Fairstreet Sports, the group that plans the event with MotoGP’s owner Dorna, announced on Tuesday that they’re canceling this year’s race. This confirms what the media reported earlier.
The Buddh International Circuit, near Delhi, was supposed to host the 14th round of the season from September 23 to 25.
Dorna wants to move the Kazakhstan Grand Prix, which was planned for June but had to be delayed because of heavy floods, to the slot where the Indian GP was supposed to be.
Even though Fairstreet’s statement didn’t say the race is canceled, it suggests they want to move it to March 2025.
“The decision to move the race to March of next year, aiming for the first or second week, was a collective agreement among all stakeholders,” said Fairstreet Sports CEO Pushkar Nath Srivastava.
“The unsuitable weather conditions in September posed significant challenges for both riders and marshals, as observed last year. With the support and vision of the government of UP, the race in March will be staged in a grander manner and will aim to set a new standard for excellence in motorsport events.”
While Fairstreet Sports mentioned the hot weather in September, it’s understood that the main reason for canceling the 2024 race is financial, as the promoter broke the contract with Dorna.
Earlier, the organization insisted that the 2024 race would happen as planned, blaming any doubts on the country’s general elections.
Dorna is likely to say something soon about this and whether Kazakhstan will stay on the 2024 calendar.
If the Sokol International Circuit event can’t move to September, it will probably be canceled, leaving only 19 rounds this season.
VR46 rider Marco Bezzecchi won last year’s inaugural Indian Grand Prix on a 2022-spec Ducati.
