The Jerez circuit was hit by a heavy storm earlier this week, causing major flooding at the track. But we were reassured by the officials running the Jerez circuit that the MotoGP race will go ahead as planned on April 25th, in fact, they guaranteed it.
A statement posted on Instagram read, “Despite the damages suffered after yesterday's storm, the Circuito de Jerez-Angel Nieto guarantees the celebration of the Spanish MotoGP Grand Prix... After the passage of an intense storm yesterday afternoon that caused numerous incidents in the rural area near the Circuito de Jerez-Angel Nieto, as well as in the circuit itself, work has begun today on the preparation of the facilities to resume the activity as soon as possible.”
This statement makes it seem like a relatively easy fix is all that's required for the MotoGP to take place, but we know at least one run-off zone, after the final corner, needs to be resurfaced. But not much has been said to address the rivers of mud flowing through the circuit's facilities.
The statement read, “According to the rain gauges of farms around the circuit, in the area fell yesterday afternoon more than 120 litres per square meter in less than half an hour which caused an intense concentration of water in some parts of the circuit, especially in the curves near the Arroyo del Gato that runs through the interior of our facilities and overflowed, flooding with water, mud and gravel of the run-offs of the turns 7, 8 and 11."
If you want a visual representation of what that looked like, check out the video below.
As more footage of the situation in Jerez comes out, we're left wondering what state the facilities and track will be in by April 25th. And, at least for me, the memory of Dorna trying to push the Valencia Gran Prix in the wake of a natural disaster only to concede and relocate due to pushback from riders doesn't help.
