It’s tight at the top as MotoGP hits Aragon this weekend – Preview

2024 MotoGP World Championship
Round 12 – Aragon – Gran Premio GoPro de Aragon

MotoGP returns to MotorLand Aragon this weekend for the first time since September 2022, bringing the total number of annual rounds in Spain back to four this season. The first edition of the Aragon GP took place in 2010, a year after the circuit’s inauguration.

Since MotoGP last visited Aragon, the circuit has been completely resurfaced, leading Michelin to start from scratch, as the data collected so far is now rendered obsolete.

“Controlling wear and heat will be the two main challenges of the weekend,” says Piero Taramasso, Michelin’s two-wheel competition manager. “Given the expected conditions, we have chosen fairly hard rubber compounds from our new ranges, as track temperature here could reach 50°C. Two years ago the race took place on 18 September, with slightly less complex weather, and also on a track whose surface we knew very well. Given the new asphalt, the configuration of the circuit and the significant constraints that this track exerts, both for the front and rear tyres, we are now starting from scratch with new rubber. We know that a new surface generates more wear on the rear tyres, but also significant thermal variations. However, the specific characteristics will depend on the grain size of the new surface. If it is ‘open’ the ground will be very abrasive, and if it is closed (smooth), we will have to deal with rapid temperature increases. The first tests will be very important for the set-up of the bikes, and the riders will have to deal with multiple combinations, but we will be there to guide them in their choices. As always, we will bring three compounds for the front, but three, instead of the usual two, for the rear.”

As the paddock arrived at MotorLand Aragon in 2021, now two-time MotoGP World Champion – and current Championship leader – Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team) had never won a MotoGP race. That changed on Sunday as Bagnaia duelled eight-time World Champion, home hero and anti-clockwise king Marc Marquez (Gresini Racing MotoGP) for the top step, repelling seven attacks over the final three laps to join the pantheon of premier class winners.

Since that day, their respective paths have taken plenty of twists and turns – and next year, they converge as team-mates. But a big chapter of what could become one of the sport’s biggest long-term rivalries started right here. So can we expect a throwdown?

Bagnaia is on a roll as the paddock heads back to Spain. He’s now equalled his maximum number of wins in a season already – seven – and arrives in Aragon from a double taken in style at Spielberg. He’s the rider to beat, the Championship leader, riding in enemy territory and now looking down the barrel of a 2025 team-mate whose presence will have its own say on Bagnaia’s legacy. Incidentally, the same rider who has a corner named after them at this very track. Motivation and form don’t come in much more convincing packages than this.

Marquez, meanwhile, arrives in a scrappier run after two Sprint crashes and a more dramatic start to the Austrian GP. But his pace in Spielberg was dramatic in a different way. Might he have been able to stick with the red machine up ahead? No one else seemed likely to do so, and the stage seemed set for it too as the Bagnaia, Jorge Martin (Prima Pramac Racing), Marc Marquez trio lined up on the front row. So now add in Aragon, the fact it’s anti-clockwise and home turf, and there could be fireworks this weekend – even without considering that a single centimetre more luck could have its own say in turning his run of form around.

Having said that, Martin can never be counted out. Over the last stint of 2023 Martin learned to be both fast and consistent at the same time, and he’s carried that into 2024 to remain right in the fight at the front – also leading the way for much of the season – without needing to stage any grand comeback. He’s fast everywhere, he’s made relatively few unforced errors, and he’s only five points off the top. He’s also well versed in sticking with and overhauling his fellow key contenders. Finding that final tenth is something he’s done before and it would be no surprise to see him prove a key protagonist in the fight for victory.

And then there’s Enea Bastianini (Ducati Lenovo Team). 2021 was not, of course, the last time Aragon welcomed MotoGP. The last time it did, in 2022, it was another duel – but this time Bastianini vs Bagnaia, and with the Beast coming out on top. He lost a little ground in the Championship in Austria but his double at Silverstone was a reminder, if anyone needed one, how fast he is. He lurks in third in the title fight, clearly hasn’t given up on it, and is 61 points off the top. There’s a maximum of 333 points left on the table in 2024, and Bastianini is one of the riders who immediately comes to mind when thinking about 148 of them: Aragon, San Marino, Emilia-Romagna and Sepang. That stint starts here.

There were some positives for plenty in Austria though. Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) was back in the top five on their home turf, and team-mate Jack Miller had plenty of speed to write home about, even if it came apart on Sunday.

Marco Bezzecchi (Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team) had a solid weekend and took home a top six, and Franco Morbidelli (Prima Pramac Racing) had some real flashes of pace even if some dramas got in the way. At Aragon, we can also expect the return of Fabio Di Giannantonio (Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team) to fight it out in a similar group too.

Marco Bezzecchi

“Aragon is a very particular track, with many different characteristics all concentrated in the same circuit. Last year we didn’t race here and we need to understand what the real conditions of the tarmac will be. I have never collected so much here, I have to admit, even if I have often been fast. We are coming from a positive moment, however of growth and step forward on the bike. The sensations are good and the goal is to continue to be consistent and close the gap to the very first guys.”

Fabioi Di Giannantonio

“It was a very busy week between medical checks, training and physiotherapy. I have recovered, I feel better, but I don’t know exactly what the sensations will be on the bike. In terms of arm mobility, I would say we are there, but we will work until the end in terms of strength. Watching a race from the sofa at home is never a good situation for a rider, we have done everything possible to get back on the bike as soon as possible and we are just waiting for the last check to be able to fully concentrate on the race weekend on the one of the most particular tracks on the calendar.”

For Aprilia, meanwhile, Aragon should promise a little more. Spielberg saw Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia Racing) take a Tissot Sprint podium and then teammate Maverick Viñales lead the charge on Sunday in P7, but that doesn’t better their previous best at the venue. The very different MotorLand layout, plus their records at the track and the home turf aspect for the #12 and #41, should see the Noale factory back in the mix. Trackhouse Racing’s Raul Fernandez and Miguel Oliveira will also want plenty more on their 2024 RS-GPs and hope for a similar uptick.

Miguel Oliveira

“I approach the Aragon Grand Prix in the same way, like the last races. I think that the last two Sunday races have showed a lot of potential to finish better than we did and for that reason, I believe if we put everything together from the outset on Friday onwards, the result can be more satisfying. Aragon is always challenging so we will tackle the track from the first outing and look to make the most of the RS-GP24.”

Looking to rejoin that tight battle for the top five or more – and win it – are the likes of Alex Marquez (Gresini Racing MotoGP) and, most especially, Pedro Acosta (Red Bull GASGAS Tech3). Alex Marquez took a top ten but had a tougher weekend, and Acosta had one of his toughest yet in MotoGP, behind wildcard Pol Espargaro and with teammate Augusto Fernandez not far off nipping at his heels.

Pedro Acosta

“The third home race is coming up and we will need to see how we are on Friday in the first session. Austria was possibly the toughest weekend of the year and Thursday’s work in the box will increase more than usual. I spent two days in Misano training and it was good to keep improving my feelings. The good thing about MotorLand is that I know the track well from having trained there several days during the year, which will help us. I hope to improve on last weekend, and start a busy September in the best possible way.”

It was a tough one in Austria for a few. Some issues for Luca Marini (Repsol Honda Team) and Johann Zarco (CASTROL Honda LCR) – although the latter finished – affected their Sundays, although Honda did take two points thanks to a P14 nabbed on the very last lap by a charging Takaaki Nakagami (IDEMITSU Honda LCR). Meanwhile Joan Mir (Repsol Honda Team) had a tougher one and will want more at Aragon in the Honda battle and the fight for points too. Of no one is that more true, however, than Yamaha.

Joan Mir

“It has been busy for us after the race in Austria, but busy is good because everyone involved in the project has been working on the future. I am looking forward to returning to Aragon, the last time I raced there I was on the podium in 2021. The approach for the weekend will be similar to the past races where we will work on what we need to work on and see what’s possible when the lights go out on Saturday and Sunday.”

Neither Fabio Quartararo nor Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP team-mate Alex Rins scored in Austria, and they’ll want to put that right ASAP at Aragon. They also had a test in the meantime as work continues towards getting back into that fight at the front, and rather interestingly called on the talents of MotoGP Legend Andrea Dovizioso to join them on track for that as test rider Cal Crutchlow continues to recover from injury. That was at Misano, so could prove interesting at the events appearing on the horizon, but the first mission at MotorLand will be clear: points.

We’ve seen some true classics at this track and the 2024 season so far promises so much potential for another to thrill us as we return to the venue. With so more than points on the line as honour, reputation, glory and more go up for grabs, you don’t want to miss the Gran Premio GoPro de Aragón this weekend!

MotoGP Championship Standings

Moto2

The Austrian GP was a weekend where the Moto2 World Championship frontrunners endured tougher times – and one where nobody could match Celestino Vietti (Red Bull KTM Ajo) on Sunday afternoon. The Italian won at the Red Bull Ring for a second year in succession as a trip to a different challenge in the form of MotorLand Aragon now beckons.

Vietti’s debut win in the famous Red Bull KTM Ajo colours was a dominant one. Two podiums on the spin have been a fantastic start to the second half of the season for the #13, as a second for Alonso Lopez (Sync SpeedUp) ended his mini podium drought.

Jake Dixon’s (CFMOTO Inde Aspar Team) P3 was his third top three on the spin as the Briton continues to find great form, as Aron Canet (Fantic Racing) – a podium finisher at Aragon in 2022 – narrowly missed out on a podium.

Jake Dixon

“The weekend in Austria was an example of how, without giving up, working from the start to the finish of the GP, we can fight for great goals. We have four podiums in the last six races and, if we continue like this, we will be able to reach the end of the season with a chance of getting a good result.”

Those four riders will be looking for more of the same performance in Aragon, but title chase leader Sergio Garcia, his MT Helmets – MSI teammate Ai Ogura, Joe Roberts (OnlyFans American Racing) and Fermin Aldeguer (Sync SpeedUp) will be hungry for much more.

Garcia’s P14 saw him gain just two points – the gap now at 20 – on the luckless Ogura, with the Japanese star’s first crash of the season seeing him suffer a fracture in his right hand. Roberts’ quiet weekend saw him claw back some crucial points on Garcia, while Aldeguer’s P20 now sees him drop to P5 – behind his teammate – in the overall standings.

Senna Agius will be looking to find some of his early season form to forge his way up the championship ladder.

Moto2 Championship Standings

Moto3

A showstopper from David Alonso in Spielberg saw the Colombian claim a phenomenal seventh win of the season, despite having to contend with a Long Lap penalty. The latest 25-point collection sees the CFMOTO Gaviota Aspar Team star land in Aragon with a whopping 71-point lead in the Moto3 title race. The question now is: can anyone halt Alonso’s incredible momentum?

David Alonso

“It has been a long time since we have competed in Aragon, and they have also resurfaced it, so, although it is a track we know, many things have changed. It is a track where it is very difficult to ride alone, so we will have to work on that. The set up will also be important, because it has some very peculiar corners.”

Despite the drama that unfolded for Ivan Ortola (MT Helmets – MSI) in Austria, the Spaniard remains Alonso’s chief Championship chaser. Sunday promised much more than a P9 for Ortola, as he was left to stew on stalling his bike as the riders rolled up to the grid. Still, that recovery ride was something pretty special, but now it’s all about beating Alonso at every opportunity.

2022 Aragon podium finisher, Daniel Holgado (Red Bull GASGAS Tech3), bagged his first rostrum since Le Mans which sees him stay in P3 overall, as David Muñoz (BOE Motorsports) nicked P2 from his grasp by just 0.005s in Austria. That result for Muñoz saw him move up to P5 in the Championship, one place behind Collin Veijer (Liqui Moly Husqvarna Intact GP) as the Dutch star hopes Aragon can be the place he wins for the first time since Jerez, because a P5 wasn’t what Veijer ordered from Austria.

Joel Kelso will be looking to push further inside the top ten in the championship standings and his young countryman Jacob Roulstone will be striving to make it into that top ten.

Moto3 Championship Standings