"Some of our team staff
stayed in Qatar following the test
days, as we were aware of the
seriousness of the outbreak. But
at this time the most important
thing is the safety of the people,
and we have to respect the deci-
sion made by the local authori-
ties and by the MotoGP officials.
"It's a delicate and strange
time for everyone around the
world, and we need to take
things race by race at the mo-
ment and see what develops
in the coming weeks. I'd like to
wish good luck to those riding in
Moto2 and Moto3 next week-
end, and I hope we can be back
on the track soon."
Rider reaction has under-
standably been one of disap-
pointment. Valentino Rossi ex-
pressed what many were feeling
by saying, "It's really bad news.
Such a pity. After a winter spent
training, we were ready to start
the season, both physically and
psychologically. After the test
in Qatar, I really wanted to start
with the first race.
"The MotoGP class cancella-
tion for Qatar is difficult news to
take, also for the fans, because
now we do not know how long
we will have to wait before we can
start racing. It is certainly a long
time, considering the next GP in
Thailand has been postponed for
all classes. I hope everything will
get better in the next weeks."
Another issue to consider is
logistics, with some personnel
from Italian teams Ducati and
Aprilia unable to enter Qatar
to help pack their equipment,
which is already at the Losail
International Circuit following
the MotoGP test, and send it on
to the USA.
And even then, the pos-
sibility of further cancellations
remains. How will the USA view
a sudden influx of personnel
from infected areas such as
Italy ahead of the Grand Prix
of the Americas on April 5?
National airlines didn't exactly
ease these fears. On Saturday,
American Airlines suspended
its operations from Milan, Italy
to New York and Florida "due to
the reduction in demand." That
service is scheduled to resume
on April 25. Delta is following
suit with its last west-bound flight
leaving Milan for the U.S. on
Tuesday, March 3. That service
will resume on May 2.
Dorna is now prepared to see
how the situation develops. As
Brivio mentioned, they will need
to "take things race by race."
But judging by the speed of the
weekend's developments, we
may well know for sure whether
the MotoGP contingent will re-
sume hostilities around Austin's
curves on April 5 sooner than
"the coming weeks." CN
Neil Morrison
VOLUME 57 ISSUE 9 MARCH 3, 2020 P29
There will still be racing
action in Qatar, but
only Moto2 and Moto3.
With the Thai MotoGP
round also canceled,
Austin could host the
first MotoGP race of the
year—if that doesn't get
canceled, as well.
