Phillip Island is one of the most magical tracks on the MotoGP calendar. In addition to its spectacular design, with many high-speed curves and constant elevation changes, it is located in a unique setting, surrounded by nature and with impressive views of the sea.
However, nature and motorcycling do not always go hand in hand , and in the last Australian Grand Prix the presence of animals on the track has become daily. The images of Andrea Iannone hitting a seagull with his helmet in 2015, or Jorge Lorenzo with another bird on the fairing of his Yamaha in 2013 are mythical.
In the 2022 edition we once again had the presence of the local fauna on the asphalt, but this time on land. In FP1, Aleix Espargaró was about to hit a wallaby (an animal similar to a kangaroo) at more than 200 km/h. In addition, the Moto2 classification, held the following day, had to be terminated early after two geese decided to take a walk on the track, forcing the red flag to wave.
This latest incident brought wildlife and safety issues to the fore on Phillip Island. The problem was taken to a safety commission , where the pilots were able to explain their points of view.
Alex Rins pointed to the height of the fences that surround the circuit as a possible solution to the problem. “They have to improve the fences,” he said after qualifying, “because if we collide with a wallaby it can be very dangerous, both for the animal and for us.” “If you notice, the fence of the straight is not so high”, he denounced.
Aleix Espargaró, for his part, described his incident with the wallaby as “unacceptable”, as it is a terrestrial animal, but assumes that it is impossible to try to keep the birds out of the limits of the circuit. “At the beginning [of the meeting] everyone was laughing. But they ended up understanding that it was something very important in terms of security,” Espargaró said.
“For me it is unacceptable, it was very dangerous. Let’s see if they can improve [security]. We have asked them to close the runway a little better. Nothing can be done for the birds. But the wallabies cannot pass. If I arrive to catch the wallby, going at 220 km/h, the accident would have been big”.
Local hero Jack Miller said he understood the safety concerns , but argued that the wallaby seen in FP1 was unlikely to have entered the circuit once the event had started. The one from Townsville pointed out that he was possibly already living on the island before the MotoGP paddock arrived.
“Don’t get me wrong, it’s very dangerous to have kangaroos and stuff jumping around in the middle of a circuit when you’re going 350kph,” he told Motorsport.com. “But, as I said yesterday at the safety committee, I understand that there is no six-foot-high fence around the track, but that kangaroo didn’t just walk in. I’d say it was stuck somewhere, and the noise of the motorcycles woke him up.
Andrea Iannone, scoring a gaviota in 2015
“It’s not nice to have [animals] on the track, but in the end, what are you going to do? I’m sure there’s nothing going over the stands now, because they’re full of people. I don’t think it’s going to be a problem.” Too big”.
Asked if the safety commission had come up with any solutions, Miller reiterated that the issue is largely unsolvable . “After all, when you have a track in a place as emblematic as this, you will always have a problem with the fauna,” he said.
“Whether it’s seagulls or whatever those dodo-like birds are, you’re always going to have a problem. What are we going to do? Exterminate the whole island? Everybody knows when you come to Australia there’s wildlife. Just drive down a highway and look at dead animals on the road. There are many animals and few people in this country. It’s different from anywhere else in the world,” he said.
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