Misano closed the MotoGP weekend with 184,000 attendees, a new record for the San Marino Grand Prix and the Rimini Riviera. The figure has been placed at the heart of the Emilia-Romagna Region’s assessment of the event at the Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli, which underlined its significance for the Riviera and for the wider Motor Valley system.
The Region’s president, Michele de Pascale, and its regional councillor for Tourism and Sport, Roberta Frisoni, both spoke on the matter, highlighting the connection between the circuit, the motorcycle industry and the area’s tourist appeal.
“Misano brings together the two souls of this great story: on one side an industrial and sporting system capable of competing and winning on the world stage, and on the other a Riviera able to turn an international event into an experience that involves the entire area,” said de Pascale and Frisoni. “It is this ability to hold together sport, business and territory that makes Motor Valley unique and one of the symbols of Emilia-Romagna around the world.”
On the track, the race was won by Marc Márquez on the Ducati, ahead of his brother Alex, also on a Ducati, riding for the Gresini Team from Faenza. Also on the grid were local riders from Rimini, Marco Bezzecchi and Enea Bastianini. Bezzecchi was forced to retire after a crash, though he got back up immediately and returned to the pits. Pecco Bagnaia’s race also ended early.
In the paddock, alongside Gresini Racing, was also Valentino Rossi’s VR46 Racing Team, another outfit deeply rooted in the local area and in the motorcycling culture that links Romagna to the nearby Montefeltro region.
“These things happen in Emilia-Romagna because there is a unique ecosystem here, one that cannot be replicated elsewhere,” noted de Pascale and Frisoni. “It is the result of an industrial history and expertise built up over time, but above all of this region’s ability to work as a system and turn talent into innovation and results.”
The Grand Prix also serves as a major tourism driver for Misano and the entire Riviera, with thousands of enthusiasts from Italy and abroad arriving in the area over the weekend. This influx benefits accommodation facilities, restaurants and businesses, as well as the calendar of events organised alongside the race, helping to extend the season beyond the traditional summer months.
“Seeing motorcycles born and developed here win at Misano, in front of thousands of fans, is a great emotion and a source of pride for the whole of Emilia-Romagna,” the president and councillor commented.
For the Region, there is a broader system behind the results achieved on the track. “There isn’t just a great rider and a great bike. Ducati is one of the strongest symbols of Made in Italy and of Italian engineering worldwide, a story of talent, hard work and the ability to innovate that, from Borgo Panigale, continues to compete and win at the highest international level.”
The weekend thus closed with 184,000 total attendees, a figure that confirms the Misano Grand Prix as one of the leading sporting and tourist events on the Riviera.
