MotoGP boss says series is “moving towards races closer to cities”

Carmelo Ezpeleta, CEO of MotoGP Sports Entertainment Group, has confirmed that the series is “moving towards holding races closer to cities.”

MotoGP caused a stir last month when it announced that 2026 would be the final season of the Australian Grand Prix taking place at the beloved Phillip Island.

After plans to move the race to Albert Park were rejected by the organisers, a new deal with the South Australian government was signed to bring MotoGP to Adelaide.

For the first time, MotoGP will race on a street track around much of the former Formula 1 venue in Adelaide.

Ezpeleta, who said last year during a visit to the Las Vegas Grand Prix that MotoGP was eyeing street circuits, stressed in a new interview that all of the safety requirements to run a race will be met by the Adelaide track.

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“We’re going to a place that we believe has every possibility of being a fantastic circuit, in the middle of a city, but with all the necessary safety features,” Marca quotes Ezpeleta as saying.

“[Adelaide] is better for attracting people. I hope we won’t have the problems with wind and rain again.

“It’s easy to say [Phillip Island] was a beautiful track, which is true, but safety comes before anything else.

“I want to remind everyone that Suzuka, which is a beautiful track, couldn’t continue because it wasn’t safe.”

Adelaide’s parkland setting signals a new era for MotoGP, but two permanent ‘city centre’ tracks are also set to join the calendar, starting with the upcoming Goiania round in Brazil.

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MotoGP will also return to Argentina next season, replacing the Rio Hondo circuit that hosted rounds from 2014 to 2024 with a circuit in Buenos Aires.

“I do believe we’re moving towards holding races closer to cities,” Ezpeleta said.

“Goiania is a permanent circuit in the city centre, and next year we’ll be going to Buenos Aires, which is also a permanent circuit in the city centre.

“That’s the way forward.”

Street races have always been a fixture in F1, but more have been added to the calendar under Liberty Media’s ownership in place of traditional circuits in a bid to bring the series closer to fans. 

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