Michael Scott | March 16, 2023
Cycle News In The Paddock
COLUMN
A Baker’s Dozen of Questions For The New Year
MotoGP testing is over, but it’s still all guesswork for the season to come. Here’s a baker’s dozen of questions that will need to be answered.
Can Marquez win again?
Time waits for no man, but genius will not be denied. The big question is whether Marc, 30 this year, can find the motivation to resist the same tide of youth that eventually that Rossi did. My guess is, “yes.” But there’s a note of caution: will the heavily revised Honda be good enough to make it possible? See question three.
Will Joan Mir be the teammate to challenge the master?
Dominant in Moto3, impressive in Moto2, Champion in MotoGP. That was in 2020, the year Marquez crashed. But Mir won only one race in his title year and none since—outshone by Suzuki teammate Alex Rins. Repsol Honda team guru Alberto Puig chose Mir over Rins for the factory team, though. He has plenty to prove.
Can Honda reverse the slump?
New staff, including ex-Suzuki guru Ken Kawauchi; new evolution, including catch-up ground-effect aero, all on a bike that only stopped winning regularly when Marc got hurt in 2020. There’s no doubt that HRC will be stronger this year than last. Trouble is the rivals have had three years of their own continuous improvement. Preseason tests suggest there is still catching up to do.
Will sprint races upset the championship and bring back the crowds?
Yes to the former, maybe to the latter. Half-length half-points sprint on Saturday afternoon definitely adds to the show, but enough to boost the gate? The format favors risk-takers over tactical tire-preservers, which could affect the championship, but injuries are a haunting worry.
Are 21 races too many?
Formula 1 has 23 on the schedule this season, plus six Saturday sprint races. But if you count the sprints, then MotoGP actually has 42. Some riders think that last year’s 20 were already too many, in terms of physical stress and travel fatigue. Others (step forward Jack Miller) would be happy to have even more.
Has Yamaha got its sums right this time?
The biggest anomaly of 2022 was Fabio Quartararo’s strength on a sub-standard bike that the other three riders found disastrous. Some of the missing speed has been restored, while the satellite team has been lost (to Aprilia). Will it be enough to give Fabio the margin he needs?
Does Ducati have too many fast riders?
Definitely. Bagnaia’s home-town headache is new teammate Bastianini, who beat him four times last year. Plus, superfast Pramac rider Jorge Martin, rising star Luca Marini, veteran Johann Zarco (long overdue a race win) and a precocious Marco Bezzecchi. All taking points off one another.
Can Bagnaia beat Quartararo?
Or vice versa? They line up this year as fine adversaries. Bagnaia had a flawed start to 2022, but found strength and focus in the latter half of the year. Call it maturity. Quartararo showed resolve throughout, seldom faltering despite having to over-ride an outclassed bike. Want to find out more? Wait and see.
Should Suzuki come back?
Well, of course they should. They shouldn’t have left in the first place. With the least resources they had developed a bike of such balanced elegance that it could win races even without challenging on horsepower and budget.
Is it Brad Binder’s time?
Sunday rider personified, Brad Binder has the same ability as Marquez and Quartararo to impose willpower over technical weakness. In this way he won two unlikely races for KTM, was sixth last year—one point behind Jack Miller, and reliably far exceeded qualifying positions on race day (18th to eighth at Le Mans). The KTM is clearly not an easy bike. If they’ve change that for 2023, just watch him go.
Will Jack Miller teach KTM some Ducati tricks?
The Australian brings something more than just race-winning experience to the junior of the factory teams—five years steeped in Ducati know-how. Jack cultivates a gung-ho manner that perhaps belies his technical abilities. If so, he could have some important lessons for the Austrian factory. If not, he stands to be disappointed by his new bike.
Will MotoGP climb onto the GenZ market?
Netflix documentaries have recruited huge numbers of new young fans to F1 with “Drive to Survive,” and have added tennis and golf to the portfolio. By contrast, Amazon’s “MotoGP Unlimited” was a lame doc, sinking almost without trace. Will a second attempt do better?
Has Aprilia grown up enough?
Will Aleix Espargaro (now the oldest rider) have grown up too much? Will Vinales settle to be his best self? And will Oliveira beat them both? The former underdogs took a great leap forward last year, but silly mistakes spoiled the end result. One year later, things might be different. CN
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