Following a record-breaking weekend across the pond in Austin, Bezzecchi and Aprilia Racing land on Spanish soil flying high at the summit of MotoGP. Five wins in a row. 121 consecutive laps led. Domination. The Italian combination, on Sundays at least, have been unstoppable so far in 2026, as Bez goes in search of stretching that streak out further behind enemy lines. And on Saturdays? Read on…
Why enemy lines? Bezzecchi is a popular winner, but the 100,000+ Spanish faithful will be cheering on their own – and one dons the same colours as Bezzecchi. Jorge Martin’s return to form has been one of the stories of the season so far, and after picking up a Tissot Sprint gold medal to go with another Sunday podium in Texas, the 2024 World Champion arrives in Jerez full of confidence. Bezzecchi might have won all three Grands Prix this season, but the #89 is only four points adrift in the championship. The inter-team battle between the factory Aprilia stars is set to be reignited in Andalucia, and it’s those pair who will land at MotoGP’s Spanish cathedral with targets on their back.
In the American part of the Aprilia stable, heartbreak was the name of the game on Sunday afternoon when it comes to Ai Ogura (Trackhouse MotoGP Team) too. That maiden MotoGP rostrum seemed to be being reeled in by the Japanese rider before a technical issue struck, so the 2024 Moto2 World Champion will aim to produce the same speed in Jerez. On the other side of the box, Raul Fernandez goes hunting for a podium return on his home turf after a quiet but consistent COTA weekend.
CHIEF OF THE CHASERS: Acosta & KTM
Brazil might not have sprung any headline-grabbing points, but Pedro Acosta (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) was back to his best in Austin. Yes, that wait for a Sunday win goes on, but Acosta was best of the rest on Sunday behind the Aprilias, and the #37 would have been celebrating a double podium if it wasn’t for a post-Sprint tyre pressure penalty. 21 points is the gap to Bezzecchi, and a first Sunday MotoGP podium in Jerez will be craved.
The silver lining to Acosta’s tyre pressure penalty for KTM? Enea Bastianini (Red Bull KTM Tech3) was the rider promoted to bronze. ‘The Beast’ was on the podium prowl in Austin, so can that form continue into Jerez? Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing), meanwhile, was P12 in the USA, so the South African will be hoping a return to Europe can be a turning point in bringing him back towards the front. Unfortunately, we now know that Maverick Viñales (Red Bull KTM Tech3) won't be back in the fray just yet, with Le Mans the new target after he was sidelined in Austin with a literal screw loose from his 2025 shoulder injury. Tech3 will field only Bastianini after a hand injury has also sidelined replacement rider Pol Espargaro.
SEARCHING FOR A RESPONSE: Marc Marquez & Ducati
You’d have got unfavourable odds on Marc Marquez (Ducati Lenovo Team) landing at his home Grand Prix with two Tissot Sprint medals and zero Sunday podiums to his name. However, that’s the situation the #93 finds himself in. 36 points is the deficit to Bezzecchi ahead of Round 4, and after a dramatic US GP, the seven-time MotoGP World Champion sets his sights on a first Sunday victory of 2026. 2019 was the last time Marc Marquez won at the Spanish GP, so can he and Ducati turn the tide and get his title defence properly up and running?
Up and running isn’t the name of the game on the other side of the red box either. Despite a Saturday silver medal in the USA, Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team) suffered in Sunday’s Grand Prix to see the Italian sit P9 in the standings heading to a circuit he won at in 2022, 2023, and 2024. A repeat would be a treat. A podium will be the objective.
Leading the Ducati fleet into Jerez is the Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team’s Fabio Di Giannantonio. The back-to-back polesitter hasn’t finished outside the top six on Sunday this season and has now finished as the top Ducati in the last two Grands Prix. Continuing that record will be tough going in Jerez considering Marc Marquez’s prowess, Bagnaia’s history and Alex Marquez (BK8 Gresini Racing MotoGP) being last year’s winner at the Circuit, but it wouldn’t be a shock either. Diggia is on a roll.
The aforementioned Alex Marquez sits P8 in the standings ahead of a return to the scene of his dream debut MotoGP win. Without a top three across the Sprints and GPs so far in 2026, the #73 seeks a resurgence in Spain – and so does Franco Morbidelli (Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team) after the Italian’s P14 in Austin.
The three-weekend break arrived at a good time for some, and that included Fermin Aldeguer (BK8 Gresini Racing MotoGP). A P8 in Brazil and P11 in Austin signalled a very solid return to action for the 2025 Rookie of the Year, and Aldeguer will arrive at his home Grand Prix fighting fitter as he continues his recovery from a fractured femur sustained in winter.
PROMISING START: ... but more wanted at HRC
A Sprint podium was agonisingly close for Joan Mir (Honda HRC Castrol) in Austin, and a big Sunday haul of points was too. In the end though, it was a zero-pointer weekend for the 2020 World Champion. Teammate Luca Marini did pocket a healthy amount of points for HRC, most notably the Tissot Sprint P5, with progress clearly visible before the European tour begins. Johann Zarco (Castrol Honda LCR) was also a Sprint point scorer in Austin before his Sunday DNF, while rookie Diogo Moreira (Pro Honda LCR) earned a third consecutive P13 to continue his 100% Sunday points streak. A different challenge awaits in Jerez, and one that HRC will hope brings them into the podium equation again.
KNUCKLING DOWN: the hard work continues at Yamaha
The positive from Austin? Toprak Razgatlioglu (Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP) getting on the scoreboard for the first time in MotoGP. A P15 isn’t where the impressive Turk or Yamaha want to be finishing, but it’s a good step as they continue to try and wrestle the V4-powered YZR-M1 into a more competitive bike.
Meanwhile, competitive is exactly what Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) was at last year’s Spanish GP. The polesitter and P2 Sunday finisher at the Circuit de Jerez-Angel Nieto in 2025 will snap your hand off for a repeat this time around, but who knows – although at a track nearly perfectly suited to him, maybe there is some magic to be made. El Diablo, 2019 Spanish GP podium finisher Alex Rins (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP), and 2021's Jerez race winner Jack Miller (Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP) failed to score points at COTA, so the experienced trio will be fighting to change that in Spain.
Enemy territory for some is home turf for others. Jerez, however, is just a pure classic for us all. The hillsides will be alive with the sound of MotoGP as the sport returns to one of its most emblematic venues, so strap in for this weekend – it’ll be worth the wait.
