As India gears up to host the first edition of MotoGP Bharat this weekend, the Indian promoters, Fairstreet Sports are bullish on the potential of growing the popularity of the motorcycle racing series in the country in the long term. The promoters expect MotoGP Bharat to become a profitable venture by the third year.
Fairstreet Sports has been licensed the rights by Dorna Sports to organize the race in India for a period of seven years till 2029. The sporting event will be held September 22-24 at the Buddh International Circuit in Noida, Uttar Pradesh. It will be broadcast on Sports18 and streamed on JioCinema.
Vaibhav Sinha, CEO, Fairstreet Sports told businessline, “We believe there is a huge potential to channelise the interest of the large number of biking enthusiasts of the country through MotoGP Bharat. We are looking at this from the long-term horizon. India is the largest market for bikes and the premium bike segment has been witnessing strong growth.“
“We have the likes of Yamaha, Honda, Ducati and KTM racing on the tracks and a large base of biking enthusiasts have a strong connect with these brands. So,we believe the racing series has the ability to appeal to the common man and we will be captialising on this to develp the sport in the country. This is what happened in other markets and we believe it will see a similar growth trajectory in India,” he added.
According to estimates by Nielsen, India already has a fanbase of an estimated 54 million for the racing series.
Just like other sporting ventures, Sinha pointed out that there will be a gestation period for attaining profitability. Fairstreet Sports expects MotoGP Bharat to become a profitable venture by its third year, he added.
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Meanwhile, IndianOil has come on board as the title sponsor for the first edition of MotoGP Bharat. Event sponsors include Red Bull India, OLA, 24seven and R.E. Rogers India.
Asked about expectations on viewership, “We expect to see good traction especially on JioCinema, which has garnered strong eyeballs in recent times due to its strong portfolio of sporting events. So we are expecting MotoGP Bharat to garner strong reach in the country,” he said.
The Indian promoters have also ensured tickets are available at a wide range of prices. “While Rs 800 priced tickets are sold out, Rs 2500 are also almost sold out. Other price points are selling fast. We have got strong response for corporate boxes,” the company added.
In response to reports about visa glitches, the company in a statement on Tuesday night said that most of the visas have already been processed with many more on the horizon. “Our teams are tirelessly working around the clock to ensure that every participant, from riders to technical officials, receives their visa promptly,” it added.