Empty Chairs: MotoGP's One-Minute Press Conference Draws Scrutiny

MotoGP's post-race press conference at Motegi on Sunday lasted barely a minute — and it has reignited an uncomfortable debate about the championship's media problem. With Marc Marquez, Jorge Martin and Marco Bezzecchi barely seated, Bezzecchi rushed off to catch a flight and the session was over almost before it began. Just one question was taken from the floor, about trying the hard tire before the warm-up — a notable topic after Michelin banned the soft compound following carcass tears for Martin and Francesco Bagnaia in the sprint. The Race's Simon Patterson attributed the sparse media presence to European journalists being unable to afford the trip, clashes with rider debrief schedules, and a leadership that doesn't "care all that much about the media." The contrast with Formula 1 — now under the same Liberty Media umbrella — was not lost on observers. For a championship staging one of the great title fights in recent memory, the empty chairs in the media room told their own story.