Doubts about Adelaide
The arrival of MotoGP from Phillip Island to Adelaide, scheduled for 2027, will mark a historic event for the World Championship: the future Australian Grand Prix will in fact be the first to take place on a street circuit. For this very reason, numerous controversies have arisen regarding rider safety, who will fight for victory on a track previously known for Formula 1 GPs and designed by Bob Barnard. The latter, in an interview with ABC, indicated the necessary renovations to host MotoGP.
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Requests rejected
The problem, however, is the cost required to complete the works, amounting to 100 million dollars. A figure immediately rejected not only by the Premier of the State of South Australia, Peter Malinauskas, but also by Mark Warren, President of the SA Motorsport Board: “I have never seen figures like this – he stated to Five AA, recalling how the project is based on an existing circuit, not one to be built – I believe this is a very speculative estimate, especially since we are still in the design phase. Another aspect to keep in mind is that we will use most of the existing road infrastructure, and this is our strength. We have an existing circuit and yes, we will make a variant, but I believe that once the design details are defined we will have a clearer picture of the figures. I have never heard of 100 million dollars, it seems an excessive figure to me.”
The changes and environmental impact
Besides the issue related to the requested expenses, Warren also focused on the hypothesis regarding the track layout, which should be the same as that used by the Supercars, albeit with some modifications: “At the moment we are working with the Supercars to define the project – he continued – I believe a fundamental thing for Supercars races is the feeling of a tight and dynamic street circuit. That is what defines them and what we want to preserve. So, if we were to reach an agreement to hold races on the same circuit, which seems likely, there will be modifications to the track between events to make it tighter, bring the barriers closer and things like that, to maintain the essence of what makes Supercars races so fantastic.”
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In conclusion, Warren admitted the lack of a stable project to minimize tree felling, due to the longer run-off areas required by MotoGP riders: “Not yet. The project we are examining aims to minimize all these impacts. We are shaping the circuit to avoid, where possible, impact on trees. We therefore have several specialists in ecology and environmental arboriculture, geotechnical experts and many other professionals to identify the best solution to minimize environmental impact within the park.”
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