MotoGP Form Guide – What we learned from the first three rounds before Jerez

Aprilia on top and Ducati under pressure

The opening phase of the 2026 MotoGP World Championship has already produced one of the sharpest early-season shifts seen in years. With Qatar moved to November, the paddock heads to Jerez after an unusual four-week pause, and with Aprilia, not Ducati, carrying the momentum into Europe.

Marco Bezzecchi has been the standout rider of the opening phase aboard Aprilia’s RS-GP26.

What the first phase has shown most clearly is that Aprilia is no longer merely the nearest challenger to Ducati. In terms of form, results, and depth, it has been the benchmark of the season so far. Marco Bezzecchi opened the year by winning in Thailand, then followed with victory in Brazil and another at COTA, while Jorge Martin has shaken off his demons to rapidly re-establish himself as a genuine title factor with fourth in Thailand, second in Brazil, a Sprint win at COTA and second again on Sunday in Texas. After three rounds, Bezzecchi leads the standings on 81 points from Martin on 77, with Raul Fernandez sixth on 40 and Ai Ogura seventh on 37.

Jorge Martin and Marco Bezzecchi have quickly turned Aprilia into the early benchmark of 2026.

That depth is what makes Aprilia’s surge feel more substantial than a purple patch. In Brazil, all four Aprilia riders sat inside the top seven in the riders’ standings, and the marque also led the constructors’ table while both Aprilia Racing and Trackhouse were running one-two in the teams’ championship. By COTA, Aprilia had delivered a second straight factory one-two, and Massimo Rivola was calling it a “memorable Sunday” built on “two truly outstanding riders and an extremely competitive bike.”

Aprilia’s one-two at COTA underlined just how complete the RS-GP26 package has looked so far.

Just as importantly, Aprilia’s wins have not all looked the same. Bezzecchi has been composed and complete, while Martin has returned with aggression and obvious upside as his fitness improves.

In Thailand, Martin admitted that only a few months earlier, he “couldn’t even feed” himself, and at COTA, he was still limited enough physically that he had to back off in the closing laps while chasing Bezzecchi. The break before Jerez, therefore, matters not only to the bike but to the rider on the other side of the garage as well. Then there are the bursts of high speed from Ai Ogura and the less common turns of pace from Raul Fernandez supporting the factory program via the Trackhouse project.

Davide Brivio – Trackhouse Aprilia Team Principal

“Back in Europe after this unexpected break. It will be a very important race for us. We had a great start to the season with Raul on the podium and Ai with the potential to go on the podium as well. So, we had great performance in the first three rounds and it’s very important to see if this trend can continue also back in Europe. Jerez will be a good opportunity to test ourselves, to see where we are and if we can continue the positive start of the year. Moreover, we have a test on Monday and this will be another opportunity to further work on settings in order to find a good base for the rest of the season. So, we’re going to Jerez, still quite excited from the beginning of the season and are extra excited as we have a surprise during the weekend – you will see the bike in a different color.”

For Ducati, none of this means the old order has been completely overturned. The Desmosedici still has speed, still has depth, and still has more than enough firepower to reassert itself. Fabio Di Giannantonio has been consistently in the mix and sits fourth in the championship on 50 points despite arriving in Austin below full fitness with a shoulder issue.

Fabio Di Giannantonio has often looked like Ducati’s most complete threat across the opening rounds.

Fabio Di Giannantonio

“We’re back in Europe, we’re going to Jerez! It’s a track we all know very well, and it will be interesting to be back in Europe. We said the Championship started here, but for us, the campaign started very well in the first three races. We’re strong; it’s a good moment for both the team and the bike. These days at home, we’ve been working to find a way to get the most out of the front to stop the bike and turn a little more tightly, and to have an even better package for the races. The goal is to continue having the same feelings of the first races that allow me to be strong.”

Marc Marquez is fifth on 45 despite mistakes, penalties and physical limitations that are clearly still a factor. Even now, Ducati remains the reference point that everyone measures themselves against.

Marc Marquez is still clearly struggling with the arm injuries that were compounded when he was t-boned by Marco Bezzecchi at Mandalika last October

But what has changed is the sense of inevitability. Ducati is no longer rolling into Sunday looking untouchable. Bagnaia’s season has been especially ragged by his standards. He left Brazil 13th in the standings on 10 points, and after COTA was only ninth on 25 points after a difficult Grand Prix in which he said the bike would not stop and turn the way he wanted. Marc Marquez has had outright speed but not clean weekends and is clearly struggling with his right arm, while Di Giannantonio has often looked like Ducati’s sharpest all-round threat. The package is still potent, but the grip on the championship has loosened.

Pecco Bagnaia has shown flashes, but his start to 2026 has been unusually ragged by Ducati standards.

If Aprilia has been the biggest winner of the opening three rounds, Yamaha has been the clearest disappointment. The V4 switch was officially confirmed as the centrepiece of Yamaha’s 2026 reset, with the company expecting gains in acceleration, braking stability and adaptability to the current aero-and-tyre era. But the initial results suggest the project remains in its early, painful phase. Jack Miller called Thailand the first full race for the V4 and said it had provided a base to build from, but the finishes there were 14th for Quartararo, 15th for Rins, 17th for Razgatlioglu and 18th for Miller.

Yamaha’s difficult opening phase was summed up by all four bikes finishing well down the order in Texas.

Brazil was no real breakthrough either. Quartararo was 16th, Rins 14th, Toprak 17th, and Miller crashed out, with both factory and Pramac riders again talking about rear-grip and acceleration limitations. Then at COTA, the broader picture became harder to ignore: all four Yamahas finished outside the top 14, with Toprak finally taking his first MotoGP point in 15th, ahead of Miller, Quartararo and Rins. Quartararo’s comment that “Yamaha knows what we need and what we need to do” was telling, as was Miller’s reference to weaknesses still sitting in the “DNA of the bike.”

Jack Miller has helped keep Yamaha’s V4 project grounded, even as results remain sparse.

So, will the break let Yamaha bring much more to Jerez? It will certainly help, because no manufacturer on the grid needs more uninterrupted engineering time. But based on what we have seen so far, expecting one month to transform the V4 project would be optimistic. The evidence from Thailand, Brazil and COTA points to a package still trying to define its baseline rather than one standing on the verge of a major step. Jerez may show improvement, but it would be a surprise if it suddenly turns Yamaha into a front-running force.

Toprak Razgatlioglu was the first Yamaha rider home in Texas

Honda, by contrast, looks like a manufacturer making quieter but more credible progress. The results alone do not scream breakthrough, but the trend line is healthier. Marini scored tenth in Thailand, 11th in Brazil and ninth at COTA, and now sits 10th in the championship on 23 points as the top Honda. Zarco was ninth in Brazil, while Joan Mir’s scoreline still looks untidy due to his numerous crashes, but his determination to propel the bike up to the front is clearly visible. Mir shows no fear in his approach, and his aggression on the bike has often made him the most exciting rider to watch during a Grand Prix.

Joan Mir has been scintillating to watch in 2026, when he is not crashing…

That does not mean Honda is suddenly back. Marini was blunt after Austin that the bike still needs more to break into the top eight consistently, and Mir pointed directly to rear-drive limitations on corner exit. But Honda now looks capable of getting into the fight rather than merely circulating on the edge of it. For a brand that spent much of the previous two seasons buried in survival mode, that is meaningful progress. The break before Jerez gives HRC a chance to consolidate their push.

Honda’s RC213V still needs more, but the trend line looks healthier than it did a year ago.

KTM’s start has probably been the hardest to define because it has contained both encouragement and frustration in almost equal measure. Pedro Acosta has been the constant. He was second in Thailand, remains third in the championship on 60 points, and stood on the podium again at COTA after what KTM described as another podium-distinction weekend.

KTM’s 2026 picture has mixed podium-level promise with frustrating inconsistency.

But outside Acosta, KTM’s picture has fluctuated sharply. Binder was seventh in Thailand, then crashed out in Brazil and could manage only 12th at COTA. Bastianini struggled to 15th in Brazil but then surged to sixth in Texas, while Viñales was forced out of COTA on Friday because of a shoulder problem requiring minor surgery. Viñales was full of vigour at the opening round and showed great promise, but that seems to have ebbed in the most recent rounds and will sit out this weekend after surgery on a screw that had gone awry in his previously repaired shoulder.  The initial plan had been for KTM reserve rider Pol Espargaró to step in for the Spanish Grand Prix, however, a hand injury sustained in the lead-up to Jerez has left him unable to fulfil reserve duties for the weekend.

The 2026 KTM RC16 has often been the fastest bike down the chute

The encouraging part for KTM is that there is still obvious performance in the RC16. The less encouraging part is that it has not been distributed evenly enough across the garage. Acosta has largely been carrying the headline work, Bastianini has only just started to look more at home in Austin, and hopefully that is not a one-off. Brad Binder’s weekend-to-weekend volatility has prevented KTM from turning flashes of speed into a broader title push. At this point, KTM still looks like a team capable of podiums rather than one ready to dictate a title fight.

Guenther Steiner – Red Bull KTM Tech3 CEO

“I don’t ask for these situations, but somehow they keep turning up anyway. Of course, there’s a bit of irony in it, but the reality is that this is not how we wanted to arrive in Jerez. First, Maverick is recovering; then Pol injures his hand, and suddenly the plan changes. We have looked at the alternatives, but we must also make sensible decisions that are right for the team and the wider project. The positive is that Enea comes into this weekend with good momentum after Austin, and that gives us something strong to build on as we head into the European leg of the season.”

Maverick Viñales showed early promise before injury complicated KTM’s build-up to Jerez.

All of that leaves Jerez as perhaps the first true referendum of the season. Aprilia arrives with the points lead, the momentum, and perhaps the most complete package on the grid. Ducati arrives needing to remind everyone that its benchmark status was not erased by three rounds of instability. Yamaha arrives hoping the pause has helped turn information into progress, while Honda arrives with a chance to prove that its gains are real. KTM, meanwhile, arrives needing to show that Acosta is not carrying the whole story alone.

MotoGP 2026 – Round One – Thailand – Chang International Circuit

Aprilia is no longer asking for a seat at the top table; it is already sitting there. Ducati is still dangerous, but not dictating terms. Yamaha’s V4 future still looks some distance from its present. Honda has made itself relevant again. KTM still has enough pace to matter, but not yet enough cohesion to control events. Jerez should tell us whether those opening impressions were temporary or the beginning of a genuine shift in MotoGP’s balance of power.

MotoGP class of 2026

2026 MotoGP Championship Standings

Pos

Rider

Points

1	M. Bezzecchi	81
2	J. Martin	77
3	P. Acosta	60
4	F. Di Giannantonio	50
5	M. Marquez	45
6	R. Fernandez	40
7	A. Ogura	37
8	A. Marquez	28
9	F. Bagnaia	25
10	L. Marini	23
11	E. Bastianini	22
12	B. Binder	17
13	F. Morbidelli	14
14	F. Aldeguer	13
15	J. Zarco	13
16	D. Moreira	9
17	F. Quartararo	6
18	A. Rins	3
19	J. Mir	3
20	T. Razgatlioglu	1
21	J. Miller
22	M. Viñales
23	M. Pirro

2026 MotoGP Calendar

Rnd	Date	Event	Circuit
1	01 Mar	Thai	Chang International Circuit
2	22 Mar	Brazil*	Autodromo Internacional Ayrton Senna
3	29 Mar	US	Circuit of the Americas
4	26 Apr	Spain**	Circuito de Jerez-Angel Nieto
5	10 May	France	Le Mans
6	17 May	Catalonia	Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya
7	31 May	Italy	Autodromo Internazionale del Mugello
8	07 Jun	Hungary	Balaton Park Circuit
9	21 Jun	Czech	Automotodrom Brno
10	28 Jun	Netherlands	TT Circuit Assen
11	12 Jul	Germany	Sachsenring
12	09 Aug	GB	Silverstone Circuit
13	30 Aug	Aragon	MotorLand Aragon
14	13 Sep	San Marino	Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli
15	20 Sep	Austria	Red Bull Ring-Spielberg
16	04 Oct	Japan	Mobility Resort Motegi
17	11 Oct	Indonesia	Pertamina Mandalika International Circuit
18	25 Oct	Australia	Phillip Island
19	01 Nov	Malaysia	Petronas Sepang International Circuit
20	08 Nov	Qatar	Lusail International Circuit
21	22 Nov	Portugal	Autodromo Internacional do Algarve
22	29 Nov	Valencia	Circuit Ricardo Tormo