Cut to the chase! MotoGP shortened for TV

Paris - The distance of several Grands Prix on the motorcycle world circuit are to be shortened in a bid to standardise their durations and help television broadcasters, MotoGP said on Tuesday.

"This is to ensure that races have a similar duration at each venue on the World Championship calendar, enhancing event organisation and aiding television broadcasters to better structure race day programming," organisers said in a statement.

Seven courses at the elite MotoGP level will be reduced in distance for the 2018 season, while changes to races in the Moto2 and Moto3 classes will be implemented over the course of the next two seasons.

In MotoGP, the Americas GP, French GP, Catalan GP, Czech GP and San Marino GP will all be shortened by a lap, with the Spanish GP to lose two laps and the Valencia GP to be trimmed by three laps.