Motorsport – whilst it may not be one of God's beautiful creations like mankind, wildlife and nature, it sure is one of man's most beautiful creations and having religiously watched it every year since I was a little boy, I can guarantee you that the debate that is about to unravel will rock your brains for the foreseeable future.
Formula One has been the standard-barer in terms of racing cars ever since time began... okay that may be a slight exaggeration but ever since the 1950's, F1 has never been dethroned. The likes of Juan Manuel Fangio, Ayrton Senna, Alain Prost, Michael Schumacher, Sebastian Vettel and of course, current World Champion, Lewis Hamilton, have all contributed to making Formula One the prestigious and thriving business that it is today.
Then you have MotoGP. Motorcycle racing has been around for years now and anoraks who have been watching this quick and feisty sport now over the years have become addicted to wheel-to-wheel action, a never-ending battle over the lead and unpredictability in every sense of the word. Riders like Valentino Rossi, Casey Stoner and more recently, current World Champion, Marc Marquez have stamped their authority in the sport which continues to grow in popularity each and every single day.
For years and years now, motorsport fans have gone back and forth debating one of the oldest arguments in the book – which sport is more entertaining? Formula One or MotoGP? Both sets of fans have their reasons for their motorsport being more entertaining than the other. We decided to take a look at both sides of the debate.
If you query most motorsport fans, many will say MotoGP is leaps and bounds in front of Formula One if you are discussing which has more entertainment value. Even some of the most loyal F1 fans will admit their motorsport has some catching up to do if it is to stop seeing those loyal fans become casual fans year after year. Why? Well, first of all, MotoGP is divided into standardised units. Whilst MotoGP will begin using these next year, Moto2 and Moto3 have already begun and the racing going on in these categories has been sublime to watch on a regular basis. Racing has become a lot more evenly matched, therefore the competition in the sport has increased and the race for victory has become a lot more interesting. Formula One need to introduce the same format to prevent costs escalating and therefore they can spend money on improving other areas like electrical units or gearboxes. This would make the cars more competitive and provide with a better chance of getting a better resul t.
MotoGP also provides the riders further down the grid with an incentive to race for. Whilst many fans pay attention to those on the podium, there are still those fans who focus on every little piece of the puzzle and in MotoGP, the fans appreciate seeing those on open-class motorcycles receive rewards for their hard efforts. Therefore, would it really hurt Formula One in introducing something similar? Whilst three classes like MotoGP may be a little too much for Formula One due to the size of the cars in comparison to the motorcycles and it's rich tradition, it wouldn't be a bad idea throwing in some factory teams to provide them with a purpose or incentive to race for as opposed to battling it out to avoid coming last and being lapped on countless occasions. A lot of interesting battles happen further down the field but half the time, nobody cares as there is no reward – imagine if there was a reward...
Overtaking is another big issue F1 struggles with in comparison to MotoGP. Overtaking in MotoGP is a commentator's worst nightmare at times. Sometimes there is so much of it going on, a commentator doesn't know where to begin on what move happened first or where it happened whereas in Formula One, a commentator could end up discussing so many different topics because of the lack of action going on on the circuit thus making the topic of overtaking not come up in conversation. This is due to a number of reasons – teams being very tactical with pit stops, drivers going defensive, circuits being too difficult to overtake on and drivers trying to stay within the rules of the sport. Whilst MotoGP is the same to a certain degree, there is also a lot more room for them on the circuits to race on, it can be very difficult in trying to defend other riders – especially if there is more than one and it's much harder for them to collide and therefore, they are less likely to break the rules and more likely to risk more in order to gain a better result – F1 needs to take notes and race around circuits that allow overtaking more commonly and some teams need to step up their game.
On the other hand, Formula One is more entertaining than MotoGP in certain aspects of the sport. Whilst it doesn't occur as commonly as it does in MotoGP, when big four or five-car battles ensue for position in Formula One, it is a lot more interesting to watch than a four or five-motor-cycle battle for position as there is a higher risk of the car crashing in comparison to the motorcycle. The cars are bigger and, therefore more at risk of making contacting with the other cars around it due to the size of it as there is a lot more to hit whereas the motorcycles are smaller.
Pit-stops are another exciting factor of Formula One. This involves a car coming in for fresh tyres and allowing the driver a brief chance to regroup. Things become even more interesting if the driver or a member of the pit crew make a mistake as it can affect the race order and send the driver further down the field. The build up and anticipation when the leader pits prior to the chasing car pitting is very exciting too in order to see who comes out ahead of who – sometimes this can be nail-bitingly close and keeps racing fans firmly on the edges of their seats.
Whilst Formula One is more recognised as a motorsport and in many eyes is considered the number one motorsport in the world, you can't deny that it has a lot of catching up to do with MotoGP in terms of entertainment value. MotoGP provides fans with unpredictability, a lot of overtaking and rewards for riders throughout the field and it wouldn't hurt Formula One in following its lead in certain areas.
Let us know which motorsport is more entertaining to you. Leave your comment below.
