Today Jorge Martín starts from pole. The rider from Madrid, who made his debut last year in the premier class, once once more proves to be one of the fastest on the grid and yesterday he managed to be the fastest in qualifying for the fifth time in his MotoGP career.
Marc Márquez has achieved victory in his last two MotoGP races (Grand Prix of the Americas and Emilia-Romagna in 2021). He hasn’t had three or more wins in a row in the premier class since 2019 (a streak of five). However, he has only won in one of his seven participations in the MotoGP Qatar GP (2014), although he has finished on the podium five times, the last two consecutively (2nd in 2018 and 2019) .
MARC MÁRQUEZ COULD GET HIS 200TH PODIUM. The rider from Cervera, who starts in 3rd position today, has finished on the podium in three of his last four MotoGP races. His next podium finish in the top category will be number 100, a figure that has only been reached by three riders throughout history (Valentino Rossi, 199; Jorge Lorenzo, 114 and Dani Pedrosa, 112).
LOSAIL HAS BEEN A TRADITIONAL BRANCH OF VICTORY FOR YAMAHA. And it is that riders from the firm of the three tuning forks have prevailed in 10 of the 18 MotoGP races held in Losail, including the two races held there in 2021 (Maverick Viñales in the Qatar GP and Fabio Quartararo in the Doha GP ).
It seems that Fabio Quartararo is going to have a difficult time winning this first round of the season, since today he starts in 11th position with many doubts regarding the performance of his Yamaha. Nor did his teammate in the Monster Energy Yamaha team show great sensations in yesterday’s qualifying session and Franco Morbidelli starts in 12th place.
In only four of the previous 14 occasions in which the 500cc/MotoGP World Championship started in Qatar, the rider who won that first race was the same one who finally won the title (Casey Stoner 2007 and 2011, Jorge Lorenzo 2012 and Marc Márquez 2014).
THE CURSE OF THE CHAMPION IN QATAR. Fabio Quartararo might become the first defending champion to take victory in the first race of the following season since Marc Márquez in 2014.
LOSAIL, A COMPLICATED PLACE FOR QUARTARARO. Fabio Quartararo has never won or finished on the podium in his three previous appearances at the MotoGP Qatar Grand Prix. However, the French driver did manage to win in the last race held at the Losail International Circuit in the highest category. It was at the 2021 Doha Grand Prix.
And this may be the season in which we see Marc Márquez once more fighting for a new crown in the top flight. Although the protagonist himself has been ruled out as a candidate, as long as he shows a complete recovery from the injuries that have weighed him down in the last two seasons, the ’93’ of the Honda Repsol team will be on the list without any doubt.
A YEAR OF QUESTIONS. There are many unknowns regarding what can happen this year in the top flight. Fabio Quartararo defends the crown he won in 2021. The French driver will be one of the great contenders for the title, although there are other drivers who also start with many options such as Francesco Bagnaia, runner-up last season and winner of four of the last six races of 2021, including 2021.
After the victories of Andrea Migno in Moto3 and Celestino Vietti in Moto2, it remains to be seen if the trend of Italian victories is broken in the premier class at this first round of the 2022 season.
Good Morning !!! Welcome to the live broadcast of the Qatar Grand Prix, the first race of the 2022 Motorcycle Championship. Are you ready? We start…
