Lewis Hamilton has expressed his excitement about the recent acquisition of MotoGP by Liberty Media and the potential for a joint event featuring the series alongside F1.
Seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton would like to experience an “epic” joint event involving both Formula 1 and its two-wheeled counterpart MotoGP, wherein they race on the same weekend following Liberty Media’s acquisition of the bike racing series.
Formula 1’s commercial rights holder Liberty Media recently finalized a $4.32 billion deal for the purchase of an 86% share in Dorna Sports which is MotoGP’s parent company.
Undoubtedly, rumours of a ground-breaking partnership between F1 and MotoGP and the preparation of a dual-feature race weekend have been fuelled by the American mass media company’s recent acquisition.
Despite several logistical challenges which include coordinating two major racing series that have very different technical requirements and safety concerns at the same venue would be an uphill task but Dorna CEO Carmelo Ezpeleta hasn’t ruled it out.
The MotoGP chief even acknowledged that he had been holding talks about reviewing the possibilities with his F1 colleague, Stefano Domenicali.
Formula 1 fans are intrigued by the possibility of a crossover, particularly Hamilton, an avid MotoGP enthusiast who supported the idea of a joint event featuring two of the most prestigious championships in motorsport.
In an interview with Autosport at the most recent F1 race at Suzuka, Hamilton stated that joint MotoGP and F1 races would be “epic” as he joked about having the opportunity to take part in both series on the same weekend.
“I didn’t really think a lot about it, [but] obviously I read the headlines about it,” Hamilton said at the Japanese Grand Prix. “I think Liberty has done an amazing job with Formula 1, obviously the value of the thing. So, I think they can do a great job with MotoGP.
“It’s exciting because I love MotoGP. It would be epic if we can have them on the same weekend.”
Hamilton—who finished the Suzuka race in ninth place, 48 seconds behind the winner, Max Verstappen—famously swapped his F1 car for Valentino Rossi’s Yamaha MotoGP bike at the Circuit Ricardo Tormo in Valencia at the end of the 2019 season.
On top of that, Hamilton has participated in motorcycle track days, including one with former Yamaha WorldSBK rider Alex Lowes ahead of the MotoGP race in Valencia. He has also owned several bikes, mostly MV Agustas, including a special edition Schiranna marquee Dragster naked.
“Maybe I could do a race in MotoGP and race a Formula 1 car on the same weekend – that would be really cool,” Hamilton joked.
The British driver is not the first person to have brought up the possibility of a joint event. Bobby Epstein, the owner of the Circuit of the Americas, has expressed his desire to host a joint F1 and MotoGP race on several occasions, most recently last week.
According to Epstein, a MotoGP-F1 crossover at the venue is probably not too far away as he intends to test the car-bike crossover with lower bike classes at first. Hamilton, who will be 40 years old as he begins his multi-year contract with Ferrari in 2025, might run out of time by the time the idea is implemented.
