Brad Binder
Jack Miller
RNF Aprilia
Raul Fernandez
Miguel Oliveira
Pramac Ducati
Johann Zarco
Jorge Martin
Gresini Ducati
Fabio Di Giannantonio
Alex Marquez
Mooney VR46 Ducati
Luca Marini
Marco Bezzecchi
GasGas Tech3 KTM
Augusto Fernandez
Pol Espargaro
LCR Honda
Takaaki Nakagami
Alex Rins
Where to watch the 2023 season
In the UK, all practice, qualifying, sprint races and grands prix will be shown live on BT Sport.
A highlights package will be broadcast on terrestrial free-to-air, but the carrier has yet to be announced.
Who are the favourites for 2023?
Defending champ Bagnaia heads the market at 2/1 to become the first rider since 2019 to successfully defend their title, but it's a wide-open market with any number of other potential winners.
Interestingly, Marc Marquez is second-favourite at 13/5. One of the all-time greats, Marquez burst onto the scene in 2013, taking the title in his first season in the premier class and adding five more championships over the next six years.
However, the Spaniard has been beset with injuries since 2020, missing races in all of the last three seasons. Even if he is back to 100% fitness - and that is a big if - it must be questionable whether he retains all his speed, while his Honda team failed to win a race last season.
Quartararo saw a sizable advantage bleed away in the latter half of 2022 and the 2021 champion will be eager to regain his title. However, Yamaha's lack of power could make that a tough task for him.
Ducati start the year with a likely performance advantage and Bastianini is an exciting prospect at 16/5. His partnership with fellow Italian team-mate Bagnaia could be a dominant one, but there's also the potential for fireworks which, while great for viewers, could hurt their championship chances.
At 33/1, Aleix Espargaro could go well. The Aprilia rider was in the championship hunt for a long time last year, and his consistency will be a big asset now that there are twice as many points-paying races with a sprint at every event.
