For the next seven days, MotoGP will be crossing its fingers while holding its breath. Only time will tell if that’s enough to continue a season with sporting integrity, safety of its participants – or at all.
Every MotoGP qualifying, practice and race LIVE and ad-break free from lights out to the chequered flag. New to Kayo? Start Your Free Trial Today >
While last weekend’s Malaysian Grand Prix saw Aprilia’s Jorge Martin bravely try – and fail – to compete with a right wrist broken six days earlier in Australia, and saw Ducati’s reigning world champion Marc Marquez snap an eight-year Sepang drought to put one hand on the world championship trophy, most minds were 6000km away from Kuala Lumpur in Doha, site of this weekend’s already-rescheduled 20th round of the world championship.
MORE MOTOGP NEWS
TALKING POINTS Sepang winner’s smooth run as Aussie, Yamaha to miss Qatar
RACE REPORT Champ sets up match point with drought-breaking win
It’s a round that, as Australia’s Jack Miller put it on Sunday, “nobody wants to go to” as the US/Israel versus Iran military conflict that has affected the region for much of 2026 looks set to stir from a simmer to a boil again as this week’s United States mid-term elections have been forecast as a catalyst for increased hostilities.
Miller, as it turns out, won’t be going; on Sunday night, Yamaha announced that its two MotoGP teams, the factory outfit campaigning Fabio Quartararo and Alex Rins, and its Pramac Racing team of Miller and Augusto Fernandez, substituting for injured regular Toprak Razgatlioglu, will boycott the event, a statement saying “Yamaha has not identified sufficient grounds to change its existing company-wide travel restrictions”.
It was the latest significant news in a fortnight full of headlines ever since the sport’s riders, in a rare show of unity, met at the Australian Grand Prix at Phillip Island to table their concerns about travelling to the region.
Marquez wins Malaysia MotoGP | 00:57
But, in reality, the suitability or not of Qatar to host a round of the world championship, one where the travelling international paddock runs close to 2000 people, has been bubbling away for some time.
For the next seven days, the sporting side of the world championship – Marquez, 44 points in the lead of the title chase with 111 available, could seal his eighth MotoGP title this weekend – will take a back seat. Getting into and – more pertinently – out of Qatar safely and completing the event is the only priority.
The next seven days will also provide plenty of answers; for now, five questions bear asking.
WHY IS MOTOGP RACING IN QATAR?
Most, if not all, decisions in top-line international sport have financial considerations at their core, and MotoGP is no exception.
The Lusail International Circuit outside of Doha has been a long-standing home for the world championship, first hosting MotoGP in 2004, and becoming the sport’s first (and so far only) race held at night since 2008. It’s a state-of-the-art facility that’s unlike anywhere on the MotoGP calendar.
MORE MOTOGP NEWS
‘ISLAND WAS CRYING’ MotoGP winner’s lament over loss, crunch Qatar meeting looms
EXPLAINER Why Phillip Island finale didn’t happen, and Adelaide’s advantage for MotoGP’s move
Qatar, the country, has become a crucial commercial partner to the series. This year, the national airline Qatar Airways has naming rights sponsorship for three rounds of the 22-round calendar, and extensive trackside sponsorship visibility at every round. With Doha used as a flight hub into and out of Europe, the series also depends on Qatar for its extensive freight requirements.
MotoGP hosting fees, the price paid by event promoters to hold a round of the series, are a closely-guarded secret, but Qatar is widely reported to pay a steeper price than any other location, and has contract that extends to the 2031 season. Put simply, it’s a financial investment that’s significant for the series.
Qatar has insisted that the country can safely host the world championship’s annual visit in 2026; last week, MotoGP Sports Entertainment Group (MSEG) deputy CEO Carlos Ezpeleta visited Lusail to hear from event organisers and see the extent of the preparations first-hand.
Put simply, MotoGP would take a hit financially if it was to cancel the Qatar round if Qatar says it can host the series as usual. If a situation arose where Qatar couldn’t host MotoGP and had to withdraw, they would still be on the hook for the agreed hosting fee.
From a broadcast perspective, it’s instructive to note that an additional race would not need to be added to the schedule if Qatar didn’t go ahead, a 21-round season enough to satisfy MotoGP’s contracts with its broadcast partners.
Jack Miller erupts at pit crew | 00:45
WHAT ARE THE DANGERS?
The likely escalation of the military conflict in the region this week – which has been widely reported as countries adjust their travel advice to the region to broadly discourage all non-essential travel – creates a volatile situation that could place MotoGP in a bind.
Earlier in the year, when MotoGP postponed Qatar from its scheduled April date to November, airspace in the region was intermittently shut down, impacting the travel plans of people in or travelling through such Middle East hubs as Doha, Abu Dhabi and Dubai.
With MotoGP’s freight travelling directly from Kuala Lumpur to Doha, getting into Lusail and set up to race is largely a given, considering the US mid-term elections are mid-week; what happens if military activity escalates and airspace is closed with a paddock full of freight and 2000 people, and the final two rounds of the season set for Portugal (November 20-22) and Valencia (November 27-29), is the more pressing concern.
A traditional wheelie from Jack Miller | 00:53
In his post-Malaysia press debrief, Miller intimated that the visibility of the event could make MotoGP a target for disruption, too.
“I understand their (position) as the promoter and I love Qatar, but the surrounding area is the issue that we have,” he said.
“To go and put on a global event, we’re not hiding. We’re not hiding our location or date and time we will be at said location. If anyone does want to make an example or do whatever they do …”.
WHAT HAPPENS TO YAMAHA AFTER IT PULLED OUT?
Yamaha breaking ranks with MotoGP’s other four manufacturers – Aprilia, Ducati, KTM and Honda – was always a possibility after Yamaha’s Rins, in his pre-Malaysia press briefing, said “right now Yamaha, I think, is one of the unique ones that they don’t know if they will go to Qatar” on Thursday at Sepang.
Hours after last Sunday’s Malaysian Grand Prix won by Marquez, Yamaha issued a statement that, in part, read: “Yamaha has informed MotoGP Group about its decision not to participate in the 2026 Qatar Grand Prix. This decision reflects Yamaha’s assessment of the information currently available and is independent of the measures implemented by MotoGP Group and the event organiser. Yamaha remains fully committed to MotoGP and looks forward to returning to competition at the Portuguese Grand Prix.”
All five manufacturers have contracts with the series outlining their participation and commitments; in response, a MotoGP statement said it was “disappointed by Yamaha’s decision”.
“Following consultation with the State of Qatar, Lusail International Circuit, independent safety advisers and MotoGP’s own ongoing risk assessment process, MotoGP has not received any information that would warrant a change to the current plans for the event,” the statement continued.
“We communicated that position, together with the latest available information, to all Manufacturers and Teams (on Sunday) and welcome the confirmation from the remainder of the grid that they will compete in Qatar, and we thank them for that commitment.
“In addition to the contractual implications of Yamaha’s decision for its agreements with MotoGP and IRTA, Yamaha’s non-participation also carries sporting implications, with any sporting consequences to be managed by the FIM in accordance with the Championship regulations.”
What sporting punishments could be levied towards Yamaha – removal of championship points or being barred from remaining events in 2026 were two options being discussed in the Sepang paddock on Sunday – remain to be seen.
On track, Yamaha has been MotoGP’s straggler this season, sitting last in the constructors’ championship, occupying the last two places in MotoGP’s 11-strong teams’ championship, and having no rider higher than 14th (Quartararo) in the rider’s standings. It’s harsh to say Yamaha won’t be missed on track at Lusail, but only partly.
Interestingly, the Yamaha-funded Blu Cru Pramac Yamaha Moto2 team – which features Miller’s 2027 MotoGP replacement, Spaniard Izan Guevara – is committed to racing in Qatar this weekend; Guevera, unlike any of Yamaha’s four MotoGP riders, is in title contention this season, sitting 3.5 points adrift of compatriot Manu Gonzalez in second place in the intermediate-class standings.
WHAT DO THE RIDERS THINK?
After the MotoGP grid’s riders met in Australia, Autosport reported they, as a collective, presented a document to MSEG outlining five conditions for their attendance in Qatar, primarily seeking an evacuation plan and insurance coverage.
Subsequent meetings in Malaysia saw a document sent to MSEG and the teams seeking written confirmation by Sunday afternoon taking responsibility for any eventuality in Qatar, per Autosport. The teams then met with MSEG executives on Sunday morning in Sepang.
A MotoGP statement said, in part: “MotoGP management met with the Teams to review the latest information and assurances provided by the State of Qatar, Lusail International Circuit, relevant embassies and independent experts. These internal and external assessments continue to inform our ongoing risk review and decision-making process.
“We will continue to monitor developments closely and remain in regular contact with all relevant authorities and stakeholders. Decisions of this nature must be based on the most current facts, advice from official sources and informed assessment available at the time they are made. Should that assessment change, we will act accordingly.”
After Sunday’s race, podium finishers Marc Marquez, Pedro Acosta and Alex Marquez flatly refused to engage with a question about Qatar in the post-event press conference. Quartararo’s response – “I’m not speaking about Qatar, I don’t want to get in trouble – sometimes I want to talk too much” – in his own press debrief summed up the prevailing mood.
The typically unfiltered Miller – who will leave MotoGP at the end of the season – was more expansive and, before Yamaha’s statement was released later on Sunday, indicated his next stop was Townsville, not Doha.
“I don’t want to go, like everybody,” he said.
“There’s 19 of us that don’t want to go there, I don’t think we should be racing a motorcycle in those sorts of conditions. We’ve made our opinion very clear on that, and we’ll see what the decision is. As riders, we’ve united and done the best we can what with ammunition we have, not only for us as riders but also for other people in the championship. If you speak to 50 per cent of the paddock, nobody wants to go.
“The biggest thing for us as riders is liability. Somebody’s got to be liable for it. If you (MSEG) want us to go there, put your name on it if you believe it’s safe. I don’t think it’s unreasonable to ask that. They can attack us at any angle, financially, on the sporting side with our licences and so on, and also to the teams. We’ve been pretty quiet about it until now, but the fact of the matter is when we’re being asked what we’re doing, it’s not up to us at the end of the day.
“We’re a number in this game, and there’s 19-20 of us that are pretty adamant we don’t want to go.”
As it happens, Miller and his three Yamaha stablemates won’t be the only riders missing in Qatar next weekend.
Ducati’s Alex Marquez, who has struggled with a right shoulder issue since his horrific crash in May’s Catalan Grand Prix, announced on Sunday that he will undergo surgery in Madrid this week and not be in Doha; the Spaniard has been one of the few riders to publicly discuss Qatar in his press debriefs at the Australian and Malaysian Grands Prix.
Aprilia pair Martin, with his fractured right wrist, and Raul Fernandez, who has missed the past two Grands Prix with two broken fingers on his right hand, look to be questionable starters, even with Martin in mathematical contention for the world title.
Honda’s Joan Mir, who missed the four rounds before Malaysia with illness, pulled out of the Sepang race with dizziness and has to be considered an uncertain starter; the 22-strong grid could be reduced to as few as 14 riders for a sport that pays world championship points down to 15th place this coming weekend.
HOW DOES MOTOGP’S SITUATION AFFECT FORMULA 1?
While MotoGP’s calendar has been up in the air since Qatar was postponed from April, the schedule for Formula 1 – also owned by MotoGP’s owner, Liberty Media – has undergone its own on-the-fly overhaul in 2026.
The Bahrain Grand Prix scheduled for April was postponed and then, bizarrely, held at Sepang in Malaysia in early October, while the adjacent Saudi Arabia Grand Prix was cancelled altogether. F1 still has races to come in Qatar (November 27-29) and Abu Dhabi (December 4-6), with Imola in Italy being readied as a final round on the same date as Abu Dhabi is scheduled if the event cannot proceed.
On Sunday at the Mexico City Grand Prix, where a third place for Kimi Antonelli saw the Mercedes driver wrap up a historic world title, Autosport reported that the F1 teams were sent a communication from F1 management indicating that “it still intends to conclude the season in Qatar and Abu Dhabi” in the wake of the Yamaha withdrawal from this coming weekend’s MotoGP event.
“Teams were informed in advance about the (Yamaha) news, with the message noting that the other manufacturers and MotoGP as a whole will still travel to Qatar as planned,” the report read, adding: “F1 sees no reason to change its own plans at this stage, emphasising that neither the travel advice nor the insurance situation has changed since May, allowing the championship to proceed.”
In many ways, this weekend’s Qatar MotoGP round will be instructive for F1 and whatever decisions it may need to make – or not – going forward.