While some riders, such as Johann Zarco, Francesco Bagnaia, or Jack Miller, who tried his hand at motocross during the break, didn't really cut it, it was time to put the warm-up blues back on for the entire MotoGP class. Heading to Silverstone for the 10ᵉ round of the championship, on the occasion of the British Grand Prix.
British Grand Prix: Bestia goes wild!
It was back-to-school time of sorts in MotoGP, marking the start of the second half of the season. After 20 laps and 118 km of the British Grand Prix, Enea Bastianini was, as he had been the day before in the Sprint race, ahead of Spain's Jorge Martin (Ducati). To achieve this, he first had to recover third place on the grid from Espargaró on lap 11. Together, Martin attacked Bagnaia and took the lead for the first time. Taking advantage of this lead, the Spaniard maintained a good pace, while Bastianini took advantage of a mistake by Bagnaia, unable to keep up with the pace afterwards, to move into second place. Bastianini then capitalized on a mistake by Martin to take the lead on the penultimate lap.
Win-gardium leviosa!
Faster than ever, Bastianini didn't need much more to round off a magic weekend, after Saturday's Sprint, and claim his sixth MotoGP Grand Prix. This happened under the eyes of the Weasley brothers (from the Harry Potter series, of which the Italian rider is a fan), waving the chequered flag. The pace was really fast, and I was always on the limit," said the Spaniard lucidly. I saw that Enea [Bastianini] was coming back, so I tried to be consistent, but he was on a different level today (Sunday)", said Jorge Martin.
Silverstone 2024 MotoGP sprint race results
Silverstone 2024 Motorcycle Grand Prix race results
The MotoGP British Grand Prix has seen ten different riders take victory in the last ten editions. Enea Bastianini succeeds Jorge Lorenzo (2013), Marc Marquez (2014), Valentino Rossi (2015), Maverick Viñales (2016), Andrea Dovizioso (2017), Alex Rins (2019), Fabio Quartararo (2021), Francesco Bagnaia (2022) and Aleix Espargaró (2023).
MotoGP 2024 riders' standings after the British GP (05/08/2024)
Jorge Martin takes the lead in the World Championship standings ahead of Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati), who came third on Sunday and fell the day before. It's a tight race!
The French, for want of a better word
"We're not as fast as we'd like to be, but we look good!" joked Fabio Quartararo before the race about his bike's new livery. Fabio Quartararo (Yamaha) started 18th and finished 11th, leaving England with five points in the bag. Johann Zarco (LCR Honda) took 14th place, and remains the best Honda rider. Points are still precious at this stage of the competition, especially from a manufacturer's point of view, where Ducati continues to extend its lead. The Tricolores each gained one position in the overall standings.
Frustrated, the Honda rider nonetheless remains one of the most coveted riders on the circuit. Zarco's coveted position in the overall standings would not have you believe, but followers are rarely wrong: Zarco is not where he belongs.
Fabio Quartararo on his race (Canal Plus)
It was a tough race. We were the most difficult riders of the weekend on this circuit. We gave it our all, and tried to salvage the result with a good start. We hope Austria will be a little better. Starting in eighteenth place wasn't great. In terms of race pace, it was a little better. Mentally, it's difficult to fight for these positions. You have to be strong and hold on, and give the best information to the team. We haven't found anything new. Since yesterday's sprint (Saturday), we haven't touched the bike. In terms of feeling, it was a little better. We were able to fight with Viñales and Miller...
A Grand Prix in which his teammate Álex Rins did not take part. Victim of four fractures (foot, radius and ulna) following his crash at the start of the 8ᵉ round at Assen (Netherlands), the rider was back on the Yamaha this Friday at Silverstone. Unfortunately, fate took its toll and he suffered another crash. Clearly in a very weakened state, the rider who has just extended his contract for a further two years was unable to contest the rest of the weekend. Already lined up at the Sachsenring (Germany) to replace the Spaniard, Remy Gardner was able to support the Yamaha team.
A colourful weekend
There was something for everyone this weekend to celebrate the 75ᵉ anniversary of MotoGP. We were treated to some superb vintage liveries. While certain preferences may emerge, it's worth noting that all had the big advantage of displaying the rider's number on the side of the bike, a feature sometimes missing from the grandstands.
MotoGP 2024 race calendar
Starting with the Austrian Grand Prix at the Spielberg circuit on August 18, the riders will return to their usual colors. We already know the dates of the next events at Silverstone: May 23, 24 and 25, 2025.
1 Qatar Grand Prix (Losail circuit), March 10. Winner: Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati).
2 Portuguese Grand Prix (Circuit Internacional do Algarve), March 24. Winner: Jorge Martín (Ducati). Argentine Grand Prix (Termas de Río Hondo), April 7.3 Grand Prix of the Americas (Circuit des Amériques), April 14. Winner: Maverick Viñales (Aprilia)
4 Spanish Grand Prix (Circuit de Jerez), April 28. Winner: Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati)
5 French Grand Prix (Le Mans Bugatti circuit), May 12. Winner: Jorge Martin (Ducati)
6 Catalan Grand Prix (Barcelona-Catalunya circuit), May 26. Winner: Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati)
7 Italian Grand Prix (Mugello circuit), June 2. Winner: Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati) Kazakhstan Grand Prix (Sokol International Racetrack), June 16. REPORT 8 Dutch Grand Prix (TT circuit Assen), June 30. Winner: Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati)
9 German Grand Prix (Sachsenring circuit), July 7. Winner: Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati)
10 British Grand Prix (Silverstone circuit), August 4. Winner: Enea Bastianini (Ducati)
11 Austrian Grand Prix (Spielberg circuit), August 18.
12 Aragon Grand Prix (Motorland Aragon circuit), September 1.
13 San Marino Grand Prix (Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli), September 8. Indian Grand Prix (Buddh International Circuit), September 22. CANCELLATIONKazakhstan Grand Prix (Sokol International Racetrack), September 22. CANCELLATION14 Grand Prix d'Emilie-Romagne (Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli), September 22
15 Indonesian Grand Prix (Mandalika International Street circuit), September 29.
16 Japanese Grand Prix (Twin Ring Motegi circuit), October 6.
17 Australian Grand Prix (Phillip Island Circuit), October 20.
18 Thai Grand Prix (Chang International circuit), October 27.
19 Malaysian Grand Prix (Sepang International circuit), November 3.
20 Valencia Grand Prix (Ricardo Tormo circuit), November 17.
Photo : Enea Bastianini (X)
