If you’ve been waiting to end your MotoGP hibernation, there’s no better time to get in on the action than now.
Well, you’ll have to wait a bit more than three weeks to catch the next race in Jerez, Spain. But until then, you’ve got this round-up of the season until now.
Afraid of Ducati’s continued dominance? Fear no more because the Bologna bullets have been toppled by the Noale nitros. The moniker might be a work in progress, but Aprilia’s RS-GP26 is most certainly the finished product, setting tracks on fire.
Marco Bezzecchi got married to his motorcycle just before the season opener. No, we aren’t kidding, and while the contract runs only till the end of 2028, that’s an eternity in MotoGP terms.
Bez has won all three races so far while leading every single lap in each to take his overall streak to five. Although his sprint form needs fine-tuning, he is the rider everyone’s chasing.
His factory stablemate, Jorge Martin, has been the silent sniper. He seems to have forgotten his 2025 nightmare, barring the occasional post-race wheelie crash during celebrations.
And the 2024 title-winning consistency is back: a 100% top-five finish record, including a sprint win and an ongoing streak of four podiums.
Even satellite riders at Trackhouse, Raúl Fernández and Ai Ogura, are enjoying the improved package, sitting a more-than-respectable sixth and seventh in the standings, respectively.
The Bologna blues
Meanwhile, on the red side of the premier class’ Italian giants, things look worrying. They’re clearly two steps behind in terms of outright pace. But perhaps more crucially, defending champion Marc Márquez isn’t fully up to speed yet.
He hasn’t yet shrugged off the shoulder injury from Mandalika early last October. Even his beloved COTA yielded only P5 in the race this Sunday after a scathing suicide divebomb on fellow Ducati rider Fabio Di Giannantonio in the sprint.
Marquez is yet to finish on the podium on a Sunday this season, as it’s Diggia who leads Ducati’s charge, placed fourth in the championship.
Pecco Bagnaia’s struggles have continued, putting aside sprint P2 in COTA. Even Álex Márquez’s 2025 honeymoon is a distant memory now.
As Fermín Aldeguer recovers from injury, Franco Morbidelli has only regressed further, if that was even possible.
In the KTM garage, Pedro Acosta has been the lone ranger. He finally took his first MotoGP P1 in the opening sprint, and two more race rostrums mean he’s KTM’s only representative in the top-10, a strong third.
The Japanese cup
On the Japanese side of affairs, there’s not much to be cheerful about. Honda’s only consolation is that they aren’t struggling as much as Yamaha, and that’s obviously not saying a lot.
Luca Marini is the sole rider on Japanese machinery in the top-10, and he is only 10th. Joan Mir’s only purpose in life seems to be pushing harder than required and crashing from promising positions. Yes, he has DNFed in each of the first three races.
Offering a semblance of positive predictability, rookie Diogo Moreira has had a solid, if unspectacular, start to life in the big league with a trio of 13th places.
There may be two Yamahas ahead of a factory Honda in the standings, but make no mistake about who’s the real backmarker.
Fabio Quartararo’s sixth-place in the Brazil sprint was nothing less than a miracle, but at this point, he’d rather ride any bike not named YZR-M1.
WSBK defector Toprak Razgatlıoğlu has been an interesting case so far. He scored his first point in the last race, the only Yamaha rider to do so. But until he’s consistently in contention to be the top Yamaha, it’s too early to underline his MotoGP credentials.
More will be known during the Grand Prix of Spain at Circuito de Jerez – Ángel Nieto from April 24-26. But one thing’s certain. 2026 is well on track to become an all-time classic campaign, and we’re only just getting started!
MotoGP 2026 World Championship Standings (after Round 3)
| Pos | Rider | Team Name | Points |
| 1 | Marco Bezzecchi | Aprilia Racing | 81 |
| 2 | Jorge Martín | Aprilia Racing | 77 |
| 3 | Pedro Acosta | Red Bull KTM Factory Racing | 60 |
| 4 | Fabio Di Giannantonio | Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team | 50 |
| 5 | Marc Márquez | Ducati Lenovo Team | 45 |
| 6 | Raúl Fernández | Trackhouse Racing | 40 |
| 7 | Ai Ogura | Trackhouse Racing | 37 |
| 8 | Alex Márquez | BK8 Gresini Racing MotoGP | 28 |
| 9 | Francesco Bagnaia | Ducati Lenovo Team | 25 |
| 10 | Luca Marini | Honda HRC Castrol | 23 |
| 11 | Enea Bastianini | Red Bull KTM Tech 3 | 22 |
| 12 | Brad Binder | Red Bull KTM Factory Racing | 17 |
| 13 | Franco Morbidelli | Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team | 14 |
| 14 | Fermín Aldeguer | BK8 Gresini Racing MotoGP | 13 |
| 15 | Johann Zarco | Castrol Honda LCR | 13 |
| 16 | Diogo Moreira | Pro Honda LCR | 9 |
| 17 | Fabio Quartararo | Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Team | 6 |
| 18 | Alex Rins | Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Team | 3 |
| 19 | Joan Mir | Honda HRC Castrol | 3 |
| 20 | Toprak Razgatlıoğlu | Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP | 1 |
| 21 | Maverick Viñales | Red Bull KTM Tech 3 | 0 |
| 22 | Jack Miller | Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP | 0 |
| 23 | Michele Pirro | BK8 Gresini Racing MotoGP | 0 |
