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The Title battle intensifies as MotoGP heads to Germany

The Title battle intensifies as MotoGP heads to Germany

The MotoGP caravan now pitches it’s tents in the Sachsenring for the 2024 German Motorcycle Grand Prix. With drama in Assen winding down long after the chequered flag had been flown, Germany is set to be highly entertaining. DRC now previews the upcoming weekend, what to expect, possible contenders and much more.

About the Sachsenring

The Sachsenring race track located about 8 kilometers west of the town of Chemnitz, in the Saxony province of Germany. Numerous tight corners make it one of the slower tracks on the calendar, however the second part of the lap is all but slow.

The Current Track Layout. Credits: MotoGP

A long start-finish straight provides opportunities to overtake into the first corner. The lap continues into a complex of challenging corners called “the Castrol Omega”. Out of turn 6 is a series of long winding lefts into turn 10, which leads to the long straight to 12. Turn 12 then leads to 13 through a short straight which feeds back into the start-finish line.

The track is one of the slower ones of MotoGP, with the first two sectors crucial for any good lap. The exit out of turn 6 is very important, because you carry the speed all the way to turn 10 and down the straights.

Bagnaia cuts down on Martin’s lead

Flawless was the word for Francesco Bagnaia, the world champion winning lights to flag in both the races in Assen. Furthermore, he has now chipped away Martin’s lead to just 10 points in his third championship charge. With Pecco having two impeccable weekends back to back, Martin undoubtedly needs to have a good weekend here.

Perfect does not begin to describe Pecco’s weekend in Assen. Credits: MotoGP

With this win, Bagnaia winning in Assen, he has tied with Australian legend Casey Stoner for the most wins atop a Ducati Desmosedici with 23 wins each.

Pecco and Martin to fight it out as The King of the Ring looks to reclaim his throne

Talking about potential winners, the probability of another Bagnaia win is very high. However it will not be surprising to see Jorge Martin on the top step of the podium as well considering Martin and Bagnaia finished 1-2 here last year. But come the Sachsenring, another potential winner is added to the list.

Marc Marquez takes particular liking to Sachsenring, with 11 wins in Sachsenring over his career. He has only missed two wins here, in 2022 and 2023, when he was riding a struggling Repsol Honda.

The Spaniard has always liked anti-clock wise circuits and consequently his domination in places such as the CotA, Aragon and Valencia stand testament to his skill on such configurations.

Marquez’s eleventh triumph of the ring came just after his return from injury in 2021. Credits: Autosport.com

Now riding the Ducati GP23, he looks to re-establish himself as the true King of the Ring. A first win as a Ducati rider will be the perfect rebound especially after the horrid weekend in Assen, a post race penalty dropping him down to P10 . A good weekend here will help solidify his chances for the title fight while also keep him motivated for the summer break which will follow. Marc Marquez cannot be ignored as a potential winner here.

From the rumor mill: Lewis Hamilton to buy Gresini

Yep, you heard it right here folks. Lewis Hamilton is planning to buy Gresini racing from it’s owner Nadia Padovani, right after Liberty Media acquired MotoGP.

This also comes right after Prima Pramac racing announced that they will go with Yamaha 2025 onwards. In any case, a tactful partnership with Hamilton will bring influence, money and the chance to get factory support from Ducati. Gresini aim to have a strong weekend here in a bid to impress a potential buyer, a very influential one at that.

Temporary Rides and the Rider’s Market

Former Moto2 champion Remy Gardner will stand in for the injured Alex Rins at the German Grand Prix for Yamaha. Rins suffered a massive highside going into the first corner in Assen, which was serious enough to require surgery. Gardner will look to impress Yamaha officials to secure an open ride in either Pramac or the factory team.

Meanwhile neither Aprilia nor Aleix Espargaro have issued any statements regarding his participation. Aleix suffered a massive crash on the final lap of the Sprint and took sunday off to aid his recovery. Should he be unable to compete, there is a real chance Aprilia may have to make do with a single rider as their test rider Lorenzo Savadori suffered a small vertebrae fractures in a crash in Assen.

In terms of Rider moves, a lot has occurred. Aprilia announced the arrival of Jorge Martin after Mugello and then they announced Marco Bezzecchi as his partner. Tech 3 KTM announced the arrival of Enea Bastianini and Maverick Vineales as they welcome in factory support for 2025.

Championship Standings

The championship looks like this heading into the weekend:

Image credits: MotoGP

Weekend Schedule

All sessions are available to watch at Eurosport India and Jio Cinema in India. The detailed schedule and timings in IST can be found below.

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TT Assen – Bagnaia’s masterclass in the Netherlands

credits-MotoGP

Moto GP returns to TT Assen and Francesco Bagnaia shows us how its done. Here’s the DRC’s report for the Moto GP weekened.

The No. 1 still undefeated

Throughout the weekened, it was an absolute domination by the no. 1 bike of Francesco Bagnaia. His weekend started by topping the first free practice session by 0.065 seconds over Marc Marquez. He went further and topped every available session for the weekend. Everything from the practice session to the 2nd free practice, sprint and even the race, all went under the belt of the Italian.

With another TT Assen victory, Pecco has managed to win at this venue three years in a row. In an ongoing close contested championship, Bagnaia closed the gap to chart leader Jorge Martin to just 10 points.

Francesco Bagnaia; credits-Moto GP

Elsewhere, Jorge Martin started the weekend with qualifying directly for the Q2 from the friday practice. Come Q2 on Saturday, Martin was trading the lap record with Pecco. It was Pecco who broke the lap record first but Jorge fought back and posted a time of 1:30:877.

Pecco, however, wasn’t done yet. In the closing moments of Q2, he put up a time of 1:30:540 to have the lap record back under his name. Martin eventually qualified in P2 for the race and the sprint.

The next session, sprint, was relatively uneventful for Martin, as he finished where he started, 2nd.

Trouble came for him after the sprint, as he got awarded a 3 place grid penalty for sunday’s race for obstructing Raul Fernandes in Q2 on saturday.

This meant that Sunday’s race became a case of damage limitation for the spaniard. He, however, shot into P3 owing to a strong start and later passed Maveric Vinales on same lap. From then on, it was really cruise control for Martin as he couldn’t answer Bagnaia strong pace. He eventually crossed the line in P2, his highest result at this venue.

A weekend to forget for Marc Marquez

Marc Marquez would’ve went into this weekend hoping for a better result. With a crash and DNF in sprint and a penalty dropping him to P10 in race, it was a subpar weekend for Marquez.

Marc Marquez(R) and Fabio Di Gianntonio (L) ;credits-Moto GP

Fresh off the Ducati signing, Marquez started the weekend strong with a P2 by 0.065 seconds from the Ducati of Bagnaia in FP1. He ended up in P6 in the practice session, gaining a direct entry into Q2 for Saturday.

However, come Q2, Marquez crashed in the closing stages, and ended up only with a 7th place starting position for sprint and the race.

Come the Sprint on Saturday, it was disaster again for #93. He slid in the opening portion of the sprint on turn 2.

With only Sunday’s race left for Marquez to grab whatever points he can, he started the race strong and passed Vinales for P3. He would stay there for some laps before an incoming attack and pass from Fabio Di Giannantonio meant that Marquez slotted into P4. Some laps later the top 3 had changed as Vinales had passed both Marquez and Enea Bastianini to slot into 3rd.

Seeing this, #23 too tried his chances on Marquez and sent it down the inside.

Bastianini went ahead and came in P3 come the race end. Marquez later capitalized on a mistake of Vinales and crossed the line in P4.

However, all his work came undone as he got given a 16 second tyre pressure penalty post race.

This Penalty dropped Marquez all the way down to P10 and his points down to just 6 from the entire weekend.

Marquez now sits at 142 points in the championship, 58 points behind the table topper Jorge Martin. With the championship heating up, he will be looking forward to the German GP to come back in the title fight.

Aprilia on the up, but Espargaro down

Aprilia had an overall lukewarm weekend at the TT Assen. With Maverick Vinales finishing the sprint in P3 and the race in P5, it was strong showing from his side of the garage.

He was in P2 in friday’s practice and FP2 on saturday, less than a tenth away from P1 at both occasions. Come the end of qualifying, he was p3 by just 4 tenths. At the sprint start, Vinales lost P3 to Alex Marquez but managed to move back past him come the end of lap 2.

Maverick Vinales; credits-Moto GP

On the other side of the garage, it was not a happy place. Aleix Espargaro had to withdraw from the warm up and the race on sunday . He had crashed in the sprint on Saturday. Their test rider, Lorenzo Savadori also suffered small vertebrae lumbar fractures in sprint. He was declared unfit for the race on sunday.

Aleix Espargaro after crashing in the sprint.

New engine for Yamaha debuts at TT Assen

At the Dutch GP, we got to see what Yamaha had been working on behind the scenes.

At the start of the year, Yamaha brought about a new engine. It gave it’s riders more power to use, but also took away the bike nimbleness. This upgrade at Dutch GP was meant to solve exactly that.

Fabio Quatararo; credits- Moto GP

At the end of the friday practice, Quartararo had mixed reaction to his bike. He exclaimed that the bike is now better in slow corners but the fast corners remain the same.

This new engine comes in at a time when Prima PRAMAC Racing has announced to Yamaha machinery from 2025.

Fabio Quartararo had an overall good weekend. He finished in the points in P7 in the sprint from a P13 start. In the race however, he could only manage a P12 finish.

Alex Rins on the other hand, had a disasterous end to his weekend. He had a major highside on lap 1 turn 1 in the race and was taken into the medical centre.

Rins has had severe bruises in his right hand and fractures in his right foot. He has been taken to Madrid for further examination. His participation in German GP is yet to be confirmed.

Championship Standings

After the Dutch GP, here is how the championship looks like:

The next Moto GP race weekend takes place in Sachsenring from 5 July to 7 July.

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Moto GP – 2024 Motul TT Assen Preview

Moto GP returns to us fans after a long wait of a month, and it does so in the form of Motul TT Assen. With a ton of rider announcements still left and a championship to win, there is a lot for us fans to look forward to.

Bombshell announcements

Perhaps the biggest talking point from the month-long break is the sheer amount of surprise driver transfers. The first domino to fall in this series was the transfer of Jorge Martin to Aprilia Racing in 2025, replacing the outgoing Aleix Espargo.

This transfer paved the way for the other frontrunner of that coveted factory Ducati seat, Marc Marquez. Marquez signed with Ducati Lenovo team on a two-year deal that will see him race for the Italian outfit for at least 2026.

Elsewhere, it was KTM that took the headlines by storm. They have announced Enea Bastianini and Maverick Vinales as riders of the satellite Red Bull KTM Tech3 team.

The final piece that came in the spring break was the transfer of Marco Bezzecchi from a Ducati bike to Aprilia Racing where he will paired with Jorge Martin.

With 7 teams still left to announce their lineups, the driver market will be interesting to watch.

Bagnaia’s strong suit

The Assen circuit has been a favourite among many riders. But the rider that has won the last two races held at this circuit is Francesco Bagnaia. The only other rider that managed consecutive wins at the Cathedral of Speed was Valentino Rossi (2004, 2005). With Marc Marquez recently announced as his teammate for 2025, he would be looking forward to making a strong point for himself.

Bagnaia after winning last year’s race at TT Assen; credits-TheRace

Elsewhere, Jorge Martin still leads the rider’s championship over Bagnaia by 17 points. He, however, is yet to taste the champagne at this track. He would be hoping to change this fact and further extend his championship lead.

Sitting in P3 and firmly in contention is Marc Marquez. He too, like Pecco, has won at this venue in Moto GP two times previously. His 2024 season has been one for the books so far and he too would be looking forward to getting that first win with a Ducati. If Marc Marquez manages to come atop the podium come Sunday, it would mark a gap of 980 days between his wins, with his last win being in 2021 at Emilia Romagna GP.

Aprilia magic

Aprilia has started the second part of the season with the strong signings of Marco Bezecchi and Jorge Martin. However, their current rostrum is no slouch either. Last year’s TT Assen saw Aleix Esparago finish in P3 in the race and P4 in the sprint.

Maverick Vinales at the Mugello testing; Credits-MotoGP

On the other side of the garage is another Assen master. Maverick Vinales has had a win in 2019 and podiums in 2018, 2021 and 2022. With his 2024 form looking good, can he add another Assen win to his bag?

KTM’s updates in first racing action?

The manufacturer that gathered the most eyeballs in the Mugello testing held at the beginning of the month was KTM. They had introduced a new design of side fairing, a similar one to the Jerez test.

Red Bull GASGAS Tech3 (KTM’s satellite team) with the updated aero; credits-Moto GP

This update helped the Austrian outfit to top the timesheets at the Mugello test with Brad Binder. However, it being a wet session, didn’t mean as much. The Motul TT Assen could be the first racing opportunity that KTM will get to test their bikes.

With Jack Miller, race winner here in 2016, effectively without a seat in 2025, he would be looking for a good performance to come under the radar of other Teams.

However, whether they decide to introduce these upgrades at this race is yet to be seen.

Yamaha’s private testing

The team heading to the Netherlands with the highest aspiration would be the Japanese outfit Yamaha. Yamaha had an extra testing opportunity at the Valencia track after the Mugello testing. They had greatly appreciated this chance since the Mugello test was interrupted due to rain.

Fabio Quartaro in mugello testing; credits- Moto GP

Fabio Quartaro has won here in the past, in 2021. But the last two TT Assen have not been good for him as he retired from both. His pace, however, has been there. He grabbed a sprint podium last time around and qualified P4 for the race. His teammate Alex Rins, an effective free agent for 2025, would be looking to impress the Yamaha bosses with his performance.

Whether or not this testing has had any positive impact on the team’s condition will be a thing to witness.

The Track

TT Assen is the longest-serving track on the MotoGP calendar. Moto GP has raced here at its every rendition barring 2020. A rider and fan favorite, this track is known for its amazing atmosphere.

Weekend Schedule and Where to Watch

You can watch all the action live on Eurosport (TV Broadcast) and Jio Cinema (Digital streaming). The full schedule in IST is given below:

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Marc Marquez signs a 2 year contract to become a Factory Ducati rider until 2026

It’s official, Marc Marquez will be a Factory Ducati rider from 2026. Ducati in a press release announced that an agreement with Marc Márquez has been reached for the next two years.

The Spanish rider is currently riding a year-old Ducati for the Gresini Racing MotoGP team. Even with a year-old bike, Marc is currently 3rd in the championship, only behind Jorge Martin and Pecco Bagnaia, both of which are riding the latest spec Ducati.

Marc Marquez replaces outgoing Enea Bastianini who is rumoured to join Tech 3 on a factory KTM bike for 2025.

Marc Márquez:
“I am very happy to be able to wear the red colours of the factory Ducati team in MotoGP next season. Basically, from the first contact with the Desmosedici GP, I enjoyed riding it and adapted well straight away. From that moment on, I knew that my goal was to continue this path, to continue to grow, and to move to the team where Pecco Bagnaia has been the World Champion for two years in a row. I am happy to be able to take this big step in 2025 and grateful for the trust Ducati has placed in me. Finally, I want to thank Nadia, Carlo, Michele, and the entire Gresini Racing family for opening the door of their team to me at a delicate time in my career. Now, we will continue to have fun and give it our all in what remains of the current season, which is my priority right now.”

Luigi Dall’Igna (General Manager of Ducati Corse):
“First of all, I want to thank both Enea Bastianini and Jorge Martín for all their work with us over the last few years, and I wish them all the best for the future. This season, they have shown they have reached an incredible level, and we are sure they will be in the Title fight until the end. Deciding on Bagnaia’s new teammate in the Ducati Lenovo Team was not easy, as we had a list of very strong riders to choose from. In the end, our choice fell on an unquestionable talent like Marc Márquez. In just a few races, he has managed to adapt perfectly to our Desmosedici GP, and his innate ambition pushes him to grow continuously. In the box, we will have two riders who together hold 11 World Titles, and being able to count on their experience and maturity will be invaluable for our growth as well.”

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Jorge Martin replaces Aliex Espargaro at Aprilia racing for 2025

Aprilia has announced that Jorge Martin will replace Aleix Espargaro, who plans to retire at the end of this season.

Reports a few days ago suggested Jorge was set to get the Factory Ducati seat, which makes this news shocking. Ducati’s plan was to promote Martin to the Factory team and place Marquez in Pramac. Martin wanted a factory team, while Marquez was happy with the latest spec bike. Ideally, this scenario worked perfectly for all parties involved.

What changed for Martin and Ducati?

Things changed when Marquez reacting to the news said that Pramac is not an option for him. If he is staying with Ducati then it will either be with the factory team or with Gresini on the latest spec bike. Apparently, this sent Ducati into panick, because Marquez was not ready to go to Pramac.


Marquez has already made a significant change by leaving Honda, where he spent his entire career, to join Ducati, though in a satellite team with an older spec bike. Jumping to another satellite team and adjusting to new dynamics for a factory bike didn’t appeal to him. Thus, Marquez’s demands to Ducati were clear: if he rides for them next year, it must be with the factory team or his current team but with a factory bike. For Martin, the demand was straightforward—he wants a factory team or he will look elsewhere.

The shocker

Earlier today, reports indicated that Marquez is set to join the Ducati Factory team. Although this was just speculation at the start, things started rolling when Aprilia posted that they would announce big news soon, and that big news was that Jorge Martin was joining Aprilia replacing Aleix Espargaro.
According to MotoGP journalist Simon Patterson, the whole thing happened very fast. Aprilia boss Massimo Rivola gets a phone call on Sunday night, lawyers worked all night to put the deal together and it was signed on Monday afternoon at Mugello. Aliex Espargaro played a huge role in this.
With Martin announced as an Aprilia rider, this only means one thing, Marquez will be a factory Ducati rider next year.

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MotoGP

Bagnaia inches closer to the crown as the Beast roars in Mugello: DRC’s 2024 MotoGP Italian Grand Prix Review

Credits: MotoGP Media

The Brembo Italian Grand Prix saw domination the likes of which we have never seen before, thrilling action, and in classic Mugello fashion, last-lap showdowns. Mugello once again staged the action and now DRC recaps the brilliant race.

Ducati and Bagnaia rock and roll their way to victory

Bagnaia on the podium; Image credits MotoGP Media

Pecco Bagnaia becomes a man possessed come the Italian Grand Prix, and this time was no different. Having topped both Free Practice sessions, he missed out on pole by just 0.04s to his championship rival, Jorge Martin. His frustration continued when he was handed a three-place grid penalty for blocking Alex Marquez during practice for Sunday’s race.

Those were mere obstacles in his way however, as he cruised to a Tissot Sprint win ahead of Marc Marquez and hotshot rookie Pedro Acosta. Starting fifth for Sunday’s race, Pecco produced a stellar holeshot, passing Bastianini, Vinales, and Marquez on the outside of turn 1 and then overtaking Martin for the lead on the inside of turn 2. He would then go on to control the race expertly, maintaining a healthy gap until the penultimate lap of the race.

On the third to last lap, Pecco suddenly dropped 8 tenths to Martin, and looked like we were in for another last-lap thriller in Mugello. However, in true diabolical fashion, Pecco played with with his food, as he instantly produced a 1.1s lead as they crossed the start/finish line next time.

Bagnaia, who was sporting a special helmet paying tribute to the rock band ‘Kiss’, then aptly celebrated with a wheelie and an air guitar as he took back-to-back sprint-GP victories in Mugello.

His teammate Bastianini also had a strong showing, winning a place on Marc Marquez at the start and then calmly absorbing all pressure the eight times world champion threw at him all the way until lap 18 when Marquez lunged down the inside at turn 1 for the final podium place. ‘The Beast’ lived up to his name and passed not only Marquez but also Martin to take a second place filled with fireworks and beautiful overtakes.

Martin and Marquez lose out on Championship Charge

Marc Marquez riding his Ducati GP-23 in Mugello

It was not a good day for Jorge Martin, who had already dropped points on Saturday after crashing out of third in an accident that also involved Bastianini. His woes were made worse when he lost the lead and eventually second place to the factory Ducatis, having to settle for third. He still continues to lead the world championship but now sees his lead drop from 39 to 18 points.

Marc Marquez took a fourth-place finish, completing an all-Ducati 1-2-3-4 on track. He looked set for a podium but ultimately lost out to Bastianini who managed his tires very well. Marc also finished second in the sprint, gaining some extra points in the process. He also looked threatening in qualifying, being 0.3 seconds up on the pole time in his final run, only to lose control and find himself in the gravel at turn 10, a fourth-place start nonetheless, that became third after Francesco was penalized. He currently sits third in the title picture, 35 points behind leader Martin. The Spaniard would like to have an impressive season to guarantee himself a factory Ducati ride in 2025.

Honda and Yamaha’s woes continue

The hype around Yamaha and Honda came crashing down as the yield of their private tests two weeks ago produced no result. Out of all the Yamaha and Honda bikes, only Alex Rins finished in the points in 15th place, with Fabio Quatararo finishing 17th and the Hondas finishing 19th and 20th only ahead of Lorenzo Savadori’s Aprilia.

It was reported that Repsol was thinking about dropping its sponsorship deal with Honda due to their lack of performance. This may be the last season we see the iconic Repsol Orange Honda for a long time.

Joan Mir has had some miserable Italian GPs in Mugello, but this was one to forget. He qualified a lackluster 17th, nearly three-quarters of a second off the pace, and had a double DNF in both the sprint and the grand prix. His struggles with the Honda RC213V have had a negative impact on his mental health as well. The 26-year-old confessing to pondering over retirement some time ago.

Both the Japanese teams, which were winning races not too long ago, now seem to be backmarkers, with even customer teams finishing ahead of the factory teams nearly constantly.

Pedro Acosta’s delight

In a Ducati-dominated season, Pedro is regularly among the top finishers.

Heading into Sunday, Pedro Acosta was the happiest man alive, having signed a contract for the KTM factory team from 2025 onwards. Come Sunday, he once again proved himself to be the primary foe of the Ducatis, finishing fifth behind the Quartet mentioned earlier, fighting Marc Marquez early on and then staving off a late charge from Franco Morbidelli. Adding to that was a lucky, yet stellar ride to third in the sprint race. The sensational rookie now sits 5th in the world standings, his rookie season being one for the ages, ahead of Maverick Vinales and Brad Binder.

Aprilia’s Race pace struggles continue

Aprilia continue to struggle with race pace.

‘Top Gun’ Maverick Vinales qualified third and started second, but fell down the order to 8th. Initially having a mediocre holeshot off the line, his choice of a medium rear tyre didn’t pay off as he couldn’t fight back against the Ducatis of Fabio Di Giannantonio and Franko Morbidelli and barely hung on to 8th. Aleix Espargaro, who was racing in his final Italian Grand Prix, could only muster 11th as the final Aprilia of Lorenzo Savadori finished dead last.

Aprilia, who took the only non Ducati win this season in Austin, have suffered in recent weeks, with a fourth-place finish in Barcelona being their best result since that win.

Questions about the vacant ride for 2025 still remain, although Aprilia has admitted to keeping an eye out for Juan Mir and Enea Bastianini.

Rumors have also surfaced saying that Aleix Espargaro has accepted to become the test rider for Honda in 2025.

Championship Standings

The championship standings after the Italian Grand Prix don’t see a change at the top however the gap has significantly closed.

The Tuscan hills have provided yet another twist in this championship fight, but one thing is for sure, MotoGP continues to provide quality and entertaining races.

MotoGP heads to TT Circuit Assen next for the Dutch GP from 28-30 June.

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MotoGP

Magic in Mugello awaits: The 2024 MotoGP Italian Grand Prix Preview

The MotoGP paddock now pitches its tents in Mugello, for the Brembo Italian Grand Prix. ‘Magnificent Mugello’, as it is known by fans around the world, is ready once again to stage a brilliant and thrilling spectacle of Grand Prix Motorcycle racing on Sunday, June 2, 2024.

The three current championship protagonists, Jorge Martin, Francesco Bagnaia, and Marc Marquez will be looking to one-up their rivals. Enea Bastianini would like to rear gun and support Pecco’s challenge for the world title while stepping up and trying to prove his worth of a Ducati ride.

The Track

Autodromo Internazionale del Mugello

The legendary Mugello circuit sits among the hills of Florence, Tuscany, Italy. Described by Mark Webber as one of the most satisfying tracks ever, comparing a lap around here to be equal to a thousand around Yas Marina in terms of satisfaction.

The 5.245 km long track boasts 15 corners, nearly half of them taken at full speed. The 1.1-kilometer-long straight followed by the sweeping right of San Donato provides the best opportunity to pass around this track. The Turn 6-7 and then 13-14 complexes are high-speed chicanes, like the one in Melbourne. The entire last sector is a complex chain of corners, get the entry into Scarperia wrong, and you’re going to suffer for the entire last part of the lap.

Thanks to the long straight, Mugello often is the fastest circuit on the calendar, and holds the record for the greatest speed ever achieved in MotoGP history, with Pecco Bagnaia touching a blistering 363.6 km/hr in his factory Ducati last year. In terms of raw speeds, only the long straights at Lusail, Buddh, and COTA have reached close, with Lusail peaking at 362.4 Kmph.

What to Expect

In the past two years or so, it has become clear that nearly every driver on the top will be a Ducati rider, with a few flashes of brilliance of Brad Binder keeping KTM afloat up there. Mugello is expected to be a battle between the Factory and customer Ducatis of Prima Pramac and Gresini.

Joan Mir testing his Honda.

However, do not rule out Honda and Yamaha yet, who privately tested their machinery two weeks ago on this same track to seek gains. Considering that they have more data here on their current bikes than anyone else at this particular track, Joan Mir and Fabio Quatararo have the opportunity for a shock, dark horse upset win over the Ducatis.

Keep your eye on Marc Marquez, the eight-time world champion who has proven himself to be quite a Sunday man, with him qualifying on the fifth row (fourteenth and fifteenth) in the last two races, only to go one and bag a podium come Sunday. An impressive overtaking performance in Circuit de Barcelona Catalunya saw him gain 11 positions while running the soft tyre, an impressive feat. Another rider to look out for is Pedro Acosta, the remarkable rookie currently sitting at an impressive 6th in the championship.

Lastly, the final lap has always been the highlight of Mugello, with passes for the lead and podiums taking place all over the place in the final lap. Danilo Petrucci’s superb win came off a pass on the last lap on his teammate, Andrea Dovizioso, who fell to third in the last lap from the lead, losing out to Marc Marquez back in 2019. With Ducati winning 4 of the last 5 Mugello grand prix, three of them on the bounce thanks to Bagnaia, they will look to turn the hat trick into a quadrate, to help Pecco solidify his world championship charge.

Ducati’s Italian Tribute and Rider Dilemma

The Ducati riders in the Italian Sport Blue (Azzurra) colors.

The Ducati factory team will run a special Blue livery on Sunday, paying homage to the Italian Sports team. They will run the Italian Sport Blue (Azzurra) on their bikes, suits as well as crew gear.

“The Nazionali Azzurre gives emotions to millions of Italians, and we feel we do the same during race weekends, representing our country on circuits around the world,” said Mauro Grasilli, Director of Marketing and Communications at Ducati.

Meanwhile, the dilemma for 2025 continues for Ducati. Jorge Martin currently leads the championship by 39 points over Francesco. Marc Marquez is two points off the current title in third and the wingman Bastianini in fourth. With Pecco having a contract, the second seat at Ducati is a major force of attraction. Although Enea has been a good rear gunner for Pecco, it seems like his time may come to an end if he does not step up. Jorge and Marc can definitely challenge Pecco even if in the same team.

Although Ducati has said that they will not make a decision in Mugello, this race will be a major factor in determining who gets the second ride at Ducati next year. The potential title fight for next year has the potential to start brewing right here in Mugello.

Weather Report

It is looking like it will rain on Monday and early mornings on Saturday, which may create chaos on Friday and the earlier sessions of Saturday. The rest of Saturday is looking sunny, while there is a slight chance of rain albeit, in the evening on Sunday.

Weekend Schedule

All the sessions are available to watch on Eurosport India and Jio Cinema in India. The detailed schedule and timings in IST can be found below.

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MotoGP

Catalan GP 2024: Bagnaia closes the gap to the top of the championship

With Motogp riders arriving in the paddocks of the Catalunya circuit, it was understood that the championship leader would not change statistically. Still, the Catalan GP presented itself as an opportunity to close the gap to the table toppers. Here is a timeline of how the weekend unfolded-

Free practice 1

With Jorge Martin topping the first practice session on Friday closely followed by Marc Marquez in second position, the weekend already looked set for another great battle. They were followed by the KTM machines of Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) and Pedro Acosta (Red Bull GASGAS Tech3)

With Aleix Espargaro announcing that he’ll be hanging his boots come the season’s end, it was the last Catalan Gp he would be attending as a rider. He started his weekend by placing his bike in 5th position in free practice 1.

Here’s how the top 10 looked at the end of FP1:

Practice

With a 60-minute practice session presenting itself as an opportunity to have a direct entry into Q2, Riders were pushing their limits to have a position inside the top 10. With the factory KTMs keeping the top positions for themselves for the majority of the session, it was looking like a strong weekend for the KTM riders.

It was Aliex Espargaro however, who topped the session in a perfect start to the weekend. Brad Binder came in a very close second, only 0.072s adrift of the top step. With Pedro Acosta coming in 3rd place, it was yet another strong performance from the rookie.

Aleix Espargaro

The top 10 gaining a direct entry into Q2 were –

Free Practice 2

With Saturday providing the riders with a last 30-minute FP2, everyone was out on track to gather data to fine-tune their setups.

Aleix Espargaro continued his pace from Friday practice to top FP2 before the all-important Qualifying. Elsewhere it was Francesco Bagnaia who had a strong start to his Saturday from finishing P2 in FP2 followed by two fast Prima Pramacs, with Franco Morbidelli in 3rd and Jorge Martin in 4th. Pedro Acosta rounded up the top 5 positions.

Pedro Acosta

Qualifying

With 10 positions in Q2 already decided from Friday’s practice session, Q1 was ever important as it gave the riders entry into the final 2 positions in Q2. As a fast Q1 came to an end, Fabio Di Giannantonio topped the session with a time of 01:38.208. However, it was Raul Fernandes of Trackhouse Racing who gathered the most eyes as he outqualified both Alex Marquez and Marc Marquez, and entered Q2.

Come Q2, the competition was as fierce as ever. It was Aleix Espargaro at his home run, who broke the lap record and secured pole position for himself. Beside him was Francesco Bagnaia who posted a lap time 0.031s slower than the Spaniard. Coming in P3 was Raul Fernandes who got his lap time reinstated. However, it was a disaster for the Prima Pramac Racing garage as both Jorge Martin and Franco Morbidelli came down at the same corner barely moments apart. Jorge Martin eventually qualified in P7, with plenty of work to do. Elsewhere, Alex Rins pushed his Yamaha to a brilliant p8.

Here are the full results- Qualifying Results

Sprint

With the weekend hinting at a close race, we were not disappointed in the sprint. With 3 Riders crashing out of the lead, it was anybody’s win.

At the start, it was the world champion with the best of the starts followed closely by Pedro Acosta in his GASGAS machine. It didn’t take much time for the rookie to start attacking Bagnaia for the lead resulting in a back-and-forth battle between the two. Behind these two, a fast-charging Trackhouse Racing machine of Raul Fernandes was lurking.

As Acosta cleared Bagnaia at Lap 3 of the race, Fernandes too took his chance and overtook Pecco to slot into P2. Raul Fernandes made easy work of Acosta and was now leading the race. Behind them, Brad Binder too had arrived at the scene and started fighting with Acosta. Meanwhile, it was a disastrous end for Raul Fernandes as he slid off the track in turn 10, understandably dejected.

Raul Fernandes dejected after crashing

Now the duel between Pedro and Brad looked like it would become one for the race lead, but KTM of Binder built a gap for himself, leaving Pedro Acosta to defend himself from Francesco Bagnaia in P3. But Binder’s race lead wasn’t long-lasting either, as he lost it in Turn 5.

With Pecco inheriting the lead, Acosta was again left to fend his position from Aleix Espargaro, with the Aprilia rider quickly clearing the GASGAS rider. It was now a match between Marc Marquez and Pedro Acosta for the final position on the podium.

The front of the sprint was looking sealed until the very last lap, when Francesco Bagnaia lost his Ducati in Turn 5, with Aleix Espargaro inheriting the lead in almost a fairytale end of the Sprint for the Spaniard.

Francesco Bagnaia fell off his bike on the last lap

A scrap for p2 on the grid between Marc Marquez and Pedro Acosta went all the way up to the final sector. Jorge Martin finished in P4, with Enea Bastianini finishing in P5 from outside the top 10.

Podium celebrations after Espargaro’s sprint win

Here are the top 10 –

Race

If anything could be made out of the Saturday sprint, it was a certainty that Sunday’s race would be a close-fought battle. And as the five lights went out, we fans were certainly not disappointed.

It was Francesco Bagnaia who got the best of the starts followed by Pedro Acosta in P2. Brad Binder slotted into 3rd as Aleix Espargaro being not so lucky, fell down the grid. Jorge Martin shot up from P7 to P4.

Martin looked determined to move up the grid as he cleared Brad Binder with an ambitious lunge into turn 10 of lap 1 itself. Further ahead Acosta had started his attack on Pecco, allowing Martin and Binder to close onto them. Martin eventually passed Acosta into turn 10.

Martin fighting with Pecco

Martin was looking very determined as he passed Pecco as well into turn 1. Next, it was Acosta who passed Pecco into turn 10. The rookie was looking very quick as he easily closed the gap to Martin and started attacking the Pramac Rider.

Behind Bagnaia, a fierce scrap ensued between Brad Binder, Raul Fernandes, and Aleix Esparago. Eventually, both Fernandes and Esparago passed Binder who got shuffled back into P6.

Further ahead, it all came crashing down for the rookie Pedro Acosta as he slid off the track into the gravel at turn 10.

Pedro Acosta crashed from P2

This promoted the #1 bike to P2. From there, Bagnaia drove on his toes to close the gap to P1 and eventually passed Jorge Martin for the lead of the race.

From then on, Pecco shot ahead in the distance, with Jorge dropping. Eventually, Jorge managed to maintain the status quo and maintain his second position until the chequered flag.

Further behind, Marc Marquez had clawed his way back to the front from all the way back in P14. It was now a battle between Aleix Espargaro and Marc Marquez for the final podium position. Marquez made the overtaking move on Esparago and made it stick. He just had to hold onto it till the end of the race. In a battle that happened until a drag race to the line, it was finally Marc Marquez who finished in third position.

Marc Marquez And Aleix Esparago race to the line.

Elsewhere, one of the heroes of the entire weekend was Raul Fernandes. From maiden front row start to leading the sprint to eventually finishing the race in P6, it was an overall great weekend for the Spanish rider.

Praise shall also be showered at Pedro Acosta who after falling off his back, managed to claw back into the points and finished p13

Championship Standings

After the CatalanGP, the championship looks like this:

The next race takes place at the iconic Mugello circuit in Italy from 31st May to 2nd June.

Categories
MotoGP

Catalan GP 2024 – Top 5 storylines to look forward to

The city of Barcelona has been a regular resident in the MotoGP calendar since the inception of the series. Now, we visit the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya for the 6th round of the 75th edition of the MotoGP championship.

Here are the top storylines to get you up to speed before the race weekend:

The Big Three – title fight

Following the close racing action we witnessed between Jorge Martin, Francesco Bagnaia, and Marc Marquez in France, it is safe to say the title fight is up and running. With Jorge Martin 38 points ahead of second place Francesco Bagnaia, it is statistically impossible to topple the championship leader. However, riders will use this weekend to close the gap as much as possible.

The top 5 in championship standings after the French GP

Marc Marquez is the only rider within the top three of the championship to have won around here. With Martin placing 3rd and 2nd in 2023 and 2022 respectively, will 2024 finally be the year he collects the final podium trophy?

The Catalunya circuit is one of the few places where Francesco Bagnaia has yet to score a podium. With p6 being the highest position yet for the Italian, he would be more than eager to change this trivia.

The Second Ducati seat

With the MotoGP season progressing, the riders are staking their claim for the illustrious factory Ducati seat. Riders like Jorge Martin and Marc Marquez present a strong case for themselves. However, current Ducati rider Enea Bastianini is not far behind in the championship standings either.

With Ducati general manager Gigi Dall’Igna hinting they could announce the factory Ducati pairing by the next round at Mugello, the Catalan GP becomes the last possible showing available for the potential Ducati prospects.

Aprilia Ascendency?

The circuit of Catalunya favored the Aprilias the last time we visited the city of Barcelona. Aleix Esaparago of Aprilia won both the sprint and the Race last year after starting from P2 around here. Maverick Vinales had a strong showing as well. He qualified P4 and finished P3 in the sprint before making it a 1-2 for the Italian outfit come Sunday.

Aleix Esparago after winning the Catalan GP in 2023

With Maverick already holding a race and sprint win at COTA and another sprint wins at Portugal under his belt, Aprilia may continue from where they left off last year in Barcelona.

Honda’s Wildcard

With Joan Mir being the highest placed Honda at 18th position of the championship table, Honda is desperately trying to find answers. At the last outing in France, it was only Johann Zarco and Takaaki Nakagami who placed in the top 15 and scored points for the Japanese constructors.

Honda is also deploying a wildcard for this weekend in the form of Stefan Bradl. He will be gathering all the important data for Honda.

A ray of hope for YAMAHA

The French GP might not look like much of a successful points haul for Yamaha on paper, but it surely shined some light of optimism. With Fabio Quartararo qualifying for Q2 directly through practice and placing P8 in Q2, it was a positive start to the weekend for Yamaha. Come Sprint, Yamaha was still looking decently placed with Fabio finishing at P10. On Sunday, the no. 20 Yamaha was running in 6th position before an unfortunate crash that ended his race.

This week Yamaha will be looking to continue their positive run of form and bag some crucial points.

Track Guide

The track in use this weekend is the famous Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya.

TRACK BY CATEGORY

CATEGORY LAPS TOTAL DISTANCE

MotoGP™ 24 111.77 Km

Moto2™ 21 97.8 Km

Moto3™ 18 83.83 Km

MotoE™ 7 32.6 Km

Schedule for the weekend

Categories
MotoGP

Baguettes & Bikes at the Bugatti Circuit: MotoGP French GP Review

After a majestic run at Jerez last month, all eleven teams arrived at the famous Circuit de la Sarthe for the French Grand Prix. More specifically, they raced at the Bugatti circuit. So let’s look at all that happened over the weekend as the 1000cc monsters arrived on the French tarmac.

As the MotoGP paddock arrived at the French Grand Prix to race for the 23rd time in this century, there was hope in the air. Jorge Martin wanted to claw back some points after his DNF at the last race. Francesco Bagnaia eyed on keeping his winning streak on as Marc Marquez hoped to set his #93 Ducati on the top steps of the podium. All the heavy hitters looked forward to their weekend in France.

The weekend lasted from the 9th of May to the 12th of May and presented itself as a sprint weekend. It comprised 2 Free Practice sessions on Friday, 2 Qualifying sessions & a sprint race on Saturday with the main race on Sunday.

Qualifying

It was a competitive Q1 session with Enea Bastianini storming to the top spot to secure a spot in Q2. ‘The Beast’ set a brilliant 1:30.233 with his Ducati. However, all eyes quickly turned to the start of Q2 with Jorge Martin putting the hammer down instantly, setting an all-time lap record on the opening flying lap. Martin quickly improved setting the first ever 1:29.919 lap around Le Mans – 0.192s quicker than Bagnaia.

However, some key contenders are missing from the front three rows,  most notably Marc Marquez, who will start from 13th on the grid on Saturday and Sunday with a huge task ahead. Marc Marquez had a huge save in Q1 after losing the front and running off the track.

The final qualifying grid stood with Jorge Martin on pole with his championship rival Francesco Bagnaia in a close second and Aprilia Racing’s Maverick Viñales occupying P3.

Sprint

It was redemption day for Jorge Martin as the Spaniard took victory on French soil. It was his 12th Sprint win after starting from Pole Position. The #93 of Marc Marquez followed by in P2 after a stunning recovery after starting in P13 and the podium was completed by Maverick Viñales in P3.

Reigning world champion and Jorge Martin’s championship rival Bagnaia fell down the order and then fell out of contention as he seemed to be suffering some issue with his Ducati.

Espargaro recovered from his double Long Lap to finish fifth, with Acosta taking a solid sixth and putting in a final corner save. Di Giannantonio held off Miller for seventh, with Raul Fernandez taking the final point on Saturday… just marginally ahead of home hero Fabio Quartararo.

Race

The lights went out at the Bugatti Circuit and Pecco Bagnaia shot off into the lead with Martin close behind and Aleix Espargaro in third place. Francesco Morbidelli seemed to be the biggest loser at the start as he dropped 8 places while Marc Marquez gained 5 places and showed why he was still a force to be reckoned with.

Two laps into the race, the yellow flag was brought out as Pedro Acosta found himself in the gravel. The yellow flag was brought out again a lap later as Marco Bezzecchi crashed out. The winner of last year’s Grand Prix was left dejected in the gravel as his race came to an unnerving end.

Lap 6 saw some action in between the #12 Aprilia of Maverick Viñales and the #93 Ducati of Marc Marquez, who scrapped for 5th position. Marquez seemed to be gaining positions as the turns went by, starting from P13 and moving all the way to P6 in the span of 6 laps.

Fabio Quartararo fell out of contention as well by DNFing on Lap 17. Fabio Di Giannantonio was hit with a penalty as he cut the corner during his skirmish with his fellow riders.

Lap 19 saw action between the titans up ahead of the field. Jorge Martin efficiently placed his bike right up on Francesco Bagnaia’s rear and sought to attack the Italian. As the Spaniard moved closer, Pecco used his genius to sway away Martin and maintain his lead in the race.

On Lap 21, Pecco went to wide into a corner which gave Jorge a chance to take the lead. This mistake costed the Italian twice as much as there was a fiery Marquez closing in. Marquez had cleared off Viñales, Espargaro and Di Giannantonio to move up to P3.

By Lap 25, the top three riders were too close to comfort. One small error could cost one’s race, maybe even the entire trio’s race.

Lap 27 had Marc Marquez in a trance as the Gresini rider overtook the Ducati rider in spectacular fashion to take P2 leaving Bagnaia in the dust.

The French Grand Prix came to a close with Jorge Martin taking the chequered flag with an ecstatic Marc Marquez taking P2 and a somewhat dejected Francesco Bagnaia settling for P3.

It was a Spanish 1-2 and Jorge Martin was proud to wave his country’s flag on his cooldown lap by wearing it as a cape. Home hero Fabio Quartararo went up to the grandstands and gave away his racing boots to his home folk as a gesture of gratitude.

The Podium celebrations took a funny turn as the Michelin Man mascot took part in the spraying of the champagne as well. Gresini Racing were proud to see their boy Marc on the podium as it was their 1000th Grand Prix start in MotoGP.

All in all, the French Grand Prix provided some brilliant action for us fans. It provided hopeful highs and destressing lows for the riders.

Race Classification

Championship Standings

Here’s how the Championship stands after the French Grand Prix:

Next up is the Catalan Grand Prix held at Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya from the 23rd of May to the 26th of May.

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