By Donovan Fourie | Guest Contributor | MotoGP Analyst
A Unique Challenge: Catalunya’s Low-Grip Layout
Catalunya is always an interesting race. The track is unique in that it consists of medium to fast corners with a relatively low-grip surface. Most tracks these days are newly re-tarred and therefore overflowing with grip. They also mostly favour tighter corners, especially those onto long straights. This practice is done to cater to Formula One, whose massive, air-spoiling wings mean cars cannot follow each other in fast corners, so they make the corners slow in a desperate attempt to spruce up the racing.
MotoGP bikes, on the other hand, can easily follow each other in fast corners and, if anything, are somewhat hampered by the slower ones. Lots of grip means a heavy lean angle requiring a vastly competent chassis, and the slow speed exiting the corner means a low gear, a high acceleration and lots of pressure on those poor back tyres. On tracks with lots of grip and tight corners, a good bike and an even better setup is essential. Catalunya is none of those things, so it entices its share of surprises.
The Marquez Brothers Shine at Home
The biggest surprise is that Marc Marquez didn’t win after a string of seven main race wins. The family still rejoiced as baby brother Alex took the honours to give the Marquezes a one-two in their home town.
KTM Strengths and Brad Binder’s Misfortune
We got the next surprise correct in the pre-race blog – KTM was strong. KTM is always strong when grip levels are low. The biggest highlight of the weekend for South African fans was on Friday when Sunday Man Brad Binder on his KTM finished fastest. This was all good news until Qualifying on Saturday, when Binder’s number one bike developed a technical issue and was sidelined. Normally, one bike being out of action is not a problem because each rider has a handy spare bike, which Binder had, but sadly, his team had only one pair of special new forks.
It was with these forks that Binder had set the fastest time the day before, and these forks were inconveniently fitted to the troublesome Bike One, and with no time to change them, Binder had to tackle qualifying with the old ones. With that, Binder finished 11th on the grid with a time slower than he had managed the day before.
In the race, Binder was tasked with not only having front-runner pace but also pace to catch the front-runners and pass them. He did rather well in the beginning, making up three places in the first four laps before he accidentally clipped the white line going into Turn Four and found himself tumbling through the gravel. We have to wonder if his bike hadn’t given trouble in qualifying, and he had qualified higher with less pressure in the race, where would he have ended up?
KTM’s Other Standouts and Tyre Strategy
A clue would come from his fellow KTM riders. Maverick Vinales was still battling with injuries and not quite on form yet, but Acosta and Bastianini were on form. Boy, were they on form.
In a series that has lately been mocked as the “Ducati Cup”, we saw a four-way dice for the lead between the Marquez brothers on Ducatis, and Acosta and Bastianini on orange bikes. Acosta made the mistake of fitting a soft rear tyre when the rest of the field used the medium.
The track is already known to be hard on tyres and, with a surface temperature of 41 degrees, tyre wear would be a major factor. And it was. By lap 11, Acosta dropped like a bomb. Where he was lucky is that the leading group had already pulled a massive gap to the following riders, and even so, Acosta held onto fourth place by only a second.
Aprilia’s Disappointing Weekend
While we were right about KTM going strong at Catalunya, we were wrong about Aprilia. Last year, Catalunya was a highlight for the Italian team with Aleix Espargaro taking a popular win. This year, no such luck. Bezzecchi crashed out trying to pass Frankie Morbidelli, and Jorge Martin braved his way to tenth. The best rider from Aprilia was the astonishing rise of Moto2 champion, Ai Ogura, who crossed the line in sixth.
Bagnaia’s Recovery Drive
Pecco Bagnaia had a terrible weekend, mostly failing to finish sessions in the top 20. Until the main race, when he fought from 21st on the grid to seventh. Hopefully, the two-time world champion has finally found form after a year struggling with the 2025 Ducati.
Other Notable Performances
More honourable mentions – Honda’s Johann Zarco was up to fifth place before succumbing to gravity, while Luca Marini managed a respectable eighth place. If we take our minds back just a few months ago, the Hondas had a cozy spot right at the back of the field. They have indeed made strides.
KTM did well with Acosta challenging Marquez all weekend. The bike is good at pulling out of tight corners and accelerating hard.
Fabio Quartararo, on his Yamaha, despite his massive top speed deficit, came home in fifth place.