Dimopoulos added that Victoria offered to boost the marketing money and the fans\u2019 experience but organisers wanted the race held close to a major city.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe met every other request,\u201d Dimpoulos said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe met the licence fee. We met everything else. In fact, we went way beyond it because we offered to uplift the marketing and the fan experience, to really grow the event on the back of the fact that there was 91,000 people there last year; the best in 13 years.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey were accepting of all that, but their final demand was you must move the event into the city.\u201d<\/p>\n
In a statement, the government said the state had agreed to contribute additional funding to help Dorna Sports create a \u201cbigger, better event beyond 2026\u201d but only on the condition that the event remained at Phillip Island.<\/p>\n
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Destination Philip Island regional tourism chairman Jeff Webb said he had not received confirmation from anyone, but said it would be a massive loss to the region.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a significant blow to tourism for the region and will have a huge impact on hospitality, retail and local employment,\u201d he told this masthead.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt also reduces international exposure for Victoria. We\u2019ve been working for six months with the government and council and stakeholders to maintain the event, which contributes significantly to local economy.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur focus now is on identifying tourist initiatives to hopefully fill the loss.\u201d<\/p>\n
Dorna Sports has openly considered<\/a> racing more on street circuits since it was bought by Formula 1 owners Liberty Media last year.<\/p>\n In January, a government source familiar with the negotiations told The Age that Spain-based Dorna Sports had demanded the event be moved to Albert Park in inner Melbourne if the contract was to be renewed.<\/p>\n Motorcycle circuits typically require more space than Formula 1 tracks so riders who crash can slide onto large run-off areas and minimise injury.<\/p>\n Many of Albert Park\u2019s barriers are close to the track, meaning motorcycle races would likely require track expansion and tree felling<\/a>, which would anger locals and cost millions of dollars.<\/p>\n The event had a long-standing connection with Phillip Island and had been the scene of several historic victories by local riders, including Mick Doohan and Casey Stoner.<\/p>\n Last year\u2019s MotoGP attracted 93,000 fans \u2014 the highest since 2012 and a 10,000 increase on 2024.<\/p>\n The final Australian Grand Prix under Phillip Island\u2019s current 10-year contract will be held from Friday, October 23 to Sunday, October 25 this year.<\/p>\n \u201cThis October will be the 30th year, and we will do the best send-off,\u201d Dimopoulos said.<\/p>\n \u201cIt will be a humungous event. Last year the crowd was 91,000, we\u2019ll hope to clock over 100,000 people in this one as it will be a send-off, effectively.\u201d<\/p>\n