Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic The opening rounds of the
2020 championship have been heavily affected by the
COVID-19 pandemic. Several Grands Prix were cancelled or postponed after the opening round in Qatar was halted, prompting the
Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme to draft a new calendar. A new calendar based exclusively in Europe was announced on 11 June. The
Portuguese Grand Prix, absent from the calendar since 2012 (when it took place at the
Autódromo do Estoril), was introduced as the last stage of the championship; this is the first time the season finale has not been held in
Valencia since
2001. The race is held at the
Autódromo Internacional do Algarve, which has served as MotoGP's reserve track since 2017; it is the first time that this circuit hosts a Grand Prix and is the seventy-third circuit which hosts a World Championship race.
MotoGP Championship standings before the race After having achieved the arithmetic certainty of winning the World Championship,
Joan Mir leads the riders' standings with 171 points, 29 more than
Franco Morbidelli who won the
previous Grand Prix and gained three positions in the general classification.
Álex Rins is third with 138 points, followed by
Maverick Viñales and
Fabio Quartararo with 127 and 125 points, respectively. In the constructors' standings,
Suzuki and
Ducati are leading with 201 points, followed by
Yamaha and
KTM with 13 and 26 points behind.
Honda is fifth at 133 points, while
Aprilia closes the standings at 43 points. In the team championship standings,
Team Suzuki Ecstar took the title and leads with 309 points, 79 more than
Petronas Yamaha SRT.
KTM Factory Racing outstripped
Ducati Team for third position (209 vs 203 points), with
Monster Energy Yamaha fifth at 169 points.
Moto2 and Moto3 Championship riders' standings before the race In the intermediate class, four riders are still fighting for the title, with
Enea Bastianini leading with 194 points, followed by
Sam Lowes with 180 points.
Luca Marini and
Marco Bezzecchi are third and fourth at 176 and 171 points respectively. In the lightweight class, there are still three drivers in the running with
Albert Arenas first at 170 points, followed by
Ai Ogura and
Tony Arbolino with respectively 8 and 11 points behind.
MotoGP entrants •
Stefan Bradl replaced
Marc Márquez for the twelfth straight race while the latter recovered from injuries sustained in his opening round crash. •
Iker Lecuona, after having tested positive at the entrance to the
Valencia paddock before the
Valencian Community Grand Prix, is also forced to miss the Portuguese Grand Prix, being replaced by the official KTM test driver
Mika Kallio. ==Free practice==