MotoGP Adds Electric Motorcycle Races

MotoGP, the Grand Prix motorcycle racing circuit, plans to add an all-electric offshoot for the 2019 season.

Five “support” races will be held the first year in Europe, Carmelo Ezpeleta, CEO of Dorna Sports (parent company to MotoGP and World SuperBike), tells Motorsport. He says four manufacturers have offered to supply motorcycles for the races, which will be a one-make series with each team getting identical bikes.

The electric championship series aims to have 18 electric motorcycles competing in each race at speeds as high as 124 mph, which would be slightly slower than current Moto3 bikes. Races will be at least 10 laps long.

The organizers want to use solar panels rather than generators to recharge competitors’ batteries.

Electric motorcycles have competed in motocross races and at the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb event for several years. The Isle of Man TT has included an all-electric race, TT Zero, since 2010.

The Federation Internationale de l’Automobile started the third season of its Formula E electric car race series last autumn. And the new Electric GT single-make series, which will use a track version of the Tesla Model S P100D EV, is due to kick off in November.