The Race MotoGP Podcast

Two rounds into the 2025 MotoGP season and it’s a great year to be a Marquez. Almost everyone else has work to do.But who’s in most trouble?That’s the question Matt Beer posed to Simon Patterson and Val Khorounzhiy in the latest episode of The Race MotoGP Podcast. They didn’t disagree too much in their answers as they highlighted two manufacturers and one rider in particular who are disappointing, but Matt felt they were missing someone…Want more MotoGP podcast content? Sign up to our motorbike-only Riders tier on Patreon for our 2015 revisited series, ad-free listening and more. Head to Patreon.com/theraceFollow the Race Moto channel on Instagram and TwitterCheck out our latest videos on YouTubeDownload our app on iOS or Android Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Is a satellite rider about to win the MotoGP world championship (and prove The Race MotoGP Podcast's Simon Patterson very wrong)?It's advantage Jorge Martin heading into the Barcelona finale, but after a(nother) season of mad swings between Pramac Ducati rider Martin and factory rival Pecco Bagnaia can the decider really be that simple?At The Race Members' Club's request, we've created special championship finale 'Satellite riders can/can't win championships' T-shirts - click the links to buy them!Does Simon still predict a factory world champion? Find out in the season finale preview podcast as he, Val Khorounzhiy, Megan White and Matt Beer make their predictions for that and some other key fights in their wake.And our panel also attempts to summarise how we'll remember the massive 13 team/rider or team/factory partnerships that are about to end.Want more MotoGP podcast content? Sign up to our motorbike-only Riders tier on Patreon for that episode, ad-free listening and more. Head to Patreon.com/theraceFollow the Race Moto channel on Instagram and TwitterCheck out our latest videos on YouTubeDownload our app on iOS or Android Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

MotoGP’s 2027 rules reset has become even more seismic with the news the substantial technical regulation changes will coincide with Pirelli ousting Michelin as the series’ tyre supplier.Simon Patterson joins Matt Beer to explain all the implications for the championship, teams and riders, and to answer The Race Members’ Club’s questions about the potential consequences.We discuss what Pirelli’s work (and controversies) on the MotoGP ladder, in World Superbikes and even Formula 1 tells us about how its tyres might impact the quality and style of racing in MotoGP.Is the tyre change a guarantee of a wide open and competitive 2027 season? Simon reckons so - find out why on the pod.Want more MotoGP podcast content? Sign up to our motorbike-only Riders tier on Patreon for our 2015 revisited series, ad-free listening and more. Head to Patreon.com/therace for 90% of your first month!Follow the Race Moto channel on Instagram and TwitterCheck out our latest videos on YouTubeDownload our app on iOS or Android Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Race MotoGP Podcast's coverage of the 2025 launch season begins with a two-for-one special, covering the presentations of Aprilia and its satellite team Trackhouse.Val Khorounzhiy is joined by Simon Patterson on-site at Aprilia's event to discuss champion Jorge Martin's first public appearance as a fully-fledged Aprilia rider - which featured the confirmation that he will run the champion's #1 this year.Will Aprilia be enough for Martin, what does it need to take the next step, and how are the two parties looking as a combination? And is there already confidence that Marco Bezzecchi, another new Aprilia hire, will overcome the problems that wrote off his 2024?Plus, Simon explains why he found the Trackhouse launch alarming - while Val quizzes Davide Brivio on Trackhouse's faith in extracting Raul Fernandez's potential.Want more MotoGP podcast content? Sign up to our motorbike-only Riders tier on Patreon for that episode, ad-free listening and more. Head to Patreon.com/theraceFollow the Race Moto channel on Instagram and TwitterCheck out our latest videos on YouTubeDownload our app on iOS or Android Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Race MotoGP Podcast has a reputation for making bold predictions, and a record that varies between getting them spookily spot on and wildly way off the mark and not a lot in between.So how will Simon Patterson, Val Khorounzhiy, Megan White and Matt Beer's 2025 MotoGP predictions age?They answer questions suggested by the MotoGP Podcast community in The Race Members' Club on Patreon, and it's as much about how new team/rider relationships and cross-garage pairings will play out as it is about the final results on track.Want more MotoGP podcast content? Sign up to our motorbike-only Riders tier on Patreon for that episode, ad-free listening and more. Head to Patreon.com/theraceFollow the Race Moto channel on Instagram and TwitterCheck out our latest videos on YouTubeDownload our app on iOS or Android Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

MotoGP starts 2025 with huge uncertainty surrounding how long one of its most important manufacturers will be on its grid at all, as more details of KTM’s financial crisis repercussions emerged over the Christmas period.Val Khorounzhiy, Simon Patterson and Matt Beer explain the latest developments on The Race MotoGP Podcast, from the short-term picture with pre-season testing looming to why talk of a Lewis Hamilton rescue mission might be wildly off the mark, and the potential for a ‘delay the inevitable until it’s no longer inevitable’ strategy.Where Pedro Acosta, Brad Binder, Enea Bastianini and Maverick Vinales will go if there are no longer KTMs on the grid for them to ride or what KTM has become is untenable for them, how Dorna can avoid losing four bikes and exactly what it means for the MotoGP talent pipeline that KTM has been so integral to are all discussed too.Want more MotoGP podcast content? Sign up to our motorbike-only Riders tier on Patreon for that episode, ad-free listening and more. Head to Patreon.com/theraceFollow the Race Moto channel on Instagram and TwitterCheck out our latest videos on YouTubeDownload our app on iOS or Android Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Davide Brivio - architect of Yamaha's Valentino Rossi glory years and Suzuki' shock 2020 title - is back in MotoGP after his truncated Formula 1 detour, but he's not in the part of the field you might expect.In an exclusive chat with The Race MotoGP Podcast, Brivio explains why he picked newcomer Trackhouse Racing for his return to the motorcycle racing world, and what he hopes this NASCAR-to-MotoGP wildcard can achieve in both 2024 and beyond.And he also opens up for the first time on exactly why he thinks his switch to F1 with Alpine didn't work out.Join The Race Members Club and have a free month on us! Click here to sign upFollow the new Race Moto channel on Instagram and TwitterCheck out our latest videos on YouTubeDownload our app on iOS or Android Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Aprilia beat the brakes off MotoGP's usual dominant force Ducati in a fascinating 2026 season opener - so how worried should Ducati and star rider Marc Marquez be after a dispiriting Thai Grand Prix?Simon Patterson and Val Khorounzhiy discuss the chief storylines from Buriram, including the last-second deflation of a weekend Marquez looked to have salvaged, the source of Aprilia's dominance and a potential career-best weekend from new championship leader Pedro Acosta.Plus, why did Yamaha keep its riders from the media on Sunday - and how bad was its 2026 bike's competitive debut? And what of rookies Diogo Moreira and Toprak Razgatlioglu?Enjoy 90% off your first month with The Race Members' Club: Sign up to our motorbike-only Riders tier on Patreon for our 2015 revisited series, ad-free listening and more.Follow the Race Moto channel on ⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠Check out our latest videos on ⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This might not be the most unpredictable season MotoGP has ever gone into, but there is very good reason to expect a much more open and intriguing 2026 campaign compared to 2025 - as Simon Patterson, Val Khorounzhiy and Matt Beer explain on The Race MotoGP Podcast.Why some form of title fight is potentially on and who’ll be giving Marc Marquez the most headaches is our main topic, and we also make our predictions for who’ll make the biggest improvement over 2025 and who’ll go in the other direction.Plus Matt has a few ‘one-line-only answers’ curveball prediction questions for Simon and Val too.Enjoy 90% off your first month with The Race Members' Club: Sign up to our motorbike-only Riders tier on Patreon for our 2015 revisited series, ad-free listening and more.Follow the Race Moto channel on ⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠Check out our latest videos on ⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

MotoGP’s 2026 pre-season is over, so with the shakedown and two main tests complete and the season-opening Thai Grand Prix looming next weekend, who’s got most (and least) to smile about?Simon Patterson, Val Khorounzhiy and Matt Beer debate that as The Race MotoGP Podcast delves into both the data and the vibes from the final days of winter running.Enjoy a 7-day free trial to The Race Members' Club: Sign up to our motorbike-only Riders tier on Patreon for our 2015 revisited series, ad-free listening and more.Follow the Race Moto channel on ⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠Check out our latest videos on ⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

MotoGP is dropping one of its most iconic and beloved tracks as Phillip Island loses the Australian Grand Prix to the Adelaide street track. But is it really feasible to make Adelaide MotoGP-safe, and is the long game actually to take the race somewhere else entirely? Simon has some very strong views on it all.And as well as a circuit dropping out of MotoGP, we're also looking at which riders might be squeezed out (and who'll replace them) as we tackle the latest batch of The Race Members' Club's questions about the big 2027 moves and machinations.Enjoy a 7-day free trial to The Race Members' Club: Sign up to our motorbike-only Riders tier on Patreon for our 2015 revisited series, ad-free listening and more.Follow the Race Moto channel on ⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠Check out our latest videos on ⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Is Ducati taking a huge risk in potentially putting Pedro Acosta alongside Marc Marquez for 2027, especially when it still has Fermin Aldeguer on its books too?Why has Ducati never seemed interested in Fabio Quartararo? Would Pecco Bagnaia be making a huge mistake if he picked Yamaha over Aprilia?Those are just some of the many, many questions from The Race Members’ Club that Val Khorounzhiy, Simon Patterson and Matt Beer tackle as The Race MotoGP Podcast answers your queries and points about the headlines of the wild 2027 rider market so far.And we delve into the philosophy of the paddock deals and how they’re communicated too, exploring everything from how and why leaks to the media happen, what salaries different teams might offer and why riders and teams seem so determined to commit to long term contracts way earlier than appears sensible.Enjoy a 7-day free trial to The Race Members' Club: Sign up to our motorbike-only Riders tier on Patreon for our 2015 revisited series, ad-free listening and more.Follow the Race Moto channel on ⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠Check out our latest videos on ⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

MotoGP 2026 roared into life with the three-day pre-season test at Sepang, set against the backdrop of more and more dramatics on the rider market.The Race MotoGP Podcast panel of Matt Beer, Simon Patterson and Val Khorounzhiy delve into the testing action, with analysis of long run pace and peak laptimes and the feedback from teams and riders.Has Ducati successfully safeguarded its MotoGP dominance? Are Aprilia and Marco Bezzecchi the only credible threat? And how much can be read into Pecco Bagnaia and particularly Alex Marquez having the initial upper hand over champion Marc Marquez?Plus, what's the latest on Bagnaia's future - with him sounding increasingly resigned to a Ducati exit for 2027?We also check in on Yamaha, with its mid-test 'hiatus' eventually resolved and a performance picture starting to form, including for somewhat frustrated rookie Toprak Razgatlioglu.Enjoy a 7-day free trial to The Race Members' Club: Sign up to our motorbike-only Riders tier on Patreon for our 2015 revisited series, ad-free listening and more.Follow the Race Moto channel on ⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠Check out our latest videos on ⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The first days of 2026 MotoGP testing have been dominated by talk of who's going where for 2027. There's a LOT for Val Khorounzhiy, Simon Patterson and Matt Beer to unpack as The Race MotoGP Podcast dives into Fabio Quartararo, Jorge Martin, Pedro Acosta and Alex Marquez's big likely moves plus how Marc Marquez could blow it all apart and why Marco Bezzecchi just got married to a motorbike.Enjoy a 7-day free trial to The Race Members' Club: Sign up to our motorbike-only Riders tier on Patreon for our 2015 revisited series, ad-free listening and more.Follow the Race Moto channel on ⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠Check out our latest videos on ⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A pleasing but not-that-different MotoGP 2026 livery took centre stage in Ducati’s launch event ahead of its latest title defence - but there was a lot more to dig into from behind-the-scenes at its presentation.Senior figures shed some light on the hotly-anticipated GP26 and its main areas of design focus, while Marc Marquez offered a fresh update on his ongoing recovery from the shoulder injury that forced him out of the final races of 2025 and the post-season test.The big news, however, is that Ducati and Marquez are making no secret of the fact they’re moving fast on a new MotoGP contract - while the factory future of team-mate Pecco Bagnaia looks as open as ever.Enjoy a 7-day free trial to The Race Members' Club: Sign up to our motorbike-only Riders tier on Patreon for our 2015 revisited series, ad-free listening and more.Follow the Race Moto channel on ⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠Check out our latest videos on ⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

MotoGP is another step closer to the start of its 2026 campaign with the start of the ‘launch season’, with team presentation events held by Yamaha satellite team Pramac, Ducati satellite team VR46 and the works Aprilia team.Simon Patterson was on-site for all three across three days, and joins Valentin Khorounzhiy for a special edition of The Race MotoGP Podcast to discuss the teams’ presentations and outlooks for 2026.From Aprilia’s ongoing quest to find a title sponsor and admission that rival firms are chasing its riders with big-money offers, to Toprak Razgatlioglu’s debut in Pramac colours and VR46’s tweaked look, Simon and Val discuss the first MotoGP storylines of the year.Join The Race Members' Club: Sign up to our motorbike-only Riders tier on Patreon for our 2015 revisited series, ad-free listening and more.Follow the Race Moto channel on ⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠Check out our latest videos on ⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The 2026 MotoGP roster isn't all that different to how it looked last year - and the teams are all the same - but there's a lot of reason to feel differently about many of the pairings.The Race MotoGP Podcast panel of Matt Beer, Simon Patterson, Valentin Khorounzhiy and Megan White try to articulate those feelings - in the tried-and-tested form of a line-up ranking.They also discuss the news of a significant leg injury to Ducati sophomore Fermin Aldeguer on the eve of the season.Join The Race Members' Club: Sign up to our motorbike-only Riders tier on Patreon for our 2015 revisited series, ad-free listening and more.Follow the Race Moto channel on ⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠Check out our latest videos on ⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Our usual end-of-year tradition at The Race MotoGP Podcast continues in 2025, as we select our aggregate top 10 of the riders in the premier class this season.Did all the race winners make the cut? How do we grade Pecco Bagnaia's season? Who comes out on top in the insanely close fight for second? And is Marc Marquez a unanimous first? Plus, we discuss why Marquez's dominance hasn't resonated outside of MotoGP as much as it should have.Join The Race Members' Club: Sign up to our motorbike-only Riders tier on Patreon for our 2015 revisited series, ad-free listening and more.Follow the Race Moto channel on ⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠Check out our latest videos on ⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ahead of his MotoGP race debut in 2026, three-time World Superbike champion Toprak Razgatlioglu faces a weight of immediate expectation most rookies are spared from.Val Khorounzhiy is joined by Simon Patterson - who just spoke to Razgatlioglu at the FIM Awards end-of-year event in Lausanne - to discuss the Turk’s start to life in MotoGP, while we also hear from the man himself in one of the first interviews he’s given since beginning his premier-class test programme.What does Razgatlioglu expect in 2026? What is he currently working on? What does he make of the argent fan reaction to his controversial Jerez title showdown with his friend Nicolo Bulega - and what state does he leave World Superbikes in?Plus, we hear from the final-for-now MotoE champion Alessandro Zaccone and discuss why the series is not going into its eighth season next year.Join The Race Members' Club: Sign up to our motorbike-only Riders tier on Patreon for our 2015 revisited series, ad-free listening and more.Follow the Race Moto channel on ⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠Check out our latest videos on ⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The 2027 rule changes mean MotoGP riders and teams are going to have to take massive early punts with their next deals.It’s kicking off already with reports that Pedro Acosta’s camp is already angling to get him onto a factory Ducati, but that certainly won’t be the only pre-Christmas plotting going on.Simon Patterson, Val Khorounzhiy and Matt Beer convene on The Race MotoGP Podcast to discuss that Acosta/Ducati possibility, where the resurgent Honda fits into the rider market machinations and who we really think deserves nice sweet-handling Aprilia and a reassuring hug from Massimo Rivola.BLACK FRIDAY: Get 50% off your first month when you sign up to our motorbike-only Riders tier on Patreon for our 2015 revisited series, ad-free listening and more.Follow the Race Moto channel on ⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠Check out our latest videos on ⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.