After the main race wasn’t brought forward to Saturday, riders and fans were left frustrated as Sunday visibility issues meant all racing was cancelled despite Michelin saying their tyres could handle the conditions
Phillip Island’s final scheduled MotoGP race ended in frustration for riders and fans after all of Sunday’s track action was cancelled, denying the circuit a racing farewell.
Officials said there was ‘no information’ on Saturday that visibility issues would prevent helicopter flights being possible on Sunday, giving Race Direction no clear reason to bring the main race forward despite forecast rain and wind.
With widespread low cloud and rain moving in on Sunday, MotoGP Race Director Graham Webber said weather conditions at both Phillip Island and Melbourne had to allow a safe medical helicopter transfer window before the race could start.
“There’s bad weather in Melbourne and here, and so there’s actually two places that we need to be able to say go,” Webber said. “That helicopter needs a window of around 60 minutes in both places, Phillip Island and Melbourne, in order for us to start the race.
“Just based on safety, we need to make sure that if we do have any issues, that we’re covered, that we can get a rider quickly to hospital.”
Race organisers delayed proceedings throughout Sunday in the hope conditions would improve, but the required weather window did not arrive.
“We were hoping to put on a spectacle for the crowds,” Webber said. “We tried our very best to get the event going. We kept pushing the time forward. We were holding on for a possibility towards the end of the day, and unfortunately the reports were that the weather wasn’t moving as fast as we would like.”
Webber said a road transfer was not a workable alternative at Phillip Island.
“At this racetrack, we rely heavily on the medical helicopter,” he said. “We just didn’t have any option outside of that, which is a huge shame.”
The decision came despite riders believing the track itself remained raceable. Francesco Bagnaia said riders were not consulted on whether the race should go ahead, but accepted the final decision rested with officials.
“It’s clear that the condition was a bit tricky, very cold, but I think we raced in worse conditions than this, the Italian former world champion said. “It’s a shame to have this kind of Sunday, remain in the garage in a track like this, the last time. I just hope that in the future we can come back to enjoy because like we saw yesterday the races produced in this track are amazing, great battles.”
Michelin also said tyre performance was not an issue across the weekend’s varying conditions. Michelin Motorsport Two Wheel Competition Manager Piero Taramasso said the tyre allocation had performed as expected in both dry and wet conditions at Phillip Island.
“In dry conditions, our tire allocation performed exactly as expected,” Taramasso said. “The Hard front confirmed its excellent stability, while the Soft rear delivered plenty of grip and very good consistency. In the wet, the Michelin Power Rain tires also performed extremely well, with competitive lap times and very positive feedback from the riders.”
After a farewell lap where MotoGP riders rode around the soaking circuit before stopping on the Gardner Straight to say goodbye to emotional Phillip Island fans, The Australian Grand Prix Corporation confirmed that full refunds would be offered to Sunday ticketholders, with partial refunds for multi day ticketholders.
Jack Miller
“You guys have sat through some shit today, and I’m sorry for that. At least we got out on track this year, but this is a tough pill to swallow. I was praying for rain all weekend and we got the rain but obviously we weren’t organised enough to get the racing going. It’s a tough one. You guys deserve better. All of you have done a fantastic job turning out for Phillip Island, sitting through traffic, sitting through dog shit weather and all the rest of it. You guys are amazing, so thank you very much. Obviously, it’s not the way I wanted to end my home Grand Prix after such a strong weekend. The weather was disappointing, to say the least. But I want to say a massive thank you to all the fans who came out, stood in the rain all day and supported us, only for there to be no racing. You guys are number one, and your support means a lot to me.”
Senna Agius
“Gutted not to send it one last time around the Island. Thanks for all that came out today, and over the years. Gunna miss this place.”
Joel Kelso
“What can we say? It’s obviously a bit disappointing. Last ever home GP for the barn. At least we chucked it on the front row yesterday, like I said. So yeah, we’ll probably run the livery again in Malaysia just to show it off a little bit more. But yeah, no real words to it, to be honest. It’s a big shame. Oh mate, it’s incredible. Even driving in this morning, with the wet forecast how it is, and there’s a queue out the front three hours before the gate opened. As you can see, the people are still standing out here in the bloody rain and the wind, and they’re still ready to go racing. So it’s a big shame. They’re literally all waiting for us to go riding. So yeah, it’s a shame to not be able to put on a show for the home crowd here. But like I said, I just can’t thank the people enough for coming out and watching and supporting me all weekend and even being here today ready if we were going to race. So yeah, all props to them. Hats off to them. And hopefully see a few of the pubs now. We’ll just celebrate that I got a podium. We’ll just pretend that the front row was the podium yesterday.”
