In the year The 2026 MotoGP season will mark the end of an era as new regulations come into effect in 2027, but Marc Marquez’s title defense will be one of the more exciting storylines to come.
Marquez to a MotoGP season In the year As the first defending champion since 2020, the 2026 campaign begins in Thailand on March 1. The Spaniard won the 2025 title in the factory’s first year. Ducati Team aboard the GP25 dominated the field.
No rival driver can bring it as a real challenge. Marquez won the 2025 MotoGP title with a record five laps. He won the championship at round 17/22 and left the Japanese Grand Prix with a 201 point lead over his brother Gresini. Alex MarquezAt the 2025 levels.
Rank the five factory team lineups for the 2026 season
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The 2025 season will truly be the year of the Marquez brothers, as Marc and Alex are the first brothers to finish first and second in the premier class standings. Marc won 11 of the 18 Grands Prix he entered, missing the last four due to shoulder surgery.
How Marc Marquez adapts to his Ducati GP26 return from injury will be one of the first headlines in 2026, as MotoGP bids 1,000cc engines and ride-height equipment in the 850cc era ahead of 2027. Alex Marquez also rides a Ducati GP226.
The first signs of how the 2026 MotoGP season may develop will become clear during pre-season testing at Septang (February 3-5) and Buriram (February 21-22). With that in mind, here are some of the boldest predictions for 2026 that MotoGP News feels are likely to happen.
Marco Bezzecchi will fight with Marc Marquez for the 2025 MotoGP riders’ title
Marc Marquez has been in a league of his own since joining Ducati in 2025, winning 11 Grands Prix and 14 Sprint Races. But Ducati’s dominance waned as the Cervera native had to miss the final four rounds of the season due to injury.
Read more: The discount level of each MotoGP team has reached the 2026 season
What do you expect Marc Marquez to achieve in 2026?
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Gresini’s Alex Marquez won the Malaysian Grand Prix in a Ducati pilot’s lone victory in the absence of his older brother. rather than Aprilia finished 2025 with the best bike in MotoGP.Like Raul Fernandez and Marco Bezecchi He has won three of the last four Grands Prix.
Trackhouse rider Fernandez takes first MotoGP win at Australian Grand Prix ahead of factory Aprilia Rider Bezeci won the last two Grands Prix in 2025 in Portugal and Valencia. Aprilia took another victory over the winter because their legs were not blocked by wings.
With the 2027 MotoGP regulations on the horizon, no team wants to waste their resources developing the last bike of the 1,000cc era for the 2026 season. So Bezecchi should feel optimistic that the Aprilia RS-GP will help him battle Ducati’s Marquez for the first time.
Marc Marquez will leave Ducati and return to Honda in the 2027 season
Sticking with Marc Marquez, the 2026 season could be his second and final season at the factory Ducati team. The 32-year-old is out of contract at Borgo Pangale at the end of 2026 and will Honda A 2027 season could now be on the cards.
It is said that Marquez likes the idea of returning to Honda in 2027If the conditions are right. In the year He will leave the Japanese manufacturer at the end of 2023 to prove to himself that he can still compete at the front of the field, joining Gresini in 2024 at satellite Ducati.
Honda is battling Ducati to sign Marquez for 2027.Both brands want to lead them into the era of 850cc regulations. The seven-time MotoGP champion prioritizes being on the best bike for the 850cc regulations because winning is what he wants most.
Yamaha will win the Grand Prix after Fabio Quatrero announces his departure
of MotoGP rider market In the year It’s set to explode in 2026, with most of the stars out of contract at the end of next season. Honda only and Yamaha Currently, LCR’s Johann Zarco plus Diogo Moreira and Pramac’s Toprak Razgatlioglu are any number of drivers tied for the 2027 season.
Read more: Ranking Valentino Rossi’s top five MotoGP rivals, including Marc Marquez
Five when Fabio Quatararo won the final race
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Yamaha are also at risk of being spotted. Fabio Quatararo After three barren years, he opted to leave at the end of his contract to return to winning ways. Quattararo says 2026 is “obviously” his last chance for Yamaha. To show that you can win titles again.
The Japanese manufacturer also thinks that the French will abandon them. It is said that Yamaha are already considering the release of the Quattro.It could easily come before Iwata’s outfit finally gets back to winning ways in 2026 when they understand their V4 engine.
Yamaha is committed to making a V4 engine in the final year of 1,000cc regulations after completing their inline-four program in 2025. But Quattararo is determined to decide enough is enough and leave Yamaha before seeing off his first win since 2022.
Ducati in 2010 Francesco Bagna to step down after failing to win a single Grand Prix in 2026
Francesco Bagnaia In the year The Ducati rider overcame a devastating fall from grace during the 2025 MotoGP season, having fought for the title for the past four years and winning in 2022 and 2023, with a minimum of 288 points to finish fifth in the riders’ standings.
Read more: The best moments of Francesco Bagnaia’s MotoGP career
Change our mind: Francesco Bagnaia will not fight for the title in 2026.
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Marc Marquez has 257 points ahead of his first-year teammates, although the Spaniard missed the last four rounds due to injury. Bagnaia could not adapt to Ducati’s ride height device in 2025And the future of Borgo Pangale is now in serious danger.
It has been suggested that Ducati has decided to part with BagnaiaWith his P5, which is supposed to be the final nail in the 2025 coffin. The real final nail is Bagnaia not winning a single Grand Prix in 2026, which is quite possible.
While the team manager Davide Tardozzi felt that Bagnaia “found his way again” during the Valencia test. As Ducati tested their GP26 bike in November, the 28-year-old has yet to prove that the mental scars from his devastating 2025 beating against Marquez have healed.
Bagnaia managed to finish just one of the last six Grands Prix in 2025, surprisingly winning the Japanese GP from pole position after winning the Sprint at Motegi. It was his second win of the season after his win in America.
It wouldn’t be surprising if Bagnaia fails to win a single race in 2026 and Ducati is shown the door if he’s as crazy as he sounds at the start of 2025.
Toprak Razgatlioglu takes the podium at Pramac in the inaugural MotoGP season
Toprak Razgatlioglu He may be a three-time World Superbike champion now, but 2026 will see the Turkish legend finally make his debut in MotoGP. Yamaha signed Razgatlioglu to a two-year factory contract in June 2025 and placed him in their satellite team. PramakFor 2026.
Read more: Everything you need to know about Toprak Razgatlioglu from net worth to nickname
Is Toprak too late to MotoGP?
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Yamaha and Razgatlioglu decided that despite 2026 being the final year of the 1,000cc regulations, now was the time to move up to MotoGP, as it would give him a chance to learn about the paddock and many circuits he hasn’t raced on the WSBK calendar.
The 2027 season, where Pirelli will replace Michelin as MotoGP’s tire supplier, is widely expected to be Razgatlioglu’s chance to showcase his skills to the championship. Even Razgatlioglu admitted that finishing outside the top 10 in MotoGP “will not be easy”. During his rookie season.
Razgatlioglu thinks it is “believable” if he gets a platform in 2026But the final rounds saw that dream come true. As long as Yamaha develop their 1,000cc V4 engine enough in the campaign, the rostrum may not be as unrealistic as Razgatlioglu fears.
