The Terra Topia MX circuit, situated on the north-western outskirts of Johannesburg, South Africa’s largest city, will host the event.

MXGP of South Africa (Johannesburg Preview)

Naturally, all the riders competing this weekend will be contesting their first GP in this country, and the biggest challenge for many will be the altitude, which is around 1,800 metres. This means the air will be thinner for both riders and bikes, limiting engine power and making the physical exertion even more demanding. The track surface itself is slightly softer than at the recent circuits of Montevarchi and Águeda. This will be only the sixth Motocross Grand Prix to be held in this country and the fourth host venue. The nearby Corobrik circuit hosted the first GP in 1985, a 250cc class race won by the French Yamaha rider Jacky Vimond. Then, in 2004, Sun City hosted the first of three annual GPs in the MX1/MX2 era, before the most recent South African event took place in Nelspruit, 350 km east of Johannesburg, in 2008. The winners on that day were the Spaniard Jonathan Barragan and the Briton Tommy Searle, both riding KTMs.