Roughly talking, the space between Misano’s Marco Simoncelli circuit and the Mandalika circuit in Indonesia is about 12,000 km (or 7,316 miles to be extra exact). That isn’t very spectacular in isolation.
However the notion modifications a bit of if we have in mind all of the tools that needs to be moved, together with the bikes of the groups of the three classes and that of world championship promoter Dorna, between the venues staging rounds 14 and 15 of the 2024 MotoGP season in a matter of days.
The cancellation of the Kazakhstan Grand Prix lower than two months in the past and pre-existing commitments made with tv firms pressured the championship officers to search for an occasion to switch the inaugural go to to Almaty. After contemplating numerous alternate options, a second spherical at Misano held a fortnight after the San Marino GP was the least traumatic choice.
Nonetheless, the necessity to hyperlink the Emilia Romagna GP with the subsequent occasion, only a week later in Indonesia, has offered quite a few problems. Dorna’s finely-tuned logistics division has subsequently deliberate a minute-by-minute itinerary to make sure the bikes will take to the observe in Lombok on Friday.
Carles Jorba, Dorna’s Director of Operations, is an skilled in such a motion. He’s assured within the roadmap, which might be set in movement simply because the MotoGP race at Misano finishes, some ten minutes earlier than 14:00 native time. Fortuitously, the weekend’s essential occasion might be introduced ahead by one hour from its standard time, a call taken to keep away from coinciding with System 1’s Singapore Grand Prix.
As soon as the rostrum celebrations conclude on Sunday, Dorna’s motion plan can start
Photograph by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Pictures
The clock will really begin ticking at 14:30 native time, 45 minutes after the top of the MotoGP race, at which level followers who’ve taken half within the conventional observe invasion might be evacuated.
“We did not need to compromise the general public’s enjoyment,” Jorba tells Motorsport.com, earlier than starting to element the completely different levels of the journey. This begins with the loading of the vehicles on the Misano circuit itself, following a specific choreography to optimise time.
“Loading a truck takes an hour, after which we may have one other six hours on the highway to Malpensa airport in Milan,” explains Jorba. “We’ve got already been speaking for weeks with the authorities there, who’ve the sequence by which they are going to obtain the packing containers. The whole lot needs to be inspected earlier than we get on the airplane.”
Choose new options launched this 12 months ought to make life simpler for Jorba and his folks.
The final of the 5 planes will go away Malpensa at 17:00 on Tuesday and is anticipated in Lombok at 15:00 on Wednesday
“In 2023, we set out measures for the manufacture of the tools transport packing containers, with particular shapes that match the contours of the plane we use,” reveals Jorba. “It now takes us about six hours to organize an plane load; till final 12 months it was about twice as lengthy. This permits us to be far more environment friendly. It is like a puzzle as soon as you understand how the packing containers are organized.
“We already know, for instance, that the Moto2 and Moto3 groups match on a airplane,” the Dorna technician continues earlier than highlighting the second key facet of this primary cease on the Asian tour, which is able to go by way of Indonesia, Japan, Australia, Thailand and Malaysia earlier than returning to Europe in early November for the ultimate cease on the calendar in Valencia on 16 November.
Adjustments made to move packing containers ought to enable the planes to hold extra, whereas a change in airplane kind it’s believed will scale back emissions
Photograph by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Pictures
“Till now we now have been utilizing 4 Boeing 747s, however due to the settlement we now have with Qatar Airways, we’ll now use 5 Boeing 777s. It will enable us to cut back polluting emissions by round 30%, as a result of we’re going from utilizing plane with 4 engines every to others with two, so we’re going from 16 engines to 10.”
Clearly, the entire above relies upon to a point on circuit workers, loading and unloading operators and drivers doing their jobs. However then all of it resides within the arms of exterior actors who can have a direct affect on whether or not the agenda is met, or not. Jorba is aware of this solely too effectively.
“In 2022 we had a technical drawback with a airplane, which forced us to cancel Friday in Argentina,” remembers the Catalan.
If every thing goes in line with schedule, the primary B777 will take off from Milan – Malpensa on Monday at 13:00, will cease in Doha and from there’ll go away for Lombok, the place it ought to land on Tuesday at 11:15 within the morning. The final of the 5 planes will go away Malpensa at 17:00 on Tuesday and is anticipated in Lombok at 15:00 on Wednesday.
“As soon as there, every thing might be unloaded after which it’s going to journey by highway, with small vehicles – the island’s roads are usually not like Milan’s – to Mandalika,” Jorba provides.
Will Dorna’s plans to maneuver the paddock half approach all over the world inside three days work as scheduled?
Photograph by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Pictures
