- Julián Simón, who will replace Iker Lecuona for GaragePlus Interwetten, and Simone Corsi (Speed Up Racing) have competed in all thirteen previous race held in Qatar. Corsi stood on the podium last year with a third place. Simón's best result at Losail was a second place in the 125 World Championship in 2009.
- Tom Lüthi (CarXpert Interwetten) won the Moto2 race last year in Qatar from ninth on the grid - his sixth win in this class and the 14th for a swiss rider.
- The only other past Qatar GP winner who is currently competing in the intermediate class is Mattia Pasini (Italtrans Racing Team) (250 – 2008).
- Since 2008, there has always been a different winner in 250cc/Moto2™ in Qatar. Jorge Lorenzo is the only one to have won two consecutive races in the intermediate class in Qatar - in 2006 and 2007.
- Sam Lowes and Álex Rins qualified on the first row on the grid last year, and belonged to list of riders who were handed a ride through penalty due to a jump start - alongside the reigning Champion Johann Zarco, Marcel Schrötter (Dynavolt Intact GP), Robin Mulhauser and Taakaki Nakagami (Idemitsu Honda Team Asia). Rins and Lowes eventually crossed the line 8th and 9th respectively.
- Franco Morbidelli (Estrella Galicia 0,0 Marc VDS) was the second rider across the line in 2016 at Losail, but was later handed a 20 second penalty due to a jump start - along with Sandro Cortese (Dynavolt Intact GP), who crossed the line in 5th and was demoted to 15th.
- Hafizh Syahrin (Petronas Raceline Malaysia) finished fourth from 15th on the grid in Qatar last year, equalling his best dry weather finish in Moto2™.
- 2015 Moto3™ World Champion Danny Kent (Kiefer Racing) was classified sixth from 10th on the grid last year in Qatar, his best result in Moto2™ class so far. 2015 Moto3™ runner up and Kent’s teammate last year, Miguel Oliveira (Red Bull KTM Ajo), finished 11th from 21st on the grid.
- Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Ajo) will be the second South-African rider to compete in Moto2™ after Steven Odendaal, who last started a Moto2™ race as a wildcard at Aragon last year alongside his Championship winning campaign in the same class of the FIM CEV Repsol.