He MotoGP Austrian Grand Prix, tenth scoring round of the motorcycling world championship, arrives this weekend at the Spielberg’s “Red Bull” circuitowned by the maker of the energy drink, favorite of the Austrian brand KTM due to its proximity, but also one of the favorites of Ducati and its riders.
Since Jorge Lorenzo’s victory with Honda, in Spielberg only KTM and Ducati riders, Pol Espargaró (2020) and the South African Brad Binder have climbed to the top of the podium (2021) by the Austrians, and Andrea Dovizioso (2019) y Francesco “Pecco” Bagnaia (2022), by the Italian manufacturer, and as the first part of the season has developed, only Aprilia to be in a position to give the “replica” to any of the previous two.
[Consulta la clasificación del Mundial de MotoGP]
Bagnaia, favorite
He world leader“Pecco” Bagnaia, was the winner of the last edition of the race in the circuit of the Austrian region of Styria, so a priori he is the one who starts as a favorite for a victory that would allow him to increase his advantage in the provisional championship .
But it will not be easy for “Pecco”, who will have both the Spanish “in front” Jorge Martin (Ducati Desmosedici GP23) who needs to improve his performance compared to the weekend in Silverstone (Great Britain), just like the Italian Marco Bezzecchi (Ducati Desmosedici GP22).
The spearhead of the Austrian brand could well be the South African Brad Binder, who already won in 2021, on a weekend in which many are those who “predict” that there will be movements and meetings at the “headquarters” of the manufacturer of Matthighoffen to resolve the future and the existing unknowns of some of the riders in the KTM “orbit”, and even their intentions to have another team in the championship with another of their brands (Husqvarna, MV Agusta… .).
If we stick to the strictly sporting and leave aside “the offices”, the rival to beat must be “Pecco” Bagnaia and the rest of the Ducati riders, with Martín and Bezzecchi in the lead, but without forgetting the French Johann Zarco, Alex Márquez or Luca Marini.
[Consulta el calendario de MotoGP]
With them, in the fight, due to their status as “locals”, they have to be both the aforementioned Brad Binder like his teammate, the Australian Jack Millerin addition to the Aprilia riders.
The manufacturer from Noale, along with KTM, is the closest to the performance of the Desmosedici GP, so both Aleix Espargaró, winner at Silverstone of the grand prix, like his partner Maverick Vinales, whose worth as a rider is beyond doubt, they may have the chance of achieving a first victory for Aprilia at Spielberg.
The Portuguese Miguel Oliveira could be another of the contenders for the podium in Spielberg, where he has starred in great interventions, now on the handlebars of the 2022 Aprilia RS-GP.
Complications on Yamaha and Honda
It will be more complicated for both the Yamaha and Honda riders, although the former seem to have already advanced their evolution of the 2024 prototype, which the British rider has already tested in Japan. Cal Crutchlowbut whose current performance is unknown.
So, the French Fabio Quartararo, increasingly demanding with the manufacturer of Iwata, he will try to improve his performance with the “weapons” that he now haswhich does not allow him to be too confident, especially his Italian teammate Franco Morbidelli, knowing that next year he will no longer be in the official team, replaced by the Spanish Alex Rins.
Even worse is the situation of Honda, without visible reaction capacity, to the despair of its two official team champions, the Spanish Marc Márquez y Joan Mir.
Both emphasize that their work is “thinking about the future” and in 2024but even doing work for those “necessities”, they end up in the ground, as happened to both of them in the race on Sunday at Silverstone.
The outlook does not look rosy for either of them, so any moderately positive result will be more than acceptable.
The Italian Aeneas Bastianini (Ducati Desmosedici GP23), one of the great protagonists in 2022, is going unnoticed this season, in which he plays for the official team of the Borgo Panigale manufacturer, which forces him to come back with solvency in the second half of the year if he wants continue under the same conditions in 2024.
The Spanish Augusto Fernandez (Gas Gas RC 16) is another of the riders who needs to obtain good results to consolidate his position in the premier class of world motorcycling, in which one race and another also his continuity is questioned.
2023-08-17 17:05:02
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