YAMAHA AND HONDA MAY JOIN DUCATI IN OPPOSING QATAR GP

Uncertainty continues to surround the Qatar Grand Prix, scheduled for three weeks from now, as conflict in the Middle East raises safety concerns. Recent cross-border attacks by Yemen’s Houthi rebels in Saudi Arabia have added to unease in the MotoGP paddock. Francesco Bagnaia has already voiced opposition to the championship entering a war zone to race, and a report by GPOne describes little enthusiasm among teams for the event to proceed.

An unnamed MotoGP team manager expects Honda and Yamaha to formally object if the race is neither cancelled nor moved. The manager cited the Japanese manufacturers’ strict compliance policies, which they said would also affect non-Japanese employees contracted to their parent companies. They added that Audi Group could take the same position on behalf of Ducati.

The potential objections would carry weight: Honda, Yamaha and Ducati are among the championship’s biggest manufacturers, and a race could not go ahead with only two brands—or eight riders—taking part. MotoGP CEO Carmelo Ezpeleta said in September that the Qatar round would proceed “provided nothing changes”. The source report notes that Formula 1 also has no current plan to cancel its Qatar or Abu Dhabi races, although it has a contingency option to move the Abu Dhabi event from Yas Marina to Imola. Any such change would require agreement between the parties involved.

Cancelling Qatar would also affect the title contest. Removing the round would take 37 points out of the season’s available total, with consequences for the close fight involving Marc Marquez and Jorge Martin. Marco Bezzecchi, already nearly 50 points behind the leaders, could be particularly affected.