What Are the FIM MotoGP Race Stewards?

In our latest motogp.com deep dive we explain what the FIM MotoGP race stewards are, what they do during race weekends, and how they enforce rules and penalties to ensure fair and safe racing.

The FIM MotoGP race stewards are officials who monitor every moment of action throughout a Grand Prix weekend. They are known formally as the FIM MotoGP™ Stewards Panel.

The MotoGP Stewards on the panel review rider incidents, enforce the rules of MotoGP and issue penalties, in order to ensure fair competition and safety on track, at trackside and in the pitlane.

Such is the sheer speed of MotoGP - the riders regularly reach 350km/h – and such is the fierceness of the battling between the best motorcycle riders on the planet, there is a clear requirement for strong adjudicating and enforcing of the rules and safety protocols.

The overall picture: What are the FIM MotoGP race stewards and who is on the current panel?

The Stewards are part of the FIM - the governing body of MotoGP - and their job is to review rider incidents, apply regulations and issue penalties or sanctions. Their goal is to uphold the consistency, fairness and safety of MotoGP.

Leading the FIM MotoGP Steward decisions is Simon Crafar, a former rider who was a 500cc Grand Prix winner, has been the Chairman of the FIM MotoGP™ Stewards Panel since the start of the 2025 season. Crafar is vastly experienced in the sport having also worked for many years as an Öhlins suspension technician and a pit lane reporter for motogp.com, before taking on this important officiating role.

The New Zealander took over as Chairman from the outgoing Freddie Spencer, after the MotoGP™ Legend and Hall of Famer had held the position from 2019 to 2024.

Working alongside the Chairman on the panel are two other FIM MotoGP race stewards. For the 2026 season, as was the case in 2025, the FIM MotoGP™ Stewards on the panel with Crafar are Andrés Somolinos from Spain and Tamara Matko from Slovenia.

What incidents do the FIM MotoGP Stewards review?

The types of incidents the FIM MotoGP™ Stewards Panel monitor and review are as follows:

•       Irresponsible riding
•       Crashes between riders and their causes
•       Contact and racing incidents between riders
•       Enforcing penalties for some track limits violations
•       Unfair advantage / shortcutting a chicane or other corner
•       Ignoring flags
•       Ignoring penalties
•       Pit lane infringements

If you’re unsure what any of the above terms refer to, in these two articles we explain the rules of MotoGP and how the MotoGP flag system works, which will give you a clearer picture of the regulations the riders must follow and the work of the Stewards in the championship.

What do race stewards do during a MotoGP weekend?

Throughout the MotoGP weekend the Stewards closely monitor all the on track sessions: practice, qualifying, Sprint and race.

They sit together in a room equipped with monitors, computers and communications devices. They have access to 150-160 cameras, including those at trackside and cameras on the riders’ bikes and they use the live or replayed footage to review incidents in real time or after sessions.

During live sessions, their decisions are communicated to teams and to Race Direction, who in turn can inform the necessary parties, such as the trackside marshalls, Clerk of the Course, and those producing the live television feed. 

The Stewards look at each relevant incident on track, assisted by technology such as crash detection systems, GPS, track limit sensors and speed sensors in pit lane.

Often the most important and common incidents they must review are crashes and they must take appropriate action if they feel one rider caused another to crash (later we’ll cover what penalties they apply according to incident type, including in cases of crashes).

After the crash has occurred usually the trackside marshalls will immediately be waving yellow flags, the meaning of which is: “A single yellow flag waved at a flag marshal post anywhere around the track indicates that there is a danger ahead beside the track. The riders must slow down and proceed with caution.”

During practice and qualifying sessions, a yellow flag automatically cancels a rider’s lap time. If a rider ignores a yellow flag the Stewards will note which riders have done so and investigate. If a rider ignores the yellow flag during a race and overtakes another rider that will be monitored by the Stewards and the riders will most likely be instructed to concede that position.

How do the FIM MotoGP Stewards make decisions?

To make their decisions the members of the FIM MotoGP™ Stewards Panel use data sources, video evidence and any additional information from Race Direction, whilst keeping in mind any previous incidents relating to the riders involved. They also often call hearings with the riders involved, along with a representative of their team, to make sure they have the full story from every side.

Each incident is assessed within its context, distinguishing between racing incidents and clear rider fault. The panel also considers consistency with previous rulings and established precedents, ensuring decisions are fair, balanced and aligned with the MotoGP rules and penalty protocols.

How do MotoGP penalties work and what penalties can the FIM MotoGP Stewards give?

MotoGP Stewards can apply a range of penalties depending on the severity and context of an incident. These include warnings, long lap penalties, time penalties, ride-through penalties, grid penalties for future races and in rarer cases, disqualification, or requiring a rider to start from the pit lane. Fines and points deductions can also be imposed in MotoGP.

Each sanction is designed to correct behaviour, maintain fairness and ensure safety across all sessions.

Here is a quick summary of specific MotoGP penalties and what they are given for:

If a rider is involved in a collision or unfairly forces another rider to lose time/positions, whether or not the action results in a crash, they can be penalised for irresponsible riding.

Depending on the severity of the incident or crash it is at the discretion of the FIM MotoGP Stewards to impose the penalty they see fit.

At the 2023 Austrian Grand Prix, at Turn 1, seven riders got caught up in an early Tissot Sprint incident, with Jorge Martin (Prima Pramac Racing) receiving a Long Lap penalty for his part in the crash.

The Spanish star was considered to have been riding irresponsibly by the FIM MotoGP™ Stewards Panel, with the outcome being Martin having to take a Long Lap penalty into the next Grand Prix he participated in.

More recently, at the opening Grand Prix of 2026 in Thailand, there was a clash in the Saturday Sprint, as Pedro Acosta (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) and Marc Marquez (Ducati Lenovo Team) went head-to-head over the course of 13 explosive laps.

On the penultimate lap, at Turn 12, as Marquez attacked Acosta and made contact, with Acosta pushed wide. The "Under Investigation" notification came up immediately and the decision from the FIM MotoGP™ Stewards Panel was quick.

Before the final lap was half done, the penalty dash message was sent - Marquez to drop one position. Marquez left it as late as he could, slowing down at the final corner to let Acosta through and then hitting the gas immediately to try and attack back. 

But Acosta had enough advantage in hand to cross the finish line for his first ever Sprint win, whilst Marquez did enough to hold onto second under threat from Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse MotoGP Team).

FIM MotoGP stewards vs other officials

To understand further who the FIM MotoGP™ Stewards Panel are and what their role is, let’s take a look at the overall governing structure of MotoGP to see where they fit in amongst other officials.

The governing body of the FIM MotoGP™ World Championship is the Federation International de Motocyclisme (or in English the International Motorcycle Federation), known as the FIM.

The rules of MotoGP™ are referred to formally as the FIM Grand Prix World Championship Regulations and they are defined and updated by the Grand Prix Commission, comprising members of the FIM, MotoGP Sports Entertainment Group (MotoGP Group, organiser and rights holder of MotoGP™), IRTA (International Road Racing Teams Association) and the MSMA (Motorcycle Sport Manufacturers Association).

Meanwhile, the Permanent Bureau, which comprises MotoGP SEG CEO Carmelo Ezpeleta and FIM President Jorge Viegas, confirm the structure of officials for MotoGP (the FIM Grand Prix World Championship).

That structure includes Race Direction, which is made up of Race Director Graham Webber, Deputy Race Director Jack Gorst, and Race Direction Coordinator Mike Webb, who was formerly the Race Director. Their job is to make sure the action on track at a Grand Prix, during practice sessions, qualifying, Sprints and races, takes place securely and according to the rules.

They make sure that all procedures are followed correctly and safely and deem if a race needs to be stopped (known as being red-flagged) or if it's all safe to carry on. Whereas the FIM MotoGP™ Stewards Panel’s role is purely to monitor and then judge incidents that happen in the race, and then to apply penalties if needed.

There is also an Event Management Committee, which oversees the smooth, safe and fair running of GP weekends and includes Race Direction, as well as other officials.

There are also marshalls at trackside, who monitor on track activity and quickly operate lighting systems and wave flags of different colours, to advise the riders of specific protocols. They communicate with and receive information from Race Direction.

So the Grand Prix Commission set and update the rules, Race Direction check that they are applied correctly and if there are infringements, that’s where the FIM MotoGP™ Stewards Panel comes in.

The FIM MotoGP™ Stewards Panel reviews all incidents as listed above (such as crashes, incidents between battling riders, track limits being exceeded) and then decides whether or not to apply a penalty, and what that penalty should be.

Why steward decisions sometimes feel controversial

MotoGP is an ultra high-speed sport, with riders making lightning quick decisions and pushing themselves and their rivals to the limits, in terms of late braking, corner speed, overtaking in the smallest gaps and accelerating with incredible power. A rider can often be partisan when it comes to their own actions.

The Stewards often need to make decisions quickly, but they have a wealth of camera angles, replays and data to use in doing so. Certain incidents can seem clear cut from a TV picture, whilst other angles reveal more of the story. Data - from the motorcycle, even - can also be very revealing. Hearings and listening to each point of view, for any decisions taken after sessions or races, are also key to getting the full story.

Stewards must carefully balance maintaining safety with allowing hard, yet fair racing.

Can teams or riders appeal steward decisions?

In most cases, unless a penalty is given and served within a live race, riders and their teams are able to appeal a penalty or other sanction (such as a fine or points deduction) to the two-person FIM Appeal Stewards Panel, which comprises members of the FIM Circuit Racing Commission. The FIM Appeal Stewards may confirm or overturn a decision of the FIM MotoGP Stewards Panel, or impose a different penalty according to the regulations.

To appeal further after the FIM Appeal Stewards, a team can also escalate their case to the CAI. The CAI is the FIM International Court of Appeal (Cour Internationale d'Appel). It is the highest judicial body within the FIM (Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme) structure.

The FIM Appeal Stewards can also decide to refer the case to the Court of Appeal “if it appears impossible to deal with the case for any valid reason”. Once the evidence is gathered and the case is heard, the Court will then issue a decision.

The Overall Picture

The FIM MotoGP Stewards play a vital role in keeping racing safe and fair, reviewing incidents and applying penalties consistently across every Grand Prix weekend. Their work underpins the championship’s integrity.

To learn more, explore our full guide to Grand Prix racing, the MotoGP rules and how the World Championship works.