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

CAS rejects Lorenzo's request for intervention in Rossi case

03 November 2015 by Steve English

CAS rejects Lorenzo's request for intervention in Rossi case

Jorge Lorenzo has had a request for intervention rejected by the Court of Arbitration for Sport in their case of Valentino Rossi’s appeal against his penalty points from Sepang. The Italian is...

Yamaha responds to Honda statements

03 November 2015 by Steve English

Yamaha responds to Honda statements

Yamaha has this morning responded to the recent press releases of HRC and Repsol. Yesterday HRC vice-president, Shuhei Nakamoto, released a statement where it was once again alleged that Valentino...

Valencia's Thursday press conference cancelled

02 November 2015 by Steve English

Valencia's Thursday press conference cancelled

The ramifications of Sepang continue to be felt and for the final round of the MotoGP season there will be no pre-event press conference. Dorna and the FIM has taken the unprecedented step of...

Latest 2016 MotoGP calendar revealed

02 November 2015 by Steve English

Latest 2016 MotoGP calendar revealed

Dorna has revealed an updated calendar for the 2016 MotoGP season with the main changes seeing Silverstone reverting to September 4. The German Grand Prix has also been changed to July 17. The order...

Honda: Crash caused by Rossi kicking Marquez' lever

02 November 2015 by Steve English

Honda: Crash caused by Rossi kicking Marquez' lever

Honda has broken their silence on the clash between Marc Marquez and Valentino Rossi in Malaysia. On the seventh lap of the race at Sepang the pair touched and Marquez crashed after a heated scrap on...

First test for KTM RC16 MotoGP machine

01 November 2015 by Steve English

First test for KTM RC16 MotoGP machine

The highly anticipated track debut of KTM’s new MotoGP machine took place in Austria over the weekend. This is the latest step in their development towards making their premier class debut in...

Police called to altercation with Italian TV at Marc Marquez’s home

31 October 2015 by Simon Patterson

Police called to altercation with Italian TV at Marc Marquez’s home

Spanish media are reporting that reigning MotoGP world champion Marc Marquez has been involved in an altercation with Italian TV presenters from Le Iene (The Hyenas) outside his house in northern...

What happens next for Rossi’s appeal?

30 October 2015 by Simon Patterson

What happens next for Rossi’s appeal?

With the news that Valentino Rossi has appealed his Sepang penalty points to the Court of Arbitration in Sport, many have been left scratching their heads as to exactly what the Swiss body does and...

Rossi lodges new appeal against penalty points

30 October 2015 by Simon Patterson

Rossi lodges new appeal against penalty points

The FIM have confirmed that Valentino Rossi has lodged an eleventh hour appeal to the Court of Arbitration in Sport against the three penalty points he was issued for the collision between him and...

Reed: Rossi and Marquez were literally ready to die at VR46 Ranch

30 October 2015 by Simon Patterson

Reed: Rossi and Marquez were literally ready to die at VR46 Ranch

While the fierce rivalry between Marc Marquez and Valentino Rossi might be something that’s only just came into the public eye after their encounters on-track in MotoGP this season, culminating last...

Open letter from Angel Nieto

30 October 2015 by Steve English

Open letter from Angel Nieto

Angel Nieto is the latest MotoGP legend to offer his opinion on the events of Sepang. The 12+1 times world champion commented on Sunday about his sadness at having seen Valentino Rossi and Marc...

Lorenzo denies Marquez agreement

30 October 2015 by Steve English

Lorenzo denies Marquez agreement

With Italian media having speculated that Jorge Lorenzo and Marc Marquez had a clandestine meeting in Andorra before the fly away races to determine how the MotoGP world championship would be decided...

FIM President: Sepang has poisoned the atmosphere of our sport

30 October 2015 by Steve English

FIM President: Sepang has poisoned the atmosphere of our sport

The FIM President, Vito Ippolito, has waded into the post Sepang mire by saying that “the recent events have had a damaging effect on the staging of our competitions and poisoned the atmosphere around...

Dovi: Cal came to the box and apologised for crash

28 October 2015 by Steve English

Dovi: Cal came to the box and apologised for crash

Andrea Dovizioso’s race ended in the gravel trap on Sunday after a clash with Cal Crutchlow in the early stages of the Malaysian Grand Prix. Crutchlow made contact with the Ducati rider and admitted...

Brake problems held back Crutchlow

28 October 2015 by Steve English

Brake problems held back Crutchlow

Cal Crutchlow finished fifth in Malaysia after an eventful race that saw him clash with Andrea Dovizioso and then suffer a braking issue that left him unable to hold off Bradley Smith. “It was a...

Smith: It was nice to turn this weekend around!

28 October 2015 by Steve English

Smith: It was nice to turn this weekend around!

Bradley Smith continued his impressive season with a top four finish at Sepang. The Tech3 rider had a scrap with Cal Crutchlow in the early laps but a brake problem left both riders facing a lonely...

Injuries left Espargaro dizzy in Sepang

28 October 2015 by Steve English

Injuries left Espargaro dizzy in Sepang

Pol Espargaro admitted that Sunday’s Malaysian Grand Prix was one of the hardest races of his career. The after affects of his crash in warmup left him dizzy and in pain but with tenth place in the...

Repsol: Without sporting values it makes no sense to be a sponsor

27 October 2015 by Steve English

Repsol: Without sporting values it makes no sense to be a sponsor

Repsol released a sensational press release that called their future in MotoGP into question following the “unacceptable and unsportsmanlike conduct of Valentino Rossi against Marc Marquez” at...

Did he dive, or was he kicked?

27 October 2015 by Michael Scott

Did he dive, or was he kicked?

Some thought Rossi’s penalty – effectively a back-of-the-grid start – was too lenient for the cynical Red Bull Rookies move that he pulled to take out Marquez in Malaysia. Some thought it overly...

Marquez: Rossi kick caused me to crash

25 October 2015 by Simon Patterson

Marquez: Rossi kick caused me to crash

Marc Marquez has laid the blame for the incident between him and Valentino Rossi in today’s Malaysian MotoGP race firmly in the hands of his Italian rival, saying that despite the investigation by...

Twitter reacts to Rossi Marquez crash

25 October 2015 by Simon Patterson

Twitter reacts to Rossi Marquez crash

Twitter has been awash with comments since the clash this morning between reigning MotoGP champion Marc Marquez and championship leader Valentino Rossi that saw the Spaniard end the race in the gravel...

Rossi to start Valencia race from back of the grid

25 October 2015 by Simon Patterson

Rossi to start Valencia race from back of the grid

Valentino Rossi’s aspirations of lifting a tenth world title may have been dashed after the three penalty points he was issued for his Malaysian Grand Prix collision with Marc Marquez means he will be...

Rossi and Marquez in monumental clash

25 October 2015 by Simon Patterson

Rossi and Marquez in monumental clash

Dani Pedrosa has taken a dominant victory in Malaysia, leading from start to finish to take his second MotoGP victory of 2015 from Jorge Lorenzo. However, the real drama of the race came from the...

Zarco steals Moto2 win from Luthi

25 October 2015 by Simon Patterson

Zarco steals Moto2 win from Luthi

Moto2 world champion Johann Zarco has stolen the Malaysian moto2 Grand prix victory from Thomas Luthi, closing down the early leader to take the lead on the penultimate lap and pulling clear for...

Oliveira win denies Kent the title another week

25 October 2015 by Simon Patterson

Oliveira win denies Kent the title another week

A sensational Miguel Oliveira win has once again denied Danny Kent the chance to become the first British racer in 38 years to lift a world title, with a last lap moment in an otherwise careful race...

Marquez and Lorenzo lead morning warmup

25 October 2015 by Steve English

Marquez and Lorenzo lead morning warmup

The morning warmup in Malaysia was dominated by Marc Marquez and Jorge Lorenzo with the Spanish duo leading the way from Valentino Rossi. Lorenzo was three tenths off the pace with Rossi almost six...

Luthi quickest in Moto2 warmup

25 October 2015 by Steve English

Luthi quickest in Moto2 warmup

Thomas Luthi backed up his qualifying pace with the fastest time in morning warmup with the Swiss rider leading from the German duo of Jonas Folger and Simone Cortese. Sam Lowes was fourth fastest,...

Vazquez sets Moto3 morning pace

25 October 2015 by Steve English

Vazquez sets Moto3 morning pace

Efren Vazquez was fastest in the Moto3 warmup with the Basque rider leading the way from his Leopard Racing teammnate Hiroki Ono. Danny Kent was fourth fastest in the session with the Englishman...

Title maths for Valentino Rossi

25 October 2015 by Steve English

Title maths for Valentino Rossi

Valentino Rossi has his first chance to wrap up an eighth MotoGP title today. The Italian will need lots of luck on his side if he is to win the title but with an 11 point lead does give him a glimmer...

Title maths for Danny Kent

25 October 2015 by Steve English

Title maths for Danny Kent

Danny Kent will claim the Moto3 world title today if the Englishman finishes fifth at Sepang. With a 40 point lead a top five finish guarantees him the crown regardless of what happens to his only...

Mistake from Marquez costs him shot at pole

24 October 2015 by Steve English

Mistake from Marquez costs him shot at pole

Marc Marquez had to settle for second on the grid at Sepang after being comfortably outpaced by his Repsol Honda teammate, Dani Pedrosa. Marquez was four tenths off the pace but a mistake on a hot lap...

Strategic Pedrosa confident of strong race

24 October 2015 by Steve English

Strategic Pedrosa confident of strong race

Dani Pedrosa claimed his first pole position of the year and afterwards the Spaniard said that it was a “a great lap” that was a step forward from the rest of the weekend. Given that Pedrosa has been...

Rossi talks about title decider nerves

24 October 2015 by Steve English

Rossi talks about title decider nerves

Tomorrow marks the first opportunity that Rossi has to clinch the MotoGP world championship but the nine times champion is making sure that everyone is aware that there’s a very slim chance of...

Rossi: Front row is always very important

24 October 2015 by Steve English

Rossi: Front row is always very important

A last gasp lap from Valentino Rossi saw the championship leader claw a front row start from his title rival, Jorge Lorenzo. Rossi timed his final lap to perfection and crossed the line with mere...

Major setup shift helps Smith at Sepang

24 October 2015 by Steve English

Major setup shift helps Smith at Sepang

Coming through Q1 hasn’t been a common occurrence for Bradley Smith in 2015 and after qualifying ninth the Tech3 rider joked that “I definitely knew that I had a work out today!” For Smith the day...

Crutchlow: I had some more time but fifth was our maximum

24 October 2015 by Steve English

Crutchlow: I had some more time but fifth was our maximum

“Fifth was the most we could have gotten today,” was how Cal Crutchlow assessed his qualifying performance at Sepang. A couple of mistakes cost him some time but ultimately with a half second deficit...