Why MotoGP Australia wasn’t moved to Saturday after weather fears

MotoGP says the reason the Australian Grand Prix wasn’t brought forward a day amid weather fears was that Saturday’s forecasts did not predict Sunday’s visibility issues.

Sunday’s final Australian Grand Prix at Phillip Island was cancelled as poor weather led to visibility issues that stopped the medical helicopter from flying.

Riders completed a controlled parade lap after the race was cancelled as a tribute to the fans.

The likes of Jack Miller and Marc Marquez said Phillip Island “deserved better”, as the Australian Grand Prix moves to Adelaide from next year.

Why no repeat of 2023 Australian GP schedule change?

But questions have been raised as to why MotoGP didn’t move to mitigate the risk of Sunday’s grand prix being called off, as was the case in 2023.

Poor weather forecasts ahead of the 2023 Australian Grand Prix led to the main race being brought forward to Saturday, while the sprint was postponed to Sunday.

The Moto2 and Moto3 races went ahead that year, but the sprint was ultimately cancelled.

On Thursday, Fabio Di Giannantonio told the media that discussions had already been had about altering the Phillip Island schedule due to the weather.

A spokesperson from MotoGP Group says race direction had been monitoring the weather, but the visibility issues that ultimately cancelled the race were not on the radar as of Saturday.

“Race Direction was monitoring the weather forecast very closely for the weekend,” a brief statement said.

“There was a forecast for rain and wind on Sunday, but not to the level that would risk not being able to hold the races.

“As of Saturday, there was no information that visibility would be limiting and that helicopter flight would not be possible on Sunday.”

Could MotoGP have done more?

Altering race schedules is a complex undertaking because of the impact it will have on paying spectators.

But Sunday was already slated to be the worst day weather-wise. Even if forecasts didn’t predict the visibility issues, Phillip Island’s weather has always been unpredictable.

So, there is an argument to be made that MotoGP should have acted more cautiously, particularly with the possibility of Phillip Island’s final grand prix being concluded in a deflating fashion.

That’s especially true with the impact that cancelling the main race may have on the championship battle.

Marc Marquez leads the standings by 10 points over Jorge Martin, who fractured his wrist in a crash in Saturday’s sprint and was ruled out of the grand prix.

This is not to say that the outcome for Martin would have been any different had 25 points been up for grabs on Saturday. But perhaps knowing the sprint may have been his only chance of points all weekend altered his approach to be more aggressive.

The loss of 25 points from the pot is also a questionable decision given the uncertainty around the Qatar Grand Prix, which could yet be cancelled if the conflict in the region escalates.