Bad weather halts the Australian GP, but will it go ahead? The latest updates

Everything is on hold in Australia: no class has taken to the track due to the forecast bad weather. Here’s what we know so far.

The dire weather forecasts for Phillip Island have proved entirely accurate. The MotoGP classes have yet to take to the track today: warm-up has been cancelled, and the Moto3 and Moto2 races have not taken place. The priority is to resume with the full-length MotoGP race, and then take things from there. But when? Or, more to the point, will the race even go ahead? The next update is due at 2:00 p.m. local time, 4:00 a.m. in Italy, with the aim of getting the track action underway at 3:00 p.m. local time—maybe...

The situation looked difficult from very early on. The bad weather and poor visibility are preventing the medical helicopter from flying, a requirement for a Grand Prix to go ahead. The warm-up, which was scheduled for 9:40 a.m. local time (12:40 a.m. in Italy), was cancelled while officials waited for the weather to improve. Everything has been on hold ever since, with brief updates and repeated delays as everyone hopes conditions will improve and the riders will be able to take to the track.

The first possibility was for track action to begin at 3:00 a.m. in Italy, or 1:00 p.m. at Phillip Island, but a new update has just come in. The next update is now expected at 2:00 p.m. local time, or 4:00 a.m. in Italy. Track action is certain to start no earlier than 3:00 p.m. local time—5:00 a.m. back home. For now, it’s all still speculation. Who knows...

In the premier class, Marc Marquez took pole position, producing a stunning lap after a crash at the start of Q2, with Alex Marquez and Johann Zarco completing the front row. Aprilia were expected to attack in the Sprint, and there was a great battle between Marquez and Jorge Martin before the latter crashed and was injured. Aprilia also lost Raul Fernandez due to a pre-existing physical issue, Ai Ogura was penalized, and Marco Bezzecchi was the only one to limit the damage. The crowd went wild for Jack Miller’s superb fourth place! And they weren’t the only ones... Read the Sprint report here.

As for the lower classes (with the highly unsettled weather in mind), rookie Veda Pratama took a historic pole position in Moto3, becoming the first Indonesian rider ever to achieve this in the MotoGP World Championship. Newly crowned champion Maximo Quiles finished second, with Australian Joel Kelso completing the front row. Kelso has also just renewed his contract with GRYD Racing for the 2027 season. Guido Pini and Matteo Bertelle qualified eighth and tenth, respectively. In Moto2, championship leader Manuel Gonzalez took pole, with Barry Baltus and Filip Salac completing the front row. Home hero Senna Agius finished seventh after crashing on his out-lap for his final attempt, which could have been good enough for pole. Among the Italian riders, Tony Arbolino is tenth and Luca Lunetta 18th, while Celestino Vietti missed out on Q2 and ended qualifying with the second-slowest time on the grid. Now everyone is waiting for an update to find out whether these riders will race or not.

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