MANDALIKA MARSHALS: HOW 400 LOCAL LOMBOK RESIDENTS KEEP MOTOGP SAFE
Meet the 400 Mandalika marshals, all from NTB, who keep MotoGP safe. From a rice farmer to a student, here is how locals became FIM-licensed pros.
At a glance
- 400 marshals, all from West Nusa Tenggara (NTB)
- 9-11 October 2026: the race weekend
- 50+ race events at Mandalika since January
- 2021: when the first marshal recruitment began
Most people watching MotoGP at Mandalika last weekend followed the riders. Few looked at the orange overalls standing just off the track. Every one of those 400 people comes from NTB, the province the circuit sits in.
Mandalika marshals are the trackside safety officers at the Pertamina Grand Prix of Indonesia 2026. The race ran from 9 to 11 October at Mandalika Circuit in Lombok, managed by InJourney. All 400 marshals are NTB residents, trained for safety work and licensed by FIM, the international motorcycle racing federation.
Who are the marshals at Mandalika?
They are farmers, students, and locals with day jobs. At the Marshal Camp, hundreds of them sit together in orange overalls before a session starts.
Samsuri Ramdan is one of them. He is 45, a rice and palawija (secondary crop) farmer from Pengadang village in Central Lombok. Today he leads marshals from Race Control.
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How does a farmer become a Race Control commander?
Slowly, and with no shortcuts. In 2021, Samsuri joined the first marshal recruitment, even though he did not yet know what a marshal did.
He started on the track. Then he moved to the pit lane. Now he is a marshal commander in Race Control, the room that coordinates the whole circuit.
Are there women marshals at Mandalika?
Yes. Racing is often seen as a men’s world, but Lombok women work the track too.
Yani, a university student from Central Lombok, uses her weekend breaks to work at the circuit. Since 2022 she has been trusted with the LED flag at Turn 16. Seli has been a blue flag marshal since 2023. She was scared at first as one of the few women, but now feels comfortable working in the middle of the noise and speed.
What training do Mandalika marshals get?
The job needs quick reactions and teamwork. Marshals are trained in rescue, accident handling, firefighting, and vehicle evacuation. They also learn how to coordinate with Race Control.
They have also passed official FIM licensing, and the learning does not stop there. Muhammad Vincent Wijaya, Deputy Starter at Mandalika Circuit, has logged more than 50 race events since the start of the year. InJourney even sent him to Sepang in Malaysia to learn from more senior marshals.
What does the circuit mean for locals outside the track?
The effect reaches beyond the fences. Guesthouses, transport services, and clothing sellers around Mandalika all pick up extra income when visitors arrive.
InJourney calls this a sport tourism ecosystem. For the marshals, it means a job that grows with them.
Here is the surprising part. A MotoGP race run at world level depends on people who, five years ago, mostly had never heard the word “marshal.” Samsuri’s own story shows how fast that can change.
