Sign up for free

  • Get quick access to your favorite articles

  • Manage alerts on breaking news and favorite drivers

  • Make your voice heard with article commenting.

Edition

Global Global

Liberty Media can’t follow its F1 play to boost MotoGP’s popularity

MotoGP’s Dan Rossomondo says Liberty Media has bought something “unique” with its purchase of the series, and warns that the same growth strategy won't "necessarily work twice”

Start action

Start action

Photo by: Alexander Trienitz

MotoGP’s chief commercial officer Dan Rossomondo believes Liberty Media’s arrival will boost the championship’s global reach without compromising its essence.

Just under a month ago, Liberty Media completed the acquisition of 84% of Dorna, the rights holder of MotoGP, after the European Commission finally gave the green light to a deal that dragged on much longer than both parties had initially expected.

In the four weeks since, internal movement within Dorna has accelerated, especially in the commercial and marketing areas, two divisions that are a key focus for Liberty during this initial stage.

At the helm of the commercial department is Rossomondo, who took up the role just over two years ago after being recruited directly from the NBA.

The investigation launched by Brussels to assess whether the acquisition of Dorna complied with antitrust laws had forced both parties into silence, but as MotoGP enters a new phase, one of the first questions is how the championship will change under Liberty – and if it will adopt some of the strategies used in Formula 1.

“Liberty and I both understand that the same strategy doesn’t necessarily work twice. It has to be unique to our sport. We have a set of characteristics that are different from theirs [F1],” Rossomondo explained in an interview with Blackbook Motorsport.

Dan Rossomondo

Dan Rossomondo

Photo by: Gold and Goose Photography / LAT Images / via Getty Images

“The people at Liberty are very smart; they know they have something unique and don’t want to ruin it. I believe they’re going to spend a lot of time understanding the business and who we are. I don’t think they’re going to try to overly commercialise the sport. They recognise certain patterns across both properties that might make sense and that we could take advantage of, but they can’t be the same.”

On a personal note, Rossomondo acknowledges that Liberty’s support - particularly its F1 experience - can be of great help in his ambition to expand MotoGP, a goal set to go hand in hand with a push to raise popularity, which would inevitably lead to greater interest from sponsors. Ultimately, that would translate into an increase in overall revenue.

“We need to focus on non-endemic partnerships. We’re doing very well, but we have to get brands to say: ‘I want to use MotoGP to market my product.’ [Liberty] can help us open doors and provide strong case studies based on what they’ve done with other properties, but we are the ones who really have to do the work,” Rossomondo emphasised.

Read Also:

The globalisation F1 has undergone over the past five years has taken the championship to new destinations, and, unsurprisingly, Rossomondo is enthusiastic about the possibility of replicating that trend in MotoGP.

“We’re always looking to expand our presence outside of Europe, but we also have to feed the beast,” he added. “We go to Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, and next year we’ll also go to Brazil.

“But when we arrive in Europe, the perception is different. Would we like to have more markets to compete in? Absolutely. But we also need to make sure we’re getting the most out of the circuits we already have.”

In this article
Be the first to know and subscribe for real-time news email updates on these topics
Previous article Johann Zarco spends MotoGP summer break winning Suzuka 8 Hours
Next article Marc Marquez aims to ‘mentally defeat’ rivals, not play games, in MotoGP title battle

Top Comments

Recommended for you

'We don't want a chess game' - FIA responds to claims F1’s 2026 cars are too complex

'We don't want a chess game' - FIA responds to claims F1’s 2026 cars are too complex

Formula 1
'We don't want a chess game' - FIA responds to claims F1’s 2026 cars are too complex
Denny Hamlin fires back after Mamba Smith's Daytona prank in viral X social media exchange

Denny Hamlin fires back after Mamba Smith's Daytona prank in viral X social media exchange

NASCAR Cup
Daytona II
Denny Hamlin fires back after Mamba Smith's Daytona prank in viral X social media exchange
Ryan Blaney responds to Alex Bowman's promise of "seven million beers" with counter-offer

Ryan Blaney responds to Alex Bowman's promise of "seven million beers" with counter-offer

NASCAR Cup
Daytona II
Ryan Blaney responds to Alex Bowman's promise of "seven million beers" with counter-offer
Leigh Diffey confronts criticism after Daytona regular season finale

Leigh Diffey confronts criticism after Daytona regular season finale

NASCAR Cup
Daytona II
Leigh Diffey confronts criticism after Daytona regular season finale
Alexander Rossi thrilled for ECR’s Milwaukee success after “missed opportunities”

Alexander Rossi thrilled for ECR’s Milwaukee success after “missed opportunities”

IndyCar
Milwaukee
Alexander Rossi thrilled for ECR’s Milwaukee success after “missed opportunities”
Denny Hamlin says Bubba Wallace at fault for pileup crash: "Not clear"

Denny Hamlin says Bubba Wallace at fault for pileup crash: "Not clear"

NASCAR Cup
Daytona II
Denny Hamlin says Bubba Wallace at fault for pileup crash: "Not clear"
Christian Rasmussen steals maiden IndyCar win after late weather caution

Christian Rasmussen steals maiden IndyCar win after late weather caution

IndyCar
Milwaukee
Christian Rasmussen steals maiden IndyCar win after late weather caution
Winners and losers from an unbelievable NASCAR Cup finish at Daytona

Winners and losers from an unbelievable NASCAR Cup finish at Daytona

NASCAR Cup
Daytona II
Winners and losers from an unbelievable NASCAR Cup finish at Daytona

Sign up for free

  • Get quick access to your favorite articles

  • Manage alerts on breaking news and favorite drivers

  • Make your voice heard with article commenting.

Edition

Global Global
Filters