MotoGP: Opinion: How does MotoGP make up for Silverstone?

The 2018 British MotoGP had all the potential to be the best Grand Prix of the year but instead it’s prospects went to being as good as a toilet duck’s. Hour after hour, delay after delay, race officials eventually reached the conclusion that there would be no track action and that the Grand Prix would be cancelled; the first time in over three decades that an entire GP race day has been scrapped. So, instead of portioning blame on the organisers and Silverstone – of which the latter is obviously far more accountable – this article is going to look at how we could’ve avoided the issues that we experienced and also look ahead to how this may affect the rest of the championship season and also about who really holds power within MotoGP.

The severity of the circuit’s conditions was first raised on Saturday afternoon after the horrendous crash that Tito Rabat was caught up in at turn eight. That crash could’ve been avoided; that area of circuit was in no fit state for motorcycle racing. To me, it was obvious in the lap before the accident when all focus was on Marc Marquez that it was far to dangerous and therefore should’ve been stopped. Had it been stopped then we wouldn’t have had the serious crash. However, we would also not have known about the consequences of a poor drainage system. Whilst the crash should never of happened, it happened in practice and thank heavens it didn’t happen in the race. A typical example of reaction and no proaction but we learnt something either way.

Now, we could’ve avoided the accident but we could have also avoided the complete abandoning of the GP. Instead of running all three warm-up sessions on Sunday morning, I suggest that look at something else. I’d propose an earlier start to the event on a Sunday, with MotoGP warm-up taking place at 8.30am for 10 minutes, slashing warm up time but enough to do four laps. Then, by 9.30am, we have lights out and the British Grand Prix is underway with the MotoGP riders.

I am not saying that we would’ve had a race that would be completely dry, far from it. But it would’ve been a race, whether it would be run at full distance is another question but a race is a race and the Grand Prix would be on. Fans would see their favourite riders take place on the grid and podium and the majority of people would’ve been happy. Whilst Moto3 and Moto2 and the British Talent Cup are important, the MotoGP main race is the most important and must run.

However, the earliest that the MotoGP teams were prepared to start their Grand Prix was 11.30am – still as the first race but much later on. By then, it was obvious that the race would have very little opportunity to be run at all. Why couldn’t the organisers have stepped in and said that race would start at 9.30am whether the teams like it or not? Sometimes, democratic decisions are not always in the best interests of everyone (no, I’m not about to talk about the Algerian elections of 1990 or Brexit for that matter). It takes some stern leadership and an almost iron-fisted approach to make things happen. Cast your mind back to 2017 and the BSB event at Silverstone, where Stuart Higgs was quite rightly determined to get the 2nd BSB race underway despite the demands of Shane Byrne to have a delay. It should’ve been a matter of, ‘race at this time or we don’t race’.

Not only would it have been the main race completed and that the main teams could begin their pack up a bit sooner, but it would be one less race to worry about squeezing in when the rain eventually came. If the Moto3 and Moto2 races – alongside the British Talent Cup race – didn’t go ahead, the majority of the people would be a bit disappointed they didn’t see a packed day schedule but they’d probably also be far more generous to the organisers – had they got the MotoGP race in. It shows more of an effort to the fan at face value and also keep the dynamic of the championship relatively level too.

There is no doubt that Silverstone’s resurfacing has tarnished the circuit’s reputation and also thrown into jeopardy the British GP’s future at the circuit. But what is done is done and having explained how this could’ve – and probably should’ve – been avoided, I’ll now turn my attention to what can be done in the coming rounds to make up for the loss of one MotoGP race day.

Could a double header at Misano work? Probably not, with more tyres and fuel needed to accomodate the extra track time. Not just that, but trying to meet the massive requirements of both tyres and fuel in such a short space of time would be a logistical nightmare. So, what solution is there then? Do we double point Buriram, as it is a circuit that is neutral to everyone? There would be no favouritism, as Misano is Valentino Rossi’s home and Marc Marquez’s home circuit is Aragon. Thailand is the next one up after those two and what better way to celebrate the inaugural Thai Grand Prix than to showcase it as a double-pointer?

The other solution that is required must also suit the fans. Giving them free entrance to the Silverstone round of BSB doesn’t really do justice someone who may have forked out a hell of a lot of money for the Grand Prix stars. My solution would be to give the fans options on which Grand Prix they would like to go to next year, flights, accommodation and VIP entry tickets included, no matter how much or how little anyone spent on a British GP ticket. This would make MotoGP the ultimate fan-friendly world-class motorsport series, as well as giving some people the chance of a lifetime to visit a Grand Prix outside of the UK – which for some is a rare, once in a lifetime chance.

Whatever the outcome of this whole sorry saga, we must thank the marshals for standing by the circuit and doing their best to try and get this GP underway, even if it did turn out to be the Grand Prix that never was. We have to solute the race organisers in a way for listening to the needs of the riders when the rain did come down, Tito Rabat’s accident really put into perspective how dangerous this sport mixed in with terrible track conditions can be.

However, there is a bigger and more poignant question to answer: what is the future of the British GP? To all of those who call for it to be back at Donington Park, I personally think that will happen sooner or later but a 2019 GP there would be a bit soon. Who is to say that Donington Park would be all that much better anyway – everyone regarded Silverstone as the UK’s premier motorsport facility until this cock-up occurred. Maybe we will see the end of the British GP at Silverstone. Britain – apart from this year – is normally an extremely wet country and the fact that a wet race at Silverstone can’t actually go ahead is laughable. It is a bad joke. Silverstone need to have a long, hard think about what they need to do to resolve this issue; however we must also feel sorry for them. The entire team of workers couldn’t have known that this would happen and that it would be so dangerous. It really is a tricky time for the British GP. If you thought the Circuit of Wales was going to be complicated, I have a feeling that we haven’t seen anything yet.