BAGNAIA URGES EARLY DECISION ON QATAR GP AS LATE-SEASON DATES SHIFT

Ducati’s Pecco Bagnaia says he wants clarity on the fate of the Qatar Grand Prix as early as possible, pointing to the wider disruption caused by the Middle East conflict that erupted in February after joint US and Israeli strikes on Iran. The knock-on effects have already forced major motorsport calendar changes elsewhere, with Formula 1 cancelling its Bahrain and Saudi Arabian races from their April slots and relocating Bahrain to Malaysia, while the FIA World Endurance Championship also altered its Qatar season opener.

Bagnaia, speaking at Silverstone, said the MotoGP paddock needs to know what will happen to Qatar soon. “For me, the sooner you know, the better it is,” he said when asked by Crash when riders needed confirmation. He added that the uncertainty matters because the schedule has already been reshuffled to accommodate Qatar’s move, explaining that “they moved two races more in front in Europe, to race in Qatar.”

In MotoGP, Qatar was originally slated for April, but it was postponed until November to finish a triple-header that also includes Australia and Malaysia. With Qatar’s date now set for later in the year, the Portuguese and Valencia rounds at the end of the campaign were pushed back by a week. Those races are currently pencilled for 20-22 November and 27-29 November, and the Valencia post-race test is scheduled for the start of December.

Bagnaia’s concern is that racing in Valencia so late could be on the edge of safe conditions due to temperatures. “I imagine to race in December in Valencia, it can be - not dangerous - but on the limit,” he said. He referenced past experience, recalling that in 2020 “in the morning it was like six degrees,” and noted that riding MotoGP in such conditions—especially with ice on the grass—can be extremely difficult.

While there is still no decision on whether Qatar will go ahead, Bagnaia said he hopes the final two rounds can be moved back if Qatar is cancelled. “I just hope that if they decide quite soon to remove Qatar to replace the races in the current date,” he said. He also admitted he does not know what to expect, adding that “we were quite lucky in the last seasons,” but stressing that the timing in Valencia could change the risk profile if the calendar shifts again.