Are tracks designed for F1 more dangerous for MotoGP riders?

I still remember where I was when Marco Simoncelli died.

It is a memory that will probably never not be diamond-etched in my brain. What else could SuperSic have accomplished had things been different that day in Malaysia? It’s unfair, and it’s cruel, especially to his family and friends who loved him.

It’s enough to make me catch and hold my breath every time I’ve seen a MotoGP crash since. Marc Marquez landing on his head at Mandalika in 2022 (surprise, surprise, he ended up with a concussion and his ongoing diplopia problems as a result) immediately comes to mind.

Likewise, I remember the sickening feeling that I and untold millions of fans around the world probably all felt at the same time when that spring from Rubens Barrichello’s car hit Felipe Massa back at the 2009 Hungarian GP. Thankfully, Massa both survived and recovered, though the debate over whether that incident fundamentally changed the trajectory of his Formula One career is one that will probably rage on forever.

As with Massa, so too was reigning MotoGP champion Jorge Martin incredibly lucky during the 2025 MotoGP Qatar round. The crash was undeniably horrifying, yes; but it could have been so much worse. I’m not the first person to have thought about Sic after seeing what happened to Martín, and I’m sure I won’t be the last. The fact that he was able to leave the hospital in Qatar after a week in the ICU and is returning home to Spain during the current Jerez MotoGP race weekend is nothing short of amazing.

All the more reason why Aprilia Racing CEO and current MotoGP World Championship Constructors’ Association president Massimo Rivola’s words at Jerez about the crash are incredibly striking.

“Martín went long at Turn 12. There is a kerb for cars there, and then there is asphalt. That’s how it went. With the grass, it would have been an almost banal slide,” Rivola said, but continued. “When you race at the same track as F1, it’s difficult to pretend too much. I remember once arguing with the then-circuit race director Charlie Whiting that putting tarmac on the run-offs is contrary to safety, as with gravel or grass it discourages you from using all the usable space. But, as I said, in the balance between F1 and MotoGP, F1 decides! Motorcycle racers must therefore be more careful.”

Jack Miller, Pramac Racing, crash at Spanish GP practice into the gravel trap there

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

Both Formula One and MotoGP feature racing’s crème de la crème on four and two wheels. But they’re very different sports, with different requirements of their tracks; both for safety, and for practicality of quickly driving or riding laps. Thankfully, crashes like Martín’s aren’t at all common. But still, it’s difficult not to ask if a safety compromise like that is an acceptable one to make.

It’s also somewhat ironic, given Rivola’s reminiscence of arguing with Charlie Whiting about tarmac versus gravel run-offs, that gravel traps started to make a Formula One comeback in place of tarmac in 2024. The about-face even began with one of the sport’s most iconic tracks of all time, Imola. Because even though the safety considerations and requirements for both sports are very different, at the end of the day, no racer or team or sporting director wants things to be more dangerous for racers.

Is there an acceptable middle ground to be found, given the stark differences between the sports and what happens when racers crash badly in them? If gravel traps can make a comeback, maybe there can be.