MotoGP: With two maiden winners already and seven different victors… will we see another this weekend?
Two maiden winners and seven winners so far is the state of play as the 2025 MotoGP season touches down in Portimão. One of the most exciting circuits on the calendar, it’s called the rollercoaster for a reason and is a whole new challenge for the grid – with plenty of interesting track records and form books to read through on the way in. So who’s taking the reins this weekend?
PRESSURE OFF, PRESSURE ON: Alex Marquez throws down, Bulega called up
1 and 2 is wrapped up as the Marquez brothers make history as the first siblings to become Champion and runner-up. And while Marc Marquez (Ducati Lenovo Team) won’t be back competing until next year, Alex Marquez (BK8 Gresini Racing MotoGP) most definitely is. An impressive and perfectly poised win at Sepang underlined his runner-up spot in style and as he has been all year, he’ll be in the crosshairs for many.
So who’s stepping in this weekend? 2025 WorldSBK runner-up Nicolo Bulega is going to beat Champion Toprak Razgatliouglu to it and debut in MotoGP first, albeit for two races. Bulega has already been signed up and announced as part of Ducati’s development team in 2026 in preparation for the new regulations in 2027, and now he’s going to race the GP25 too, further adding to his knowledge before the switch to 850cc.
A test at Jerez on the Thursday before Portimao gave Bulega a first spin out. Now it’s in at the deep end to race in place of a seven-time MotoGP World Champion, and on Michelin rubber too. His targets will likely be modest, but the experience should be of incredible value.
THE BATTLE FOR BRONZE: three riders & three factories
The pendulum continues to swing in the battle for third place overall. Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team) and Marco Bezzecchi (Aprilia Racing) were tied on points after the Sepang Sprint but after Pecco’s Grand Prix DNF on Sunday and Bezzecchi scraping P11, the Aprilia star has a narrow advantage. Bagnaia’s a winner at Portimao from 2023 but suffered a Sunday DNF there last year after his clash with current teammate Marquez, whereas Bezzecchi was third in 2023 and sixth last year on different machinery.
Meanwhile, slashing 20 points out of Bagnaia’s advantage is Pedro Acosta (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing). P2 at Sepang on Sunday, he’s just 31 behind Bezzecchi and 26 behind Bagnaia. Dare he dream of bronze? If anyone’s winning their maiden GP at Portimao and becoming the eighth winner of the season, you’d be hard pushed to bet against the #37…
TARGETING MORE: tight fight in the top ten
Things continue to change hands for P6. Teammates Franco Morbidelli (Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team) and Fabio Di Giannantonio are separated by just one point with two GPs remaining. And it’s Diggia who has achieved the only top ten between them at Portimao in the last two years – although Morbidelli has a podium from 2020 after his memorable throwdown with Miller.
Joan Mir (Honda HRC Castrol), meanwhile, arrives from his second podium in four GPs and has a third from the Portuguese GP from 2021 he aims to replicate. Honda, after such a difficult stint one year ago, are now on the verge of moving up a rank in concessions. If they score 19 or more points across Portugal and Valencia, they move from D to C – and lose things like their free testing with any rider at any track. See here for the full ranks!
Back a little further up in the standings, however, Fabio Quartararo’s (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) strong fifth from Sepang puts him just four points behind Fermin Aldeguer (BK8 Gresini Racing MotoGP) now. Quartararo has two wins at Portimao and it’s a track you would expect the #20 to be strong at once again. Aldeguer, however, has had a tougher time of it since his Mandalika win, although he did wrap up Rookie of the Year in Sepang despite that tyre pressure penalty. Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse MotoGP Team) is another who suffered a dip after his maiden win and will want to prove a point in Portugal.
LATE RUN ON THE TOP TEN: looking for form & fortune
28 points cover 11th to 14th and just one splits Johann Zarco (LCR Honda CASTROL) and Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) as the South African edges ever closer thanks to three consecutive top tens. He’s been in the top six in every Portuguese GP he’s finished, so watch out for the #33. Likewise on a run of three consecutive top ten results is Luca Marini (Honda HRC Castrol), just five points behind Binder, whilst Enea Bastianini’s (Red Bull KTM Tech 3) Sunday rallies from tougher qualifying mean he’s 36 points off the top ten. Bastianini has been on the podium here before too, and when it goes well out the box – like Barcelona – he can have plenty to say at the sharp end.
HOME HERO: Oliveira’s swansong on home soil
It’s a final home GP for Miguel Oliveira (Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP), with the #88 aiming to return to the points. The first Portuguese rider to win in MotoGP, and the first to win on home turf after his stunning Portimão victory in 2020, it will be an emotional weekend and he’ll be more motivated than ever to attack at the front.
Teammate Jack Miller, meanwhile, seeks a return to the top ten on Sunday for the first time since Brno after a tougher run of DNFs. A few places ahead, and aiming to take his first back-to-back top ten Grand Prix finishes since Jerez and Le Mans, is Ai Ogura (Trackhouse MotoGP Team), whereas Alex Rins (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) has previous top five pace in Portugal. Somkiat Chantra (IDEMITSU Honda LCR) hopes to finish his rookie season, and before his new adventure in WorldSBK, adding to his points tally whilst Lorenzo Savadori (Aprilia Racing) and Pol Espargaro (Red Bull KTM Tech 3) continue to replace Jorge Martin and Maverick Viñales respectively – the latter often a Q2 threat to watch out for.
A chance at another maiden winner, a swansong for a home hero and the penultimate GP of the year promises much… so strap yourselves in for the Qatar Airways Grand Prix of Portugal!
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