Having been moved from Valencia due to flooding, the final round of the 2024 MotoGP championship series was held in Barcelona this weekend. The individual riders’ championship was decided at this final round.
Protecting a significant points lead, Jorge Martin (Ducati) rode smart and settled for a couple of third place finishes this weekend – enough to clinch the MotoGP championship with a 10 point margin over Pecco Bagnaia (Ducati), who relinquishes his title to Martin despite taking wins in both the Sprint on Saturday and the full race on Sunday. Fighting for third place in the championship, Enea Bastianini (Ducati) and Marc Marquez (Ducati) each took a second place at the Catalunya Circuit, with Bastianini second in Saturday’s Sprint and Marquez in the longer race on Sunday. Marquez edges out Bastianini for third place in the championship with a 6 point margin.
Tomorrow riders test their 2025 machines at the same circuit, where it will be interesting to see, for example, Martin on his new Aprilia and Bastianini on his new KTM. Stay tuned for a report on MD for this first test of the 2025 machinery.
For full results and points for Saturday’s Sprint race, visit the MotoGP site here. For full results and points for Sunday’s MotoGP race, visit the MotoGP site here.
I was happy to see Bastianini take third place in the championship away from Bumper Car Marquez on Saturday. Too bad he didn’t do well enough on Sunday to make it stick. It would have really made Ducati look pretty silly for letting the one and three guys go while keeping the two and four guys. They’re lucky to have developed such dominant bikes. Or next year would have more colorful finishes. Particularly with Yamaha seeming to get serious for next year.
It’s just so strange not having any Japanese bikes up front. You see Quartararo prove that he’s worth what they pay him once in a while. But little else.
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The only chance I see for any of the other factories next year is if Ducati fails to make a meaningful improvement to the GP25 and even then, they have to catch up with the GP24. This pretty much happened in 2023 when both years of the Ducati were nearly even and KTM & Aprilia were closer.
Some seem excited about the “reset” coming in 2027 but I don’t see how the parameters changing will alter the mix. Ducati is simply more committed.
I thought the Quartararo deal was strange. He really isn’t worth what they’re paying him because no matter how good he is, the bike is mid-pack. Why pay a guy 6m to ride an noncompetitive bike? Let him go somewhere he can be more competitive and pay someone else far less to do the losing while investing the money getting the bike right again.
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There was a time when you could have easily replaced Honda with Ducati in your first paragraph and been equally accurate. But look at Honda now. Or look at Ducati fifteen years ago.
The changes for 2027 are meaningless and I predict that nobody will like any of them. They are not really changes. They are just new limits to what is still going to be there.
It’ll never happen. But I feel the races would be much better If they just raced motorcycles again.
Spark, fuel and regular bodywork. But look at the market now days. Modes, precious modes. They add 16 pounds to a 24 year old dirt bike to give it modes and call it a upgrade. It isn’t the best of times, it’s the worst of times. Modes do not a good motorcycle make. A good motorcycle’s mode is designed in. Adding modes to a haphazardly designed motorcycle to make the best of it is lipstick on a pig. Ducati is fortunate in that they can make a nice pig and slather on some really nice lipstick. Seen Bumper Car’s new bike? Looks pretty nice for a sciance fiction book refuge doesn’t it?
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This era of MotoGP contradicts the notion that simpler = better. Even with Ducati’s domination last year, the racing is closer and more competitive than it has ever been. Yamaha and Honda’s being “totally noncompetitive” has them finishing much closer to the front than any of the other brands could manage back when they were on top. In the 500cc 2T era half the field would be lapped by the leaders. Last place finishes on the lead lap now.
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Lest we forget and look at the past too fondly.
Let us please forget to cherry pick the past for those times that we didn’t like.
i miss supercharged beemers and dustbin v-8s w/ 8 sets of points.
“Let us please forget to cherry pick the past for those times that we didn’t like.”
As a racing fan I’ve liked it all but there have been better and worse periods. Admittedly the worst was earlier in the 4T era, when only 3 bikes were win competitive and the starting grid dwindled to less than a dozen bikes, culminating in the “CRT” pack-fill bikes. To Dorna’s credit they righted the ship and set a path that’s allowed 3 brands to rise to competitiveness, even if it’s at the legacy brand’s expense (for now..).
You guys will never sell me on this stuff. GP500 was pure man and machine. Sure the 500cc limit lasted a bit longer than the tires and chassis technology allowed. But the industry wanted to sex up its obsolete equipment because that’s what they’re selling. Even all these years later the street bikes bikes are gaining weight faster than celibate people living on wedding cake. There is nothing to keep the manufacturers honest. Look no further than the so called adventure market. Yeah right. The world needs a zillion 500 and up pound dirt looking bikes for fools to ride to places where they either crash hopelessly or call for a tow truck when reality rears its ugly head.
I know that perhaps I lead a life “too” free from advertising and am therefore a little out of touch. Sorry for being reality based.
But really? You want to compare lap times with lower revving ignition only 500s to 1000cc techocycles with insane clown electronic aids everywhere? Yeah right. Thanks for admitting you need a absolutely huge handicap to make my point.
Just a reminder. Even all these years later these insanely expensive lawn mower engines are make roughly three hundred horsepower per liter. The old 500s made around four hundred horsepower per liter and wiil always and forever have less gyro, inertia and weight. Game, set and match.
But that’s not my point. My point is that the 500gp was an ideal to strive for. It spawned the sportbikes craze. Lighter, faster, more power dense. What has MotoGP done for street bikes? Weight reduction is a thing of the past most of the bikes are 500 pounds and up. The market is now either small displacement, yet still surprisingly heavy, budget but heavy to sex up the premium bikes, or high horsepower leviathans with a case of beer weight worth to electronics to keep the poorly skilled masses alive with their rocket powered space cycles.
I get it. I have gone to some effort to avoid being advertised to. But I never thought that advertising would eventually warp the perception reality itself. I mean really. Look at the bulk of the street bike market. This is 2024? All the dreams I had of the bikes of the future have been dashed by the vanilla and lard creations of the present. Thanks MotoGP. Thanks for selling people on the insane idea that electronics packages could substitute for engineering excellence. I got four words for that. Not one thin dime.
Anxiously awaiting the great reset but in the mean time at least they’re getting rid of some of the techy stuff. Unless Aprilia improves a lot and Ducati does not, Martin won’t even be in the top 3. Also hoping Yamaha comes out with a banger V4 so Fabio (who is as good a rider as any of this year’s top 3) a real chance to compete.
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Very well deserved win for Martin, very consistent all year, taking points as they came. Wonder how he’ll do on the Apillia next year. Afraid hes going to make Vinales look real bad.
Pecco just had too many DNFs. Amazing he only finished what was it 10 points behind?
Those two were certainly the cream of the crop this year.
I think it will come down to Pecco or Marquez next year.
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Agreed, Jorge “fixed” whatever issues caused his inconsistency before. Pecco’s boogeyman was the sprint races. If he had scored any points at all in his several DNF’s, he’d be champion again but instead he gave Martin control, allowing him to settle for 2nd and 3rd instead of doing more desperate things to win.
The whole series will look different next year. Two of the best riders off of the best bikes, The championship winning team switching from Ducati to Yamaha, etc. My hope is that the GP25 Ducati is less improved than the GP24 was and we can return to action like we saw in 2023 when there were more win capable bikes and antagonists each weekend.
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Martin, as mentioned on other websites, hired a “mental” coach, to help him concentrate on race day. That Pecco fell the few times, making the difference in points, only shows that MM93 isnt the only one on the edge. Poor Honda, when MM93 left, not only did they not have a good rider, but without him over riding the machine, keeping it competitive, they didnt have a competitive machine either. Zarco’s pole, but only for a few min in qualifying last race, shows they are working on it, lets hope for an exciting next year.
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I was surprised to find that Martin’s career has been a real struggle since his youth. The guy is a real rags to riches the hard way guy. Good on him. Too bad his history seems to repeat itself forever. First guy ever to win a private team championship is snubbed and made to fend for himself. If you grow up as a have not, you stay a have not. Europe baby. Be born wealthy in it or just be happy where you are.
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I think Martin’s snub was just a marketing R.O.I. decision. Now that Marquez is win capable again it’s a high likelihood that the red bikes will be 1-2 most races. That would’ve also been the case with Jorge but Marquez is just has a much bigger “brand” and racing is a marketing exercise at the end of the day.
Martin won the world championship which is something most riders never get close to. He’ll be ok.