Where Are We With The Indian Round Of MotoGP? A Brief Update

By David Emmett | Mon, 18/09/2023 - 22:26

Visa chaos continues for the grand prix paddock, as the agency selected by Dorna follows its painfully slow process of supply visas to the vast majority of the paddock. More and more people have received their visas, but large numbers - including members of several teams - are still waiting, and are due to fly out on Tuesday and Wednesday.

The visa issues have already caused a number of teams to cancel and rebook flights, after not receiving their visas in time to board planes on Monday. IRTA has stepped in to reimburse Moto2 and Moto3 teams for flights, as the teams in the support classes are struggling financially far more than the MotoGP teams.

How many teams and riders are present at the Buddh International Circuit for the inaugural Indian GP remains to be seen. The chances are that the vast majority will make it, though possibly only at the last moment.

Dorna has been known to be flexible in the past, with Friday action dropped in Argentina and Motegi when freight problems prevented equipment from getting to the track on time. It is possible something similar happens in India, though that would come at the cost of the extra long sessions - 70 minutes for MotoGP, 55 minutes for Moto2, 50 minutes for Moto3 - planned for Friday, to allow the teams to work on bike setup and riders to familiarize themselves with the track.

To reduce the financial and reputational risk to MotoGP, Dorna has shifted much of the responsibility for organizing the Indian round on the promoter. If things go wrong, it will be the promoter who carries the can.

While there is concern, there is not yet a reason to panic. By all accounts, the most likely scenario is that nearly everyone turns up just in time for practice, and the round can go ahead as planned.

That only covers entering the country, however. Despite agreements with Indian authorities over customs and taxes - I repeatedly asked Mike Trimby about this, and he told me he had been assured that Dorna had everything under control and the teams had nothing to worry about - Indian Customs are notoriously fickle. With just a week between the Indian GP and the Japanese round at Motegi, the paddock will have all of their fingers crossed that there are no problems getting all of the freight out of India and into Japan.

Buddh International, India
↑Back to top

Comments

l'm astonished that this hasn't been worked out well in advance. I thought DORNA had its act together, but this is "clown show" territory, if you ask me

Unfortunately I have had the misfortune having to have visited India at least 20 times and this burocracia is just normal operating procedures for them.  Ask yourself why they need to see the serial number for a cheap Casio watch, or a 10 year old electric razor and you now see quickly what’s wrong.  

If it's anything like Formula 1's Indian adventure, all kinds of 'hitherto unforeseen,' permits, assessments, fees and arguments over the definitions of the word 'sport,' will be wriggling their way out of the woodwork.

F1 tore up the contract and never returned after 3 years out of 5, if Moto Gp can make it to 3 I'll be impressed.

 

Note that, as far as I understand from reading another article, visas are being managed by a local agency chosen by the company that organizes and manages the Indian GP. I guess it is not only about Dorna this time but I agree they should have known better. Just a very brief search offers ample details about the hellish process of entering and exiting India's borders. I am guessing though that many other countries are not better... David?

Don't know if it was the same circuit, but they definitely gave up on plans to race in the country. There were worries about getting everything out without huge customs hassles. With only one week between this Moto GP and Japan it'll be entertaining (from a distance) to see what happens.

Indian visas are a PITA, there's an entire market in the UK to help fill in those forms and sort it all out. None of the other bureaucratic issues are surprising either, but they should have been sorted by the promoter and Dorna already, so either immigration have moved the goalposts or the promoter has been pretending everything would be fine and dandy if he just paid people off.

Oh ya. And vice versa for us when we have to travel to UK/Europe/USA.

High time people from both sides figure out a way to ease processes for each other. 

Visa in itself is a stupid process IMO. Every country should have a visa on arrival thing for short visits. Just punch the passport, analyse against common database and say "welcome to xxx".

Actually it's way worse for Indians going to Europe, I had to also provide letters for relatives explaining they were staying with me, etc etc, and the form is way way longer and the fees disproportionately high compared to income. Completely stupid.

Visa on arrival sounds nice but means a completely wasted 8 hour flight if you are refused entry.

Just how it is the States too because Indians have a tendency to overstay their visas, and now ieven sneaking in via our open border with Mexico.  Of course, you won’t see a single westerner overstaying their Indian visas since everyone wants to leave as soon as fast as they can. After all we are talking about a country that has nuclear weapons but not a working sewer system. 

It would be nice if this sort of thing could be leveled out.  

While living in AU I flew home to NZ, my passport had expired so I used my Irish ( NZ customs have a 'are you a kiwi traveling on a different passport'), when I went to go back "home" to AU, the folks at the desk said "you need a visa" I went a bit pale, and he said "go over there give them $30 and they'll sort it."

Then technically I was an Irish over stayer in Sydney for a few years until I went in and out on my NZ Passport :)

 

The Canadian government has just claimed that the Indian government has at worst, orchestrated, or at best, been complicit, in an extra judicial killing in Canada.

The GP will no doubt proceed with or without any of the Canadian nationals who are "usually" in the paddock, but it's not a good look for what is purported to be a democratic country! (India I mean, Canada also purports to be a democratic country, but we do have our challenges.)