Blog: Silverstone MotoGP and TT date clash. Surely a mistake?

I was absolutely shocked when I saw the date for the 2010 Silverstone British Grand Prix. June 6? Surely that’s when the TT starts?

The Silverstone MotoGP race date is one I’m sure many of us have been eagerly waiting to pencil into our diaries, but the FIM has provisionally booked it for the same weekend as the Isle of Man TT kicks off its racing programme. What are they on?

The Silverstone Grand Prix is such an exciting new venture.  There’s a whole new race track, one that looks like it’s been conceived with just one plan – to make it one of the most stunning race tracks in the world for both riders and fans. So how could any self-respecting race fan think of not being there for that momentous day on Sunday June 6?

But, hang on, Saturday, June 5 is the first race of TT 2010, the Superbike TT. How could any self-respecting race fan miss that?

But anyone not wanting to miss either is going to need a private aircraft to do both – and lets face it, that rules out virtually all of us mere mortals. Yeah, you could maybe even do it on a bike but then you’d miss MotoGP practice – and if the weather turned nasty you could the TT race and then get stranded on the Island and miss the MotoGP. What a mess.

It’s hard to quantify how much cross-over there is in the fan base that regularly goes to the TT and the Grand Prix but this crazy date clash is bound to have an adverse effect of crowds at both events to some extent.

Obviously there’s no rider cross-over, well not unless Valentino Rossi intends to have a go at the TT – but it is going to be massively difficult for the UK-based motorcycle industry people who will be torn between the two.

I’d like to think it’s simply a naive oversight on the part of the FIM and, ultimately, commonsense will prevail but then again we all know just how crazy politicians can be at times – let lone the FIM!

So come on, tell us and the FIM what you think.