Fabio Quartararo did something that many thought would be impossible at the start of the year: he scored a hat-trick of pole positions riding the Factory Yamaha bike. However, he is yet to convert it into a victory. Despite starting 6 races from the front (3 Grand Prix and 3 Sprints), he is yet to stand on the top step of the podium. Meanwhile, Marco Bezzecchi made the most of Quartararo’s misfortune to take his first win of the season.

Read More: MotoGP 2025: Riders brace for unpredictable weather at Silverstone

Hattricks of Poles and a Brace of DNFs for Quartararo

When the season started, anyone, even Fabio for that matter, would not have expected to get 3 back-to-back pole positions on his Factory Yamaha, a bike that has not been the most competitive in the recent past. But to his surprise, and everyone else’s, Fabio put in a storming lap to go 3 tenths clear of the rest of the field and get his third Pole Position of the season. But, as fate would have it, he also scored a back-to-back DNF in the Grand Prix.

In Silverstone, it was looking good for the Frenchman, as he was leading the race ahead of Bezzecchi, but a ride height issue in the middle of the race forced the Yamaha rider to retire from the race. He tried half a lap to fix the issue, but to no success.

Bezzecchi Gets His First Win of The Season

Starting from 11th on the grid, not a lot of people would have had Marco Bezzecchi on their cards to win the British Grand Prix. But the Aprilia rider slowly and steadily picked off riders one by one to climb up to second position, and when Quartararo’s misfortunes hit, Bezzecchi was at the perfect place to make the most of it and cross the finish line in first.

A season with lacklustre results for the Italian driver, this win would do him a world of good. Before this race, his best finish was 6th; now the win has shot him to 7th in the standings.

Another Weekend of Struggle for the Factory Ducati

Riding on a wave of success at the start of the season, the Factory Ducatis have been struggling of late. Marc Marquez is no longer the dominating force, as he has lost out on Pole Position in the last 3 races, and in the most recent one, he wasn’t even on the front row. Marquez has still managed to salvage the Sprint races, winning every single one of them this year except the one on British GP Saturday, where he finished second to his brother Alex Marquez. Meanwhile Francesco Bagnaia crashed out of the race after struggling throughout and dropping down the order before he went down.

Marquez struggled throughout this weekend, this has been a circuit where he does not go well historically either. His qualifying run put him on the second row in P4, Sprint was better as he managed to finish P2. The struggle paused for 2 laps at the start of the main race, where he took the lead of the race, before eventually crashing out of the race. A red flag due the another incident further meant the race would be restarted, but even then Marquez could only manage P3, after he dropped down the order outside the Top 10, then made a recovery ride to finish on the podium.

Back-to-Back Grand Prix Podiums for Zarco and Honda

Johann Zarco has been having a very underrated season this year. The last 2 races specifically, the French rider has managed to put the Honda on the top step of the podium in Le Mans and in second place in Silverstone. Throughout this season, Zarco has only been out of the points in one race. He currently sits fifth in the Riders’ standings with 97 points; for comparison, the next Honda rider is Luca Marini on 38 points in 13th.

Championship Standings

As things stand, the Marquez brothers still sit at the top of the standings with Marc ahead of Alex by 24 points.

Up Next for MotoGP

After a small break, MotoGP will now head to Aragon for Round 8 of the world championship from 6-8 June.

Desi Racing Co. is dedicated to bringing the latest updates and insights from the world of motorsport. Whether it’s Formula 1, Formula 2, WEC, MotoGP, Indian motorsports, or other racing series, we’ve got you covered! Stay connected with us for in-depth motorsport coverage. Follow us on Twitter/X,  Instagram, and LinkedIn to keep up with the latest motorsport news and updates.

The British GP, held at Silverstone since its conception, has historically been one of the most unpredictable races. Just in the past 10 years, 10 different riders have won the race at Silverstone. And the unpredictable British weather plays a large part in this. Heading into one of the most dramatic tracks on the calendar, the riders brace for unpredictable challenges, and unexpected contenders may emerge. Join us as we go over everything you need to know before the lights go off in Britain.

Read More: Johann Zarco takes the home race victory at Le Mans

Marc Márquez seeks to secure sophomore success at Silverstone

At this point, the preview section regarding Marc is gradually becoming a parody of itself. Marc is undoubtedly the best rider on the grid currently, and he is in his best form. It is undeniable that he will perform well.

However, Silverstone has not been Marc’s strongest suit. He has only managed to win one race here, all the way back in 2014. The closest he has gotten since is getting second place in 2019 in one of the closest races in MotoGP history, where he was barely edged out by Alex Rins on the final turn.

Now, Marc seeks to secure a second victory at this classic circuit. And as long as he manages to keep his motorcycle upright, there is no one who can prevent him. Or is there?

The Silverstone Dark Horses

Silverstone is used to throwing curveballs – once in a blue moon, an incredibly unexpected rider steps up out of nowhere and manages to clench the victory.

Just last year, as the title fight between Martin and Bagnaia was heating up, Enea Bastianini somehow swooped in and secured his first and only win of the 2024 season. However, now that Bastianini has moved to KTM, who are admittedly trying their best to improve, the chances that Enea could be a contender for the British GP are slim.

Similarly, in 2023, the British GP was won by none other than Aleix Espargaro. In fact, Aleix was one of only two non-Ducati riders to win that season, the other being Alex Rins. Aleix will be making an appearance in 2025 as a wildcard on the Honda. Even though Zarco managed to take the French GP for Honda, Zarco’s victory was by virtue of strategy rather than machinery or skill. Hence, Espargaro being a serious contender for the victory is also a pipe dream, but it is more realistic than Bastianini.

And then we have Alex Rins. The winner of the 2019 British GP. Arguably, the most exciting race in the past decade. Rins, in a display of pure skill, was battling with Márquez up until the very last corner of the very last lap, taking the chequered flag with a lead of mere 0.013 seconds.

However, since then, a lot has changed for Rins. Multiple crashes and injuries, plus moves to inferior teams and unreliable machinery, have left him in a sticky predicament. While he has the skill, he lacks the support from his team or from his own injured body. While Rins has managed to win in a glorious manner in the past, it is nigh impossible that he stands a chance this year.

Finally, we have Fabio Quartararo. The 2020 world champion has had his ups and downs over the past few years, but he finally appears to have found his groove, with back-to-back pole positions. Having already won at Silverstone in 2021, all El Diablo has to do is find a way to convert his qualifying speed into race pace, and he could be a very serious contender.

Bagnaia confesses troubles with Ducati machinery

The 2025 season has been a tragedy so far for two-time world champion Francesco “Pecco” Bagnaia. He is currently trailing 51 points behind the championship leader in third place. After his sudden drop in pace last weekend, Pecco has finally admitted to having troubles with the front end of the bike, quote “It’s true I’ve been struggling with this bike […]”

This should be an early warning to Ducati not to make the same mistakes as those who came before them. Back in the days of Honda/Márquez dominance, Honda was incredibly determined to build the best motorcycle for Márquez. However, their focus on catering to one star rider resulted in them making a motorcycle that could not be operated by anyone besides Márquez. Ultimately, this led to Honda’s downfall. Ducati must take feedback from all their riders, championship leaders or not, to prevent suffering the same fate.

Championship Standings

Following are the championship standings going into the British GP :

Schedule and Where to watch

All MotoGP sessions can be watched in India on Fancode (digital) or on Eurosport (TV broadcast).

Following is the complete schedule of the MotoGP race weekend in IST:

Read more posts on MotoGP here.

Desi Racing Co. is dedicated to bringing the latest updates and insights from the world of motorsport. Whether it’s Formula 1, Formula 2, WEC, MotoGP, Indian motorsports, or other racing series, we’ve got you covered! Stay connected with us for in-depth motorsport coverage. Follow us on Twitter/X, Instagram, and LinkedIn to keep up with the latest motorsport news and updates.

The Bugatti Circuit at Le Mans has seen its fair share of legendary battles involving the likes of Valentino Rossi and Jorge Lorenzo. So it is only fitting that after mid-season testing in Jerez, the MotoGP paddock returns to racing starting here, with Álex Márquez leading the championship standings. Meanwhile, his older brother Marc Márquez, arguably in his peak form, seeks to reclaim his position at the top. Join us as we go over everything you need to know before the lights go off in Qatar.

Read More : Álex Márquez on top for the first time

Marc Márquez seeking to rectify his blunder

Marc Márquez has had an absolutely dominant run for the first quarter of the season, breaking and setting new records. He won, consecutively, the first five sprint races of the season. He has also won three of the five GPs. The only times which he has not succeeded outright were at the American GP and the previous Spanish GP. And both of these times, it was because he made a critical blunder.

Marc has shown two times in this season already that while his ambition is his key to success, it can also be his own worst enemy. Therefore, going into Le Mans, one can only foresee two possibilities – Marc either dominates the sprint and the race, or he makes a critical blunder and throws it all away. And with an impeccable track record, he might just sweep the whole thing, maybe even setting new records.

Álex Márquez on top, coming off his maiden victory

So far in this season, the only rider who has shown himself to be a challenge to Marc Márquez is his younger brother, Álex Márquez. Álex has incredible consistency, which is evident by the fact that he has finished the previous five consecutive sprint races in second place, and finished top 2 in four out of those five GPs. He also recently achieved his first win in the premier class at the Spanish GP.

Álex Márquez has a chance to extend his championship lead at the French GP in one of two ways – either he patiently follows his brother, waiting for him to make the rare mistake, or he goes on the offensive and attempts to go head-to-head with him. Álex has a decent track record in Le Mans, and this is one of the tracks where he might just be able to challenge Marc.

Aspirational weekend for Yamaha and Honda

Yamaha’s star rider Fabio Quartararo is coming off a stellar performance in the Spanish GP at Jerez, taking the pole and finishing the race in second place. With almost poetic timing, the following race is his home race. While Fabio has never been able to secure a victory, he seeks to add to his sole podium here from 2021.

Meanwhile, over at the Honda garage is Quartararo’s compatriot and Honda’s top performer this season – Johann Zarco. While he has not had as stellar a performance as Quartararo, he is still leading Honda in the direction of improvement. Zarco, who is currently being considered for a move into the factory team, can certainly aim for a points finish, and if everything falls into place just right, maybe even a podium.

Márquez and Martin bring about immediate regulation changes

The Grand Prix Commission have announced some notable and immediate #MotoGP rule changes ahead of the #FrenchGP 🇫🇷 👇https://t.co/kYsze88cX7

— MotoGP™🏁 (@MotoGP) May 6, 2025

MotoGP announced two new key regulations, effective immediately, that were a direct reaction to incidents which took place this season.

The first new regulation states that if a rider leaves the grid for any reason during the start procedure, he will have to start the race from the pit lane. This is a direct response to the antics that Marc Márquez tried to pull off in Austin where he got the race start delayed by getting the riders to abandon their bikes en masse.

The second new regulation states that an injured rider who has missed events due to his injury will be given an opportunity to test with a MotoGP motorcycle, giving them a chance to familiarise themselves with the machine. This is a response to the defending champion Jorge Martin’s crash in Qatar. After he missed pretty much the entirety of pre-season testing and the first three races of the season due to injury, Martin returned to racing at Qatar. However, due to unfamiliarity with the Aprilia, he got into a crash which left him even more injured.

Championship Standing

Following are the championship standings going into the Qatar GP :

Schedule and Where to watch

All MotoGP sessions can be watched in India on Fancode (digital) or on Eurosport (TV broadcast).

Following is the complete schedule of the MotoGP race weekend in IST:

Desi Racing Co is dedicated to bringing the latest updates and insights from the world of motorsport. Whether it’s Formula 1, Formula 2, WEC, MotoGP, Indian motorsports, or other racing series, we’ve got you covered! Stay connected with us for in-depth motorsport coverage. Follow us on Twitter/X, Instagram, and LinkedIn to keep up with the latest motorsport news and updates.