Mexico – yes or no? Reaction to news earlier this week of a possible 20th GP in Mexico as soon as next year has left many heads shaking at the perils of the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez, situated in a Mexico City park.

The major worry is the proximity of walls on a track that was reprofiled for a return of F1 in 2015; the major quirks are the location of a baseball stadium within the oval circuit which uses part of the GP track layout, and the altitude of around 2,300 metres.

Riders first heard of the possibility at the confidential Safety Commission meeting at Brno a week ago; Rossi went public a few days later with the bald statement that “it is too dangerous for MotoGP.”

At Austria, Marquez had some conciliatory words. “They say they are improving a lot the run-off areas. It is very hard to understand from a map, but it looks like there are some strange corners. But I like strange corners.”

Marquez, Austrian MotoGP 2018

Brno winner Dovizioso was dubious, but said: “I don’t think anything is fixed;” while Moto2 championship leader Miguel Oliveira was resigned. “I don’t watch F1 so I don’t know what the track is like. But if Dorna say we will go, we must go.”

Marquez added a final plea. “Please, not more than 20 races a year.”

Dorna’s plan is to slot the Mexican race in as round three, two weekends after the Argentine event, and a week before the race in Texas.

With the expected 2019 race in Finnland now postponed for at least a year because of delays to the work on the newly-built Kymiring circuit, it would bring the total of races a year to 20.

By Michael Scott