It was at the beginning of 2016 when Motorcycling Australia’s then Sporting Director Peter Doyle was appointed acting CEO of the organisation. Eight years later, the highly regarded former race team manager and crew chief is as committed to improving motorcycle sport in this country as he’s ever been.
Now, speaking candidly about the state of racing in Australia, we ask him to address many of the concerns raised by punters and race teams alike.
It’s not always apparent, but there are a lot of balls in the air being juggled behind the scenes to keep a series like ASBK afloat – with many conflicting and competing agendas that need to be considered and satisfied.
It’s taken patience but the formula is working. Through his work as FIM Oceania President Doyle brings an international perspective to his role. Australia simply isn’t a big enough player to influence the international motorcycle market but that doesn’t make us irrelevant and Doyle’s attitude reflects that.
So take a seat and listen in.
Let’s start with a report card on road racing. Generally speaking, how are we going? Are we in peril?
My opinion, and I’ve raised this at FIM level, is that road racing is at a global crossroads. That doesn’t mean I think it’s going to fail – I just think it’s very fragmented.
We can see this in sportsbike sales, so you could then pose the question whether MotoGP and WorldSBK should be two separate series. MotoAmerica has been struggling for a long time, it’s probably a bit better now than it was five years ago, but BSB is the benchmark right
