The Spaniard made the comments ahead of a PR visit to the country's Buddh International Circuit, which hosted the inaugural Indian F1 Grand Prix in 2011.

Factory Yamaha rider Lorenzo, who will complete demonstration laps of the track on Wednesday,said:

"This will be my first visit to the country and I have been told that the biking culture has evolved tremendously there over the years. With India getting equipped with one of the world's best race tracks and having already hosted F1, we can expect India to be the next destination for MotoGP."

New MotoGP rounds in Argentina and Texas are due to join the MotoGP calendar in 2013, meaning there is little time for an Indian MotoGP deal to be completed if Lorenzo's words are to be taken literally.

But question marks remain over the future of events at Jerez, Estoril and Sachsenring - indeed, the 2012 Estoril and Sachsenring rounds are officially still 'Subject To Contract'.

Indian brand Mahindra made its debut in the 125cc category of motorcycle grand prix last season, taking pole position with Danny Webb at Valencia, and will continue in the replacement Moto3 World Championship this year.

Meanwhile, turning towards the new 1000cc MotoGP era, Lorenzo gave his support to the new cut-price CRT bikes, which will compete alongside the full factory prototypes this year.

"This is a positive sign in a time of crisis. Otherwise, we will see no growth,” he said.

Lorenzo finished second in the 2011 MotoGP standings, his slim hopes of beating Honda's Casey Stoner coming to a painful end when he lost part of a finger during a warm-up fall at Phillip Island.

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