The state government is expected to announce on Tuesday afternoon that both major events will be suspended, due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.With strict international travel and quarantine conditions in place, the logistics of bringing international teams to Melbourne for both high-octane events slammed the brakes on the tourist drawcards.It is the second year straight the F1 race at Albert Park and the bikes at Phillip Island have been cancelled due to the pandemic, in a blow to the state’s major event calendar.Sources said the state government made the decision on Monday.The events have not yet been locked in for 2022, with the Australian Grand Prix Corporation in talks with Formula One management and DORNA, the MotoGP’s governing body.Melbourne’s season opening F1 race was postponed from March to November, with organisers hoping the shift would allow time for a Covid-safe plan to be implemented and the community to be vaccinated.Grand Prix chiefs submitted a safety plan to the government but it is believed the difficulty of foreign drivers touching down and their reluctance to enter a hard two-week quarantine was a factor in the decision to axe both events.The Brazilian Grand Prix is set to be staged two weeks before Melbourne was scheduled to play host to the likes of Lewis Hamilton, Daniel Ricciardo and Max Verstappen.Thousands of fans packed the Australian Grand Prix at the weekend to watch Verstappen extend his lead in the world championship, but many more Europeans have been vaccinated.The decision to axe the two events could raise concerns about next year’s Australian Open tennis championship.Sports Minister Martin Pakula, Australian GP chief executive Andrew Westacott and Tennis Australia boss Craig Tiley also declared the three events would go ahead earlier this year.But Tennis Australia and the government would still need to navigate a way to get international stars into Melbourne amid strict quarantine rules.The Australian MotoGP race, scheduled for October 24, is regional Victoria’s biggest sporting event, injecting about $30m into the local economy.After the MotoGP calendar was again reshuffled last month — with a round in Thailand now scheduled for October 17, a week before Phillip Island — there is speculation a round will be held at the Portimao circuit on the Algarve, which hosted the third round this year.Cancelling the event is a blow for motorcycle racing fans eager for a home race for Australian Ducati rider Jack Miller, who has won two races this year and is fifth in the world championship.Miller finished third in his last outing at the island in 2019 when 82,850 spectators attended a rain-affected event over three days.More to come
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