F1 owners DITCH famous motorsport name

F1 owners Liberty Media have carried out the first major change of 2026 following their acquisition of another popular motorsport series last year.

In the summer of 2025, F1's owners Liberty Media acquired MotoGP promoter Dorna, marking the next step in the billion-dollar takeover.

After Liberty Media purchased 100 per cent of the Formula One Group in 2017, they also took over the commercial rights, and thanks to marketing tactics like the popular Netflix docuseries Drive to Survive, the American media company have transformed F1 into one of the most popular sports in the world.

Now, they are hoping to do the same to MotoGP and skyrocket the popularity of the two-wheeled motorsport as the sport's new official commercial rights holder.

The American corporation now officially own the premier class of motorcycle racing after acquiring roughly 86 per cent of Dorna Sports, and even though Dorna management came out of last year’s deal having retained a 14 per cent stake, the company that bought MotoGP in 1992 is now no more (at least by name).

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Liberty Media MotoGP takeover sees Dorna name change

Like F1, the first race of the 2026 MotoGP season won't take place until March, but ahead of the first round of the new championship, it has been reported that Dorna is no more and has instead been renamed MotoGP Sport Entertainment.

Chase Carey, the former CEO of the Formula One Group, is involved in the rebrand as the new president of MotoGP Sport Entertainment, after Dorna Sports president William Nicholas Jackson stepped down from the position.

Carey joined the board of directors of Liberty Media in January 2025 in a move which perhaps hinted at the reshuffle of leadership which now has a focus on American figures.

Previous representatives of Dorna Sports Pablo Gonzalez Mosqueira, Juan Sanchez Alferez, and Pablo Matesanz Rodriguez were all removed from their positions ahead of the renaming, while Maria Dolores Priego Luque has changed roles to become an authorised representative.

Jose María Maldonado Trinchant also stepped down as vice president, with Martin Edward Patterson appointed Senior Vice President of Liberty Media Corporation in January.

But it's not all change at the newly rebranded MotoGP Sport Entertainment, with Carmelo Ezpeleta, who has been the CEO of Dorna Sports since 1998, retaining his position.

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