MotoGP – Dorna boss Carmelo Ezpeleta in portrait

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MotoGP - Dorna boss Carmelo Ezpeleta in portrait
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MotoGP – Dorna boss Carmelo Ezpeleta in portrait

MotoGP – Dorna boss Carmelo Ezpeleta in portrait
The show master

Excited races right up to the last lap, spectacular driving maneuvers, heroes with rough edges, devoted fans – anyone who defines motorsport in this way almost inevitably ends up at MotoGP. The motorcycle road world championship is arguably the best motorsport spectacle in the world, and one has been responsible for it for 25 years. His name: Carmelo Ezpeleta.

Friedemann Kirn

07.12.2017

Lean angles seemingly without limit. Fascinating battles for position and slipstream battles at the limits of driving physics. Pulks of drivers humming from curve to curve like a swarm of wasps. Pilots dragging across the asphalt from knee to shoulder, visualizing the crazy pace. There is no question about it: motorcycle racing is so telegenic that you only have to set up a couple of video cameras at a Grand Prix and the sparks jump over in the living rooms. Even film and television recordings of historical motorcycle races are still fascinating today.

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But if you compare these old camels with the modern live stream, you not only see progress, you see a different, new world. Change of perspective at the push of a button – from the cockpit camera of individual drivers to helicopter long shots. High definition, sure. 3-D as a showcase technology. Since this year, 360-degree views have also been added so that the viewer can be drawn even deeper and more fully into the action.

There is no question: the motorcycle road world championship has become stronger, better and more socially acceptable since the Spanish promoter Dorna took over the marketing rights from the international motorcycle sport federation FIM. When she joined the company in 1992, Dorna was considered an unknown quantity that was viewed with suspicion by the insiders in the paddock.

But the Spaniards had a specialist: the Catalan Carmelo Ezpeleta, who had made a name for himself as a race track manager in Spain. He knew the answer to all of Dorna’s crucial questions – and quickly rose to become its director. He made the motorcycle world championship socially acceptable and a globally recognized show. He increased the value of the Dorna from $ 80 million (which was burdened with debt) to £ 400 million between its first sale in 1998 and its second change of ownership in 2007. This also meant a payday for the co-owners Ezpeleta (Dorna director), Manel Arroyo (director television rights and media) and Javier Alonso (most recently Superbike boss, now retired) of around 20 million euros per person.

As a grand seigneur, Ezpeleta still holds the reins at Dorna today. At 71 years of age, despite hearing aids and glasses, he is in the picture of everything that is going on in the paddock, and with a sharp-tongued and rumbling voice shows where the future of MotoGP is affected.

For Ezpeleta, the success of MotoGP stands on three pillars. First, overtaking maneuvers happened far more often than in all automobile races. Second, technical regulations have been introduced that iron out the differences between strong and weak teams. And thirdly, you send bestially gripping images into the airwaves.


MotoGP - Dorna boss Carmelo Ezpeleta in portrait


Dorna

Ezpeleta gained racing experience on four and two wheels. His conclusion: “To drive motorcycle races is much more demanding than car races”.

Review: Carmelo Ezpeleta was five years old when his father Carmelo took him to the first Formula 1 race – on Avenida Diagonal in the middle of Barcelona. “We sat on the curb and watched drivers like Juan Manuel Fangio. It was a five-kilometer stretch with few corners, very fast. The smell was also spectacular because of the castor oil that was still used in engines at the time, ”says Ezpeleta. “I watched this race and later the Mercedes racing cars were parked at the Mercedes dealership, which incidentally still exists: Automóviles Fernández. My father owned a Mercedes, and customers who had a Mercedes were allowed in. I was allowed in too, and I saw the racing cars with their bodies removed. That thrilled me. “

From this weekend on, Carmelo Ezpeleta wanted to take part in every possible race. Of course, he also played football like any Spanish boy. But he was particularly enthusiastic about races, including the 24 Hours for Motorcycles on Montjuic, the hill that towers majestically over Barcelona with its glass palace. When he was 19, Ezpeleta bought his first motorcycle, a Montesa Impala 250, which could be converted to a second 175 cc engine within 20 minutes, making it suitable for several classes.

Because he was only 21 years of age, Carmelo needed his father’s signature for a racing license. The car-mad vehicle engineer, however, was strictly against his son risking his life on two wheels – and it remained so when the junior transported the machine across the elevator of his parents’ house, pushed it into the living room and demonstratively brought it to life with a kick starter.

“You can make noise as much as you want, I say no,” insisted the father. “I want to race,” said the son stubbornly. “Then see that your mother signs,” the father finally relented.

His motorcycle career was short. To the relief of the father, Ezpeleta switched to cars in 1972 and, with Repsol as sponsor, first competed in the Renault 8TS Cup and later also with a monocoque in the Formula 1430. At that time, Jarama near Madrid was the only permanent race track in Spain. When Ezpeleta won a special classification within his championship and was invited to a driving course in a formula car in Nogaro, France, he noticed that Jarama was a real Formula 1 track with pit systems and control tower, but in Nogaro (there was hardly any more than the route itself) practically everyone could train to their heart’s content. “That seemed like a sensible concept to me at the time,” explains Ezpeleta.

A concept that the young Ezpeleta also wanted to implement in Spain. He found the area for this at his brother-in-law, who owned a settlement in Calafat, with a still undeveloped piece of land between the railroad tracks and the national road. “If you can find the money to build the track, I’ll leave the site to you” – that was the inter-family deal.

Ezpeleta did not hesitate long, dropped out of his engineering degree, became a building contractor and stamped the Calafat racetrack out of the ground. A company that was to have consequences, because its name made the rounds in the racing scene. He soon became a consultant in Jarama, where he was promoted to director in two months. He stayed for ten years, organized Formula 1 Grand Prix and motorcycle races and only returned to his homeland when the construction of the Catalunya racetrack was on the agenda in Barcelona at the end of the 1980s. There, too, he became director of the project.

Until he heard that Dorna, a marketing company specializing in football rights to date, had taken over the rights to the motorcycle world championship from the international motorcycle sport federation FIM. He immediately got in touch with Dorna. “It quickly became apparent that while they owned the rights, they didn’t know much about the sport. For a while I slipped back into an advisory role. In March 1991, before the Circuit de Catalunya was inaugurated, I switched completely to Dorna. And I stayed there to this day, ”said Ezpeleta.

Since then he has shown the necessary foresight there and does an excellent job. Not everything goes smoothly in the Motorcycle World Championship, Ezpeleta knows that too. Especially in the MotoGP class, however, Carmelo Ezpeleta and Dorna have done a great job and pepped up the premier class, which has suffered from a decline in participants and money worries for many years, with clever ideas so that it is better off today than ever before and lives up to its name . There is that sporty, but also the financial justice that Ezpeleta will strive for in the future for the entire paddock. “It has to work out for all parties involved. Only then does the company make sense, ”is his motto. So far, Carmelo Ezpeleta’s calculations have always paid off.

Carmelo Ezpeleta and the Dorna: Groundbreaking for the modern motorcycle road world championship

The Spanish company Dorna has been marketing the motorcycle world championship for 25 years. The world championship has developed rapidly under the direction of Dorna. MOTORRAD names some of the most important milestones.


MotoGP - Dorna boss Carmelo Ezpeleta in portrait


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MotoGP World Championship 2017.

1992The company “Dorna Promoción del Deporte” takes over the commercial and TV rights to the Grand Prix World Championship, Carmelo Ezpeleta becomes its director. 25 drivers start at the final of the 500 World Championship in Kyalami / South Africa.

1998Dorna, founded by Bank Banesto, is being sold for $ 80 million to CVC Capital Partners, an investment firm founded by a former Citibank manager, and is now called Dorna Sports.

2002In the premier class, in addition to 500 cc two-stroke engines, four-stroke engines with a displacement of up to 990 cc were also registered to usher in the end of the two-stroke era. At the first GP of the season there are still 13 drivers at the start.

2003The last two-strokes have disappeared from the field.

2005The flag-to-flag rule in the MotoGP class is introduced, not least in the interest of uninterrupted television broadcasts, when it starts to rain, motorcycles are now changed instead of aborting and restarting. 21 riders take part in the MotoGP World Championship. For antitrust reasons, Dorna changes hands again, with the majority going to Bridgepoint Capital for 400 million pounds.

2007The displacement of the MotoGP class is reduced to 800 cm³. Foundation of the Red Bull Rookies Cup as a development racing series for young MotoGP talents. Further junior series such as the Asia Talent Cup, the British Talent Cup or the Northern Europe Cup have been launched successively. An American Talent Cup could follow in 2020.

2008The first night race in GP history will take place in Qatar.

2009The MotoGP class is equipped with standard Bridgestone tires.

2010The 250 cc class will be replaced by the Moto2 with uniform 600 cc four-cylinder four-stroke engines from Honda instead of two-stroke two-cylinder engines from various manufacturers.

2011The German Stefan Bradl becomes Moto2 world champion. 16 riders start in the MotoGP class.

2012The 125 cc class will be replaced by Moto3 with 250 cc single-cylinder four-stroke engines instead of two-stroke single cylinders. The German Sandro Cortese becomes the first Moto3 world champion. The displacement of the MotoGP class increases again to 1000 cm³. In order to fill the meager field, modified and yet blatantly inferior superbikes are allowed in the MotoGP class (“Claiming Rule Teams”, CRT1)).

2013The rookie rule introduced in 2010, according to which a MotoGP newcomer must first drive for a satellite team, has been abolished – in favor of Marc Márquez, who immediately won his first MotoGP title.

2014The CRT rule falls and is replaced by the “Open Class” with discounts for satellite teams. The number of participants in the MotoGP class has also increased to 25 for this reason. Dorna takes over the rights to the Superbike World Championship.

2016Michelin replaces Bridgestone as the exclusive MotoGP tire supplier. The standardized electronics from Magneti Marelli (hardware and software) are introduced in the MotoGP class.

2017The seven satellite teams, known as “Independent Teams”, will receive twice as much money as before (2.2 million euros per driver). At the same time, the plant’s leasing fee for their MotoGP motorcycles will be limited to a corresponding maximum amount (excluding spare parts). After a decrease to 22 riders in 2016, the MotoGP field is filled with 25 riders again. The first MotoGP eSport world champion is crowned at the GP final in Valencia.

2018In preparation for the FIM Moto-e World Cup with electrically powered racing motorcycles, former GP stars such as Kevin Schwantz, Max Biaggi and Wayne Gardner will do demo laps on e-bikes as part of the GP weekends.

2019Official start of the FIM Moto-e World Cup with six races as part of the European Grands Prix.

Interview with Carmelo Ezpeleta “I think I have to do this”

In an interview with MOTORRAD, Carmelo Ezpeleta tells of his work philosophy at Dorna, of Valentino Rossi and the greatest challenge of his career: the construction of the Calafat race track near Tarragona in 1974.


MotoGP - Dorna boss Carmelo Ezpeleta in portrait


Dorna

Carmelo Ezpeleta is very proud of the friendly atmosphere in the GP paddock.

You and Carmelo, Dorna and you have been in office for 25 years and celebrated an anniversary in Valencia under the motto “Racing Together”. If you had dreamed in 1992 how much this sport would grow?

No. The beginning was very difficult. We were a group of people who didn’t know each other. The IRTA1 and the motorcycle manufacturers were against us because they didn’t know who we were. We worked from one day to the next, struggling to plan the next year at all. One of the problems was that Dorna was dependent on Banesto, which went bankrupt. Then the Banco de Santander stepped in to sell the Dorna. The situation only became stable when CVC2 took over the thing in 1998. From this moment on we have planned more spaciously. We grew from 1998 to 2006, but the tobacco advertising ban hung over us like a sword of Damocles. Bridgepoint came in 2006 and the next restart was due.

In addition to the Dorna itself, digital media have developed enormously and are fed by Dorna with first-class video images and live information. Did you foresee this development??

More than me, Manel Arroyo was the visionary. His media vision was much bolder than mine. Often enough, he had to convince me to invest money in things I didn’t see the potential of. Since 1991 we have been doing one thing together: We have constantly sought opinions from people who thought differently than we did. The key to success is that we did not try to implement our own plan, but that we took up suggestions from all over the world and the motorcycle -WM globalized with it. We did things differently, negotiated a lot. When we decided to approach the manufacturers to do MotoGP instead of the 500cc two-stroke class, there was huge opposition in the paddock. But we discussed and in the end implemented the decision. It was the same with the change from 250 cc to Moto2, 125 cc to Moto3, the introduction of the CRT machines and then the Open Class.

MotoGP has grown from twelve to 19 races per year since 1992, offers unsurpassable excitement and image perspectives that seemed impossible just a few years ago. What will the show look like in five years?

I dont know. Every day we think about what we can improve. The TV people are thinking about how to improve their pictures. The people in the advertising department are thinking about how we can attract more sponsors. And I’m thinking about how this championship can be competitive in the future, economically sensible and in such a way that the teams become more and more the same.

What are you particularly proud of??

The atmosphere here in the world championship. It’s an ambience in which everyone understands that everyone has their own ideas. It is an advantage that not everyone does what only they like and enforces. There is a contradiction to every attempt, and then it comes to a discussion about how best to do what. As a result, everyone here in the paddock is reasonably satisfied. We do not claim that everything is fine, otherwise we would stop. But when changes are made, everyone contributes his or her opinion.

How important is Valentino Rossi to this show?

Valentino played a vital role in the development of the championship. He’s been here longer than anyone. I always say: First of all, he’s an exceptional driver. If he wasn’t an exceptional driver, it would be meaningless for him to be such a medial person. There are more media people out there, but they’re not as good as him. The important thing is, he’s so good, and he still likes what he does so much. I understand that. Because what happens to me in my work happens to him. I’m 71 years old and people my age usually retire. I like being here. And as long as I’m competitive and the people in my company think so, I’ll stay. Valentino feels the same way: he likes being here. And he’s competitive. He’s here because his team thinks it’s good, because his friends think it’s good and, above all, because he himself thinks that he can still do his thing well. If one day Valentino says that’s enough now, we’ll look for something to keep him going.

You declared weeks ago that the doors would be open to him if he wanted a team?

Yes, but we haven’t talked to him about it yet. If Valentino wants to do that one day, we’ll see how we can do it. People are already saying: Carmelo favors Valentino a lot. And I say: Of course I favor Valentino. Not in sport, in races he is like everyone else and is treated equally. If he catches a penalty, he catches himself a penalty, like last year in Sepang. Fortunately, the Dorna has nothing to do with such penalties. Because if there is one person to whom I owe a lot as the organizer of this World Cup, it is Valentino. He’s special. But the designers are also special. Honda and Yamaha have been with us since the beginning. If you tell me something, I take it very seriously and think about it. We wouldn’t be here without them. Then there are others like Suzuki who were here, left and returned. Then there is Ducati that came here as soon as it was possible. And now KTM and Aprilia are also there. I have to take them all into account. If we talk about success, we would be foolish to say it is a Dorna success. It is a success for everyone, for everyone who has understood that it is worthwhile to put on a spectacle like ours. Valentino is an important part of this spectacle. Why does a rider his age train with the Enduro before the Misano Grand Prix? Because he wants to be special to Misano. He injured himself and only returned to Aragón after a Grand Prix break. Why is he coming back in Aragón? Because he likes it and because he believes that he can achieve something there. Even his bitterest opponent has to acknowledge: Valentino is very special. But I believe that all of us in the MotoGP family, down to the last rider, journalist or chef, are very special. If you tell other people about it, they will not understand how you can spend so many years in this sport and still enjoy it. They ask you: don’t you get tired of this thing? Every year we see the same Australia, with wind and rain, a week later we come to the heat of Malaysia, then to Valencia. Normal people wouldn’t do this here. We all have a way of looking at life that is different from normal people. That makes this championship interesting. All of us, and by that I really mean everyone, the press, television, those who are for and those who are against us, we all do something special. And that’s interesting to the people who watch us. We are between 2500 and 3000 people who drive to the scenes and come to terms with one another. What I mean by that: Everyone has their own sensitivities, and yet we are always there. Many people say: 19 races are a lot. But that’s what the world demands of us. Then I hear voices saying: If there are 19 races, I won’t go to all of them. But I say: I’m going! I’ve been in all races since 1992. Because I think I have to do that. Not because of the races themselves, because they take place without me. I’m with everyone because I have to demonstrate that you can go to everyone. If I can travel to everyone at the age of 71, so can the others.

How many more years do you want to go on? As many as health allows?

As many as you can. Dorna certainly already has ideas about how things will continue on the day when I will no longer be there. But as long as the team I work for and the shareholders we are responsible for continue to agree, I’ll be happy to stay. If one day I get tired of it or feel bad, I have to give up. It can happen tomorrow.

How many races can they accommodate in one season? 22? 25th?

I think when we get to 20 it should be a good thing. There are a lot of inquiries and I can do two things. First: Depending on which country asks about a race, you have to see how interesting it would be there. There are countries where there are already four, others where there are two. But the four in Spain and the two in Italy are very good. There are six races, a third of the 2018 championship, that only take place in these two countries. If we want to go to a new country, we have to see whether it is good for our family to delete another, or whether we add another race. There are countries in which we have to be represented. For many years there was no race in the USA, then we first had Laguna Seca, a track at the limit of safety. Then Indianapolis and later Austin joined them. Then we realized there were too many and we changed it again. There are four in Spain, but these four are doing very well. But of course, if there are a lot of inquiries from abroad, then it will be difficult to keep all the locations with which we currently have contracts. I don’t think a championship from March to November could use a lot more races. Formula 1 has 22, which seems like a lot to me. The only thing that is certain is that we are constantly receiving inquiries from countries that are not yet there and want to be there. Perhaps we will rotate in the future so that in Spain there will be two plus two races each year instead of four.

A quick look back. Times were different in the past, with a different political system and less money. The challenges were greater back then?

The Calafat circuit was the hardest thing I’ve ever done. I had no experience, was a boy who liked to race, first with motorcycles, but I still remember how difficult motorcycle races are, much more difficult than those with cars. With a motorcycle you have the same technical problems as with a car, but your body is part of the driving dynamics and what can be done with a motorcycle. And you risk a lot physically. You sit in the car, protected, especially nowadays the protection systems of racing cars are very good. But if you make a mistake on the motorcycle, you can still injure yourself. Second, riding a motorcycle is physically difficult. A driver who is more or less tall hardly has any major problems in the car, here they do. A rider like Pedrosa has problems in the opposite direction because he moves a motorcycle with a certain weight and does not have the levers to move it as easily as others, even if it accelerates a little better under him. That’s why motorcycles seem much more difficult to control than cars. So I was a boy who started out motorcycle racing and then switched to cars, which I got better at. I enjoyed racing. I studied engineering because I loved the races. Suddenly there was the opportunity to construct a route. It was a decision I made when I was 26 that changed my life. The question was: Do I stop studying and dedicate myself fully to this task? Reaching out to people, some of whom I knew and some of whom I didn’t. Explain to you that our dream is to build a race course in a finca in Tarragona and wait for each and every one of these people to give me 25,000 pesetas and rely on me. We collected nine million pesetas with which we started construction. In the end it cost more.

Wait, nine million pesetas? That is little.

Very little! But that’s how we built the circuit, with nine million. As I said, in the end it was more, in the order of 18, 20 million, but because we were running races and had advertising income at the same time, we were able to pay our bills. We didn’t lose any money because we didn’t have the money to lose. At the beginning of the project, I drove car races, at the same time I took care of the track rental and drove the ambulance. We were two people, me and someone else who was also racing. He drove the ambulance, I drove the tow truck – or vice versa. We rented the track to the people who came, signed a waiver, and then ran their races. It was very difficult. In the initial phase I went to the individual racing teams with a briefcase, pulled out the plans, explained the concept that we would build a track with a length of 2.5 kilometers that would be suitable for national races and would be an ideal training ground so that you could no longer had to try the cars on the country roads. And then I said: You have to give me 25,000 pesetas. And if you participate, then you are a partner, and I undertake to see that through. That happened in Catalunya, in Barcelona, ​​but also in Valencia, Aragón and the Balearic Islands. At first we just made the asphalt tape, started excavating the foundation with the money we earned. We all worked there, I learned to use the steamroller. At the same time, we never knew whether we would actually make it and finish the route. If I hadn’t made it and dumped all the investors’ money, I would have had to go underground. For me it was a matter of life or death. I had to finish this project because if not, I couldn’t have stayed and said: You gave me 25,000 pesetas, but I couldn’t finish the circuit. So it was very difficult. But also great fun!

And a huge surprise for us. MOTORRAD has been testing in Calafat for years. We didn’t know that you were behind this route …

At first there was only a small course. Later, when I went to Jarama, the people who stayed in Calafat made the route a little wider and longer, on the order of 3100 meters. When I was there, it was a little over 2,400 meters.

Who is the owner today?

Still the same, the parish of Calafat. In between there was a legal problem, because we constructed the course on the basis of a law that existed here in Spain, the “Ley del Suelo.” But when the project was delayed and this law no longer existed, we were suspended a procedure to the neck. We were told that we would have to demolish the route again. But then we convinced the government of Catalonia that the circuit was in the public interest. We ceded the land to the magistrate, and the magistrate gave the operators a concession that they could use and market the circuit for 50 years. It was not easy. Every day the discussion arose that we had to close the line, tear it down. We built the route and promptly a Supreme Court order came that we had to tear it down again. Then we went to the government of Catalonia, who supported us, and in the end we were able to move on.

Are you actually in favor of Catalonia becoming independent??

No! Absolutely not! Catalonia is Spain and it is much better for Spain and the Spaniards if Catalonia stays Spain. I am strictly against this independence and the way in which you wanted to enforce it. Let me give you an example: when the top administration told us that we had to tear down the route, we looked for a legal way to avoid having to tear it down. We didn’t call it injustice or chained ourselves to bridges, we looked at the laws and looked for a way to go on. Spain, like all civilized countries, has a constitution, and if you don’t like something, well, there are legal ways that you can go about it until you like it. I don’t like driving at 120 km / h on the motorway. On the other hand, I like driving fast when I come to Germany. It’s no more dangerous, the cars are the same, the highways are the same, and the weather is worse. Nevertheless, the law in Germany allows you to drive 180 – not in Spain. Now there are two options: Either we unite and try to go against our speed limit and change the law, not with demonstrations, but according to current law. Or we just keep going 120. That’s how it is. Law is law, and whether it’s good or bad, it must be respected.

The interview was conducted by MOTORRAD Grand Prix reporter Friedemann Kirn

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