Federal Court Injunction Bid Seeks to Halt Construction of MotoGP's New Adelaide Circuit

A legal challenge to the new circuit

Australia's Federal Court has received an urgent injunction request aimed at blocking construction of the new Adelaide street circuit built to host MotoGP's Australian Grand Prix starting in 2027. The filing, lodged on September 18 by private citizen Joshua Hogan against the South Australian government, gained public attention this week.

The case challenges the state government's plan to route the circuit through Adelaide's eastern Park Lands, though the full legal grounds have not yet been made public.

What is being built

The project carries a price tag of roughly 96 million Australian dollars and is designed to replace Phillip Island as the host venue for the Australian round of the MotoGP calendar from November 2027 onward.

The construction plan involves removing nearly 400 trees from the Park Lands, including 42 classified as "significant," a detail that has drawn sustained backlash from local civil society groups. The South Australian government has said it will offset the losses with thousands of new tree plantings and a 15 million dollar environmental and biodiversity restoration package.

Where things stand

Public consultation on the project closed on Sunday, September 20, and the government has said it is still targeting a construction start in December 2026 despite the legal challenge.

South Australia's Attorney-General, Kyam Maher, confirmed the state is aware of the filing: "We are aware of the request filed in the Federal Court seeking an urgent injunction regarding works associated with MotoGP. The Crown Solicitor's Office is reviewing the request. The government intends to defend its position and will respond through appropriate legal proceedings."

Why it matters for MotoGP

The Adelaide project has been positioned as a marquee return of grand prix motorcycle racing to a purpose-built street circuit in South Australia, a state with a long history of hosting Formula 1 in the 1980s and 90s. A successful injunction, even a temporary one, would throw the December construction timeline and the planned 2027 debut into doubt, and MotoGP's calendar planners will be watching the court proceedings closely in the weeks ahead.