Throughout the 2023 MotoGP season, ten riders participated in at least one round without being part of the regular lineup at the start of the year – either as wildcards or substitute riders.
Among these riders, it was Dani Pedrosa who stood out. The Red Bull KTM test rider had two wildcard appearances. In the Spanish GP, he finished sixth in the Sprint race and seventh in the main race. Meanwhile, in San Marino, he achieved two fourth places, coming very close to a podium finish in a surprising performance.
Pedrosa’s Misano results were the best for a wildcard rider since 2018. His performance surprised everyone and was naturally satisfying for Pedrosa. The «Little Samurai» finished the season in 21st place, ahead of Joan Mir (Repsol Honda) and Pol Espargaró (GasGas Tech3/KTM), with 32 points.
The second among temporary riders was Lorenzo Savadori. As an Aprilia wildcard, his best result was 11th place in the Netherlands, also finishing 18th in Italy and 19th in Austria. The Italian also replaced the injured Miguel Oliveira at CryptoDATA RNF MotoGP Team/Aprilia on two occasions: in France, where he finished 12th, and in Valencia, securing 13th. He ended the championship in 24th place.
Following Savadori was Jonas Folger. Weeks after joining KTM as a development rider, the German was called in as a temporary replacement for Pol Espargaró after the Spaniard’s incident in Portugal. He raced between the Americas and Dutch GPs and put up a convincing performance: 12th in Austin, 13th in France, and 14th in Assen were his best results, returning to motorcycle racing’s elite almost unprepared.
Another recurring temporary rider was Stefan Bradl, who finished in 26th place. The German had only two wildcards with the HRC Team – finishing 14th in Jerez and 18th in San Marino. He also filled in for Marc Márquez in the Americas when the Spaniard was injured and retired. Bradl also stood in for Álex Rins while #42 was recovering, competing in three rounds for LCR Honda – scoring points in all of them.
Similarly to Bradl, Michele Pirro had wildcard appearances and acted as a substitute. The Italian replaced the injured Enea Bastianini in the Americas – where he achieved his best result of the year in 11th place – and then in India and Japan, finishing 16th on both occasions. As a wildcard, he raced in the Italian and San Marino GPs, finishing 27th in the championship, just ahead of Danilo Petrucci, who contested the French GP in place of Bastianini and finished 11th in his return to MotoGP.
The Japanese GP was the only wildcard appearance for Cal Crutchlow in the Yamalube RS4GP Racing Team, securing 13th place, which placed him 29th in the championship. Iker Lecuona was another returnee to MotoGP, always as a substitute rider. The Spaniard replaced injured riders at Repsol Honda and LCR Honda on seven occasions, with three 16th-place finishes as his best results.
Also back in MotoGP sporadically after two Superbike World Championships, Álvaro Bautista participated in the Malaysian GP, finishing 17th. Takumi Takahashi also took over the spot of injured Álex Rins at LCR Honda but did not even qualify for the races at the San Marino GP after presenting slow times in practice sessions. He was the only rider who did not receive a classification in the championship.
Dani Pedrosa’s 2023 season (final ranking: 21st):
Spanish GP: 6th Sprint/7th GP – 18th in the championship
San Marino GP: 4th Sprint/4th GP – 18th in the championship
Lorenzo Savadori’s 2023 season (final ranking: 24th):
French GP: 17th Sprint/12th GP – 24th in the championship
Italian GP: 18th Sprint/18th GP – 25th in the championship
Dutch GP: 16th Sprint/11th GP – 21st in the championship
Austrian GP: DNF Sprint/19th GP – 22nd in the championship
Valencia GP: 20th Sprint/13th GP – 24th in the championship
Jonas Folger’s 2023 season (final ranking: 25th):
Americas GP: 20th Sprint/12th GP – 21st in the championship
Spanish GP: 19th Sprint/17th GP – 22nd in the championship
French GP: DNF Sprint/13th GP – 20th in the championship
Italian GP: 21st Sprint/19th GP – 21st in the championship
German GP: DNF Sprint/17th GP – 21st in the championship
Dutch GP: 21st Sprint/14th GP – 22nd in the championship
Stefan Bradl’s 2023 season (final ranking: 26th):
Americas GP: 18th Sprint/DNF GP – 23rd in the championship
Spanish GP: 15th Sprint/14th GP – 24th in the championship
Dutch GP: 22nd Sprint/13th GP – 27th in the championship
San Marino GP: 22nd Sprint/18th GP – 28th in the championship
Indian GP: Retired in Sprint/15th GP – 26th in the championship
Japanese GP: 20th Sprint/14th GP – 26th in the championship
Michele Pirro’s 2023 season (final ranking: 27th):
Americas GP: DNF Sprint/11th GP – 20th in the championship
Italian GP: 15th Sprint/DNF GP – 22nd in the championship
San Marino GP: 20th Sprint/16th GP – 25th in the championship
Indian GP: 14th Sprint/16th GP – 27th in the championship
Danilo Petrucci’s 2023 season (final ranking: 28th):
French GP: 16th Sprint/11th GP – 22nd in the championship
Cal Crutchlow’s 2023 season (final ranking: 29th):
Japanese GP: 18th Sprint/13th GP – 29th in the championship
Iker Lecuona’s 2023 season (final ranking: 30th):
Spanish GP: 18th Sprint/16th GP – 23rd in the championship
Dutch GP: 20th Sprint/DNF GP – 28th in the championship
British GP: 22nd Sprint/17th GP –29th in the championship
Austrian GP: 16th Sprint/20th GP –29th in the championship
Catalan GP: 19th Sprint/16th GP – 29th in the championship
Malaysian GP: 20th Sprint/16th GP – 30th in the championship
Qatar GP: 17th Sprint/DNF GP – 30th in the championship
Álvaro Bautista’s 2023 season (final ranking: 31st):
Malaysian GP: 22nd Sprint/17th GP – 31st in the championship
Takumi Takahashi’s 2023 season (final ranking: not classified):
San Marino GP: Did not qualify for the races