21/03/2026

MotoGP riders praise “really fun” Brazil GP track despite rain disruptions

MotoGP riders gave the newly-refurbished Goiania track a thumbs up despite rain disrupting running on the opening day of the Brazilian Grand Prix.

The Autodromo Internacional Ayrton Senna is hosting a grand prix race for the first time since 1989, following significant investment to bring MotoGP back to Brazil.

Most of the headlines at the start of the race week focused on heavy downpour in Goiania, which left parts of the circuit waterlogged and rendered the paddock tunnel inaccessible on Tuesday.

This raised concerns that the track could prove “too dirty” once competitive running began, with the risk of dirt being dragged onto the racing line from the run-off areas.

Further rain showers hit the track on Friday, delaying the start of running and forcing MotoGP to revert the main practice session back to 60 minutes, having originally extended it to 75 minutes to help riders learn the layout.

It continued to rain intermittently throughout the day, with the likes of Marco Bezzecchi and Raul Fernandez getting caught out by the conditions and failing to make it into Q2. Home favourite Diogo Moreira was also among a number of riders who crashed out early on slick tyres before rain prevented any further improvements.

But while riders are yet to sample a fully dry track, they were unanimous in their praise of the circuit, describing it as enjoyable to ride.

“I like the track. It doesn’t feel like it’s really small,” said Yamaha’s Fabio Quartararo after setting the seventh-fastest time in the afternoon. “Of course, the lap is short [but] it feels much bigger than Sachsenring. Also, the layout [makes a difference].

“Unfortunately, we cannot really exploit all the track conditions because it was patchy; it was difficult. But I think with full sun and full dry, it’s a really fun track.”

He added: “It’s true that the track looks really dirty but it doesn’t feel so much. For sure, the out[er] line is more slippery than the correct line.”

The rain flooding the circuit trackside

Photo by: Gold and Goose Photography / LAT Images / via Getty Images

Honda’s Luca Marini was among three present-day MotoGP riders who sampled the Goiania track in March last year, and believes the circuit has improved significantly over the last 12 months.

“The tarmac, even if it is very new, still needs some time to rest because it costs a lot to dry, especially between one piece of tarmac and another,” he explained.

“But it has a very good grip in every situation, with slick tyres while it was raining, with wet tyres, so I think the quality is very good and MotoGP Sport [Entertainment] did a fantastic job with the organisers and the circuit to arrive here at a very good level compared to the situation of the year before.

“About the track, we cannot say more than this. Let’s see tomorrow if the weather will be better, because I think we can enjoy it, but we need to ride in standard conditions.

“All full wet [or] full dry would be better for us.”

Coming into the weekend, there were question marks over whether the 3.835km track would offer enough opportunities for overtaking.

While Friday practice wasn’t the best indicator, KTM’s Pedro Acosta is confident that the track could deliver an action-packed race in dry conditions.

“If the weather is more sunny, you will have many places to overtake,” he said.

“The track is super nice to ride on, maybe a bit short for a MotoGP, but you have many possibilities for this. I think with other kinds of weather, like more sunny, we could have really nice races.

“Now, maybe the weather forecast is playing a bit again.”

Jack Miller, Pramac Racing

Photo by: Gold and Goose Photography / LAT Images / via Getty Images

Ducati’s Marc Marquez typically prefers tracks with more left-hand corners, particularly as he is recovering from a right shoulder injury he sustained at the 2025 Indonesian GP.

Just five out of Goiania’s 14 turns are left-handed, but the reigning world champion still gave a glowing assessment of the track.

“The layout of the track is super nice and I like it,” he said after finishing second in practice.

“You need to separate a good layout for your riding style and a nice layout [in general]. This one is a nice layout because that sector 1 is flowing, but then there is sector 2 and 3 that I like.”