Officials from the FIM visited Indianapolis during the two-day MotoGP test this week, and were pleased with the layout and safety features of the new road course.
The 16-turn circuit was set up to testing specifications, but fine-tuning of various features will make the track race-ready for the inaugural
Red Bull Indianapolis GP on September 12-14.
"The preparation of the track was very, very good," FIM Safety Director Claude Danis said. "Everything was according to what we decided on my last inspection. Of course, there are some small adjustments to be done."
Among those adjustments are the addition of artificial grass adjacent to Turns 1 and 16, installation of curbing, final grass work adjacent to the track, addition of road course striping and removal of some oval striping.
"I think the riders enjoyed the track," Danis said. "This track is very challenging, and I think it will be very good for
MotoGP."
Suzuki rider Ben Spies, the only rider present at the test who will also take part in the grand prix weekend, was happy with the circuit layout after turning more than 200 laps during his two days of testing - but said more riders were needed to improve the grip levels.
"The run-off, every area is fine for me," Spies said. "The first turn, there's plenty of run-off. In the corner, if you're by yourself, I would say it's impossible to get into anything because when you start to turn, there's huge run-off. There's grass everywhere.
"On the front straightaway, yeah, you're between two walls, but with how everything is with the bikes, usually there's not too much going on in a straight line. But run-off in Turn 1, once you're actually in the turn, there's plenty. So it's fine."
"To be honest, on the first time out, I really wasn't too happy about how the track was [with grip] and some spots, but it is getting better every time out," added the double AMA Superbike champion. "It's just a lack of grip in a certain section of the track just because there haven't been any bikes on it.
