MotoGP prepared to move Qatar GP to another venue

MotoGP has not ruled out moving the Qatar Grand Prix to another country amid the uncertainty caused by the war in the Middle East, and could potentially follow the same strategy Formula 1 has taken by hosting its Bahrain race in Malaysia. 

The conflict that erupted several months ago in the Persian Gulf between the United States, Israel and Iran has had a direct impact on this year’s sporting calendar, prompting several championships to cancel or postpone events.

Formula 1 initially postponed the Saudi Arabian and Bahrain grands prix, but announced a few days ago that the latter will take place at Sepang in Malaysia on the weekend of 4 October, while the Saudi race has been officially cancelled for 2026.

F1 organisers continue to monitor developments in the region ahead of deciding what course of action to take regarding the Qatar Grand Prix on 29 November and the Abu Dhabi season finale on 6 December.

In MotoGP’s case, the Losail circuit on the outskirts of Doha was originally scheduled to host the fourth round of the season on the weekend of 11-12 April, but the organisers opted to reschedule it for 6-8 November. As things stand, Qatar is the final race before the championship returns to Europe, where the Portuguese Grand Prix is scheduled for 20-22 November and the Valencia round, which will bring the season to a close, is due to take place one week later on 27-29 November.

MotoGP Sports Entertainment Group (MotoGP SEG), the championship promoter, maintains that it is still working towards holding the race at Losail, while at the same time admits it is exploring possible alternatives.

Aside from the commitment involved in considering hosting a sporting event in a location where there are obvious security concerns, Autosport understands that some companies operating in the championship – namely suppliers – have internal policies prohibiting them from sending employees to areas considered high-risk.

Asked directly about the alternatives being considered, sporting director Carlos Ezpeleta did not rule out MotoGP following a similar path to F1 with Bahrain and staging the Qatar Grand Prix in another country.

“Obviously, the fact that we belong to the same family as F1, Liberty Media, means that this issue is obviously on our minds,” Ezpeleta told Autosport. “The situation is different, though. We only have one race in the Middle East and, from a commercial point of view, a 21-stop season rather than 22 is clearly sufficient.”

The final decision on what to do with the Losail race is extremely complex from every perspective. Logistically, finding a circuit at such short notice that both meets MotoGP’s required safety standards and is available is far from straightforward. It must also be taken into account that, just two weeks later, all the equipment needs to be ready for the Portuguese Grand Prix.

“We are at a point in the year when most European circuits are already occupied,” Ezpeleta said, while stressing that his priority remains travelling to Qatar in November. “Honestly, I hope we can go, and that’s what we’re focused on right now.”

MotoGP SEG has given itself until the end of this month to make a decision, allowing enough time to act in either direction. Depending on the course of action and how the situation in the Middle East develops, next year’s opening sequence could also have to be altered.

For now, it is known that the first round of the 2027 season will take place in Thailand on 5-7 March, with everything seemingly in place for Qatar to host the second round one week later. The conflict, however, could yet force a change to that scenario.

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– The Autosport.com Team