Local council launches petition to secure long-term Phillip Island MotoGP future
A petition has been set up to urge the government to commit to MotoGP’s future at Phillip Island
The Bass Coast Shire Council has launched a petition to help push the state government of Victoria to commit to a long-term deal to keep MotoGP at Phillip Island.
The picturesque Phillip Island first hosted a MotoGP event in 1989, before becoming the permanent home of the Australian Grand Prix from 1997.
During that tenure, Phillip Island has become one of MotoGP’s most iconic circuits, with the Australian Grand Prix one of the major highlights of the calendar every season.
The current deal between MotoGP and Phillip Island expires at the end of 2026, with doubts raised over the long-term future of the Australian Grand Prix at the circuit.
While popular in the paddock, Phillip Island is in an awkward location and is in desperate need of critical infrastructure updates to bring it in line with modern tracks.
Local council’s push to save Phillip Island’s MotoGP race
The location of the circuit, which is about two hours from Melbourne, also means crowd figures for the Australian Grand Prix are small in comparison to many events on the calendar.
The Indonesian Grand Prix in early October also provides an attractive alternative to a lot of Australians in the north of the country.
However, a petition launched by the Bass Coast Shire Council is urging the state government of Victoria to commit to funding of the infrastructure upgrades and commit to a long-term future for MotoGP beyond 2026.
The council claims the event “delivers enormous economic, social and tourism benefits” to the local community and Victoria.
It claims the 2023 Australian Grand Prix generated $54.6m in economic benefit for Victoria, which included $29.4m in local spend on the Bass Coast, as well as supporting almost 300 jobs.
So far, there have been 660 signatures to the petition.
Following this year’s Australian Grand Prix, there were rumours that MotoGP could move the event to Albert Park in Melbourne.
The track hosts the Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix, though the amount of work needed - including the felling of trees - to increase run-off areas for MotoGP makes this an unlikely option.
Australia has a rich heritage in MotoGP, while its future looks promising, after Senna Agius enjoyed a breakout Moto2 campaign in 2025.
Next year’s Australian Grand Prix is due to take place from 23 October to 25 October and forms a back-to-back with Malaysia.
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