MotoGP Qatar: who is racing at Marquez’s first match point and who is missing

• Marquez (399 points) needs to outscore Jorge Martin (355) by 30 points in Qatar and, depending on Sunday’s result, Marco Bezzecchi (332) by 7 or 8 points
• Fermin Aldeguer and Raul Fernandez have been declared fit, while Martin still has to pass a medical check on Friday
• The Grand Prix starts on Sunday at 7 pm local time, which is 5 pm in Germany

MotoGP was originally supposed to race at Lusail back in April. Because of the situation in the Middle East, however, the Qatar Grand Prix was moved from 10–12 April to 6–8 November. As round 20 of the 2026 MotoGP season, it now opens the finale, which then concludes in Portimao and Valencia. For Marc Marquez, after his win in Sepang, it is the first match point. At the same time, it is unclear who will actually be on a bike, and the tyres have to cope with conditions that have rarely been seen at Lusail before.

What does Marc Marquez need to become MotoGP world champion in Qatar?

Marquez has to score at least 30 points more than Jorge Martin over the weekend and also gain enough ground on Marco Bezzecchi. The title can be decided at the earliest after Sunday’s Grand Prix; Saturday’s sprint alone cannot settle anything.

Heading into the weekend, the Ducati factory rider leads with 399 points ahead of the two Aprilia riders Martin (355) and Bezzecchi (332). A maximum of 37 points is available per race weekend, 12 for the sprint win and 25 for victory in the Grand Prix. After Qatar, 74 points remain up for grabs in Portugal and Valencia.

Against Martin, Marquez benefits from his number of wins. He has won seven Grands Prix this year, Martin one. If they were tied on points at the end of the season, Marquez would be ahead, so a lead of exactly 74 points is enough for him. If he wins both the sprint and the race, Martin can score no more than seven points over the weekend. Conversely, this means that if Martin scores eight points, a title celebration in Qatar is ruled out, no matter how well Marquez rides.

The case with Bezzecchi is slightly different. The Italian has five Grand Prix wins and more second places than Marquez. If Marquez wins on Sunday, he moves to eight wins, which Bezzecchi can no longer match with two more victories. In that case, gaining seven points on the Aprilia rider is enough. Without a Sunday win, it has to be eight, because otherwise the second places could tip the balance.

This results in a few fixed limits. A sprint win and second place in the Grand Prix bring 32 points and can be enough if Martin scores no more than two points. Third place on Sunday, on the other hand, is never enough, not even with a sprint win. And even a Grand Prix victory only brings the title if Marquez has finished at least fifth in the sprint. Pedro Acosta, 104 points behind, is still mathematically in contention, but is automatically out as soon as Marquez gains the 30 points.

If he succeeds, it would be his eighth title in the premier class and his tenth across all classes, taking him past Valentino Rossi. A win on Sunday would also be his 81st Grand Prix victory in MotoGP; Rossi has 89.

Marquez himself says he will not change his strategy and will work day by day. He describes Lusail as a nice track, but not one of his favourites. In some years he had big problems there, whereas last year he was very fast and won both the sprint and the race from pole position. Ducati racing boss Gigi Dall’Igna praises the fact that Marquez has made practically no mistakes since his return from injury. At the same time, he warns that three tough weekends are still ahead and the job is only done when the title is mathematically secured.

Who is racing in the Qatar MotoGP and who is missing?

The field at Lusail is considerably smaller than usual. Yamaha is staying away from the race with all four bikes for safety reasons, Gresini is without Alex Marquez, and several riders are only returning after injuries.

Without Yamaha, Fabio Quartararo, Alex Rins, Jack Miller and Augusto Fernandez are missing. At Honda, Superbike rider Jake Dixon steps in for the injured Joan Mir. Together with Luca Marini, MotoGP rookie Diogo Moreira and Iker Lecuona, Dixon is one of four riders in the field who could take their first Grand Prix win in the premier class this weekend.

Jorge Martin: decision not until Friday lunchtime

Whether Martin is allowed to ride will only be decided shortly before the first practice session. The Aprilia factory rider is at the track, but has to see MotoGP medical director Angel Charte at 12:15 local time on Friday. The first practice session starts at 14:45. Aprilia has not given a reason for the late appointment.

Martin broke the radius in his right wrist in the sprint at Phillip Island during a battle with Marquez. He was given the green light for Sepang six days later, but withdrew after the final free practice session due to a lack of strength. He then briefly flew back to Spain. In Qatar he is optimistic: he says he feels better and is doing his best, and he considers the daily checks to be the right approach.

The venue brings back bad memories for him. In April 2025, on his delayed debut for Aprilia, Martin crashed at Lusail in front of Fabio Di Giannantonio, broke eleven ribs, injured his lung and was out for seven races. Yet the track actually suits him: he has won two of the three sprints held at Lusail so far, and a pole position would be his fourth there. Alongside the title fight, he is also battling for second place in the championship, as teammate Bezzecchi is now only 23 points behind him. In 2027, Martin will already be riding for Yamaha.

Raul Fernandez brakes with a different finger

Raul Fernandez passed the medical check on Thursday and is cleared to ride all weekend. The Trackhouse rider broke his right index finger in a collision with Bezzecchi in the sprint in Indonesia and still finished second on Sunday. At Phillip Island he had to retire from the sprint after 10 of 13 laps, and in Sepang his weekend ended after the first practice session because the tissue around the fracture had become inflamed.

Between Malaysia and Qatar, the 26-year-old flew to Andorra to work with his own physiotherapist. He says he feels better, but has to manage his strength because he is still using a different finger for braking. He therefore wants to adapt his riding style step by step. Fernandez has never scored points in a MotoGP main race in Qatar, something he wants to change this weekend.

Aldeguer returns, Lecuona replaces Alex Marquez

At Gresini Ducati, Fermin Aldeguer returns to the field. He crashed on the second lap in Mandalika and broke the base of the first metacarpal in his right hand. After surgery, he missed Phillip Island and Sepang. It was already his third major injury this year: a broken femur cost him pre-season testing and the opening round in Thailand, and a fractured vertebra at Assen three more races.

Iker Lecuona, who most recently stood in for Aldeguer, nevertheless stays with the team. The Superbike rider now takes over the factory GP26 of Alex Marquez, who had surgery on his right shoulder after the Malaysian Grand Prix and also had metal hardware removed. Alex Marquez hopes to return in Portugal. For Lecuona, Qatar is already his fifth MotoGP weekend of the season.

Why are conditions in Qatar different in November?

Due to the late date, it will be considerably cooler at Lusail than at previous races in spring. On top of that, the track cools down over the course of the evening and dew can form, making grip harder to judge.

In April 2025, the track temperature in the daytime sessions was still 54 to 56 degrees Celsius. For November, Michelin expects air temperatures between 22 and 30 degrees, but humidity rises over the course of the evening. At most races, the asphalt gets warmer as the race goes on. At the Lusail night race it is the other way round: the surface cools down. Together with moisture and sand blown onto the track by the wind, this can noticeably change the grip.

The circuit near Doha has been on the MotoGP calendar since 2004 and was completely resurfaced in 2023. The abrasive surface offers plenty of grip, but also makes the tyres wear faster, especially the softer compounds. At 1,068 metres, Lusail has the longest straight of the season, along with ten right-handers and six left-handers.

Michelin racing manager Piero Taramasso expects a demanding weekend despite the milder temperatures. For the tyres, the manufacturer is sticking with what it knows: at the front there are soft and medium compounds with a symmetrical construction, while last year’s hard option stays at home this time because nobody used it in 2025. At the rear there are also soft and medium compounds, both asymmetric with a reinforced right shoulder. Last year, the medium compounds front and rear proved particularly versatile. For rain, soft and medium wet tyres are available.

Pecco Bagnaia even sees the conditions as an advantage for himself. The asphalt is said to feel similarly good to Brno, so he expects fewer grip problems and thinks a top-six result is possible.

How successful has Ducati been at Lusail so far?

Ducati has won nine MotoGP Grands Prix in Qatar so far. A tenth win would equal Yamaha’s record at this track and match its own best tally at a single circuit.

The list ranges from Casey Stoner’s three consecutive wins from 2007 to 2009 and Andrea Dovizioso to the Gresini successes with Enea Bastianini and Fabio Di Giannantonio. In 2024 Bagnaia won for the factory team, in 2025 Marquez. If Marquez wins again, he would be the first rider since Dovizioso in 2018 and 2019 to win at Lusail twice in a row. With three Lusail wins, he would then be level with Jorge Lorenzo; only Rossi and Stoner have won four there.

Qatar has not been easy to predict recently, however. The last seven Grands Prix at Lusail have produced seven different winners, and six times the race has been won by a rider who did not start from the front row. The 2026 season is also widely spread: eight different riders have already won a Grand Prix. A ninth would equal the record from 2016 and 2020. KTM and Aprilia are still waiting for their first MotoGP win at Lusail. Ducati leads the constructors’ championship with three races to go.

How is Pecco Bagnaia saying goodbye to Ducati?

Pecco Bagnaia contests his third-to-last race for Ducati in Qatar before moving to the Aprilia factory team in 2027. Ducati CEO Claudio Domenicali hopes for one more good result as a farewell.

Bagnaia has ridden for Ducati since his first MotoGP season, now for eight years. In that time he has won two world titles and 31 races, more than any other Ducati rider in MotoGP. However, his last win was more than a year ago, and he has not been on the podium since the summer break. In Sepang, after sixth place in the sprint, he only managed 13th on Sunday. With 173 points, the 29-year-old is currently ninth in the championship.

Domenicali says Bagnaia lacks neither talent nor a good relationship with the team, but they have not found the key to the deadlocked situation. He recalls the title years 2022 and 2023 and the eleven wins of 2024. A good result in Qatar, Portimao or Valencia would, in his view, be the fitting end to a shared story with two world titles.

Lusail generally suits Bagnaia. He won a Grand Prix there in both Moto2 and MotoGP, and in 2025 he finished eighth in the sprint and second in the race. Regarding the security situation in Qatar, he openly admits that he was worried at first. He now says he trusts the organisers and the local government, who have met almost all of the riders’ demands.

Why is Pedro Acosta switching to Monster Energy?

Ahead of his move to Ducati, Pedro Acosta has signed Monster Energy as his personal sponsor. The drinks manufacturer sponsors the Ducati factory team and has a contract there until the end of 2027.

Monster announced the new signing on the eve of the Qatar weekend with a short video. It shows images of the open sea and a new logo combining a shark profile with the Acosta lettering. The Spaniard had raced in Red Bull colours since the 2019 Red Bull Rookies Cup, finishing second there in 2019 and becoming champion in 2020. He then won the Moto3 title as a rookie in 2021 and later the Moto2 crown, both with Ajo’s KTM team. In 2024 he joined MotoGP with Tech3 and then moved up to the factory team.

However, Red Bull was never his personal sponsor during this time. Acosta was bound by KTM’s sponsorship agreements and wore their logos on his helmet, cap and leathers. With the move to Ducati, he is free to sign his own deal. Marc Marquez chose a different path when he moved to Ducati. He gave up his personal partnership with Red Bull, but did not sign with Monster, opting instead for the beer brand Estrella Galicia.

For Monster, the move fits into a broader reorganisation. The company will become title sponsor of the Aprilia factory team in 2027, where Bagnaia and Bezzecchi are two Monster riders, while it is expected to scale back at Yamaha. Red Bull, in turn, could sign Fabio Quartararo, who moves to Honda in 2027. This has not yet been confirmed. Acosta’s contract with Ducati covers the first two years of the new 850cc era with Pirelli tyres. In terms of form, he is on the rise: this season he took his first Grand Prix win in the premier class at the Red Bull Ring and won the sprints in Buriram and, most recently, in Sepang.

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