I pondered this and the lack of enthusiasm from the riders to at least give it a go whilst driving back!
in the ‘good old days’ riders didn’t have lucrative contacts in other countries so much or a GP series to ride in - maybe those at the top have just got a bit too comfy to risk it if conditions are not exactly to their liking.
I personally felt the track looked rideable but I am comparing it to tracks of 20/30 years ago and of course the bikes were different back then - still a bit miffed no one came out to test the track!
edit - at no point did I hear the bikes being warmed up either!!!