雅马哈抵制MotoGP卡塔尔站，F1仍按计划前往中东
雅马哈及其卫星车队Pramac决定抵制MotoGP卡塔尔大奖赛，F1方面表示仍打算按计划在中东举行赛季最后两站比赛，同时密切关注事态发展。
雅马哈令人震惊地抵制MotoGP，这对F1在卡塔尔和阿布扎比的比赛意味着什么？
在雅马哈传出这一出人意料的消息后，F1仍打算按计划在中东举行本赛季最后两场大奖赛。不过，F1正在密切关注事态发展，包括美国中期选举。
F1卡塔尔大奖赛期间发车区的全景。
围绕下周卡塔尔大奖赛的紧张气氛在MotoGP围场中已达到沸点。此前一段时间，幕后已存在不安情绪，多名车手表达了他们的担忧，而周日雅马哈成为首家公开发表声明的制造商。
雅马哈及其卫星车队普拉马克都已决定抵制这场比赛，促使MotoGP发表声明，威胁不仅会实施合同制裁，还会实施体育制裁。亚历克斯·马奎斯也将缺席卡塔尔站的比赛，因为他计划接受手术，此前他在五月加泰罗尼亚大奖赛上遭遇严重摔车。
这凸显出在当前局势下，并非MotoGP中的每个人都愿意前往中东，尽管该锦标赛坚持认为，11月6日至8日在卢赛尔国际赛车场举行的比赛周末将按计划进行。副首席执行官卡洛斯·埃斯佩莱塔周四亲自前往卡塔尔，与当地政府讨论安全保障问题。
MotoGP的立场在F1的背景下也颇有意思，因为这项两轮顶级赛事如今也归入自由媒体集团旗下。F1定于三周后（11月27日至29日）访问卡塔尔，并已告诉Motorsport.com，尽管雅马哈传来了消息，这些计划仍保持不变。
这也是在墨西哥F1周末期间发给所有车队的一封信中传达的信息，Motorsport.com已看到这封信。
在信中，F1 重申仍打算在卡塔尔和阿布扎比结束本赛季。车队已提前获悉雅马哈的消息，信中同时指出，其他制造商以及 MotoGP 整体仍将按计划前往卡塔尔。
F1 认为现阶段没有理由改变自己的计划，并强调自五月以来旅行建议和保险情况均未发生变化，因此锦标赛可以继续进行。
一架卡塔尔航空的波音 777-300ER 飞越发车格
当然，关键变量依然存在，美国中期选举或许是其中最重要的。中东地区有人担心冲突此后可能进一步升级，不过 F1 已有备选方案，即伊莫拉。
正如Motorsport.com此前报道的那样，伊莫拉的组织者在六周多前就获得了绿灯，可以开始准备工作并搭建临时看台。这使F1能够在未来几周中东安全局势恶化时迅速做出反应。
如果最终不需要这个B计划，F1已承诺承担伊莫拉所有准备工作的费用，确保艾米利亚-罗马涅的组织者在任何情况下都不会面临财务风险。
为什么F1车手和车队负责人对公开发声持谨慎态度
虽然MotoGP的多位车手和车队对继续在中东举办比赛的计划提出了批评，但在F1围场中这种情况要少见得多。
Motorsport.com获得的这封信函证实，车队和车手被要求不要发表过于批评性的言论，正如今年早些时候在技术规则问题上所发生的情况一样。就中东问题而言，车队被要求信任F1和FIA，并保持他们近几周来一贯表达的相同公开立场。
这一点在過去几周涉及车手和车队领队的多场新闻发布会上有所体现，包括在墨西哥。当周五新闻发布会上提到这个话题时，红牛车队领队洛朗·梅基斯回应道：
“通常，FIA和F1的任务是以最完整的方式处理此事，掌握全套信息，并为我们指明方向。这就是为什么，我们在评估情况方面没有做出与他们相同的努力，我们完全依赖他们做出正确的决定，”梅基斯说。
“我必须说，历史已经表明，他们过去做出的这些决定绝大多数都非常正确。就截止日期而言，我认为所有车队都在同一条船上，并且已经……所以后勤工作无论如何都很大程度上通过F1和FIA来协调，所以我们都很清楚情况如何。”
威廉姆斯车队领队詹姆斯·沃尔斯表达了类似的观点。
最近几周，只有两位车手在公开表态中略微更为批评：马克斯·维斯塔潘和卡洛斯·塞恩斯。前者表示，他通常非常享受前往中东比赛，但就这次而言——如果完全由他决定——他可能更愿意在其他地方比赛。
塞恩斯在奥斯汀的新闻发布会上表示，在他看来，无论F1和国际汽联告诉他什么，现阶段都很难完全相信安全局势。
“我认为他们似乎非常确信比赛会继续进行。就我个人而言，并且不代表大奖赛车手协会（GPDA），现在很难被说服。中东仍然有事情在发生，而且显然美国也即将举行选举，世界政治层面即将发生的事情可能会在接下来的一个半月里非常突然地产生影响。所以，我认为现在就如此确信还为时过早。”
这些评论是合理的，但根据上述情况，塞恩斯随后被谈话，并在当天晚些时候在威廉姆斯群聊中发布澄清，强调他本人也完全信任F1和FIA在此事上的处理。
F1正在积极推行这一做法的事实，在车手中广为人知。当塞恩斯的评论在墨西哥的荷兰媒体环节被提及时，维斯塔潘笑了：“事后可能有人找他谈过了！”
“当然，你其实不被允许说那些话。”
更严肃地说，维斯塔潘解释说，很大程度上取决于未来几周会发生什么。当被Motorsport.com问及他是否仍坚持先前的评论时，他现在表示：“这也多少取决于他们能在安全方面保证什么，以及未来几周会发生什么。
你现在可以说自己乐意去那里，但你不知道下周会发生什么，因为该地区的局势显然仍不完全稳定。
实际上，F1对此心知肚明。由于涉及巨额资金，没有人愿意先眨眼，而从政治角度来看，重要的是不能朝那个方向露出任何迹象。
然而，在与车队的沟通中，F1非常明确地表示安全永远是第一位的。它正在密切关注事态发展——包括中期选举——并强调如果情况发生变化，它将做“正确的事”。在这方面，这项四轮赛车运动的顶级赛事比两轮赛车运动有更多时间。
英文原文
What does Yamaha’s shock MotoGP boycott mean for F1 in Qatar and Abu Dhabi?
F1 still intends to go ahead with the final two Grands Prix of the season in the Middle East after the surprising news from Yamaha. However, F1 is keeping a close eye on developments, including the US midterm elections
A general view of the grid during the F1 Grand Prix of Qatar
Tensions surrounding next week's Qatar Grand Prix have reached boiling point in the MotoGP paddock. There had already been unrest behind the scenes for some time, with several riders expressing their concerns, but on Sunday Yamaha became the first manufacturer to make a public statement.
Both Yamaha and its satellite team Pramac have decided to boycott the race, prompting MotoGP to issue a statement threatening not only contractual but also sporting sanctions. Alex Marquez will also be absent from the Qatar race, as he has scheduled surgery following his heavy crash at the Catalan Grand Prix back in May.
It underlines that not everyone in MotoGP is eager to travel to the Middle East under the current circumstances, although the championship maintains that the race weekend at the Losail International Circuit from 6-8 November will go ahead as planned. Deputy CEO Carlos Ezpeleta travelled to Qatar himself on Thursday to speak with the local authorities about safety guarantees.
MotoGP's position is also interesting in the context of Formula 1, as the premier class on two wheels now also falls under the Liberty Media umbrella. F1 is due to visit Qatar three weeks later (27-29 November) and has told Motorsport.com that those plans remain unchanged despite the news from Yamaha.
This is also the message conveyed in a letter sent to all teams during the F1 weekend in Mexico, which has been seen by Motorsport.com.
In the letter, F1 reiterates that it still intends to conclude the season in Qatar and Abu Dhabi. Teams were informed in advance about the Yamaha news, with the letter noting that the other manufacturers and MotoGP as a whole will still travel to Qatar as planned.
F1 sees no reason to change its own plans at this stage, emphasising that neither the travel advice nor the insurance situation has changed since May, allowing the championship to proceed.
A Boeing 777-300ER of Qatar Airways flies over the grid
Naturally, crucial variables remain, with the US midterm elections perhaps the most important of all. There are fears in the Middle East that the conflicts could escalate further afterwards, although F1 already has a plan B in place in the form of Imola.
As previously reported by Motorsport.com, the organisers in Imola were given the green light more than six weeks ago to begin preparations and build the temporary grandstands. This gives F1 the opportunity to react quickly if the security situation in the Middle East deteriorates in the coming weeks.
Should that plan B ultimately not be needed, F1 has committed to covering all the costs of the preparations in Imola, ensuring that the organisers in Emilia-Romagna face no financial risks under any circumstances.
Why F1 drivers and team principals are cautious about speaking out
While several riders and teams in MotoGP have been critical of the plan to go ahead with the Middle East races, this has been far less common in the F1 paddock.
The letter obtained by Motorsport.com confirms that teams and drivers are being asked not to speak too critically, just as happened earlier this year regarding the technical regulations. In the case of the Middle East, teams are being asked to trust F1 and the FIA and to maintain the same public stance they have consistently expressed in recent weeks.
This has been reflected in several press conferences involving drivers and team principals over the past few weeks, including in Mexico. When the subject came up during Friday's press conference, Red Bull team principal Laurent Mekies responded:
“It is typically the FIA and F1's task to approach it in the most complete way, with a full set of information, and to give us the direction on that. This is why, us not doing the same effort as them in terms of assessing the situations, we fully rely on them to make the right call”, Mekies said.
“I have to say that history has shown that they have made most of these calls very right in the past. In terms of deadlines, I think all the teams are on the same boat and have... So logistics are very much channelled through F1 and the FIA anyway, so we all know very well where that is.”
Williams team principal James Vowles expressed similar views.
In recent weeks, only two drivers have been slightly more critical on the record: Max Verstappen and Carlos Sainz. The former indicated that he normally very much enjoys travelling to the Middle East, but that in this case – if it were entirely up to him – he might prefer to race somewhere else.
Sainz said during the press conference in Austin that, in his view, it is difficult to be fully convinced of the safety situation at this stage, regardless of what F1 and the FIA tell him.
“I think they seem very convinced that it's going to go ahead. I think on my personal side, and not speaking as the GPDA, it's very difficult to be convinced right now. There are still things happening in the Middle East, and also there is obviously an election that is going to happen in the US, and things that are going to happen on the political side of the world that could affect the next month and a half very suddenly. So, I think it's relatively premature to be so convinced.”
These are valid comments, but in line with the above, Sainz was subsequently spoken to and later that day issued a clarification in the Williams group chat to emphasise that he, too, fully trusts F1 and the FIA on this matter.
The fact that F1 is actively pursuing this approach is widely known among the drivers. When Sainz's comments were brought up during the Dutch media session in Mexico, Verstappen laughed: “Someone will probably have had a word with him afterwards!
"Of course, you're not really allowed to say those things.”
On a more serious note, Verstappen explained that much depends on what happens over the coming weeks. Asked by Motorsport.com whether he still stands by his earlier comments, he now says: “It also depends a bit on what they can guarantee in terms of safety and what happens over the coming weeks.
"You can say now that you're happy to go there, but you don't know what will happen next week, because the region is obviously still not entirely stable.”
In practice, F1 is well aware of this. With enormous sums of money involved, nobody wants to blink first, while from a political perspective it is important not to give any indication in that direction.
However, in its communication with the teams, F1 makes it very clear that safety always comes first. It is closely monitoring developments – including the midterms – and emphasises that it will do “the right thing” if the situation changes. In that respect, the premier class of four-wheeled motorsport has more time than its two-wheeled counterpart.
Motorsport.com ·
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