The MotoGP organization on Sunday threatened with “contractual implications” and “sporting consequences” the Japanese team Yamaha which will boycott races in Qatar next week due to risks linked to the war in the Middle East.
“Following its latest assessment of the situation in the Middle East, Yamaha has not identified sufficient reasons to change the current group-wide travel restrictions. Therefore, Yamaha has informed the MotoGP company of its decision not to participate in the 2026 Qatar Grand Prix,” the team announced in a statement, just after the Malaysian GP won by Spaniard Marc Marquez (Ducati).
The MotoGP organization immediately declared itself "disappointed by Yamaha's decision" while "understanding that the team is subject to the company's more general policy of restricting travel to the Middle East", a region disrupted by conflicts between, on the one hand the United States and Israel and, on the other hand, Iran, with a security impact on the Gulf countries.
Furthermore, the war has intensified between Houthi fighters who control part of Yemen and Saudi Arabia, including bombings on Riyadh.
“We do not think that this decision (by Yamaha which also concerns the private team Pramac, Editor's note) reflects the extended guarantees offered to all stakeholders in the MotoGP Championship,” argued the organization while the financial and insurance stakes of a cancellation amount to tens of millions of dollars.
“In addition to the contractual implications of Yamaha's decision, its non-participation will have sporting implications and consequences which will be managed by the FIM”, the International Motorcycling Federation, warned MotoGP without being more precise.
Yamaha and its riders could lose points in the general classifications or be sanctioned on the starting grid for future races. Officially and despite the insecurity linked to the continuation of the war in the region, with renewed threats from American President Donald Trump and Tehran, the 20th round out of 22 remains scheduled for November 6 to 8.
Yamaha assures that its decision is “independent of the measures taken by the MotoGP company and the race organizers”. The Japanese manufacturer affirms that it “remains fully committed to MotoGP” and that it “looks forward to returning to competition for the Portuguese Grand Prix” (November 20-22).
The two drivers of the official team this season are the Frenchman Fabio Quartararo, world champion in 2021, and the Spaniard Alex Rins.
All weekend in Malaysia, and last week in Australia, paddock riders met with organizers and motorcycling regulators to express their reluctance to travel to Qatar.
Australian Jack Miller, who rides a Yamaha for the Pramac team, spoke to the press on Sunday at Sepang. “I don’t want to go there. Like everyone else. There are 19 of us (out of 22) who do not want to go there,” he said.
“I don’t think we should race in these conditions. We have been very clear about our position. We will see what decision is made,” said Miller, who will leave MotoGP for Superbike at the end of the season. The factory Yamaha and Pramac riders - Quartararo, Rins, Miller, Turkey's Toprak Razgatlioglu and Spanish test rider Augusto Fernandez - are 14th (79 points) 19th (31), 20th (29), 21st (18) and 24th (6) respectively.
Questioned, Marc Marquez declared that he “preferred to say nothing”, while the second in the GP, his compatriot Pedro Acosta (KTM), and his brother Alex Marquez (Ducati-Gresini) remained silent.
