The opening round of the 2024 MotoGP World Championship was held this weekend in Qatar at the Lusail circuit. Some intense racing saw Jorge Martin (Ducati) win the Sprint race on Saturday ahead of second place Brad Binder (KTM) and third place Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia).
On Sunday, defending champion Pecco Bagnaia (Ducati) bounced back from a 4th place finish in the Sprint to win the main event in front of Binder in second and Martin in third. There was close racing, and passing, behind Bagnaia, but the winner seemed to carefully control the pace, and his distance to second place, to the checkered flag.
Bagnaia leaves with a two point lead in the championship over Binder and three points over Martin.
For full results and points for Saturday’s Sprint race, visit the MotoGP site here.
For full results and points for Sunday’s MotoGP race, visit the MotoGP site here.
It seems that this year there are going to be several potential world champions from Pecco down to Pedro, and I think (hope) the championship will be decided at the last turn of the last race. In other words, this year’s championship will be decided by who can keep the rubber down the most times!
Pecco reminds me a bit of Lorenzo. Get to the front and throw down lap after lap of the same time. Not the most exciting but effective. Binder looks fantastic. MM will be there and Acosta is coming. Helluva year to follow.
You got the point.
Good observation on Pecco. Clean air, clear track. Great work if you can get it.
Looks like another year for team Europe. I was expecting more from Quartararo, he set a fast trap speed at one of the tests. But it looks like Europe is winning the air management battle.
Honda has to be bummed. MM got decent results and none of the Honda riders finished all that well.
Good work by Binder and KTM. They are the guys I want to see win. Even if he does it by coming in second every race.
It’ll be a reckoning for Honda and Yamaha this year. They have generous concessions that probably aren’t bearing fruit yet. If they don’t become more competitive, I fear that Dorna will have no choice but to significantly alter the rules in their favor or watch them leave. If manufacturer participation dwindles that that point then the only real answer it spec racing, ala’ Moto2.
And after 23 years they will have finally made the perfect made for paid TV race show.
Wouldn’t be the worst thing. The success of spec racing proves that people generally don’t care about the equipment. They want to see people compete and the machinery dilutes that. Hard to know who’s best when the playing field is uneven.
I maintain that MotoGP took all the money and turned WSB into a sideshow and AMA into a no show. Sportbike sales have gone with them. MotoGP itself is now suffering from declining popularity. Some people like to blame it on the kids. I don’t think so. Racing is advertising. MotoGP contracted the overall advertising market and the results are plain to see. Turning MotoGP into an all spec series all the time will only contract its popularity further. Spec classes in any racing series have always been less popular. The racing is as close as it is already because the riders are all pulling the most they can out of the spec nannies that both limit the speed of the best racers and make the slower riders faster. Right now it looks like the Europeans are better and cheating the nannies than the Japanese are. Maybe it’s a culture thing.
It was said that japanese manufacturers were not able to develop their GP bikes due to COVID restrictions of logisitics. It was hard to bring new parts to tests, etc. Concerning the rules. There are four groups in Moto GP now. This groups are based on the points, manufacturer gained previos season. A (Ducati) is not able to develop anything during the season. B (KTM) is able to develop aero. C (Aprilia) can develop aero and engine. D (Japanese manufacturers) is able to develop everything.
A shockingly coherent post!