The International Basketball Federation -FIBA- and MotoGP will meet on a different kind of asphalt at the FIBA 3×3 MotoGP Showcase. The exhibition will take place on 9 September at the Moab Court in Rimini, four days before the San Marino and Rimini Riviera Grand Prix race. Activities will begin at 17:30 with music and entertainment, followed by a dunk exhibition and a game featuring MotoGP riders, 3×3 players, content creators and special guests.
Franco Morbidelli will captain one of the teams against a side featuring Marco Bezzecchi and Francesco ‘Pecco’ Bagnaia. Italian 3×3 player Giorgio Di Bonaventura and content creator Luca Campolunghi have also confirmed their participation. FIBA and MotoGP will announce further names ahead of the event, meaning the complete line-ups and the players who will join Morbidelli’s team are still to be revealed.
A court in the heart of Riders’ Land
The choice of setting is central to the event. The Moab Court is located in Piazzale Kennedy, within Rimini’s Parco del Mare and beside the city’s seafront. Created through a collaboration between Red Bull, Moab and Rimini City Council, the court has hosted national 3×3 tournaments, shooting and dunk contests, open training sessions, performances and DJ sets in recent years. Its most significant events have included the Italian finals of the Red Bull Half Court, while in July 2026 it also staged a special event organised by Italy’s professional basketball league.
The showcase will also form part of the ‘Riders’ Land Experience’, a programme that extends the Grand Prix celebrations across the Riviera’s towns, squares and seafronts before activity begins at the circuit. Previous editions have brought rider appearances, simulators, exhibitions, live entertainment, music and fan activities to different locations around the region. The 3×3 game adds something different to that concept: the riders will not simply meet supporters but will swap their leathers and motorcycles for a ball and a half-court.
Riders, players and creators in the same game
The event will feature three riders with different careers and positions in the current championship. Bagnaia won the MotoGP world title in 2022 and 2023; Morbidelli finished runner-up in 2020 and has won races in the premier class; and Bezzecchi remains involved in the 2026 title contest. Following the Aragon Grand Prix, he sits third in the standings, 24 points behind leader Jorge Martín. All three will appear in Rimini just two days before official track activity begins at the Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli.
Di Bonaventura will bring specific 3×3 experience to the court. He began playing the discipline in 2014 at the age of 16, represented Italy at the 2019 FIBA 3×3 U23 World Cup and competed in an international Challenger event held in Rimini that same year. Campolunghi will help connect the showcase with a young digital audience through his work as a sports content creator. According to FIBA 3×3 Managing Director Alex Sanchez, that combination is the collaboration’s principal value: “Bringing together MotoGP riders, 3×3 basketball players and creators for this event creates a unique opportunity to unite two dynamic sports communities and introduce 3×3 basketball to new fans in an exciting setting. We are delighted to collaborate with MotoGP on this showcase in Rimini.”
MotoGP Managing Director of Global Marketing Kelly Brittain also views the game as an early start to the Grand Prix celebrations: “We’re excited to work with FIBA for this 3×3 event, bringing together basketball and MotoGP. It’ll be great entertainment for everyone who can go and enjoy the show just ahead of the San Marino GP, kicking off the weekend’s celebrations in style.” The game will take place on Wednesday 9 September, practice at Misano will begin on Friday 11 September and the races will be held on Sunday 13 September. The organisers have yet to announce the remaining participants, the final team line-ups or admission arrangements for the showcase.
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