It looks like all of the recent talk of a second MotoGP race in the U.S. is about to be confirmed. According to Cycle News, the official announcement will be made on July 16th, but it seems the 2008 MotoGP schedule will now have a Sept. 14, 2008 date at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. It does not appear that any AMA racing will be held there in conjunction with the Grand Prix and the AMA schedule may have to be adjusted somewhat also as a result of a conflict with that date.
The possibility of MotoGP at the Speedway has been discussed for years but it now appears all of the discussion has finally resulted in a solid agreement. This could be a big plus for fans in the eastern U.S. since the trek to Laguna Seca and the thought of wading into the crowds put off more than a few folks. Indianapolis may be able to handle the crowds better than the current site since they’ve had so much experience with the Indy 500, the F1 races and many other events.
Link: Cycle News
Link: Indianapolis Motor Speedway
chris says
i live 3 hours from the track. this is the best motorcycle related news i’ve ever heard. yay.
OTTOMAN says
OUTSTANDING ,GLAD TO SEE THIS
Scott says
“This could be a big plus for fans in the eastern U.S. since the trek to Laguna Seca and the thought of wading into the crowds put off more than a few folks. Indianapolis may be able to handle the crowds better than the current site since they’ve had so much experience with the Indy 500, the F1 races and many other events.”
Wading through crowds? thats pretty lame. Part of motorcycling is the people so being part of a large group of like minded people is a +. Going to a race track where you are forced to buy over priced crappy food and suffer body cavity searches before you enter is not exactly pleasing to me. Have you ever been to Sturgis?
kneeslider says
Poor choice of words on my part, I should have said, “wading into crowds a facility is not ready for”
Crowds are fine if the track can handle it or the organization is set up for it. The reviews of how well Laguna Seca handles traffic in and out from those that were there and seemingly very familiar with the track were far less than stellar. Over priced food is a staple at every track, but last year, with extremely hot temperatures, reports were they even ran out of bottled water. Hotel accommodations were another issue.
The effort of putting on a race of this caliber and handling the inevitable crowds is certainly no minor matter and they will get better but the logistics of doing so should not have been a surprise to anyone, either. This year, with the experience gained from the previous years, things may run very smoothly.
On the other hand, traveling a far shorter distance to a facility that routinely handles large crowds looks a bit more positive to those of us with another option.
I’ve been attending crowded racetracks since the U.S. Formula 1 GP at Watkins Glen back in the late ’60s and early ’70s. A big crowd is a sign the event is a success so that’s what you want as an organizer and as a spectator, what you expect, but how well that crowd is handled can make a big difference in whether someone wants to “wade into it.”
chappy says
Ugly track, ugly city, crappy track layout, still to far away for me (Birmingham, Al.- if I have to drive far I would only not mind going to Miller) the way the safety of Laguna is complained about I can’t believe they approved this track as several areas seem to lacking, I suppose they will be making changes though.
Why o why this race is not at Barber’s I may never know, actually I do know – not enough straightaway (come on George get off that wallet and stretch that straight out) and the marketing ability of placing the races at more well known tracks like Indy and Laguna. Oh well at least WSBK may be coming.
hoyt says
Are you referring to Indy as an ugly city?
I liked it.
Jeff in Ohio says
yee hah. 5 hours from the house. Some reasons this race is probably at Indy:
1. $$$$
2. They know how to handle large amounts of people
3. $$$$
4. The history of the racetrack
5. $$$$
6. The Speedway will do whatever it takes to configure the track
7. $$$$
8. the Speedway is a WORLD CLASS facility
Everybdy says ‘why not Miller, why not Road America, why no Elkhart Lake..’ Face it, there is NOTHING of any attraction near any of those locations. One thing about a MotoGP race is that it is a giant circus. They need a facility that can handle the people and all of the sideshow involved. Years ago they looked at doing a race in Homestead, but the track was too far away from Miami for their liking. Not enough stuff close to the track for everyone to do when the race was not going. People associated with the race and the celebritites that come out want to be catered too. Indy could do that because they are used to doing that for the 500. Yeah, Miller might be a great track layout, but did you see the AMA race covered form there? There was like NOWHERE for any spectators around that track. Plus, it’s in the middle of freakin’ nowhere. Yeah, Barber built a great track and he has a great Museum, but the City of Indianapolis beats the City of Birmingham hands down in appeal.
Face it everybody, it’s not about what the track looks like, but what is around the track and about the $$$ when it comes to running a MotoGP in the USA. For $$$, nobody is gonna beat Indy…
aaron says
kinda off topic, but I hear miguel duhamel will race laguna seca this weekend. even though I don’t consider him 100% canadian, he’s the closest thing I can think of to sit on a top class gp bike. should add some extra spice to the race, espicially because other than hayden and kurtis roberts, he’s the only name familiar to the AMA fans…and he’s got a hell of a lot more AMA history than those two.
aaron says
whoops, I should clarify – he will ride a rc212v in place of toni elias.
harold says
motogp at indy. great i live twenty minutes from the track and have waiting to here this for a long time. i have been to laguna. for motogp in the eightes and some of the car races . i think it is a great track.but it still is not indy. home of the indy 500, the brickyard 400 and the only f-1 race in the usa. and now motogp, 7-7-07 is a lucky day. indy is one the few tracks that can handle a crowd of 300,000 to 500,000 with few problems. they never run out water. you can park inside the track or just across the street. lots of seats and grassy areas. the indianapolis area has lots of hotels for reasonable prices. also one stat mention in paper here is that indy is one days driving distance to almost 75% of the population of the us. come one, come all, lets have a race.
Big Bill says
I hear Miguel Duhamel will race Laguna Seca this weekend. even though I don’t consider him 100% Canadian,
HuH??? not 100% Canadian ? Why ? Because he was born and raised in Quebec ?
What is 100% Canadian then ?
Other than that I for one can not wait for this Moto GP race and will ride to it on my non Canadian Electra Glide .
sharon says
excellent news as they are haveing all races. Why not at laguna?We travel to Europe from Australia to see 4 or 5 races a year but don’t go to U S as they only had the Big ones. Great news
unsub says
The wife and I just returned from the Laguna Seca 2007 race and we both had a blast.
As for crowds, plan ahead, book in advance and everything will run smoothly.
We’ve already rebooked for 2008, and it took maybe and hour.
Now, I have no desire to sling any mud at another person but kneeslider writes like a person who has read about the last two years at Laguna, not attended.
Yes, there were massive crowds last year and the year before and problems stemming from poor planning for it, but this year organization was simply brilliant.
I love motorcycles, wether it’s riding or watching them race, so I’m thrilled to read about a possible seconds U.S. spot on the race schedule.
My grumble with “Indy” is that it isn’t a destination worth visiting. Have any of you ever heard a person say, “Hmm, Miami, Seattle, New York, Gosh, let’s go to Indianapolis on vacation this year.”
Iv’e been, and outside of the raceway, it’s a dirty city with little in the way of any pleasant sight-seeing.
There is no way that aspect of the experience can compete with a place like Monterey.
When not at the races, we sea-kaiaked, shot over to Pebble Beach for lunch one afternoon, golfed in perfect 77 degree weather, ate nearly every meal overlooking the ocean, and spent our evenings meeting other riders down on Cannery Row. A short, clean walk from our hotel near the surf.
In the end, I know if MotoGp makes it to “Indy” I’ll attend but I doubt I’ll return home as happy or relaxed as I would from a week of fun in the sun.
MotoGp at INDY = Bittersweet.
Bo Black says
Hey iam glad there at Indy or any of the possible tracks in the usa. I ve gone too laguna every time and its great to see theusa get on board with truely some of the most gifted athletes in the world. The motorcycle racers use every last inch of there bodies to ride at that level and iam glad to see theme get there due. You can have the car guys and gals the real racers use two wheels and the bike raceing community are some of the best pepole on the planet, so congratulations INDY ON GETTING THE GREATEST SHOW ON EARTH IVE GOT 4 PENT HOUSE TICKETS AS SOON AS THEY WENT ON LINE!!!thanks Bo Black