Marquez to factory Ducati, Martin to Aprilia: How these bombshell moves happened

It was KTM's turn to rock the MotoGP rider market this week as it announced current Ducati and Aprilia factory riders Enea Bastianini and Maverick Vinales would join its satellite team Tech3 Gas Gas for 2025. With Pedro Acosta and Brad Binder already set for the works squad, that gives KTM an extremely strong line-up to take on Ducati with next year. Or does it? Simon Patterson and Valentin Khorounzhiy have very different views on how Vinales in particular will fare at KTM as they join Matt Beer to discuss it all on The Race MotoGP Podcast. What happens next for ousted KTM pair Jack Miller and Augusto Fernandez, and who Aprilia signs to replace Vinales are also hot topics. And we delve into everything that's happening around the rest of the Ducati line-up too, where it's not just riders moving around but teams too. Joan Mir's efforts to escape Honda and top Moto2 riders' hopes of reaching MotoGP for 2025 are assessed as well, and we also reveal what we'll be up to in the new MotoGP section on The Race Members' Club, which is now available on Patreon too. Want extra MotoGP podcast content? Join The Race Members' Club on Patreon where we have an exclusive two-wheeled Riders tier. Head to Patreon.com/therace Follow the Race Moto channel on Instagram and Twitter Check out our latest videos on YouTube Download our app on iOS or Android Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Just when it seemed Ducati's 2025 MotoGP factory line-up plan was set, it was abruptly turned inside out. Now Marc Marquez is heading for a works seat and championship leader Jorge Martin is heading into the arms of Aprilia. Simon Patterson, Valentin Khorounzhiy and Matt Beer gather for an emergency extra episode of The Race MotoGP Podcast to explain what changed and why it happened so quickly, with Simon reliving how the news spread through the paddock at Mugello testing and just how fast Aprilia moved to get its man once it knew it had chance. We share your takes on what's happened and questions about the repercussions of it, covering everything from how Marquez and Pecco Bagnaia will work together (or not) in the factory Ducati team to whether Aprilia is going to live up to Martin's demands and expectations, plus all the other repercussions around Pramac, Enea Bastianini and Maverick Vinales' futures. Follow the Race Moto channel on Instagram and Twitter Check out our latest videos on YouTube Download our app on iOS or Android EXCLUSIVE NordVPN Deal ➼ https://nordvpn.com/therace Try it risk-free now with a 30-day money-back guarantee! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Pecco Bagnaia's double win at Mugello was a huge boost to his 2024 MotoGP championship bid. And as Simon Patterson reports from the scene as he joins Valentin Khorounzhiy and Matt Beer for The Race MotoGP Podcast, it was greeted by a more passionate crowd than the Italian Grand Prix has enjoyed in Mugello's barren years since home idol Valentino Rossi retired. So as well as discussing the impact of Bagnaia's win on his title bid, we also delve into what it all means for Italy, MotoGP and Rossi's legacy. Was Jorge Martin's combination of crash and last-lap position loss a sign of him returning to old bad habits or proof he can actually calmly sustain a title bid even on a bad weekend? And how big an equipment disadvantage is Marc Marquez up against and is he holding Ducati to ransom over 2025 or just innocently focusing on what's best for him? We debate those topics, compare Pedro Acosta to Thanos from the Marvel movies and Val wrecks his house while discussing stewarding and penalties - but his rage isn't the for the reason you might expect. Follow the Race Moto channel on Instagram and Twitter Check out our latest videos on YouTube Download our app on iOS or Android EXCLUSIVE NordVPN Deal ➼ https://nordvpn.com/therace Try it risk-free now with a 30-day money-back guarantee! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Pecco Bagnaia went from a bizarre final lap crash while leading MotoGP's Catalan Grand Prix sprint to pulling off a very intelligent Sunday race win that keeps things poised in the title fight. But he was just one of three riders to crash from the sprint lead - all for different reasons. And with Bagnaia, championship leader Jorge Martin and Marc Marquez finding ways to all take nearly identical points hauls from Barcelona despite having wildly contrasting weekends, this strange event gives Simon Patterson, Valentin Khorounzhiy and Matt Beer plenty to delve into on The Race MotoGP Podcast. That includes the latest round of 2025 rider market talk, with Aleix Espargaro's retirement announcement - and surprise likely next move - kicking things off, new talk of how Ducati might resolve its Martin/Marquez factory seat debate emerging and some very leftfield moves appearing in paddock speculation. Throw in Enea Bastianini protesting the stewards by ignoring their penalties and Val and Simon having a passionate argument over Yamaha's form, and there's plenty packed into the episode. Follow the Race Moto channel on Instagram and Twitter Check out our latest videos on YouTube Download our app on iOS or Android Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We debate YOUR suggestions for what to change about MotoGP in the latest episode of The Race MotoGP Podcast. And we've never had such a huge influx of listener input when we've done a callout for questions or suggestions. With the 2027 rules freshly announced and plenty in the paddock making suggestions for what they think could be better about MotoGP regulations, organisation, officiating or promotion, your ideas covered everything from rules preventing riders remounting after crashes to MotoGP test chances for Moto2 stars to race format rejigs and electronic active suspension. All that, and much more, is debated by Simon Patterson, Valentin Khorounzhiy and Matt Beer. Follow the Race Moto channel on Instagram and Twitter Check out our latest videos on YouTube Download our app on iOS or Android Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

MotoGP 2024's 'big three' Jorge Martin, Pecco Bagnaia and Marc Marquez produced an absolutely epic French Grand Prix weekend at Le Mans between them. But which of them looks most like the 2024 champion, and are two of them set to be 2025 team-mates? Simon Patterson, Valentin Khorounzhiy and Matt Beer delve into both elements of that situation in The Race MotoGP Podcast, assessing what Le Mans told us about the trio's various strengths in the title fight and the varied scenarios around who Ducati will place where in 2025. The future of championship leader Martin's Pramac team is another key element of that jigsaw that's discussed. KTM's enormous reliance on Pedro Acosta, the prospect of Acosta and Martin as team-mates and Aprilia's place in both the title fight and the rider market are also delved into. Plus Simon gives his take on the incredible French GP crowd experience and how their heroes Fabio Quartararo and Johann Zarco tackled coming to their home race on uncompetitive bikes. Don't forget in the next episode we'll be debating YOUR ideas for how to improve MotoGP. Send them in written or voice note form to [email protected] or contact us via our MotoGP social media channels @theracemoto on X or Instagram. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

MotoGP has unveiled its new rules for 2027, with some of the current bikes' most controversial elements outlawed and others pegged back. But has it all gone far enough and are these the right moves for the world championship? Simon Patterson gives his initial take on the changes to engine capacity, aero allowance and concessions, plus the ban on ride-height devices, in a bumper episode of The Race MotoGP Podcast. Plus Matt Beer invites Simon and Valentin Khorounzhiy to suggest the changes they'd each like to see - whether in the regulations, presentation or marketing of MotoGP. And now we'd like to hear your suggestions too. Email your ideas for MotoGP changes to [email protected] in written or voice note form, or via our MotoGP social accounts @theracemoto on X or Instagram and we'll share them - and give our takes - on a future episode. Follow the new Race Moto channel on Instagram and Twitter Check out our latest videos on YouTube Download our app on iOS or Android Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ever since Marc Marquez get himself a Ducati, the MotoGP world has been waiting eagerly to see a head-to-head victory fight between him and reigning champion Pecco Bagnaia. That's exactly what the Spanish Grand Prix became - and it was absolutely worth all the anticipation. Does Bagnaia's defeat of Marquez show Ducati's current number one has his famous new stablemate covered? Or does the fact Marquez is so quick on a Ducati (and an old-spec one at that) already show Bagnaia will need to raise his game? That's one of the big debates between Simon Patterson, Valentin Khorounzhiy and Matt Beer on The Race MotoGP Podcast, along with what championship leader Jorge Martin should be thinking about it all after crashing out of the race lead. The 15-crash madness of the Jerez sprint and an extraordinary stewards' office rant by Johann Zarco also feature. Follow the new Race Moto channel on Instagram and Twitter Check out our latest videos on YouTube Download our app on iOS or Android Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

MotoGP begins the European leg of its 2024 season at Jerez this weekend, and that's often when the championship takes on its defining shape. But several riders arrive in Spain fighting for their future and several teams fighting to salvage their season already. On this week's episode of The Race MotoGP Podcast, Matt Beer invites Simon Patterson and Valentin Khorounzhiy to nominate the riders or teams they think are in most trouble after the opening three rounds - and to assess the extent of their plight on a 1 to 5 ranking where 1 equals 'will be fine by Mugello in June' and 5 equals 'may as well write the rest of 2024 off'. Join The Race Members Club and have a free month on us! Click here to sign up Follow the new Race Moto channel on Instagram and Twitter Check out our latest videos on YouTube Download our app on iOS or Android Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Have we been wrong about Maverick Vinales all along? The man with the reputation for going backwards in MotoGP races won from 11th place at Austin with a supreme performance in an absolutely epic race. Regular Vinales defender Valentin Khorounzhiy and regular Vinales sceptics Simon Patterson and Matt Beer therefore have plenty to debate in The Race MotoGP Podcast as they assess what Vinales achieved in the Grand Prix of the Americas, why it hasn't happened more often and whether it can keep on happening. What Marc Marquez's season looks like from here after a crash from the lead that leaves him a distant eighth in the championship, what Pedro Acosta's latest insanely good performance means for not just the other KTMs but everyone else on the grid, Jorge Martin's title credentials and Pecco Bagnaia's odd lack of form are also delved into. And does a race like Austin's Sunday event show modern MotoGP isn't as bad as aero critics and detractors suggest?  Join The Race Members Club and have a free month on us! Click here to sign up Follow the new Race Moto channel on Instagram and Twitter Check out our latest videos on YouTube Download our app on iOS or Android Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices