MotoGP rolls in to Valencia for final contest of 2025

MotoGP 2025

Round 22 – Valencia – Preview

The 2025 MotoGP season concludes this weekend at the Circuit Ricardo Tormo in Valencia, returning to the Spanish venue after a two-year absence.

Circuito de la Comunitat Valenciana – Ricardo Tormo

Completed in 1999, the Circuito de la Comunitat Valenciana – Ricardo Tormo is located near Cheste. The anti-clockwise circuit features multiple layout options, with the MotoGP configuration measuring 4.0 kilometres and comprising five right-hand corners, eight left-handers, and a 876-metre main straight. Despite its compact design, the circuit offers excellent visibility from every grandstand, creating a unique, stadium-like atmosphere.

Circuito de la Comunitat Valenciana – Ricardo Tormo

The venue’s facilities include a 48-garage pit complex and grandstand capacity for around 150,000 spectators, making it one of Europe’s most spectator-friendly motorcycle racing venues.

Circuit Ricardo Tormo

The final round features several key battles still to be settled, including the fight for third place in the Championship and crucial points in the concession standings.

With Marc Márquez already crowned 2025 World Champion and his brother Alex Márquez (BK8 Gresini Racing MotoGP) securing second overall, the focus now turns to Marco Bezzecchi (Aprilia Racing) and Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team) in the battle for third.

Francesco Bagnaia

“A complicated season is coming to an end: we worked incredibly hard, struggled a lot in some races, less so in others, but we weren’t able to achieved solid results. We’ll keep working; the goal is to return to being competitive and consistent. We’ll also try to fully exploit this final race weekend and the Tuesday test”.

Bezzecchi strengthened his position with victory at Portimão – his second Grand Prix win of the season – giving Aprilia its best-ever MotoGP campaign, which also included a win for Raúl Fernández (Trackhouse MotoGP Team) in Australia. The Italian heads to Valencia with a clear advantage over Bagnaia, who has endured a difficult run of form in recent rounds.

Marco Bezzecchi

“I’m really happy to be going to Valencia. It will be important to try to have a good weekend and finish the season in the best possible way. Also, it’s been more than a year since we last raced in Valencia, so it’ll be nice to go back there. We’ll try to do a good job and keep going in this direction.”

Raul Fernandez

“Valencia is the last race and for us it will be important to be there at minimum 90-95% fitness. It’s my home Grand Prix, it’s one of my favourite tracks and one that I always enjoy riding on – I’m looking forward to it. I think we can make the last push to end the season well, although we expected something different for Portugal. With the injury I had on Friday, I couldn’t start the race, which means even more now that we have to finish the season well. We also have an important test in Valencia on Tuesday so, I will try to keep calm, work well and be there at 90/95%.”

Bezzecchi will also have the returning Jorge Martín alongside him in the Aprilia garage, after the 2024 World Champion missed multiple races due to injury. Martín is expected to take part in Tuesday’s post-season Valencia test.

Jorge Martín

“I can’t wait to be back with the team. I’m really happy with the way the team is working and I’d like to congratulate Aprilia and Marco on the results they’ve achieved. My goal now is to start preparing in the best possible way for next season; now, it doesn’t make sense to talk about results — the important thing is to put in the laps and gather information. I want to grow together with the team so that we’re ready for 2026.”

The recent run of six different winners – Marc Márquez, Bagnaia, Fermin Aldeguer, Raúl Fernández, Alex Márquez, and Bezzecchi – has highlighted the depth of competition heading into the finale.

Among the riders still searching for a first win, Pedro Acosta (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) stands out after multiple podium finishes in his rookie season. Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) could also feature strongly, with the Valencia circuit expected to play to Yamaha’s handling strengths rather than outright top speed.

Fabio Quartararo

“My overall performance in Portugal was not bad: I did enjoy battling in the Sprint and the Race – and also the qualifying was okay – but I do hope that I will be a bit more towards the leading group in Valencia. It’s nice to be back here at Ricardo Tormo. It’s not an easy track, but we will give it our 100%, as always, to end this season in the best way possible before we start working on 2026.”

Honda continues its efforts to improve its ranking in the concession system. After podiums in Japan and Malaysia, Joan Mir (Honda HRC Castrol) and Johann Zarco (CASTROL Honda LCR) have the manufacturer on the brink of moving from Rank D to Rank C, needing nine points or more in Valencia to do so. However, such a result would reduce the number of testing and development allowances available next year.

Joan Mir

“Our focus this weekend is to take the maximum possible, we clearly have improved our speed, and I know that we can be competitive in Valencia. There’s a lot of work to do because for sure every rider will be pushing to end their year in the best possible way, so I am expecting the competition to be tight. Of course, as one thing ends another begins – 2025 finishes on Sunday but already on Tuesday we begin 2026. It has been a year of progress and restored motivation, we need to carry this through the last weekend and into the future.”

Luca Marini and Somkiat Chantra (IDEMITSU Honda LCR) will also be aiming to finish the season strongly, with Chantra set to move to WorldSBK in 2026.

Luca Marini

“The last race of what has been a very long, but overall really positive year. When you compare what we have done this year to 2024, it is almost night and day. Now we arrive at every race expecting to fight for Q2 and with the possibility of challenging at the front. There is still work to do as a team, as a factory, to improve but I want to thank everyone for their work in 2025. Valencia is a circuit which should suit us more based on what we’ve seen the year, it’s tight and technical. We need to work well this weekend to deliver the best possible result and end the year in the correct way. Then 2026 starts on Tuesday, I’m looking forward to it all!”

Fabio Di Giannantonio (Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team) holds sixth in the standings but faces pressure from teammate Franco Morbidelli, while Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) and Enea Bastianini (Red Bull KTM Tech3) are both capable of fighting near the front after showing competitive pace in Portugal.

Fabio Di Giannantonio

“I really like the Valencia circuit. The last time we raced there [2023], I was really fast and took a podium in Sunday’s race. We’ll try to bring that same energy into this weekend, as we return to Valencia for the final race of the year. I hope to end the season on a high note, so it will be very important to start well right from the beginning. The goal is to finish strong and build consistency heading into next year.”

Franco Morbidelli

“I’m happy to come back to Valencia after not being able to race there last year; it means that, little by little, everything is getting back to normal in that area. About me, I’ve already recovered from Sunday’s crash. It was a tough one, but fortunately, the medical assessments didn’t show any injuries, and after these three days at home, I’m ready. I have some great memories on this track, so I hope to end the year with a good result that leaves us with a nice taste in our mouths.”

Enea Bastianini

“Valencia is quite a small layout, and somehow, I never really found my way around that track, I have never done a podium there! At the same time, I had never done one in Barcelona, and this year we managed to take our first podium with KTM there, so we will have to see how it goes. We were unlucky in the race in Portimao, but afterwards I was really happy with our race pace when we rejoined. I think that I had potential for a top 5, which is giving us confidence arriving to this final round. We will see how Friday goes as usual, but of course we will try to be competitive from the first day, and hopefully position ourselves in the best way to try finishing the season well.”

Maverick Viñales (Red Bull KTM Tech3) returns from injury for the final round, while Miguel Oliveira (Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP) will compete in his final MotoGP race before switching focus to other commitments. His teammate Jack Miller is targeting a top-ten finish to end an up-and-down season for the Aussie veteran.

Maverick Viñales

“We took the time we needed to fully focus on my shoulder recovery, and I am happy to say that our physical condition has improved so much since the Indonesian Grand Prix. The target was to get strength back, so we dedicated all the last month to that purpose. We spent a lot of time at the Red bull Athlete Performance Center in Austria, and it has really helped me a lot. I am still not at 100% of course, but it is super important to be back with the team in Valencia for the final round. We will be able to measure our progress, and that will give us a clear plan of what is left to do during the winter to be at my 100% for the pre-season test. Anyway, I am super happy to see the team again, I can’t wait to go back racing.”

Miguel Oliveira

“After all the emotions I experienced during the Portimão weekend, racing in Valencia will feel like a walk in the park. It will definitely be an easier week in terms of pressure and emotions, even though this will officially be my last MotoGP race. I feel good about it, and I hope I can deliver a strong performance and fight for some solid points.”

Jack Miller

“I‘m looking forward to racing in Valencia and wrapping up what has been a very interesting first season with Yamaha. We‘ve had some highs and lows, but I think we‘ve learned a lot. Valencia is a track where I‘ve always done pretty well — I really enjoy racing here, and I‘m curious to see what we can achieve. Hopefully, we can start from a good base right from the beginning and keep improving throughout the weekend.”

Augusto Fernández will wildcard this weekend for Yamaha, while Nicolo Bulega continues to substitute for the injured Marc Márquez at Ducati Lenovo Team, gaining further experience ahead of his 2027 test rider role.

Augusto Fernandez

“I’m happy to be back racing again, and especially to be back racing in Valencia. I’m looking forward to continue improving the V4-powered prototype and collecting further data. It will be an important weekend to decide the direction to work in during this winter and next year. I can’t wait to get started!”

Nicolò Bulega

“I’m happy to get back on track. I’ve had a few days to better understand and analyse what we did over the weekend in Portugal. I’m sure that here in Valencia we’ll be able to—I won’t say definitely do better, but I’m sure we’ll feel more comfortable on the bike and fine-tune some automatism. We’ll try to cover as many kilometers as possible to gain more and more confidence”.

Next week’s post-season test will mark the beginning of preparations for 2026. Yamaha’s line-up will include Miller, Quartararo, Alex Rins, and new signing Toprak Razgatlioglu, who makes his public debut on the V4-powered YZR-M1.

The 2025 Moto2 World Championship will be decided this weekend at the Circuit Ricardo Tormo in Valencia, with Diogo Moreira (Italtrans Racing Team) and Manuel Gonzalez (Liqui Moly Dynavolt Intact GP) the only riders still in contention for the title.

Following his victory in Portimao, Moreira holds a 24-point advantage over Gonzalez heading into the final round. The equation is simple: the Brazilian needs to finish 14th or better on Sunday to secure the championship, regardless of Gonzalez’s result.

Moreira has been one of the most consistent riders in the second half of the season, finishing inside the top five in all but one race since Brno. The exception was a 14th place in Barcelona. His only DNFs came earlier in the year in Germany and the Czech Republic.

For Gonzalez, the task is clear, he must win to have any chance of keeping his title hopes alive. The Spaniard’s last victory came at Mugello, and his most recent podium was a third place in Hungary. A repeat of that form, coupled with misfortune for Moreira, is his only path to the championship.

Behind the title contenders, Barry Baltus and Aron Canet will contest third overall in the standings, separated by six points as Fantic Racing looks to lock out the top three in the team standings. Jake Dixon (ELF Marc VDS Racing Team) is also mathematically in contention, 17 points behind Baltus, as he prepares for his final Moto2 appearance before moving to a new challenge in 2026 with Honda in World Superbike.

Senna Agius is looking to cement his place inside the final championship top ten.

Moto2 Championship Standings

Moto3

The 2025 Moto3 World Championship concludes this weekend at the Circuit Ricardo Tormo, with the focus now on the battle for second in the standings between Ángel Piqueras (FRINSA – MT Helmets – MSI) and Máximo Quiles (CFMOTO Gaviota Aspar Team).

With the World Championship already secured by José Antonio Rueda (Red Bull KTM Ajo), attention turns to which of the two Spanish riders will claim the runner-up position. The pair are separated by eight points heading into the final round, ensuring a close finish between two home favourites.

Quiles arrives in form after taking his third win of the season last time out in Portugal, a result that also cemented his Rookie of the Year title.

Máximo Quiles

“We’ve already secured third place in the standings, which is great, but we’re even closer to the runner-up spot after the victory in Portugal. We’ll fight for it, of course. I’m very excited about the possibility of achieving it, but even if we don’t, third place is still a great accomplishment. I’m going to focus on having the best race possible without obsessing over the result.”

Piqueras finished second in that race to limit the points swing, leaving the outcome finely balanced ahead of Valencia, which will also mark Piqueras’ final appearance in Moto3 before moving up to Moto2 next season.

Further down the order, Álvaro Carpe (Red Bull KTM Ajo) and Joel Kelso (LEVELUP–MTA) are both in contention for a top-five finish overall, with the pair well placed to capitalise on the continued absence of David Muñoz (Liqui Moly Dynavolt Intact GP).

After starting the season battling back from a serious injury and missing some of the opening rounds, Jacob Roulstone is looking to complete his final appearance as a Red Bull KTM Tech3 rider on a high note as he searches for a seat on the 2026 grid.

Meanwhile, the contest for top Honda honours remains open between Taiyo Furusato (Honda Team Asia) and Adrián Fernández (Leopard Racing). After consecutive podiums in Malaysia and Portugal, Furusato trails Fernández by just two points, setting up another tight head-to-head for the final round.