MotoGP World championship will continue at Phakisa in Welkom for another three years after it was agreed to renew the circuit’s contract.
MotoGP World championship will continue at Phakisa in Welkom for another three years after it was agreed to renew the circuit’s contract.
In a joint statement, Carmelo Ezpeleta, chief executive of Dorna Sports, and Webster Mfebe, member of the Executive Council for Sport in the Free State, said they had signed a letter of intent for the extension of MotoGP at Phakisa for at least another three years. The parties said that the final details will be made public before June 18.
Mfebe said MotoGP hadn’t only met his expectations but far exceeded them in terms of the economic impact, not only in the Lewjeleputswa district but South Africa as a whole. He said he was delighted that MotoGP, an event with a worldwide TV audience of over 300 million viewers, would continue to host a round of the World Championship at Phakisa.
Ezpeleta also held a meeting with all the MotoGP riders to discuss safety following the death of Daijiro Kato in an accident at Suzuka this year.
“It was a very positive meeting. It is clear that we all have a common goal of making MotoGP as safe as possible. So the first measure we have agreed is that we will hold meetings between the riders’ representatives and myself at every Grand Prix. The riders have nominated Valentino Rossi, Kenny Roberts, Sete Gibernau and Nobuatsu Aoki as their representatives,” Ezpeleta said.