No Brno MotoGP round for 2021 due to funding woes!
The Czech city of Brno has opted out of hosting a round of the 2021 MotoGP championship due to financial restraints
THE Brno round of the 2021 MotoGP has been axed after the circuit owners could, local authorities and, Dorna could not agree on terms on the necessary track work required to host the round.
The city of Brno has hosted a round of the MotoGP championship since 1987, although the links with motorcycle sport and the country go back to 1965. All that will change for 2021 though, after Dorna requested the venue upgrade the venue at an estimated cost of nearly €3m.
The local government and track owners have concluded that the work cannot go ahead without help from MotoGP’s commercial rights holder, Dorna.
The stakeholders claim that Dorna is not willing to cut the venue a deal on the €9m fee for hosting the event. While the Czech government is, understandably, apparently not inclined to bolster the tracks coffers slap bang in the middle of a global pandemic.
The round had been left off the provisional 2021 calendar that was announced at the start of the year, although the race organiser was keen to cut to a deal. Now though, even the local councillors from Brno have no intention of running an event in 2021 as plans are officially cancelled.
It’s not just the behind the scenes business dealings that have hammered the nails into the proverbial coffin. With COVID-19 still causing havoc for many parts of Europe, the question mark still remains on how many fans will actually be willing to travel to overseas events. And for that matter, if any will be allowed in at all.
Simon (AKA Toad) has been working within the motorcycle industry for more than twelve years, and a member of the motorcyclist family since birth. Growing up around British-built single and twins, it was inevitable that a life on two wheels was on the cards, from a very early age!
