MotoGP, Borsoi: “We were ready to race.” Tardozzi: “Safety first of all.”

The Phillip Island Sprint Race was officially canceled half an hour before the start. It was too windy to race without endangering the riders. The team managers met with Race Direction and Carlos Ezpeleta, and they were informed of the decision to cancel the short race.

Davide Tardozzi, from Ducati, agreed across the board with this choice: “It’s clear that we all have an interest in racing for the spectators at home and for those at the circuit who came on a day like this. But when the danger is so great for the riders, they have to stop. At the first and third corners, there were sudden gusts, and when you’re at 300 km/h, it becomes really dangerous. Sometimes you have to decide that the safety of the riders comes first. There’s no discussion at this point, and I thank Race Direction for having made this decision.”

The official Borgo Panigale team has no objections, but the Pramac team had some doubts. “All the teams and riders would’ve liked to race. Even if wet, the grip was quite good, but the wind increased during the Moto2 race, until they stopped it. And it was expected to get worse. So, for safety reasons, they canceled the MotoGP,” Borsoi said.

Logically, Gino knows that it would’ve been an opportunity for Martin to recuperate some points on Bagnaia after those he lost yesterday, due to a wrong tire choice. Jorge was very fast in the warm up, even if wet. “It’s not at alla okay for us, because we were ready even in these conditions,” the team manager admitted. “Unfortunately, that’s how it went. We’re super happy for Zarco’s super victory yesterday. It was too bad for Martin. We’ll try again in Thailand.” Then his final thought: “In the end, only half of the points are awarded in the sprint, and maybe it was best we didn’t risk getting hurt, with the upcoming race in a few days.”

Yamaha’s Massimo Meregalli - mout of the championship fight unlike his two teammates - supported the decision to stop. “We knew of this possibility, which is why we moved the long race to yesterday. All of the teams met with Carlos Ezpeleta and Race Direction and, in my opinion, they made the right decision. The conditions would’ve worsened. They had already interrupted the Moto2 race, due to the wind, and there was no reason to take risks with the MotoGP.”