It was confirmed on Wednesday that MotoGP will not return to Phillip Island after 2026 with the Australian Grand Prix expected to move to the South Australia.
The MotoGP Sports Entertainment Group (formerly known as Dorna) has been locked in negotiations for months to extend the Phillip Island Circuit’s stay on the calendar.
But despite the Victoria government stating it was prepared to invest significantly in the legendary circuit, which has hosted the event since 1997 (as well as the first two Australian 500cc Grands Prix in 1989 and 1990 before moving to Sydney’s Eastern Creek form 1991-1996), it appears the MotoGP rights holder was not interested, due to a lack of modern facilities and poor attendances over the past decade.
Instead, the MotoGP Sports Entertainment Group was intent on moving the GP to Albert Park in Melbourne, which also hosts the annual Formula 1 race. That was something the Victoria government were unwilling to do.
Sport and Major Events Minister Steve Dimopoulos confirmed on Wednesday that the 30th MotoGP at Phillip Island this October would be the last.
“We could have kept it in Victoria, if we sold out Phillip Island,” said Sport and Major Events Minister Steve Dimopoulos. “We were never willing to sell out Phillip Island, or impose further on the Albert Park community, or to compromise the F1 [race].
“All those things we were not willing to agree to. We agreed to every other request for the extension of the contract, but not moving it from Phillip Island. We are the major events capital, not just in this country but globally, so I wish the MotoGP all the best with their second choice.
“We met the licence fee. We met everything else. In fact, we went way beyond it because we offered to uplift the marketing and the fan experience, to really grow the event on the back of the fact that there was 91,000 people there last year; the best in 13 years. They were accepting of all that, but their final demand was you must move the event into the city.”
It’s now expected MotoGP will announce a round in Adelaide from 2027 onward. It remains to be seen where, even if Adelaide’s street circuit currently hosts a round of the Australian Supercars Championship, with the GT World Challenge Australia also making a visit.
Yet it’s hard to envision how the 2.3-mile circuit could meet the requisite safety standards for a MotoGP venue. If that fails, The Bend, situated over 60 miles south of Adelaide, could be an alternative.
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