A plan to bring world class motorcycle racing to Thailand has been paused because of its high budget requirement and the already high number of motorcycle road deaths in Thailand.
The Sports Authority of Thailand (SAT) revealed last year that they were considering hosting MotoGP in 2017. About 320 million people watch the races each season, making them among the most far-reaching televised sporting events in the world.
In a meeting to review the budget on Jan. 5, Prof. Art Nana, a member of the National Sports Development Fund Committee, said that a motorcycle racing event might “send the wrong message to citizens” because Thailand is already a country with the highest number of motorcycle accidents.
He added that the information that SAT presented was only the positive side of the event so the committee should carefully consider this issue.
Meanwhile, Supranee Kuptasa, another member, said that THB100 million in royalties alone for the sports event was too high. She demanded a more formal request for such a large budget, Thairath reported.
The proposed budget for MotoGP is THB374 million. If approved, SAT would be able to make a three-year contract in April with Dorna, MotoGP’s rights holder, and the racing would start in 2018. If the budget approval is delayed, however, the event would be held in 2019 or 2020.
Chang International Circuit in Buriram is set to be the main venue for the event. The circuit has a Grade A classification by International Motorcycling Federation and has hosted the World Superbike Championship in 2015, according to Eurosport.
Reader Interactions