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As we reported yesterday, based on reports by Italian website GPOne.com, engine and aerodynamics development is to be frozen. But it appears that the story was wrong in at least one respect: engine homologation will not be taken from this week, but be backdated to Qatar.

What this means in practice is that the factories will have to submit engine designs for homologation as they were intending to use them at Qatar. Honda had already done this, having submitted engines for homologation at the season opener at Qatar, at which the MotoGP class was not present. But the bikes and engines were, as were a few key staff. The other factories did not submit their engines at Qatar, but have now sent sample engines to Dorna for homologation.

Aerodynamics is also to be frozen, although these are to be homologated by submitting technical drawings of the designs. Technical Director Danny Aldridge will assess those designs against the MotoGP regulations and approve or reject them on that basis.

This means that once racing gets underway again, whenever that may be this season, the factories without concessions - Ducati, Honda, Yamaha, and Suzuki - will have to race with the engine designs already submitted to Danny Aldridge for homologation, and all six factories . They will be allowed one more upgrade during the 2020 season.

Dorna issued a press release explaining the procedure in response to a few news stories which had been floating around. Initially, engine homologation had been expected to take place at the first race of the season, which at the time of the Qatar season opener was expected to be in April. That would have allowed factories to continue developing their engines and aerodynamics, although they would have had to rely on test riders rather than factory riders due to test restrictions.

The fact that Honda chose to submit their engines for homologation at Qatar demonstrates the caution with which the factories approach this. Homologation an engine approved by a test rider without contracted riders having a chance to try it would have been a massive risk, with the penalty for getting it wrong substantial: being forced to use that engine for the entire season.

Dorna also made a point of clearing up another point of confusion. In the past few days, the idea of freezing all development had been floated in the media, but Dorna was keen to quash any such suggestion. They had never considered any such suggestion, the press release stated, for the very good reason that it would be impossible to police.

The Dorna press release announcing the move appears below:

MotoGP™ class scrutineering carried out remotely

Manufacturers supply sample engines and digital drawings of their aero-body in order to complete homologation

Monday, 23 March 2020

There are a number of questions that the ongoing coronavirus outbreak and subsequent delay in competition raises for the MotoGP™ World Championship, and one of those is the technical homologation. In the MotoGP™ class, the engine must be the same specification for the whole season – the only exemptions being for factories qualifying for concessions – and each rider also has the limit of two aero-body versions per season and per rider that they are allowed to homologate.

Normally, the engine specification for the season is homologated on the Thursday of the first Grand Prix, as is the first of the two aero-fairings. Due to the cancellation of the MotoGP™ class at Losail, that wasn’t possible for every factory. However, the QNB Grand Prix of Qatar remains the official starting point of the season and the point at which the rules for homologation begin being enforced.

Like every year, the 2020 engine specifications (except KTM and Aprilia machines as they qualify for concessions) must remain the same during the whole season and each rider has to homologate the first aero-fairing.

The FIM, IRTA, MSMA and Dorna all agree that for reasons of equality and fairness the homologation must therefore be carried out remotely and digitally as soon as possible.

Under normal circumstances, factories have two options. Either they can supply a list of sample engine parts to the organisation, providing a means of comparison with engines used throughout the season to verify no changes have been made, or they can supply digital drawings. Normally, each factory chooses to supply either a full sample engine or a sample for all the parts that the engine contains.

This means that if a manufacturer has riders using different engine specifications, like for example an Independent Team rider using an engine design from a past season, they must supply every sample.

Honda are the exception, as they were the only manufacturer that did supply all their sample engine parts at Qatar. The rest of the factories were not able to do so this year due to the extenuating circumstances, and have instead sent their sample engines to the organisation, which must match those in the machines at the first 2020 event.

Digital drawings of each rider’s first aero-body must also be supplied and these must likewise be homologated if they are within the technical restrictions provided in the rulebook.

The FIM, IRTA, MSMA and Dorna make every effort to focus on simplicity for both the manufacturers and the enforcement of the rules. MotoGP™ has never considered a shutdown period in which all factories must cease any and all development for a set period of time, at any time of year, primarily due to the difficulty of policing such a regulation.

Development on any other part of the machine not subject to homologation may therefore continue, as is the case during any season.

The Circuit Of The Americas has laid off a large part of its staff and is suspending activities indefinitely. In an open-ended and ambiguous statement issued on Sunday night, the circuit stated that with large-scale public events canceled, there was little for the circuit to do. With both the MotoGP race scheduled for April 5th, and the Indycar round scheduled for April 26th postponed until November, there was little for the circuit to do.

The Circuit Of The Americas also hosts an amphitheater, where large concerts are held, and a USL soccer team, Austin Bold. The Austin mayor has banned large events, and USL has postponed their season for 30 days. That led to COTA deciding to lay off staff, though COTA Chairman Bobby Epstein would not be drawn on exactly how many, when contacted by the local American-Statesman newspaper. MotoMatters.com has also contacted the circuit for clarification, but we have yet to receive a response to our questions.

It is unclear what this means for the long-term future of the circuit. All will depend on when events can resume once it is clear how the coronavirus outbreak has developed. At the moment, the MotoGP round in Austin is still scheduled for November 15th. But like the rest of the MotoGP and WorldSBK calendars, everything is provisional at the moment.

Below is the statement the circuit posted on Social Media and its website:

The MotoGP calendar has been changed again due to the ongoing outbreak of the novel coronavirus, or COVID-19. This time, it is the Argentina round of the series, due to be held in Termas de Rio Hondo on April 19th, which has been postponed. The race has now been set for November 22nd, the date Valencia was moved to in yesterday's updated calendar, with Valencia now slated for November 29th.

Moving the Argentina race became almost inevitable, after the Argentine round of MXGP at Neuquen was rescheduled last night. With more and more countries imposing travel restrictions on Italians - Malaysia will be imposing a ban on Italian passport holders, and anyone who has been in Italy in the last 14 days from this Friday, March 13th - organizing events for a sport with such a significant Italian component has become nigh-on impossible.

The latest calendar update imposes a punishing schedule on the second half of the season. The season resumes with back-to-back races at Brno and Austria, followed by a relatively genteel period with a weekend off, then Silverstone, another weekend off, and then Misano.

From there, the schedule gets really tough. There is a weekend off after Misano, and then Aragon and Thailand back-to-back, another weekend off and then the Australasian triple-header of Motegi, Phillip Island, and Sepang. There is a final free weekend after Sepang, and then Austin, Argentina, and Valencia on three consecutive weekends.

There is good reason to believe this will not be the final version of the calendar. The logistics of getting material in and out of Termas De Rio Honda is incredibly difficult, making a trip from Austin to Argentina to Valencia extremely tough to achieve. The last time Argentina was back-to-back, there were problems getting all the equipment needed to the circuit on time. Adding Argentina after Austin also puts two races between Sepang and Valencia, while Sepang's contract guarantees that it will be the penultimate race.

However, by postponing everything until the end of the year, it gives Dorna breathing to wait and see how the coronovirus outbreak develops. The situation is changing incredibly quickly, making planning almost impossible at this point. We have already had three updated calendars in seven days, and two updates on consecutive days.

Dorna can now focus on trying to make the (now) first scheduled round of the year happen at Jerez, on May 3rd, by whatever means possible, perhaps even running it behind closed doors. By the time we get to the summer break, there will be a much clearer idea of what is happening in the world.

Below is the revised calendar:

FIM Grand Prix World Championship
2020 Calendar, 11 March

Gran Premio Motul de la Republica Argentina rescheduled for November

Due to the ongoing coronavirus outbreak, the Argentina GP has been postponed

The FIM, IRTA and Dorna Sports regret to announce the postponement of the Gran Premio Motul de la Republica Argentina, which was set to take place from the 17th to the 19th of April. Due to the ongoing coronavirus outbreak, the event has been rescheduled for later in the season and will now take place from the 20th to the 22nd of November.

The Gran Premio Motul de la Comunitat Valenciana will therefore now be held from the 27th to the 29th of November.

The Red Bull Grand Prix of the Americas retains its new date from the 13th to the 15th of November, a week before the rescheduled Gran Premio Motul de la Republica Argentina.

Following these schedule changes, the 2020 MotoGP™ class season is now set to begin with the Gran Premio Red Bull de España at the Circuito de Jerez-Angel Nieto from the 1st to the 3rd of May 2020.

Dates for the Moto2™ and Moto3™ test in Valencia and the MotoGP™ test in Jerez at the end of the year will be decided once the season is underway.

* Evening - Moto2 and Moto3 only
** Subject to FIM Homologation

The FIM have issued a new provisional calendar for the 2020 season. As had been expected, the Thailand round of MotoGP has been moved back to October, creating a similar set of flyaways to 2019. The Buriram round will now take place on October 4th, with a two-week break between Thailand and the rest of the Australiasian triple header.

To make space for Buriram, Aragon has been moved a week earlier, to the 27th September. The MotoGP paddock will face a frantic evening of packing to get everything ready to ship to Thailand, if it is to arrive at Buriram in time.

Those are the only change to the calendar at the moment. The Austin and Argentina rounds are still on the calendar, though still subject to change if the authorities in the US or Argentina decide to impose travel restrictions. The spread of the corona virus is still making planning for the series extremely unpredictable.

To that end, the bikes and equipment for the teams will remain in Qatar, and be shipped from there to the Circuit of the Americas once it becomes clear that Austin will definitely be happening. Waiting is a better policy than trying to second guess what the authorities might decide in such a fast-developing situation.

The new calendar appears below:

FIM Grand Prix World Championship
2020 Calendar, 5 March

Due to the ongoing coronavirus outbreak, the OR Thailand Grand Prix was recently postponed.
The FIM, IRTA and Dorna have evaluated alternative dates for the event later this season and can now announce that the Thai GP has been rescheduled for the 2 nd to 4th of October.

The Aragon Grand Prix will now be held a week earlier, from the 25th to 27th September.

* Evening - Moto2 and Moto3 only
** Subject to FIM Homologation