Back in Brazil after 22 years, MotoGP’s schedule for its first day of training at the Autódromo Internacional Ayrton Senna, in Goiânia, was affected by the heavy rains that hit the capital of Goiás this Friday morning (20).
As had already happened at the beginning of the week, sections of the circuit were flooded, delaying the start of activities on the track. Scheduled to start at 9 am, the Moto2 training — a category that follows the MotoGP schedule — started late by almost an hour until the water drained completely, with the support of suction pumps, and the track was cleaned.
Despite the unforeseen circumstances, the following sessions were able to be completed without any major difficulties. This Saturday (21), there is a forecast of more rain, which keeps drivers and teams on alert. Throughout the day, the qualifying sessions will be held at 10:50 am, and the sprint race will be held at 3 pm (Brasília time). The weather should only be firm on Sunday (22), the day of the race, also scheduled for 3pm.
Visiting the race track this Saturday, the governor of Goiás, Ronaldo Caiado (PSD), said he was counting on divine help for the event to take place without problems related to rain. “I’m asking Saint Peter to help me a little during these two days,” he said.
According to the event organizers, since Tuesday (17), when the heavy rains began, the drainage systems worked “efficiently, as expected”.
“IRTA representatives [International Road-Racing Teams Association, que reúne as equipes da MotoGP]and the FIM [Federação Internacional de Motociclismo] were at the racetrack during the rain and approved the track’s drainage system”, added the organization.
See the weekend schedule
Saturday (21)
10:50 am – Rank 1 – ESPN4 and Disney+
11:15 am – Ranking 2 – ESPN4 and Disney+
3pm – Sprint Race – ESPN4 and Disney+
Domingo (22)
3pm Brazilian MotoGP Grand Prix – ESPN4, Disney+ and Band
Reporter traveled at the invitation of Brasil Motosports
