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The COVID-19 pandemic has once again reshaped the 2020 MotoGP calendar, though this change had long been expected. Today, Dorna and the FIM announced that the three races outside Europe still on the calendar - in Argentina, Malaysia, and Thailand - have all been canceled. Taking their place at the end of the season is one extra race, officially unspecified as yet.

Though the FIM have said officially that the final circuit is to be announced on August 10th, after the next round of MotoGP at Brno, reports are circulating that the race is set to be held at Portimao in Portugal. This does not come as a surprise, given that the Portuguese track has been a reserve on the calendar for some time. Prior to the pandemic, Dorna had been considering putting Portimao into the rotation of five tracks on the Iberian peninsula which would share out three races each year between them.

Below is the revised and updated calendar:

All dates, events and the eventual attendance of spectators are subject to the evolution of the pandemic and the approval of the corresponding Governments and authorities.

Another Grand Prix in Europe added to the 2020 calendar as Argentina, Thailand and Malaysia are cancelled

The FIM, IRTA and Dorna Sports regret to announce the cancellation of the Gran Premio Motul de la Republica Argentina, OR Thailand Grand Prix and Shell Malaysia Motorcycle Grand Prix in 2020. Previously postponed, the ongoing coronavirus outbreak and resulting complications now sadly oblige the cancellation of the events to be confirmed.

However, it can now be revealed that an additional Grand Prix is to be added to the 2020 FIM MotoGP™ World Championship calendar. After the Gran Premio Motul de la Comunitat Valenciana, another race weekend will take place from the 20th to the 22nd of November at a venue in Europe, becoming the 2020 season finale. Further details on the host venue will be confirmed on Monday the 10th of August.

In addition, a new agreement has been reached with the promoters of the Thai GP that confirms Chang International Circuit will remain on the FIM MotoGP™ World Championship calendar until at least 2026. The racing in Buriram has been incredible since the venue joined the calendar in 2018, with the unique final corner never failing to deliver a thrill. Although the event will sadly not take place in 2020, MotoGP™ can now look forward to many more years of spectacular battles at one of the flagship motorsport venues in Asia.

Furthermore, Dorna has already begun working with the Promoters of Argentina and Malaysian GPs to define possible dates to propose to the FIM for the events in 2021, with plans in place to welcome fans back to the Autodromo Termas de Rio Hondo and Sepang International Circuit, respectively.

The Autodromo Termas de Rio Hondo first joined the MotoGP™ calendar in 2014 and has put on a vibrant Grand Prix every year since. The grandstands are always packed as fans travel to the venue from across Latin America, with Argentinians joined by crowds from Brazil, Chile, Peru, Colombia, Uruguay, Bolivia, Paraguay and more.

Sepang International Circuit is the longest serving venue of the three and first hosted MotoGP™ in 1999. A true world leader then as now, the track is one of the longest and most challenging of the season, staging some all-time classic races. Sepang also serves up a unique experience for fans sat in the iconic grandstand complex along the main straight and into the final corner, putting spectators into the heart of the action, surrounded by the sound of MotoGP™ at full throttle.

Dorna Sports CEO Carmelo Ezpeleta: “It is with great sadness that we announce the cancellation of the Argentina, Thailand and Malaysian Grands Prix this season, and they will be very much missed on the 2020 calendar. The passion of the fans who often travel across continents to enjoy MotoGP with us in Termas de Rio Hondo, Buriram and Sepang is incredible, creating as they do such an incredible atmosphere and welcome for the sport. However, we are delighted to add another Grand Prix in Europe to the 2020 calendar, and reveal our new agreement that will see MotoGP racing in Thailand and Buriram until at least 2026. We are very much looking forward to returning to Thailand, Argentina and Malaysia next year and as always, I would like to thank the fans for their patience and understanding.”

FIM President Jorge Viegas: "I would like to thank Dorna, all the teams, the national federations and local organisers for enabling us to get back on track. In doing so, we adapt every day and we will have a very complete and competitive FIM MotoGP World Championship in 2020. The location of the 15th Grand Prix will be announced soon, and we will be back - stronger than ever!”

After trying to ride on Saturday at Jerez, Marc Marquez has been forced to pull out of Sunday's Andalusian Grand Prix at Jerez. The Repsol Honda rider rode reasonably well in FP3, and was passed fit after the session to continue.

But Marquez started to struggle in the afternoon. The reigning champion put in a stint of eight laps on his first run in FP4, but only went out for two more after that. He attempted to ride in Q1, but came back in directly after his out lap, and walked out of the back of the garage and into the truck.

When he emerged from the truck wearing team clothing, his right arm, fractured last week and plated in an operation on Tuesday, was visibly swollen. It was clear that Marquez would not be able to continue, and the Repsol Honda team announced he would sit out the race shortly afterward.

This is the first race Marquez will have missed in his MotoGP career. The last time he missed a race was at Sepang and Valencia, the last two races of 2011, after crashing heavily over water on the track, at a point where no yellow flags were being waved to warn the riders. Marquez suffered nerve damage to an eye in that crash, but was operated on succesfully, and returned the next season.

HRC later released a statement from Repsol Honda team manager Alberto Puig:

"This morning the objective was to make first contact with the bike and we saw that Marc could still be fast. In the afternoon the plan was to do a longer run. Either due to the heat or fatigue from the morning, he experienced more problems and found it more difficult. Obviously we have understood that it was better not to take more risks. We have followed the plan, which was to miss Friday and see how Marc felt today. Now we have analyzed the situation and made the decision not to participate in tomorrow's race. We have followed the plan, always checking the physical condition of the rider. Marc has tried to listen to his body, to see how he responded. When he saw that he could not, we have all decided not to race tomorrow. Marc is very strong. He wanted to try, and we wanted to give him the opportunity to do it, we have supported him at all times. I think we have made the right decision at all times. A champion cannot stay at home if he thinks he has the option or a slight chance. Now he has a lot of inflammation, but it will pass. There are many races ahead and the goal is to arrive in Brno in the best way."

The Jerez medical center has been a busy place for the past hour, with riders coming and going for their medical assessments. Cal Crutchlow, Marc Marquez, and Alex Rins all had to pass a fitness test before being given the all clear to test. All three have been declared fit, and will attempt to ride tomorrow, to assess their fitness on the bike.

Cal Crutchlow fractured his left scaphoid in a crash during Sunday warm up at Jerez last week, and had the scaphoid pinned in place. Although the pinned scaphoid will be painful, he should not have too many problems riding, especially as the injury is to his left hand, rather than his right. Jerez is a clockwise circuit with a lot of right hand corners, and all the hard braking at the circuit is done on the right.

Alex Rins had dislocated his right shoulder and cracked his humerus in a heavy fall at Turn 11 during qualifying. Rins did not need surgery, and has been undergoing intensive therapy to be ready for Jerez. The Suzuki Ecstar rider did sustain some ligament damage, and that will determine how capable his of riding.

Marc Marquez suffered a dislocated fracture of the humerus in his right upper arm, when he crashed during the race and had the front wheel of his Repsol Honda RC213V hit his arm as he and his bike entered the gravel on the exit of Turn 3. At first, doctors feared he had suffered nerve damage, but that proved not to be the case. Marquez had surgery to put the bone back into place and to insert a titanium plate to fix the bone on Tuesday, and decided on Wednesday night to try to ride.

Though the doctors passed him medically fit to race - a judgment that he has enough strength in the arm to control the bike sufficiently that he is not a danger to his fellow competitors - actually riding at the track will be tough. Jerez asks a lot of the right side of a rider's body, and will place a lot of stress on Marquez' injured right arm.

The proof of the pudding will be in the eating, as Rins, Crutchlow, and Marquez all get on their bikes on Friday morning for FP1.

UPDATE

Marc Marquez will sit out all of Friday, and will only ride on Saturday to assess his fitness. Repsol Honda team manager Alberto Puig gave a statement to the media, saying the following:

"Nobody expected to see him here. I mean when the accident happened we were very worried and of course he had to go to Barcelona for surgery. Surgery went, frankly speaking, spectacularly well. We didn't expect - I mean, we know the doctor is good but it was a fantastic job. And after surgery the rider started to feel very well. He started to contact us, saying 'I'm not so bad. I feel well. I'm not having so much pain. I can move the arm'. The nerve situation, as the doctor informed, was okay."

"So originally clearly the Honda position was to cancel this race and to try in Brno. But after what we saw of Marc's wish, after what the doctors said today, declaring him fit, I mean we came to a let's say understanding position that he will try on Saturday and depending on how he's feeling he will try to race or not. But we asked him to check on Saturday first and really understand if he is really capable of doing the distance or not. In case it's too risky, Marc already understood that our idea will be to cancel the race. But from last Sunday to today, things have been going so fast and so quickly that frankly speaking we are very surprised."

Explain the decision to way until Saturday?

"Yes, if it was a new track it would be more difficult. But we have been here for five days so the setup of the bike we know, he knows exactly how to ride the bike on this track. So it's no meaning to try Friday and to give more stress to the injury. So he will try Saturday and after that we will see. But it was very important for Honda and for the Repsol Honda team to also respect the rider's wish. So we get this compromise and then we will see the result on Saturday."

It was a busy day at the Dexeus clinic in Barcelona, as both Marc Marquez and Cal Crutchlow went under the knife to fix injuries picked up at the opening round of the season at Jerez. Marquez broke his right humerus in a fast crash at Turn 3 during the race, while Crutchlow fractured his left scaphoid in a crash during warm up. Surgery was successful for both riders, with no complications reported.

Marc Marquez had the more invasive surgery. The doctors opened his right upper arm to put the broken humerus back together and fix it in place with a titanium plate. The best news from the operation is that there was no nerve damage, which had been a concern in the immediate aftermath of the crash.

With the humerus now plated, Marquez is aiming to return at Brno, to be held on August 9th. If that is too soon, then the Repsol Honda rider will try to race at the first round in Austria a week later.

Cal Crutchlow had the fractured scaphoid in his left hand pinned. The LCR Honda rider will test his wrist on Friday, to see if it will withstand the forces of riding a MotoGP machine.

Below are the press releases from Repsol Honda and LCR Honda:

Successful surgery for Marc Marquez, Alex Marquez prepares for second run in Jerez

Alex Marquez prepares for back-to-back races as reigning World Champion Marc Marquez undergoes surgery on his broken right humerus in Barcelona.

After falling heavily on Sunday, Marc Marquez was diagnosed with a broken right humerus and travelled to Barcelona on Monday to the Hospital Universitari Dexeus. Dr Xavier Mir and his team in collaboration with Dr Barrera performed an open reduction and internal fixation of a titanium plate to the right humerus. The radial nerve was untouched and did not need intervention.

Marc is now recovering from successful surgery and will remain in hospital for up to 48 hours. His aim is to return to the 2020 World Championship as soon as possible with an expected date becoming clearer soon.

Alex Marquez will again mount his Repsol Honda Team RC213V at the Circuito de Jerez – Angel Nieto after a solid rookie debut. The Gran Premio Red Bull de Andalucía presents a unique chance to run at the same circuit as the previous race, Alex and his side of the Repsol Honda Team garage able to apply all that they found during the previous weekend. Conditions ahead of the weekend look to again be demanding as temperatures are expected push above 30°C for most of the event. The reigning Moto2 World Champion will be aiming to collect points and finish as the top rookie once more.

Free Practice 1 begins at 09:55 Local Time on Friday, July 24. Lights for the 25-lap Andalucía GP will go out at 14:00 Local Time on Sunday, July 26.

Alex Marquez

“First, I’d like to again wish Marc, Cal and Alex Rins a speedy recovery. From my side as a rider, the situation does not change too much as I have my job, my objectives and I will always push to the maximum to achieve them. Going racing at the same circuit will be interesting, times will be very fast as most people have a good base setting but I am confident for the weekend, I learned a lot in my first GP and now I can apply it directly on the track again.”

Alberto Puig
Team Manager

“Everyone who races in the World Championship has the unfortunate possibility of getting injured and having to go to the operating room. Unfortunately, it was our turn and it was Marc who has had to undergo surgery. Marc will take some time to recover but we are happy with how everything has gone. Doctor Mir and his team have taken care of the entire situation since the fall and performed a successful operation. This gives the Repsol Honda Team a lot of motivation, knowing it went well, but now we have to be patient to see how Marc recovers and to understand when he can return.”

“Cal Crutchlow also had an operation that went well and in principle, his intention is to test the wrist on Friday. We are optimistic about his participation in the Grand Prix."

“This weekend we will be focused on Alex, helping him to take another step forward. When you are young and new in a category, every week you improve and grow. We hope he can close the gap to the front of the race.”

SUCCESSFUL SURGERY FOR CRUTCHLOW IN BARCELONA

21 July 2020 | Barcelona

LCR Honda CASTROL rider Cal Crutchlow has undergone successful surgery on his injured left wrist. The Briton reported a fracture to his left scaphoid after crashing during the warm-up session at the Spanish GP last Sunday.

This morning, Dr. Xavier Mir performed surgery on Crutchlow's wrist at the Hospital Universitari Quirón DEXEUS in Barcelona. The surgeon was pleased with how the procedure went.

Lucio Cecchinello

“I would like to thank Dr. Mir and his medical team for performing surgery on Cal’s left wrist this morning. A small screw has been inserted into his scaphoid to fix the fracture. The surgery went well as Dr. Mir personally informed me, and Cal will be discharged from the hospital later this afternoon. If everything goes well, we expect him back at the Angel Nieto Circuit in Jerez on Thursday morning, where he will be visited by Dorna’s Medical Director, Dr. Ángel Charte who will assess his fitness to race. Our technical staff is working to have everything ready to allow Cal to ride in Friday’s morning practice.”