Marco Bezzecchi
Marc Marquez begins the defence of his MotoGP title at the Thailand Grand Prix this weekend, so it’s time for our experts to make their predictions for the 2026 season.
Marquez cruised to the 2025 title at Ducati, sealing the crown with five races to spare. Despite missing the last four through injury, he still beat brother Alex by 78 points.
After a miserable season, Francesco Bagnaia is trying to rebuild his image on the other side of the garage, while riders like Marco Bezzecchi (Aprilia) and Pedro Acosta (KTM) have also been named as potential challengers to Marquez.
Further down the grid, Toprak Razgatlioglu is the biggest name entering the fold. The three-time World Superbikes champion starts his MotoGP career at the age of 29 with the Pramac team.
Which riders will finish in the top three of the MotoGP championship?
David Comerford: Marc Marquez, Francesco Bagnaia, Alex Marquez.
Marquez won’t be beaten on a Ducati unless he misses a large part of the season through injury. Only two riders have beaten him when he’s fully fit, and one of those (Jorge Martin) was riding a more advanced spec.
I think Bagnaia will be liberated by his impending departure from the red team and give Luigi Dall’Igna something to think about. The third spot is hard to call, but I’ll pick Alex Marquez over Marco Bezzecchi because I think he might be slightly more consistent.
Give us YOUR top three for the 2026 MotoGP season 👇
Kyle Archer: It is impossible to look beyond Marc Marquez winning the 2026 MotoGP title, with the Spaniard still on the best bike on the grid and still clearly the best rider in the field.
But the battle to be P2 should be an interesting duel, as Francesco Bagnaia has looked a lot more comfortable on the Ducati GP26 and Marco Bezzecchi has made a lot of progress with Aprilia over the past year to potentially push Gresini ace Alex Marquez out of the top three.
Tyler Rowlinson: I don’t think it will be as dominant as 2025, but I can’t look past Marc Marquez for the title. He is almost impossible to beat on track and he has the fastest bike, but I expect his rivals to be much closer.
I fancy Francesco Bagnaia making a strong comeback on the GP26 and finishing in second, and I’m backing Marco Bezzecchi to finish third ahead of Alex Marquez. I think he’ll take that Aprilia to the absolute limit and really give the Ducatis a tough time.
Ashley Hambly: Alex Marquez, Francesco Bagnaia, Marc Marquez. While I don’t doubt Marc’s talents to go all the way this season, I just think his ability to stay on the motorcycle will be pivotal.
I expect Alex to make another step up this year on factory machinery, and Pecco to be in contention at the majority of race weekends.
Luke Newman: Marc Marquez, Marco Bezzecchi, Alex Marquez. I don’t see anyone beating Marc Marquez other than himself. Marco Bezzecchi and Alex Marquez will fight for second throughout the year and will become the biggest rivalry of the season.
Which rider will be the biggest surprise – positive or negative?
David Comerford: Jorge Martin has largely been forgotten about, but even in an injury-decimated 2025 season, he showed glimpses of his immense talent. If he stays fit this year, he could easily be a top-five rider in the standings, even if his mind might start drifting towards Yamaha at the end of the season.
Joan Mir could also be an option in this category, provided he stops crashing!
Kyle Archer: While Raul Fernandez won his first MotoGP race in Australia in 2025, he could still be the biggest surprise in 2026. The Spaniard’s premier class career seemed to be going in the wrong direction but he and Trackhouse found a way for him to gel with Aprilia’s bike.
Who do YOU think will be the biggest disappointment of the 2026 MotoGP season?
Tyler Rowlinson: It might not be too surprising given his improved form in the second half of last year, but I think Raul Fernandez could really shock some people. With Aprilia’s progress and his clear improvements, evidenced by his maiden win in Australia in 2025, I see the Trackhouse rider challenging at the front more often than not.
Ashley Hambly: Maverick Vinales has had a strong pre-season, both in testing as well as in training with Jorge Lorenzo. KTM staff are already under the impression that he will usurp Pedro Acosta as the stable’s lead rider, so I think he could stun everybody and emerge inside the top five of the standings.
Luke Newman: Ai Ogura will be the biggest surprise. After dealing with injuries throughout his rookie year, he will make a positive step this season, and he will feature inside the top ten on a more regular basis.
Where will Toprak Razgatlioglu finish in his debut MotoGP season?
David Comerford: I’m less optimistic now than I was before the start of testing. I expect Razgatlioglu to be somewhere between 16th and 20th, but that could still see him above his Yamaha colleagues Jack Miller and Alex Rins given how poor the bike is looking.
Kyle Archer: Everyone knows that Toprak Razgatlioglu will have a difficult debut season in MotoGP at Pramac Yamaha in 2026, as he has so much to learn despite arriving as a three-time World Superbike champion. So, anything from P15 to P20 could prove to be his limit.
Where do you think Toprak Razgatlioglu will finish on his MotoGP debut?
Tyler Rowlinson: Toprak will scrape a top 15 finish, but just barely. I don’t see him having a great time on that Yamaha. It’ll be a learning year with many hardships, but I think P15 would be respectable in the circumstances.
Ashley Hambly: I can’t see Razgatlioglu ending the season anywhere near the top ten in the standings. He’ll definitely be taking advantage of any chaos that unfolds ahead of him, but somewhere around the 17th – 22nd spot is where I imagine he’ll be.
Luke Newman: Toprak Razgatlioglu will end the year in 21st place. He will likely struggle due to the adaptation from Superbikes to MotoGP, and because he is on a Yamaha, it is hard to picture him fighting for the points too often.
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