SBK, MotoGP impact: Superbike in Mandalika, something for just a distinguished few

Johnny Rea was amazed to see Mandalika’s central grandstand practically empty. The outcome of the Superbike World Championship will be decided in Indonesia.

In fact, the Cannibal expected to see as many fans as last year, but he was instead surprised by their scarce presence, and there are different reasons for this. First of all, the price of tickets, which are as high as 60 Euros for grandstand seats. That's more than 900,000 Indonesian Rupees.

Access to the circuit costs just over 3,000 Rupees, or 2 Euros. This explains why there are so many people in the paddock at Mandalika, which really surprised the Kawasaki rider.

The fact is that, compared to last year, ticket prices have practically doubled, but especially since the first MotoGP race was held in Mandalika at the beginning of the year, so many  opted to enjoy the first epic appearance of the World Championship on the Isle of Lombok, to the detriment of the SBK.

A bit like what happened in Buriram, where the Thai round of the SBK had over 80,000 appearances in the early years, but then it paid the price for the arrival of the MotoGP. Regarding the increase in prices, Rea jokingly said: “Sixty euros? That’s the price of three dinners.”