MotoGP returned to Brazil for the first time in 22 years earlier this month for the Brazilian Grand Prix. What was supposed to be a celebration for the sports and reimagined Ayrton Senna Circuit in Goiania quickly turned into disaster.
Shortly before the race began, it was announced that its 31-lap length would be lowered to 23, thanks to questionable track conditions—which concluded a sinkhole developing on the straight, albeit off the race line.
This “pavement deterioration” did not just shorten the race. It sent MotoGP fans and bettors into a frenzy. The latter group was particularly active on social media.
Remember, like SportsBettingSite.com notes, MotoGP draws lucrative wagers in bunches. Any material changes to conditions—and, in this case, the length—have noticeable impacts on betting lines and, therefore, peoples’ wallets.
We aren’t just talking about the results of the Brazilian Grand Prix, which Marco Bezzecchi ended up winning. Placements are going to impact the final standings, and by extension, they could influence who wins the MotoGP World Championship.
Naturally, then, MotoGP’s riders weren’t thrilled with how the Brazilian Grand Prix unfolded. And some are being more vocal most—not about the track conditions, but the lack of notice for them to change equipment.
Enea Bastianini is among those annoyed by how MotoGP handled the Brazilian Grand Prix
Multi-time MotoGP winner Enea Bastianini of Red Bull KTMwas ticked off that he didn’t have the ability to change his tires after the Brazilian Grand Prix announcement. As Robert Jones of Visor Down writes, the 28-year-old went as far as calling it a “big mistake.”
The race distance was dropped from the original 31 laps to 23, due to the track surface degrading. MotoGP went ahead with the race despite the concerns, however, only some riders were able to make a change of tyres when the new distance was confirmed.
Bastianini, who was at the rear of the grid, was notified of the change to the race length, but his Tech3 KTM team did not have enough time to make a tyre swap, unlike some teams further up the grid. Bastianini has branded the decision not to delay the start of Sunday’s shortened Brazilian MotoGP a “big mistake”.
Bastianini did not stop here. After the Italian rider finished 15th in the pecking order, he offered some choice words to decision makers.
“It has been bull shit,” he told reporters. “Because in a world championship, it is a big mistake. The message to my team arrived at the end [of the grid], during the last minute and the time to change the tyre for us was nothing… The team said to me ‘we don’t have time’ but the others in front changed. The good choice was to [delay the start for] five minutes to be clear on the situation for everyone.”
Bastianini was not alone in his frustration, either. Fellow KTM rider Brad Binder expressed dismay that he didn’t have timeto make the equipment change either. All of which raises an interesting question.
Did MotoGP make a massive mistake?
You will be hard-pressed to find anyone who supports how MotoGP handled this decision. Even riders near the front of the pack have acknowledged the way all of this unfolded.
From where we are standing, MotoGP should have explored one of two different avenues. The most drastic one would have featured rescheduling the Brazilian Grand Prix altogether.
Indeed, this sounds like a nuclear scenario. And, well, it kind of is. At the same time, the track conditions were not a surprise. Heavy rainfall in the preceding days already had officials sending out notes and warnings.
Riders also expressed concerns and frustrations about the track conditions during pre-qualifiers that Friday. The list includes the eventual winner Marco Bezzechi, who according to Cycle World, said he noticed that he was riding much slower, and that his team needed to adjust data points and approaches prior to arriving for the main event.
To be sure, nobody expected a literal sinkhole to appearon the straight. That was, frankly, a dire event. And yet, it would not have mattered if race officials took a more proactive approach to track conditions they already knew were deteriorating.
We recognize this is wishful thinking. The machine that is MotoGP isn’t going to junk an entire race on a whim.But that brings us to the second option: Why not just delay the start by a few more minutes? Or even by an hour? That would have allowed all of the riders to make equipment changes and coordinate any strategic changes with their team.
The KTM squad, specifically, said they only would have needed a few more minutesto complete their tire changes. That doesn’t seem like an unreasonable ask under the circumstances. This was a major alteration to the fabric of the race.
It would be one thing if riders at the front of the grid weren’t given the opportunity to swap equipment. But they were. Even if you do not believe the race results would be substantially different, this is a terrible look for MotoGP. It feels like they failed to even the bare minimum to ensure the integrity (and safety) of their riders.
