diff --git a/.github/workflows/ci.yml b/.github/workflows/ci.yml
index ebc54e3020..ad06aecc5b 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/ci.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/ci.yml
@@ -215,7 +215,6 @@ jobs:
           set -euo pipefail
           python scripts/heavy_tier_needed.py \
             --decision-in ci-path-decision.json \
-            --event "${{ github.event_name }}" \
             --base-ref "${{ github.event.pull_request.base.sha }}" \
             --github-output "$GITHUB_OUTPUT" \
             --summary "$GITHUB_STEP_SUMMARY"
diff --git a/quality/comment-policy.json b/quality/comment-policy.json
index def5f03698..21c80d3170 100644
--- a/quality/comment-policy.json
+++ b/quality/comment-policy.json
@@ -37908,19 +37908,6 @@
       "owner": "comment-cleanup-unit-tests-cli-scripts-rest",
       "removal": "Remove when the test's subprocess input becomes a static literal or the executable-payload adapter can reconstruct it."
     },
-    {
-      "path": "tests/unit/test_standardized_test_commands.py",
-      "symbol": "TestMakefileCommands.test_pr_preflight_fast_tests_creates_classifier_artifacts_when_absent",
-      "text": "unresolved executable source: make",
-      "payload": "sha256:ec98147fe1cc42ba021f5d8b6dc1359df9c93cad0014e20a3a538e0368d2fa6a",
-      "finding_kind": "payload-error",
-      "kind": "fixture",
-      "consumer": "tests/unit/test_standardized_test_commands.py",
-      "necessity": "Pre-registered for the #2905 cleanup, which removes the obsolete merge_group routing doc test from this file and changes its AST digest. Same fixture as above: the test starts a subprocess whose program (make) is assembled at runtime.",
-      "alternative": "Rewrite the subprocess input as a static literal the checker can parse; that changes the test and was not taken in the cleanup.",
-      "owner": "comment-cleanup-unit-tests-cli-scripts-rest",
-      "removal": "Remove when the test's subprocess input becomes a static literal or the executable-payload adapter can reconstruct it."
-    },
     {
       "path": "tests/unit/test_standardized_test_commands.py",
       "symbol": "TestMakefileCommands.test_skill_integrity_preflight_selected_lane_failure_propagates",
diff --git a/scripts/heavy_tier_needed.py b/scripts/heavy_tier_needed.py
index 5b7b9a6658..8164f91596 100644
--- a/scripts/heavy_tier_needed.py
+++ b/scripts/heavy_tier_needed.py
@@ -12,7 +12,6 @@
 
 PREDICATE_REPO_PATH = "_project/scripts/soundness_paths.py"
 POLICY_PATHS = (PREDICATE_REPO_PATH, ".github/soundness-paths.txt")
-MERGE_GROUP_EVENT = "merge_group"
 
 
 class HeavyTierError(RuntimeError):
@@ -119,7 +118,6 @@ def soundness_touched(
 
 def heavy_needed(
     decision: dict[str, Any],
-    event: str,
     base_ref: str,
     repo_root: Path,
     read_base: Callable[[str, Path], dict[str, str]] | None = None,
@@ -137,8 +135,6 @@ def heavy_needed(
         needs_code_ci = decision["needs_code_ci"]
         if not needs_code_ci:
             return {"heavy_needed": False, "reason": "not a code-routed tree; the light lane already covers it"}
-        if event == MERGE_GROUP_EVENT:
-            return {"heavy_needed": True, "reason": "merge_group runs keep the full tier on every code-routed tree"}
         if decision["packaging_needed"]:
             return {"heavy_needed": True, "reason": "packaging paths touched (packaging carve-out)"}
         touched, reason = soundness_touched(changed, base_ref, repo_root, read_base, read_pr)
@@ -157,7 +153,6 @@ def _write_github_output(path: Path, needed: bool) -> None:
 def main(argv: list[str] | None = None) -> int:
     parser = argparse.ArgumentParser()
     parser.add_argument("--decision-in", type=Path, default=None)
-    parser.add_argument("--event", default=os.environ.get("GITHUB_EVENT_NAME", ""))
     parser.add_argument("--base-ref", default=os.environ.get("GITHUB_BASE_REF", "origin/develop"))
     parser.add_argument("--repo-root", type=Path, default=Path.cwd())
     parser.add_argument("--github-output", type=Path, default=None)
@@ -177,7 +172,7 @@ def main(argv: list[str] | None = None) -> int:
             if not isinstance(decision, dict):
                 result = {"heavy_needed": True, "reason": "lookup failed closed: decision is not an object"}
             else:
-                result = heavy_needed(decision, args.event, args.base_ref, args.repo_root)
+                result = heavy_needed(decision, args.base_ref, args.repo_root)
 
     needed = bool(result["heavy_needed"])
     reason = str(result["reason"])
diff --git a/tests/README.md b/tests/README.md
index 23c3de2a7e..cbe63ea929 100644
--- a/tests/README.md
+++ b/tests/README.md
@@ -193,8 +193,8 @@ The standard gates are intentionally split by the risk they are meant to catch:
   blocking routine PRs.
 
 The `medium-test` job in `.github/workflows/ci.yml` runs `make test-medium`,
-but only when the heavy tier is needed: code-routed runs where the event is
-`merge_group` or the change touches soundness paths or packaging
+but only when the heavy tier is needed: code-routed pull requests that touch
+soundness paths or packaging
 (`scripts/heavy_tier_needed.py` reports `heavy-needed == 'true'`). Ordinary
 code-change PRs skip it, so do not assume medium coverage ran on a routine PR.
 Its marker selection excludes slow, stress, resource-heavy, and live
diff --git a/tests/unit/scripts/test_heavy_tier_needed.py b/tests/unit/scripts/test_heavy_tier_needed.py
index 289d2dc6b0..d3ea565120 100644
--- a/tests/unit/scripts/test_heavy_tier_needed.py
+++ b/tests/unit/scripts/test_heavy_tier_needed.py
@@ -34,7 +34,6 @@ def _decision(paths: list[str]) -> dict:
 def _classify(paths: list[str], base: dict[str, str], pr: dict[str, str]) -> dict:
     return heavy.heavy_needed(
         _decision(paths),
-        "pull_request",
         "base",
         REPO_ROOT,
         read_base=lambda *_: base,
@@ -47,7 +46,7 @@ def test_real_base_policy_does_not_expand_an_ordinary_code_change(
 ) -> None:
     repo, base_head, _pr_head = _snapshot_repo(tmp_path, policy_sources)
     assert subprocess.check_output(["git", "-C", str(repo), "remote"], text=True) == ""
-    result = heavy.heavy_needed(_decision(["benchbox/core/platform_registry.py"]), "pull_request", base_head, repo)
+    result = heavy.heavy_needed(_decision(["benchbox/core/platform_registry.py"]), base_head, repo)
     assert result["heavy_needed"] is False, result["reason"]
 
 
@@ -193,7 +192,7 @@ def test_invalid_policy_copies_fail_closed(policy_sources: dict[str, str], bad_c
 
 
 def test_unreadable_base_ref_fails_closed() -> None:
-    result = heavy.heavy_needed(_decision(["ordinary.py"]), "pull_request", "refs/heads/not-present", REPO_ROOT)
+    result = heavy.heavy_needed(_decision(["ordinary.py"]), "refs/heads/not-present", REPO_ROOT)
     assert result["heavy_needed"] is True
     assert "failed closed" in result["reason"]
 
@@ -236,13 +235,7 @@ def test_invalid_cli_decisions_publish_the_safe_direction(tmp_path: Path, raw: s
     assert output.read_text().strip() == "heavy-needed=true"
 
 
-def test_event_and_packaging_carve_outs_preserve_the_full_tier() -> None:
-    assert heavy.heavy_needed(_decision([]), "merge_group", "absent", REPO_ROOT)["heavy_needed"] is True
+def test_packaging_carve_out_and_non_code_routing_preserve_the_expected_tier() -> None:
     decision = {**_decision([]), "packaging_needed": True}
-    assert heavy.heavy_needed(decision, "pull_request", "absent", REPO_ROOT)["heavy_needed"] is True
-    assert (
-        heavy.heavy_needed({**_decision([]), "needs_code_ci": False}, "pull_request", "absent", REPO_ROOT)[
-            "heavy_needed"
-        ]
-        is False
-    )
+    assert heavy.heavy_needed(decision, "absent", REPO_ROOT)["heavy_needed"] is True
+    assert heavy.heavy_needed({**_decision([]), "needs_code_ci": False}, "absent", REPO_ROOT)["heavy_needed"] is False