Motorcycle racing’s pinnacle is up for grabs at the season-ending Valencia MotoGP this weekend in a race which also marks the end of BBC Sport and British Eurosport’s long associations with the series.
The final round of the 2013 season comes from the 2.5-mile Circuit Ricardo Tormo in eastern Spain and fight for the world title is going down to the wire with fittingly two Spanish riders going head to head for the greatest prize in motorcycling.
Rookie Honda rider Marc Marquez leads the championship with 13 points and is aiming to become the youngest man to win the title since Freddie Spencer in 1983.
Meanwhile, two-time MotoGP world champion Jorge Lorenzo is looking to defend the crown he won last year.
Since the World Championship series was introduced in 1949, there have been 15 occasions on which the premier-class title has been decided at the final race of the year.
Championship leader Marquez is in pole position to secure a historic title but Spanish compatriot Lorenzo is hot on his heels after winning four of the last six races.
Marquez has won only once in the past six races, meaning a 44-point lead over Lorenzo has been trimmed to 13 with one race left.
He will be boosted by his previous form at Valencia, having pulled off a remarkable victory from the back of the field in his title-winning Moto2 campaign last year.
The BBC and British Eurosport will broadcast extensive coverage of the conclusion to a scintillating MotoGP season this week as riders descend on Valencia for the final round.
It will be the last time that both channels cover a MotoGP race weekend as the broadcast rights to the series pass over exclusively to BT Sport from the 2014 season onwards.
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Matt Roberts (@matt77roberts) – BBC Presenter
Ready to roll again now, getting ready for the last #MotoGP on the BBC!! Bring it on boys @lorenzo99 @marcmarquez93 #showdown#Valencia
Azi Farni (@AziFarniBBC) – BBC Pit-Lane Reporter
Getting ready for the last BBC MotoGP race! Can’t think of a better way for BBC to bow out than a champ decider.. It’s been a great ride :)
Julian Ryder (@MotoGPJules) – British Eurosport Commentator
Started paperwork for Valencia. Strange to think it’ll be final Eurosport broadcast. Still, 14 years isn’t a bad run…
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BBC TV has covered MotoGP for the past decade and has significantly increased its coverage over subsequent years from its place in the early days as filler in Sunday Grandstand.
Suzi Perry, now the BBC’s host of Formula 1, was the face for the majority of the corporation’s coverage of the series before she stood down at the end of 2009, with Jennie Gow taking over 2010 and pit-lane reporter Matt Roberts then taking over from 2011 onwards.
As the popularity of the series grew in the UK during the era of Valentino Rossi’s domination, the BBC decided to drop its World and British Superbikes coverage and solely focus on the premier class from 2005 onwards and the series has been a staple of BBC Two’s Sunday afternoon schedules ever since.
From the 2014 season, sports broadcasting newcomers BT Sport will cover the entire championship exclusively in the UK and has promised to screen every on-track session live throughout the season, plus offer fans new innovations and behind-the-scenes access.
BT Sport’s on-air presenting team for the 2014 season is expected to be announced shortly.
While for some the focus heads towards next year, motorcycle fans can expect a thrilling finale to this season as the Valencia Grand Prix brings the curtain down on a pulsating championship battle, as well as the BBC and Eurosport’s long association with MotoGP.
BBC Sport will bring its coverage of the series to end by broadcasting extensive live free-to-air coverage of its final MotoGP race weekend on television and online.
The live action begins on Friday with the practices sessions live via the BBC Sport website, available on PCs, laptops, via the mobile app and on the BBC Sport app for Connected TVs.
At the weekend, Matt Roberts presents the BBC’s qualifying and race day programmes which will both be shown on BBC Two respectively.
For Sunday’s live race show on BBC Two, there will be the usual half-an-hour pre-race show building up to the start at 1.00pm, plus an extra half-an-hour of post-race reaction via the Red Button in MotoGP Extra at 2.00pm.
Charlie Cox and Steve Parrish lead the BBC commentary team for the last time while Azi Farni provides the latest news, interviews and updates from the pit lane.
All the action on BBC network TV will be shown in high-definition on BBC Two HD, plus the BBC Sport website has live streaming of all BBC televised sessions, as well as the latest news and video from the circuit during the weekend.
British Eurosport will also have the action covered from the Valencia MotoGP as the season draws to an exciting climax in Spain.
Qualifying and Moto2/3 races will be shown live and there will be delayed coverage of Friday practice and Sunday’s MotoGP race.
Commentary on all sessions comes from the popular duo of Toby Moody and Julian Ryder, with further contributions from Steve Day and Neil Spalding.
After 23 years of broadcasting motorcycle racing’s premier class, Eurosport will celebrate some of the best moments following the conclusion to the MotoGP race on Sunday.
Toby Moody and Julian Ryder have chosen the 2006 Portuguese Grand Prix in Estoril as their favourite MotoGP race covered by Eurosport.
In a special programme as part of the end of the channel’s coverage, they will look back at the unforgettable drama of that race in 2006 which culminated in a thrilling three-way last lap victory battle between Kenny Roberts, Valentino Rossi and Toni Elias.
Following the delayed Valencia MotoGP race broadcast, a short compilation of the best moments from recent years will wrap up British Eurosport’s MotoGP coverage.
The Valencia race will be the final time that Moody and Ryder will commentate together on Eurosport and the duo have fond memories of their time together working for the channel.
Toby: “I joined when I was 23 in 1996 and went to the first race that year which was in Malaysia and I was put on a six race probation period and here I am 18 years later!
“The highlights are being lucky enough to make lots of friends and of course to commentate with Julian.”
Ryder said: “It’s been a pleasure working with Toby all these years.
“It feels like we’ve been working longer than I’ve been married! We have a wonderful long term relationship where I lead him to the things he’s good at and he leads me to the things I’m good at.
“It’s always been a pleasure working for Eurosport and working with people who are passionate about sport in general and MotoGP in particular. How can that be anything other than just fun?”
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Friday 8th November
MotoGP: Free Practice 1
LIVE: 8.50am-9.40am BBC Sport Website
MotoGP: Free Practice 2
LIVE: 12.10pm-2.50pm BBC Sport Website / 12.05pm-3.00pm British Eurosport 2
Saturday 9th November
MotoGP: Free Practice 3
LIVE: 8.50am-9.40am BBC Sport Website
Moto3 Qualifying / MotoGP Free Practice 4
LIVE: 11.20am-1.00pm BBC Red Button / 11.30am-1.00pm British Eurosport 2
MotoGP QualifyingLIVE: 1.00pm-2.00pm BBC Two / British Eurosport 2 Moto2 Qualifying LIVE: 2.00pm-3.00pm BBC Sport Website / British Eurosport 2 Sunday 10th November Moto3 Race | Start: 10:00 LIVE: 9.45am-11.05am BBC Red Button / British Eurosport 2 Moto3 Race | Start: 11:20 LIVE: 11.05am-12.25pm BBC Red Button / British Eurosport 2 MOTOGP: Valencia Grand Prix – RACE | Start: 13:00 LIVE: 12.30pm-2.00pm BBC Two Delayed: 2.00pm-3.30pm British Eurosport 2 MotoGP Extra LIVE: 2.00pm-2.30pm BBC Red Button MotoGP Classics: Portugal 2006 12.25pm-1.15pm British Eurosport 2 . .
