Francesco Bagnaia – 10

After making the perfect start from P4, Bagnaia had no answer for Jorge Martin and Miguel Oliveira in the sprint, settling for third after holding team-mate Enea Bastianini at bay. On course for second in the main race, Bagnaia saw his eyes light up when Martin crashed out of top spot.

Marc Marquez – 9.5

A nightmare exit in Q1 was saved by a brilliant comeback ride to sixth in the sprint. Marquez was dealing with bruised ribs and a fractured finger throughout Saturday’s action. Marquez was nothing short of superb in the grand prix, achieving second place despite damage to his screen which was caused by a collision with Franco Morbidelli at turn one.

Alex Marquez – 9

A strong weekend for Alex Marquez didn’t quite lead into the sprint race as he sturggled to hold onto his original grid slot. The Gresini rider eventually finished ninth. His best result of the season, Marquez was brilliant as he secured P3 just behind his brother.

Enea Bastianini – 8

Following a strong sprint race recovery, Bastianini again had good late race pace although he had no answer for Marquez who powered away from Morbidelli and himself when battling for P4.

Franco Morbidelli – 8.5

One of his best performances since joining Ducati, Franco Morbidelli won the battle between himself, Marc Marquez and Maverick Vinales in the sprint to finish P5. Running as high as second in the main race, Morbidelli was an early contender for the win as he produced a brilliant move on Bagnaia for second. However, the Italian faded slightly as the race went on but not enough to slip out of the top five.

Miguel Oliveira – 8.5

By far his best showing of the 2024 season, Miguel Oliveira built on his strong qualifying by securing a well deserved P2 in the sprint. Despite dropping out of podium contention shortly after mid-race distance, Oliveira was at his best for much of the race and provided the only non-Ducati challenge.

Pedro Acosta – 7

A difficult weekend ended with Acosta managing to finish as the top KTM yet again. Last in the sprint following a mistake, Acosta grew into the grand prix as he claimed a very solid P7.

Marco Bezzecchi – 6.5

After moving through Q1 at the expense of Marc Marquez, Marco Bezzecchi ended his German MotoGP with another solid showing as he moved from 12th to eighth.

Brad Binder – 5.5

KTM’s struggles persisted over the German MotoGP weekend and Brad Binder suffered as a result. Early contact with Marc Marquez on lap one did little to disturb the South African who was three tenths down on Acosta at the checkered flag.

Raul Fernandez – 6

Unlike his team-mate Oliveira, Raul Fernandez didn’t have the race pace to stay in the points during the sprint as he rapidly slipped through the field. Fernandez suffered similar issues in the grand prix although his slide down the order was not as noticeable.

Fabio Quartararo – 6

A very solid showing from Fabio Quartararo on a weekend where the Yamaha was off the pace compared to its rivals.

Maverick Vinales – 5

After topping Friday practice, Maverick Vinales suffered two big falls prior to the sprint including a massive highside at turn ten which hindered his performance in the race. In the main race Vinales was inside the top ten before making a mistake at turn seven which resulted in him dropping out of contention.

Jack Miller – 4

Jack Miller’s tough 2024 season continued in Germany as he managed to hold off Augusto Fernandez, the problem though, was that the battle took place for P13.

Augusto Fernandez – 3.5

During practice Augusto Fernandez showed some promise for the GASGAS Tech 3 team, however, that didn’t translate into either race.

Takaaki Nakagami – 4

The top Honda rider, Nakagami delivered a strong performance to beat Luca Marini by less than half a tenth to score the final point.

Luca Marini – 4

A much improved weekend for Marini who managed to out-pace team-mate Joan Mir on multiple occasions.

Johann Zarco – 4

Not the weekend Johann Zarco would have been hoping for as he struggled for pace throughout.

Stefan Bradl – 4.5

After receiving a grid penalty for blocking Marc Marquez in Q1, Bradl put it behind him as he surprisingly finished ahead of Mir.

Joan Mir – 3

A weekend to forget for the Spaniard as the 2020 world champion was extremely quiet throughout the grand prix.

Remy Gardner – 4.5

Although Gardner was last in the race, Remy Gardner showed glimpses of potential in his stand-in ride for Alex Rins.

Jorge Martin – 5

After momentarily losing the lead in the sprint, Jorge Martin put a swift end to Francesco Bagnaia’s five-race winning streak as he overtook the world champion on lap two before taking a comfortable win. But in the grand prix it was a different story for the former championship leader, as he crashed from the lead with two laps to go. A mistake that will haunt Martin and could be vital at the end of the season handed Bagnaia the win. 

Fabio Di Giannantonio – 6

A big crash at turn one on Friday meant Fabio Di Giannantonio was riding with a big injury to his right shoulder. But the Italian put it behind him to impress in qualifying before dropping back in the sprint. During the grand prix Di Giannantonio was forced to retire due to a mechanical issue.

Francesco Bagnaia has been handed a grid penalty for obstructing Alex Marquez during Friday practice for his home Italian MotoGP.

Marquez gestured angrily at the reigning double world champion after being held up in the closing stages, with the incident immediately placed under investigation by the FIM Stewards.

Bagnaia went on to comfortably lead the session, with Marquez in eighth place, meaning both progressed directly to Saturday’s Qualifying 2.

But on Friday evening, the MotoGP Stewards announced their verdict: Bagnaia received a 3-place grid penalty for Sunday’s grand prix after ‘riding slow online [and] disturbing another rider #73 at Turn 12’.

Under the ‘penalty protocol’ issued to teams, the 3-place punishment reflects that the incident occurred during the last 20 minutes of practice (when riders are seeking progression into Q2) but also that it was Bagnaia’s first offence.

An appeal against the penalty was rejected by the FIM Appeal Stewards, who ‘confirmed the decision of the MotoGP Stewards panel’.

Before the decision, Alex Marquez said: “He was slow in the middle of the line and I was improving my lap time. So for me, it’s really clear. He didn’t turn [to look] at any time to see who was coming.

“I was on a hot lap, and he was completely in the middle [of the track]. Penalty or not, we will see.

“But after that incident, he went into the box. And when you are going into the box, you need to take care about the riders coming fast behind you.”

Bagnaia: Penalty would be ‘ridiculous’

Immediately after the session Bagnaia, seeking his third Mugello victory in a row, brushed off the incident and labelled the #73 “a great showman” for his on-track reaction.

“[It was] Nothing… I was braking out of the [racing] line,” said Bagnaia. “He’s a great showman, for sure. It’s useless to do some [gestures] like this. But it makes a good show.

“In case, I receive a penalty for that… [it would] be ridiculous. I’m waiting but I don’t think I will receive a penalty.”

Alex’s older brother and Gresini Ducati team-mate Marc is currently in contention to join Bagnaia at the factory Ducati team in 2025, although title leader Jorge Martin is increasingly tipped to get the ride. 

Bagnaia is currently 39 points behind Martin, who was seventh fastest on Friday.

Francesco Bagnaia has been handed a grid penalty for obstructing Alex Marquez during Friday practice for his home Italian MotoGP.

Marquez gestured angrily at the reigning double world champion after being held up in the closing stages, with the incident immediately placed under investigation by the FIM Stewards.

Bagnaia went on to comfortably lead the session, with Marquez in eighth place, meaning both progressed directly to Saturday’s Qualifying 2.

But on Friday evening, the Stewards announced their verdict: Bagnaia received a 3-place grid penalty for Sunday’s grand prix after ‘riding slow online [and] disturbing another rider #73 at Turn 12’.

Under the ‘penalty protocol’ issued to teams, the 3-place punishment reflects that the incident occurred during the last 20 minutes of practice (when riders are seeking progression into Q2) but also that it was Bagnaia’s first offence.

Before the decision, Alex Marquez said: “He was slow in the middle of the line and I was improving my lap time. So for me, it’s really clear. He didn’t turn [to look] at any time to see who was coming.

“I was on a hot lap, and he was completely in the middle [of the track]. Penalty or not, we will see.

“But after that incident, he went into the box. And when you are going into the box, you need to take care about the riders coming fast behind you.”

Bagnaia: Penalty would be ‘ridiculous’

Immediately after the session Bagnaia, seeking his third Mugello victory in a row, brushed off the incident and labelled the #73 “a great showman” for his on-track reaction.

“[It was] Nothing… I was braking out of the [racing] line,” said Bagnaia. “He’s a great showman, for sure. It’s useless to do some [gestures] like this. But it makes a good show.

“In case, I receive a penalty for that… [it would] be ridiculous. I’m waiting but I don’t think I will receive a penalty.”

Alex’s older brother and Gresini Ducati team-mate Marc is currently in contention to join Bagnaia at the factory Ducati team in 2025, although title leader Jorge Martin is increasingly tipped to get the ride. 

Bagnaia is currently 39 points behind Martin, who was seventh fastest on Friday.

Alex Marquez laughed off suggestions that he could share insight with his brother Marc Marquez about their bike.

Marc has followed Alex from Honda to Gresini for this season, pairing the siblings in an exciting duo in the Ducati satellite team.

Perhaps Marc’s adaptation, after 11 years with the same manufacturer, could be smoother if his brother shared secrets of the bike that he has used for the past year?

“He’s too close,” Alex insisted after the three-day MotoGP Sepang test.

“He doesn’t need help!”

Marc’s first day in Sepang was somewhat scuppered by a series of minor technical problems.

“He lost, completely, the first day,” Alex said.

“When you lose the first day, here in Sepang? The second day, you are delayed.

“This was his second day, I would say, of testing. He’s too close to us!”

Ominously the third and final day concluded with Marc sixth-fastest, +0.588s behind the leader Francesco Bagnaia.

But notably Alex went quicker – fourth-fastest overall on Thursday – and +0.256s behind Bagnaia.

Alex reflected on his three-day test in Sepang: “Yes, a good time attack. In the box they are happy.

“It’s not a realistic lap time because there was a lot of rubber on track.

“In the test, always, you take conclusions [with a pinch of salt].

“We did a sprint simulation with a different set-up, different electronics.

“Because I was not happy with traction control on the ‘23 bike. So we tried a few things.

“The most positive thing was to understand the problems that we had in the sprint race, so we arrive in Qatar more ready.

“It was a solid three days. I’m happy with how we work in the box.”

How much work does Alex’s side of the Gresini garage have to do, before the season begins?

“The technicians always have ideas,” he replied.

“They would do, every day, 80 laps! But physically, on the bike, you need to stop.

“Zero to five, I am four-and-a-half happy with the package that we have.”

Alex enjoyed his best season in the premier class last season after swapping LCR Honda for Gresinu Ducati.

Now joined by his esteemed brother, they will team together for the first time since the ill-fated 2020 season when their alliance ended prematurely due to Marc’s injury.

Before the 2024 MotoGP season begins in Qatar on March 8-10, there is a two-day test in the same place which is the final opportunity to prepare.

The launch ceremony, being held at the Cocoricò disco in Riccione, Italy, starts at 17:00 CET.

Gresini’s MotoE and Moto2 teams will be first on stage, at 17:30, before the Marquez brothers take over the limelight at 18:30.

Gresini has raced in a distinctive light blue and red livery for the last two seasons, without a title sponsor.

But will that change with the arrival of eight-time world champion Marquez? Watch below to find out…

After enduring a two-year winless streak, Marc Marquez sensationally walked out of the final year of a big-money Repsol Honda contract to join Gresini and ride a title-winning Ducati this season.

The 59-time premier-class race winner, who like brother Alex will race 2023 Desmosedici machinery, has signed a one-year deal with the satellite team, which has won five races in the past two seasons courtesy of former riders Enea Bastianini (4) and Fabio di Giannantonio (1).

Arriving at Gresini last year, Alex took two Sprint wins, two podiums and a pole on his way to a career-best ninth in the world championship.

Like Marc, who was fourth quickest on his Ducati debut at the Valencia test, Alex will set his sights on victory after several potential chances in 2023, including finishing runner-up by just 1.5s to Bastianini at Sepang.

The duo’s racing colours were presented during a team launch at the Cocoricò disco in Riccione, Italy, on Saturday night, not far from the scene of Marc’s most recent MotoGP victory at Misano in 2021.

The latest livery is a continuation of the same light blue and red colours used by Gresini for the last two seasons, during which they have won five race wins with former riders Enea Bastianini (4 in 2022) and Fabio di Giannantonio (1 in 2023).

Despite Marc Marquez’s presence, there is still no title sponsor (or any Red Bull team branding, only a continuation of personal sponsorship deals). Alex has a blue #73 on the front of his bike, with Marc’s famous #93 in red.

The Marquez brothers, like VR46 riders Marco Bezzecchi and Fabio di Giannantonio, will race year-old GP23 machines, while world champion Francesco Bagnaia, factory team-mate Bastianini and Pramac riders Jorge Martin and Franco Morbidelli get the latest GP24.

Without a race victory since September 2021, Marc Marquez finally lost patience with Honda during another punishing year in which he suffered a record 29 falls and, although the top RCV in the standings (14th), achieved just a single rostrum.

Alex’s instant jump in form after joining Gresini last season and familiarity with the team environment surely played a big part in Marc’s shock decision and much has been made of the smile on the 30-year-old’s face after his first Desmosedici laps at Valencia last November.

The #93 finished a close fourth fastest at the test and is already the bookies’ favourite for the 2024 title, although he insists it’s pointless to think of such an historic achievement until he is winning races again.

“Of course, it’s a new chapter, especially in my career. The project is exciting and motivation is super high, but I also feel especially calm,” Marquez has said of his new challenge.

“I made a very important decision. I chose a way and we will see if it’s the good one or not in the future, but the project is to try to find again that motivation and that racing spirit in the races, and fight for a good position.”

“I’m like a child with new shoes, as we say in Spain!” Marquez said at the launch. “I won a lot but the last 3-4 years have been hard for me. Having fun again on the bike [was my priority] and Gresini was the only one that waited for me.

“Let’s have an amazing year, but ‘if you eat too fast, you don’t feel well’… The expectation is high but I know I have to work tirelessly to do what we can do.”

2024 will be Alex’s fifth year in the premier class, having made his debut alongside Marc at Repsol Honda in 2020, when his brother was sidelined after the Jerez openers due to the arm injury that would dog his career until mid-2022.

This time around it is Marc joining Alex’s team, with the #73 switching to Gresini last year after two miserable seasons at LCR.

The 27-year-old celebrated two Sprint wins, two Grand Prix podiums and a pole position on his way to ninth in the standings on the Desmosedici, despite missing India, Japan and Indonesia due to rib fractures.

“I know what Marc’s been through since 2020. I knew what he needed. I talked to him as a brother and then he chose [Gresini],” Alex said at the launch. “It’s a dream for me to be team-mates again.”

“This is a historic disco where I used to come when I was 20 years old to dance!” said Nadia Padovani, Gresini Racing team owner and wife of the late Fausto Gresini, of the launch location.

“An independent team with an eight-time champion and ten world championships between both our riders is crazy! We would never have imagined!

“We had contact [with Marc] but clearly he had a contract with Honda, so we couldn’t take it for granted. We waited until October and finally got the result we wanted.

“We can’t wait to be on track and see how far we can go this year.”

The Marquez brothers will take to the track in their 2024 livery during the official Sepang test from February 6-8, Marc having used a black and red test livery at Valencia last November.

Gresini is the first MotoGP team to present its 2024 livery. Ducati Lenovo, VR46 Ducati and Trackhouse Aprilia will hold their team launches over the coming week.

On Saturday 20 January from Riccione, Italy, from 6.30pm local time (that’s 5.30pm in the UK), we will be given the first glance at the Marquez brothers’ bike.

We will have all the latest images of the bike, and every word that the Marquez brothers say, on Crash.net.

It will be the first livery launch of the 2024 MotoGP season.

And crucially, it will be another opportunity to catch Marc Marquez in his new surroundings.

His Ducati debut at the postseason Valencia test has already sent shivers down the spines of many MotoGP fans, as he hinted at pace which could propel him back into title contention this year.

He ended an 11-year association with Honda a year before the conclusion of his contract, so he could join his brother, who made a similar move a year ago, in the Gresini box.

The Marquez brothers will ride year-old Desmosedicis this year, while the factory Ducati duo and Pramac riders step onto the latest-spec bikes.

As the likes of Pecco Bagnaia and Jorge Martin get to grips with a new machine, it may afford Marquez an early opportunity to make an early impact when the season begins.

“For sure, we start with already one year of data so it will be crucial for us to be at the maximum from the first race,” team manager Michele Masini said.

The three-day preseason test in Sepang starts on February 6, before the first round of the 2024 MotoGP season begins in Qatar from March 8.

The eight Ducatis on the 2024 MotoGP grid will be double the quantity of the Aprilias, KTMs and Hondas.

Although Ducati must face the brunt of new concessions rules this year, their policy to share data among eight riders (which will now include Marc Marquez) can lead to an edge in performance.

“Sharing data is an advantage and disadvantage at the same time,” Alex Marquez said to AS. 

“You can have a lot of information and references, but you can get confused. 

“You become obsessed with comparing one person to another. 

“My experience is to always use the same two as references. Pecco Bagnaia and Jorge Martin are the ones I paid most attention to last year. 

“They are different riding styles and you have to understand it.”

With Gresini, the Marquez brothers will be equipped with year-old Ducatis (so the same bike which Bagnaia and Martin battled over the title with last season).

They first jumped on a ‘23 Desmosedici at the postseason Valencia test, while the factory and Pramac riders tried the latest-spec bike.

“The character of the engine is different, above all,” was Alex Marquez’s feedback.

“I noticed a little more power, and also the aerodynamics, which made the bike a little more agile, especially with the wind that it had in the test. 

“But it wasn’t that big a step either. 

“We already saw it during the season that several bikes from 2022 won races, so let’s hope that there is not a big jump in 2024 either so that we can continue fighting for races.”

Alex outlined his season target: “Win ​​races? Why not? 

“Winning races or being on the podium is the goal. 

“Last year there were better or worse moments, but we always pushed. 

“And this year if we continue working and being consistent we can achieve it. 

“In Malaysia it narrowly escaped, because Bastianini was very fast that weekend, but in a second year with the same bike it will be easier.”

He will share the box with brother Marc for the first time since the opening months of 2020, a period cut short by the eight-time world champion’s injury.

“Removing what happened in 2020, it is a second chance, but above all arriving in a very different situation,” Alex said. 

“At that time I was a rookie and Marc was fighting for the championship, so we were in very different situations. 

“This year I can take more advantage of having a rider like Marc, who is fast and I already have experience in the category. 

“Unity is strength and my experience in both Moto3 and Moto2 is that when I have had a strong partner I have had my best years. 

“When a team has two strong riders sharing information, without going overboard because you can get mixed up, it can help. 

“So, in my case, and for the team, having a rider like Marc can be very beneficial.

“It’s my second year on this team and we have to continue the evolution. 

“Get off to a good start, which makes it more enjoyable. 

“I am looking forward to preseason and testing in Malaysia. We finished the year very well and we have to start it well, but there are no expectations now. It is too early. Low profile. To improve consistency and to be more solid…”

On the other, having a year-old bike means the opening rounds of this season might offer some of his best chances of success.

While Gresini and VR46 can call upon set-up data used by last year’s factory riders to hit the ground running, the official teams will start the year with unfamiliar new parts.

But once such new parts are better understood, and as other developments arrive, the year-old riders will face a bigger performance gap.

Since switching from Aprilia to Ducati in 2022, the opening rounds of the season have been fruitful for Gresini.

Enea Bastianini blasted to victory on his Gresini debut at the 2022 Qatar opener, one of three wins from the first seven races. Replacement Alex Marquez then claimed a debut Desmosedici podium in only his second grand prix for the team, in Argentina last year.

“I don’t know [what the gap between the GP24 and GP23 will be], but we have to reach the maximum with what we have,” Masini said. “For sure, we start with already one year of data so it will be crucial for us to be at the maximum from the first race.”

Round four at COTA in mid-April is likely to be among the early rounds circled on Marquez’s calendar, having been beaten just twice at the Texan track since 2013.

Meanwhile, Masini isn’t concerned that the new restrictions placed on Ducati by the concession ranking system will hurt the Italian factory too much.

“We will compete with the [2023] World Champion bike,” he said. “I know this [new concessions] is a difficult matter to manage and for sure I don’t really like it, because I think that the Ducati engineers deserve a gold medal for their work.

“But we have to see. For sure Ducati will work hard again because also when you win the championship you have to never rest and continue to develop the bike. So I trust in the Ducati engineers to keep making greater and greater bikes.”

Gresini will become the first MotoGP team to unveil its 2024 race livery on Saturday, January 20.

That win, the 59th of Marquez’s illustrious career, came at the Emilia-Romagna round, at Misano, on October 24th, 2021.

Since then, he’s made just two podium appearances, at Phillip Island 2022 and Motegi 2023.

The persistent drought eventually prompted Marquez to rip up the final year of his Repsol Honda contract and join younger brother Alex on a year-old Ducati at Gresini this season.

Alex, whose own Gresini move transformed his MotoGP fortunes last season, has no doubts about Marc’s level, although he warned the #93 to ‘take care’ at the beginning of the season.

“I don’t have any doubts that he will achieve the level because he already showed it,” said Alex, who took two Sprint wins and two Grand Prix podiums during his best MotoGP season to date last year.

“Of course, he needs to take care at the beginning of the season because there are a lot of Ducati riders with more experience than him with this bike.

“He can be a bit stronger, see if he can score good points in the first few races and make a season stepping forward, then he’ll be in the fight.

“But it’s too early at the moment to have any expectations.”

The #73 added: “He made a very important change in his career. He knew he had a great opportunity to go back to the top level, but it will also be his first year on a Ducati, on a new bike, so for sure he will have some ups and downs.

“In the pre-season he will see what he needs to improve more, if he struggles or not, if the strong points he had on last year’s bike [Honda] are also useful in this bike [Ducati]…

“For sure, he’ll be fast and will put the rest of us in difficulties. Anyway, it will be great to see how far he is going with this new bike.”

The eight time world champion, who broke into a big smile ‘of relief’ on his way to fourth fastest on his Desmosedici debut at the Valencia test, will return to the track alongside his brother during official testing at Sepang from February 6-8.

But what will happen if the Gresini team-mates find themselves fighting for victory the final lap of a race this year?

“If we’re fighting, we’re fighting…” laughed Marc.

“Yeah, exactly!” said Alex. “It’s like this. Well, I’m sure you have a little more respect. Maybe not respect, but you will overtake and think: “Ok, if I make any mistake, I better leave some room to let him go” or something like that.

“But in the end, if you’re on track fighting for a victory, you just try to find the best way for yourself.”

“I agree with that,” added Marc, notoriously ruthless in battle. “Of course, overtaking on the last lap is always critical, even if it’s your brother or any other rider, but if he is also your team-mate, you have to be extra careful with the situation.

“We showed in 2022 that if we were fighting for a seventh position, it wasn’t even for a victory, we fought each other like if it was with any other rider, and this is also important, the spirit.

“Because in the end he’s my brother and my team-mate but also another opponent.”

Alex felt several victory chances slipped through his fingers last year, but Marc advised the former Moto3 and Moto2 world champion to focus on consistency.

“For me, Alex already showed last season that he can fight for victory. Now, the most difficult thing or the most important thing is trying to understand if he can be constantly in that position or if he has some ups and downs,” Marc said.

“His clear target is trying to be in the top eight or six on every race, that would be good. Of course, if he can fight for more, it will be welcome, but it’s better to have low expectations now because we still have to make the pre-season and, after that, you will be able to realise more which goal you can approach to.

“The second part of last season from Alex, after his injury in India, was super good. He was fighting for victory in Malaysia, he won two sprint races and he was constantly on the front two rows (of the grid), on qualifying sessions too, also racing with the top five…

“So it will be good for me to have a team-mate like him in order to learn how to ride the Ducati.”

The Marquez brothers will unveil their 2024 Gresini race livery on January 20th.