Buriram, Thailand

MotoGP riders learned a new English word last Sunday at Buriram. Typical of this was Joan Mir, who had crashed out shortly after the halfway mark. "I have burns," he explained to journalists, before turning to the Honda HRC Castrol press officer to ask "como se dice? (how do you say that in English), before journalists jumped in with the word "blisters". "Ah, the tire also!" Mir joked.

Blisters were a common theme. Official air temperature of 36°C (measured in the shade) meant there was little respite for rider nor machine. The combination of blazing sun, 300 horsepower, and hot air meant that the heat produced by the engines was not being dissipated to the air, but heating up frames and chassis as well. Temperatures of metal parts were reaching nearly 100°C.

Reports coming out of Thailand suggest that the Chang International Circuit in Buriram, which hosted the opening round of the 2025 MotoGP season and is set to repeat that in 2026, may lose its spot on the MotoGP calendar from 2027 onwards.

Newin Chidchob, president of the Chang International Circuit, posted on his Facebook page that he had been informed by the Sports Authority of Thailand (SAT) that the Thai government would not extend the contract they have with Dorna to host a round of MotoGP.

However, SAT governor Dr Kongsak Yodmanee told Thai newspaper The Nation that they were still in contract negotiations with Dorna Sports S.L. over a possible contract extension, and that no decision had been made.

Read more about Buriram MotoGP Round At Risk After 2026
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A couple of decades ago, when Valentino Rossi was at the height of his powers, Rossi's crew chief Jeremy Burgess was interviewed. Burgess explained that if he was shown a photo of Rossi riding, he could identify what lap Rossi was on.

Is this some kind of weird superpower? Not really. Burgess was looking at Rossi's position on the bike, and dozens of tiny telltale signs of how he was adapting his riding to the bike and tires as they changed during race, as the fuel tank emptied and the tires wore and degraded.

If you have the kind of intimate knowledge of a rider's talent and habits that a crew chief does, you can spot those subtle changes. Or if you are an ex-rider and have been watching a particular rider for a long time, you can pick up on those signs too.