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

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...

Lorenzo: Braking problem cost me confidence

24 October 2015 by Steve English

Lorenzo: Braking problem cost me confidence

Jorge Lorenzo missed out on a front row start for tomorrow’s Malaysian Grand Prix but the Spaniard was keen to put a positive spin on his day at Sepang. Having crashed in FP4 Lorenzo said that a...

Grid penalty for Kent in Moto3

24 October 2015 by Steve English

Grid penalty for Kent in Moto3

Tomorrow marks the third opportunity that Danny Kent has had to win the Moto3 world title. He needs to finish in the top five to claim the title but starting from ninth on the grid after being...

Getting across the line in a World Championship

24 October 2015 by Steve English

Getting across the line in a World Championship

Getting over the line is always one of the most difficult things in sports. It’s taken for granted that if you’re at the highest level that you have the talent to be a contender but being a winner?...

First pole of the year for Pedrosa

24 October 2015 by Steve English

First pole of the year for Pedrosa

Dani Pedrosa took his first pole since last June with the Spaniard dominating the afternoon at Sepang. With Marc Marquez four tenths of a second off the pace it was easy to see just how dominant...

Pedrosa sets a hot pace ahead of qualifying

24 October 2015 by Steve English

Pedrosa sets a hot pace ahead of qualifying

Final practice in MotoGP is a chance for riders to spend their time working on race simulation work and gaves an indication of what to expect during the race. If that’s the case at Sepang this weekend...

Pole for Antonelli in Malaysia

24 October 2015 by Steve English

Pole for Antonelli in Malaysia

Niccolo Antonelli took his third career pole position by leading the way in qualifying at Sepang. There was plenty of excitement at Malaysian track with riders complaining and visibly upset to be...

MotoGP agrees to Indonesia return for 2017

24 October 2015 by Steve English

MotoGP agrees to Indonesia return for 2017

The future of MotoGP in the Far-East has taken another turn with Dorna confirming that there is a space on the 2017 calendar reserved for Indonesia if improvements and renovation can be made at the...

Zarco fastest despite a fall

24 October 2015 by Steve English

Zarco fastest despite a fall

A late fall couldn’t stop Johann Zarco from topping the times in final practice at Sepang with the Moto2 world champion comfortably fastest from Alex Rins. The Frenchman fell at the final corner on...

Where's the beef between Rossi and Marquez?

24 October 2015 by Steve English

Where's the beef between Rossi and Marquez?

Valentino Rossi and Marc Marquez both do their best to unsettle each other in Free Practice 3. With Marquez shadowing Rossi before their final laps of the session and Rossi refusing to allow the Honda...

Lorenzo fastest but Rossi and Marquez steal attention

24 October 2015 by Steve English

Lorenzo fastest but Rossi and Marquez steal attention

Jorge Lorenzo set the fastest ever lap at Sepang to top the times in FP3 but once again this weekend the focus was on Marc Marquez and Valentino Rossi. On their final run of the session both riders...

Kent fastest in final practice, Oliveira third

24 October 2015 by Steve English

Kent fastest in final practice, Oliveira third

Danny Kent shrugged off his crash yesterday by saying to MCN that he was confident that he had a setting that worked at Sepang. In final practice he proved this by setting the pace from Niccolo...

Marquez: no urge to switch back to 2015 RCV

23 October 2015 by Steve English

Marquez: no urge to switch back to 2015 RCV

Lost among the back and forth with Valentino Rossi was that Marc Marquez ended the day third fastest at Sepang. The reigning world champion, who was victorious last year at the Malaysian venue, was...

Confident Lorenzo sets the pace

23 October 2015 by Steve English

Confident Lorenzo sets the pace

With the MotoGP title fight coming to a thrilling climax Jorge Lorenzo was able to set the pace on the opening day of the weekend at Sepang. Lorenzo looked comfortable all day and afterwards his...

Rossi refuses to be drawn further on Marquez

23 October 2015 by Steve English

Rossi refuses to be drawn further on Marquez

Valentino Rossi refused to be drawn into the main talking point that has captivated the Sepang paddock this weekend; his swipe at Marc Marquez during yesterday’s press conference. When asked about the...

Marquez: I'm still surprised by Rossi comments

23 October 2015 by Steve English

Marquez: I'm still surprised by Rossi comments

24 hours after Valentino Rossi’s outburst at the pre-even press conference at Sepang Marc Marquez was still somewhat stunned by the attack from his rival. Rossi felt that Marquez had been holding back...

Lorenzo fastest at end of competitive day at Sepang

23 October 2015 by Steve English

Lorenzo fastest at end of competitive day at Sepang

The second session of the day was a thriller with Jorge Lorenzo, Dani Pedrosa, Marc Marquez and Andrea Iannone all showing that they are ready to fight at the front this weekend. With Valentino Rossi...

kent crashes, Oliviera fastest at end of day one

23 October 2015 by Steve English

kent crashes, Oliviera fastest at end of day one

A crash in the final ten minutes of the session cost Danny Kent track time and the chance of laying down a marker to the field in FP2. Having tucked the front at the hairpin on an in lap Kent was left...

How does a MotoGP rider keep cool in the Malaysian heat?

23 October 2015 by Steve English

How does a MotoGP rider keep cool in the Malaysian heat?

How does a MotoGP rider deal with the heat and humidity of Malaysia? Having spent time acclimatising to the conditions by running or cycling riders will give themselves an understanding of how they’ll...

Folger fastest from Zarco in Malaysia

23 October 2015 by Steve English

Folger fastest from Zarco in Malaysia

Jonas Folger led the way in the opening Moto2 practice session of the day with world champion Johann Zarco narrowly edged out by the German. The gap of 0.048s showed that it was competitive at the...

Pedrosa sets the pace in opening practice at Sepang

23 October 2015 by Steve English

Pedrosa sets the pace in opening practice at Sepang

Dani Pedrosa is looking to prove that his Phillip Island form was a blip and the Spaniard was a man on a mission in FP1 at Sepang to lead the way by two tenths of a second. Championship contender...

Kent tops times in opening Sepang session

23 October 2015 by Steve English

Kent tops times in opening Sepang session

Danny Kent left it late to put his stamp on the opening Moto3 practice session of the weekend but on his final lap the championship leader gave himself half a second margin over the field in FP1.

Gallery: 500 GP Legends at Jerez - just the bikes

22 October 2015 by MCN

Gallery: 500 GP Legends at Jerez - just the bikes

Not long ago we’d have laughed in your face at the idea of getting such a collection of blokes together on track – but it was just as much the bikes that held us spell-bound in the event. ll the...

Kent ready for the weekend

22 October 2015 by Steve English

Kent ready for the weekend

Danny Kent said that his “body was a bit sore for the couple of days” after his Philip Island crash but the Moto3 championship leader told MCN that he’s ready for this weekend and looking to take the...

Rossi: Marquez played with us in Phillip Island

22 October 2015 by Steve English

Rossi: Marquez played with us in Phillip Island

The press conference for this weekend’s Malaysian Grand Prix was possibly the most enthralling since Assen and once again it was Valentino Rossi and Marc Marquez who were at the centre of...

Lack of support for Tech3 riles Smith

22 October 2015 by Steve English

Lack of support for Tech3 riles Smith

The MotoGP world champion will ride a Yamaha in 2015 but speaking in Sepang Bradley Smith felt that the support being offered to Tech3 has left the French team forced to find solutions rather than get...

Hazy days in Malaysia causing concern

22 October 2015 by Steve English

Hazy days in Malaysia causing concern

With the haze from the Indonesian fires creating havoc in Malaysia the threat to this weekend’s Malaysian Grand Prix is clear but Dorna feel that, at the moment, there are no major issues and the race...

Bridgestone gets ready for Sepang

22 October 2015 by Steve English

Bridgestone gets ready for Sepang

With the team’s and Bridgestone having plenty of knowledge of the Sepang circuit following two pre-season tests this weekend’s Malaysian Grand Prix shouldn’t be defined by a fight to manage tyre wear...

Pics: Iannone hits the seagull!

20 October 2015 by Steve English

Pics: Iannone hits the seagull!

Andrea Iannone had one of the best races of his career on Sunday and from the start he was at the centre of attention having smashed into a seagull at the top of Lukey Heights. “The seagull was...

No regrets for Rossi after Australia

20 October 2015 by Steve English

No regrets for Rossi after Australia

Valentino Rossi said that he had no regrets after finishing fourth at the Australian Grand Prix. His title lead over Jorge Lorenzo was reduced to 11 points after a thrilling race at Phillip Island and...

Special win for Marquez at Phillip Island

20 October 2015 by Steve English

Special win for Marquez at Phillip Island

After Sunday’s stunning last lap victory at Phillip Island Marc Marquez said that it was a win that wa made even more special by it marking his 50th Grand Prix victory. His last lap recovery was one...

Australian GP Roundup

19 October 2015 by MCN

Australian GP Roundup

Was the Australian GP, as some are calling it, the Race of the Century? Well, maybe so. It’s not often you have four candidates for victory all the way to the end. Even less often that Jorge Lorenzo...

Marquez wins thrilling race at Phillip Island

18 October 2015 by Steve English

Marquez wins thrilling race at Phillip Island

Phillip Island always produces great racing and today was no exception. The podium fight between Marc Marquez, Jorge Lorenzo, Andrea Iannone and Valentino Rossi was one of the most thrilling that...

Rins takes second win of the season

18 October 2015 by Steve English

Rins takes second win of the season

Alex Rins took his second win of the season in dominant style at Phillip Island. The Spaniard was fast and consistent throughout the race and quickly opened a gap to Thomas Luthi and Sam Lowes once he...