Qatar MotoGP 2016

No more testing, the 2016 MotoGP championship finally gets underway at the 3.3 mile floodlit Losail circuit, with all signs pointing towards reigning champ Jorge Lorenzo as the man to beat.

The factory Yamaha rider set an incredible 11 laps under the lap records over the winter, while his team-mate and rival Valentino Rossi only managed one.

Will Marquez finally click with the new Honda, control ECU and Michelin tyres, or will he just be an occasional annoyance for the title contenders? And let's not forget th surprise of winter testing - wunderkid Maverick Vinales, who pushed Lorenzo all the way in testing in just his second year on the Suzuki.

Year: ALL

Tito Rabat plays down Moto2 favourite tag

17 March 2014 by Matthew Birt

Tito Rabat plays down Moto2 favourite tag

Marc VDS Racing’s Tito Rabat has played down suggestions he is the overwhelming pre-season favourite for this year’s Moto2 world championship. With compatriot Pol Espargaro and British rider Scott...

HRC confident Marquez will be close to full fitness in Qatar

17 March 2014 by Matthew Birt

HRC confident Marquez will be close to full fitness in Qatar

Honda is confident reigning world champion Marc Marquez will be close to 100% fitness to begin the defence of his MotoGP crown in Qatar this weekend. The 21-year-old has missed pre-season tests in...

Miller fastest Moto3 on final day; McPhee 6th, Kent 7th

14 March 2014 by Simon Patterson

Miller fastest Moto3 on final day; McPhee 6th, Kent 7th

Jack Miller has taken the top spot on the final day of the 2014 preseason at Jerez, holding off the Estrella Galicia Honda of Alex Marquez by 0.1 to take the top sport with a 1:46.259 lap of the...

Nakagami takes top spot in final Moto2 test

14 March 2014 by Simon Patterson

Nakagami takes top spot in final Moto2 test

Moto2 preseason testing has concluded for 2014, with Honda Asia rider Takaai Nakagami taking the top spot in the absence of the Marc VDS and Aspar teams of Tito Rabat and Mika Kallio and Jordi Torres...

Lowes sits out Jerez test with tendonitis

14 March 2014 by Simon Patterson

Lowes sits out Jerez test with tendonitis

Reigning world supersport champion Sam Lowes has been forced to sit out most of the final three-day Moto2 test that concluded yesterday at Jerez, after a bout of tendonitis in his right wrist meant he...

Miller fastest as Kent remains top three in Moto3 testing

13 March 2014 by Simon Patterson

Miller fastest as Kent remains top three in Moto3 testing

Jack Miller was fastest on day two of the final Moto3 preseason test, but British teammate Danny Kent was able to put in another strong performance to finish third, separated by the Calvo KTM machine...

Lowes sits out day two with mystery injury

13 March 2014 by Simon Patterson

Lowes sits out day two with mystery injury

Takaai Nakagami was again fastest on day two of Moto2 testing at Jerez, topping the timesheets by a slim 0.015 from Swiss rider Thomas Luthi and former Moto3 world champion Sandro Cortese. However,...

Suzuki: Rossi not a candidate for 2015 ride

13 March 2014 by Matthew Birt

Suzuki: Rossi not a candidate for 2015 ride

Suzuki boss Davide Brivio has admitted it will be highly unlikely for the Japanese factory to convince Valentino Rossi to spearhead its MotoGP return in 2015. Suzuki is currently extensively testing...

Aspar: No shock at Aleix Espargaro’s speed

13 March 2014 by Matthew Birt

Aspar: No shock at Aleix Espargaro’s speed

Aleix Espargaro’s impressive performances in winter testing might have surprised a few MotoGP observers, but one of them is not the Spaniard’s ex-Aspar team boss Gino Borsoi. Espargaro has been the...

Braking stability still a concern for Yamaha

13 March 2014 by Matthew Birt

Braking stability still a concern for Yamaha

Braking stability is still a key area for Yamaha to improve on its factory YZR-M1 once the new MotoGP world championship campaign gets underway in Qatar on March 23. Honda has taken a huge step...

Was Ducati’s move to the Open Class in MotoGP inspired thinking or lunacy?

12 March 2014 by Simon Patterson

Was Ducati’s move to the Open Class in MotoGP inspired thinking or lunacy?

Last week Ducati made the shock decision that they would be running in the Open Class in MotoGP for 2014. Some have called the move inspired, and less controls on engine development plus sticky tyres...

Dall’Igna delighted with Ducati line-up for 2014

12 March 2014 by Matthew Birt

Dall’Igna delighted with Ducati line-up for 2014

New Ducati boss Gigi Dall’Igna reckons Ducati could not have better riders than Andrea Dovizioso and Cal Crutchlow to revive its fortunes in MotoGP. Ducati has endured a torrid recent history in...

Colin Edwards: Teaching an old dog new tricks

12 March 2014 by Matthew Birt

Colin Edwards: Teaching an old dog new tricks

Having just turned 40 and been racing motorcycles for longer than Marc Marquez has been on the planet, you’d think if anybody would find it difficult to embrace a new riding technique it would be...

Smith and Espargaro impressed with new Yamaha gearbox

12 March 2014 by Matthew Birt

Smith and Espargaro impressed with new Yamaha gearbox

Monster Yamaha Tech 3 duo Bradley Smith and Pol Espargaro have both hailed the benefits of Yamaha’s seamless shift gearbox ahead of the start of the 2014 MotoGP campaign. Smith and Espargaro tested...

Lowes third as Nakagami tops day one at Jerez

12 March 2014 by Simon Patterson

Lowes third as Nakagami tops day one at Jerez

Takaai Nakagami has topped the timesheets on day one of the final Moto2 and Moto3 pre-season test at Jerez, but the surprise performance of the day was British rookie Sam Lowes, who finished the day...

ITV to show MotoGP in 2014

11 March 2014 by Simon Patterson

ITV to show MotoGP in 2014

ITV have confirmed to MCN that, contrary to reports that BT Sport would be the exclusive right holders for MotoGP in the UK, they will also be showing a delayed highlights package on ITV Four during...

Schwantz to return to Suzuka

11 March 2014 by Simon Patterson

Schwantz to return to Suzuka

Yoshimura Suzuki will run not one but two teams for this year’s Suzuka 8 Hours, as they expand to celebrate the 60th anniversary of racing legend Pop Yoshimura founding the tuning firm back in 1954. A...

Aleix Espargaro: Aspar ride boosted my career

11 March 2014 by Matthew Birt

Aleix Espargaro: Aspar ride boosted my career

Aleix Espargaro says he owes a big debt of gratitude to Spanish legend Jorge Martinez’s Aspar squad for helping him develop into a more competitive MotoGP rider. The 24-year-old has been the major...

No new bike for Cal in 2014

11 March 2014 by Michael Guy

No new bike for Cal in 2014

Cal Crutchlow and team-mate Andrea Dovizioso will campaign their existing Desmosedici GP14 throughout the 2014 season with no all new bike expected until the 2015 season. Speaking at the official...

Suzuki keen on MotoGP test for Eugene Laverty

11 March 2014 by Matthew Birt

Suzuki keen on MotoGP test for Eugene Laverty

Suzuki is keen to get the input of Eugene Laverty on its new factory 1000cc MotoGP contender during 2014. The Irish rider is locked in talks over selected rides on the new Suzuki and he met new MotoGP...

Dall’Igna talks ‘Open’ at 2014 Ducati MotoGP team launch in Munich

10 March 2014 by Michael Guy

Dall’Igna talks ‘Open’ at 2014 Ducati MotoGP team launch in Munich

The 2014 Ducati MotoGP squad was officially unveiled to the worlds press in Munich today. Ducati launches historically take place in the mountains of Madonna di Campiglio, but in 2014, Ducati owners...

Ducati unveil 2014 Desmosedici

10 March 2014 by Simon Patterson

Ducati unveil 2014 Desmosedici

Ducati have unveiled their 2014 MotoGP contender in an impressive ceremony at parent company Audi’s showrooms inside Munich Airport in the presence of a host of top names and vehicles from the German...

Bradley Smith rebounds from crash to claim top three

10 March 2014 by Matthew Birt

Bradley Smith rebounds from crash to claim top three

Bradley Smith experienced an eventful but ultimately very productive final night of MotoGP testing at the Losail International Circuit in Qatar. The Monster Yamaha Tech 3 rider was relieved to emerge...

'Unbelievable' race simulation thrills Aleix Espargaro in Qatar

10 March 2014 by Matthew Birt

'Unbelievable' race simulation thrills Aleix Espargaro in Qatar

Aleix Espargaro continued his outstanding winter testing form in Qatar last night by finishing the final pre-season action of 2014 on top of the timesheets. The Forward Yamaha rider was doubly happy...

Pol Espargaro suffers injury blow in Qatar

10 March 2014 by Matthew Birt

Pol Espargaro suffers injury blow in Qatar

Pol Espargaro’s preparation for his rookie MotoGP season suffered a cruel blow in Qatar last night when he broke his left collarbone in a crash in the final hours of a promising pre-season...

Stefan Bradl ends pre-season with two crashes

10 March 2014 by Matthew Birt

Stefan Bradl ends pre-season with two crashes

Stefan Bradl’s winter testing campaign certainly didn’t end on a high after he suffered two crashes on the final night of testing at the Losail International Circuit in Qatar. The LCR Honda rider had...

Rear grip concern for Alvaro Bautista in Qatar

10 March 2014 by Matthew Birt

Rear grip concern for Alvaro Bautista in Qatar

Alvaro Bautista dropped from being fastest rider on the second night of MotoGP testing in Qatar to finish fifth at the conclusion of the final winter test yesterday evening. Bautista was unable to...

Scott Redding surprised by race run speed

10 March 2014 by Matthew Birt

Scott Redding surprised by race run speed

British rider Scott Redding gave himself a morale boost heading into his rookie MotoGP campaign after he delivered an impressive first distance run on the new Honda RCV1000R production bike in Qatar...

Alvaro Bautista struggles on way to fastest time

09 March 2014 by Matthew Birt

Alvaro Bautista struggles on way to fastest time

Alvaro Bautista might have been fastest on the second night of MotoGP testing in Qatar, but it was not an easy ride to the summit of the timesheets for the Gresini Honda rider. The former 125GP world...

Alvaro Bautista heads second night in Qatar

09 March 2014 by Matthew Birt

Alvaro Bautista heads second night in Qatar

Gresini Honda rider Alvaro Bautista led the way on the second night of MotoGP testing at the Losail International Circuit in Qatar. A quickest lap of 1.55.194 saw the Spaniard finish 0.314s clear of...

Hopkins finds pace early on BSB return

08 March 2014 by Simon Patterson

Hopkins finds pace early on BSB return

Former MotoGP podium finisher John Hopkins says he’s surprised at how quickly he’s managed to get back into fast lap times, after a year and a half away from competitive riding. Hopkins, who hasn’t...

Aleix Espargaro happy with opening night pace in Qatar

08 March 2014 by Matthew Birt

Aleix Espargaro happy with opening night pace in Qatar

Aleix Espargaro continued his pre-season giant-killing act in MotoGP tonight when the Forward Yamaha Open class rider beat a host of factory prototypes in Qatar. Fourth fastest in both Sepang tests...

Scott Redding happy to close gap to Nicky Hayden

08 March 2014 by Matthew Birt

Scott Redding happy to close gap to Nicky Hayden

Scott Redding was satisfied with his performance on the opening night of MotoGP testing in Qatar after the Gresini rider finished within 0.4s of Nicky Hayden on the new production Honda RCV1000R...

Bradley Smith not happy to play second fiddle to Aleix Espargaro

08 March 2014 by Matthew Birt

Bradley Smith not happy to play second fiddle to Aleix Espargaro

British rider Bradley Smith admitted he was not happy to be outpaced by Aleix Espargaro on the opening night of testing at the floodlit Losail International Circuit in Qatar. Smith led the timesheets...

Ioda Racing: Leon Camier situation ‘very hard’

07 March 2014 by Matthew Birt

Ioda Racing: Leon Camier situation ‘very hard’

Ioda Racing boss Giampiero Sacchi has spoken of his disappointment at not being able to go ahead with a 2014 MotoGP deal for British rider Leon Camier. Former British Superbike champion Camier signed...

Suzuki re-thinking MotoGP strategy after Ducati Open move

07 March 2014 by Matthew Birt

Suzuki re-thinking MotoGP strategy after Ducati Open move

Ducati’s decision to move to the new Open class has already forced Suzuki into re-thinking its 2015 MotoGP strategy, and is likely to put pressure on Honda and Yamaha to do the same. Just three weeks...