MotoGP has lost the next Grand Prix of the current season. As announced on Wednesday, the Indian Grand Prix will not take place. The race at the Buddh International Circuit near New Delhi was actually scheduled for September 22nd.
The International Motorcycle Federation (FIM) confirmed the cancellation in a joint press release with the IRTA and the MotoGP promoter Dorna. The reason given was “operational considerations”. No further details were announced. However, it has been known for weeks that the Grand Prix is in jeopardy.
No Indian GP 2024: What is behind the MotoGP cancellation?
There are reports in the paddock that financial reasons could be behind the cancellation. The local organizer Fairstreet Sports is said to have failed to pay Dorna after the premiere last year. The MotoGP promoter had set a deadline of May 20th.
In the press release about the Indian GP, the FIM did not write about a cancellation, but rather communicated the removal of the race from this year’s MotoGP racing calendar as a postponement. The Grand Prix is set to make a comeback in 2025, but on a new date. In consultation with the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, where the track is located, the Indian GP is planned for March. Better weather conditions are expected at this time of year.
MotoGP race calendar: Kazakhstan GP as replacement
It was not initially communicated whether there would be a replacement race for India or whether the GP would be cancelled without replacement. Recently there were considerations that the Kazakhstan GP, which had also been postponed, could step in instead of the Indian race. The Grand Prix premiere at the Sokol International Racetrack near Almaty on June 16 was cancelled due to the flood disaster, but with the option of making up the race later in the MotoGP season.
Update: 40 minutes after the cancellation of the Indian GP, MotoGP officially announced that the Kazakhstan GP would indeed be added to the calendar as a replacement race for the date from September 20th to 22nd.
At the beginning of the year, MotoGP lost a Grand Prix. After a political change of power in the South American country, the Argentina GP, which was scheduled for April 7, was finally cancelled. Without India and Argentina, the racing calendar of the motorcycle world championship now only has 20 venues.