(Reuters) – The start of the MotoGP season was delayed for a third time in succession on Tuesday after organizers announced that the Grand Prix of the Americas had been postponed and rescheduled for November.
The race was scheduled to take place from April 3-5 in Austin, Texas, and will now take place from Nov. 13-15, with the season-ending Valencia Grand Prix being pushed back to Nov. 20-22 as a result.
“The FIM, IRTA and Dorna Sports regret to announce the postponement of the Red Bull Grand Prix of the Americas,” organizers said in a statement announcing the decision.
The season-opening MotoGP race in Qatar, scheduled for the Losail circuit on March 8, was canceled at the start of the month because of travel restrictions on passengers from Italy and elsewhere due to the coronavirus epidemic.
The Thai Grand Prix, the second race of the season scheduled to be held in Thailand on March 22, was also postponed earlier this month and rescheduled for Oct. 4.
The date change for the Thai Grand Prix resulted in the Aragon Grand Prix in Spain being brought forward a week to Sept. 27.
(Reporting by Simon Jennings in Bengaluru, editing by Pritha Sarkar)
