Yamaha will face zero sporting penalties for pulling out of the MotoGP Qatar Grand Prix last weekend, as Motorsport.com Brasil reports. That stunning clarification came straight from Jorge Viegas, president of the International Motorcycling Federation (FIM), who made it crystal clear that the governing body's current rulebook simply does not feature sporting sanctions for riders who miss a race.
The Japanese manufacturer completely cleared out of Lusail, meaning Fabio Quartararo, Alex Rins, Jack Miller, and Toprak Razgatlioglu all sat on the sidelines and did not compete. Internal company travel policies forced the hand of Yamaha, as they held fast to restrictions on moving personnel to the Middle East due to regional safety concerns amid the ongoing conflict involving Iran.
The only penalty provided stems from the contract between Dorna and the manufacturers,
Right after the withdrawal, MotoGP put out a statement warning that the absence would carry both contractual consequences and sporting implications. That public warning heavily hinted at championship-related penalties, but Viegas flat-out contradicted the series promoters in a chat with the Spanish newspaper AS. He pointed out that Dorna got it wrong by floating the idea of sporting punishments.
"We have no such punishment in the FIM," Viegas explained. "A rider who doesn't show up for a race is not subject to sporting sanctions at this moment. Maybe we will change the rules in the future, but currently, we have no such provision."
Even though they dodged a sporting penalty, Yamaha is not entirely out of the woods just yet. The factory could still cop financial consequences for failing to meet their contractual obligations to the championship organization.
Viegas pointed out that the commercial agreement between Dorna and the manufacturers mandates that every team must field two riders at each round, or bring in a substitute if a competitor cannot make it. However, because the FIM is completely outside that business contract, they have zero authority to dish out sporting penalties over a breach of those commercial terms.
"The only penalty provided stems from the contract between Dorna and the manufacturers," Viegas added. "Therefore, the teams are obliged to have two riders in each race. If they cannot count on them, they must use a substitute. But this is a commercial contract. The FIM is not part of it and our disciplinary code does not provide for punishments for the absence of a rider."
As of right now, no numbers have been made public regarding a potential fine, nor has anyone explained how the process between Yamaha and the MotoGP organizers will actually play out.
MotoGP
