Mandalika Luxury Sport Tourism: MotoGP and NTB Cultural Exhibition Amazes the World.

The 2025 Mandalika MotoGP is more than just a high-speed racing spectacle; it's a world-class celebration of culture and tourism. Amid the roar of international racers' engines, the West Nusa Tenggara (NTB) State Museum offers a distinct cultural experience through its "Lombok–Sumbawa Museum of Civilization" exhibition. This showcase reveals another dimension of Mandalika's allure, blending motorsports, heritage, and local pride within a premium destination landscape.

Secretary of the Coordinating Ministry for Economic Affairs Susiwijono Moegiarso hailed the exhibition as an astute move to enrich NTB's sports tourism ecosystem.

"This is exceptionally well-executed. The NTB government fully capitalizes on this international event attracting global visitors," stated Susiwijono in Mataram on Sunday, October 5, 2025.

On October 4, 2025, Susiwijono visited Mandalika Circuit in Central Lombok to review progress at the Mandalika Special Economic Zone (KEK) and witness the MotoGP sprint race. During his visit, he experienced the cultural exhibition—a space encapsulating NTB's civilizational legacy and aesthetic traditions.

The exhibition features three primary categories—history, fine arts, and textiles—reflecting Lombok and Sumbawa's civilizational richness. Among its collections are historical Sasak tribe artifacts, traditional woven fabrics, and ancient manuscripts depicting local identity.

"Other events should incorporate similar cultural showcases," remarked Susiwijono.

Cultural Heritage Amid Global Racing

NTB Museum Head Ahmad Nuralam emphasized that the exhibition goes beyond displaying cultural objects, spotlighting major historical events like Mount Samalas' 1257 eruption.

"The Samalas eruption was a pivotal event in human civilization. Its volcanic ash spread across nearly half the globe," Nuralam explained.

The museum also presents 3D miniatures of Samalas–Rinjani and Tambora volcanic eruptions, Bima's distinctive tembe songke textiles, Sumbawa's kre alang fabrics, the Siwa Mahadewa Statue, and the Babat Lombok manuscript. These artifacts symbolize humanity's enduring harmony with nature, spirituality, and art.

The Babat Lombok manuscript chronicles disasters while affirming written traditions' role in preserving collective memory. The Siwa Mahadewa Statue reflects past societies' spiritual depth that underpins NTB's contemporary cultural life.

Tembe songke and kre alang embody the elegance and resilience of Bima and Sumbawa women, gaining global recognition after featuring in Jeddah's 2025 Islamic Arts Biennale—marking NTB's tangible cultural advancement on the world stage.

"These unified collections narrate a civilization built upon human-nature-belief interactions," Nuralam concluded.

Sport Tourism with Emotional Depth

Mandalika's fusion of racing and cultural exhibition represents Indonesian tourism's evolution beyond mere entertainment into holistic experiences combining adrenaline, aesthetics, and historical significance. For upper-middle-class tourists, it offers NTB's beauty through dual lenses: speed sensations and cultural immersion.

With its maturing sport tourism concept, Mandalika now transcends its identity as an international circuit, emerging as a premium destination embodying "luxury meets authenticity." (Antara)