The inaugural edition of MotoGP Bharat came to an end on Sunday with the same gusto that matched the excitement of India hosting the premiere motorcycle racing championship on its soil for the first time. The event also marked the return of Buddh International Circuit (BIC) into the racing fold after a decade.
We got to witness quite a few moments during the three-day event. Let us look at the top five key moments from the very first edition of MotoGP Bharat, officially christened Grand Prix of India.
MotoGP Bharat: Ola Electric scooters as support vehicles
MotoGP joined hands with Ola Electric with the latter providing its electric scooters as support and shuttle vehicles for all pit crews and medical personnel. This was a pleasant oxymoron with the track event dominated by fuel-gobbling and extremely noisy machines but the off-track duties managed by zero fuel-consuming two-wheelers and that are completely noiseless.
MotoGP Bharat: Map of India trophy
The trophies handed out to podium finishers were special since they were carved in the shape of India’s territorial map. This became even more significant considering the fact that, ahead of the grand spectacle, MotoGP was in the news for wrongly sharing a distorted map of India’s territories on its social media handles. The trophy with the correct map certainly would have doused some of the fire.
MotoGP Bharat: Celeb affair
The entire three-day event was a star-studded affair with celebrities from various fields of entertainment, sports, politics, etc. made it to the BIC. Celebs like Ranveer Singh, Yuvraj Singh, Shikhar Dhawan, Anurag Thakur, and John Abraham were some of the notable attendees. Abraham, being the official brand ambassador for MotoGP in India, fittingly flagged off the final race.
MotoGP Bharat: UP CM showing the chequered flag
The event was also graced by the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, Yogi Adityanath, who showed the chequered flag at the end of the final MotoGP lap, which is a rare occurrence in the premiere the motorcycle racing championship. Not only that, the CM also presented the winner’s trophy to the winner of MotoGP– Marco Bezecchi.
MotoGP Bharat: Bagnaia crashes out
For all the racing enthusiasts, the biggest highlight of the final day would be current world champion Francesco Bagnaia crashing out in the 13th lap of the final race. This was a heartbreak for the Italian rider and his fans as he made a remarkable comeback to take the second place before a sharp tuner around the corner washed out his front which threw his Ducati off the track with a somersault.
