This year will be the 19th Grand Prix of Valencia, which has been held every year at the Ricardo Tormo circuit since the first visit in 1999. Let's take a look through some history as we gear up for the #FinalShowdown!
- This will be the 16th successive year that Valencia has hosted the final race of the season, making it the circuit that has been the venue for the final event of the year on most occasions. It has been the final event of the year throughout the MotoGP™ era.
- The Valencia circuit is named after Spanish racer Ricardo Tormo, who won the 50cc world title riding for Bultaco in 1978 and 1981. In addition to his 15 Grand Prix victories in the 50cc class he also had four wins in the 125cc class. His career ended in 1984 due to leg injuries suffered in a crash whilst test riding, and Tormo sadly died from leukaemia in 1998.
- Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda Team) is the most successful rider at the Valencia circuit with six wins; three in MotoGP™, two in 250cc, and one in the 125cc class. The next most successful rider is Jorge Lorenzo (Ducati Team) with four wins in Valencia, all in the MotoGP™ class.
- The premier class race at Valencia has been won nine times by Spanish riders; Sete Gibernau won the 500cc race on a Suzuki in 2001; Dani Pedrosa won the MotoGP™ race in 2007, 2009 and 2012; Jorge Lorenzo won in 2010, 2013, 2015 and 2016; Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team) won three years ago.
- The last non-Spanish rider to win the MotoGP™ race in Valencia was Casey Stoner in 2011.
- Since the introduction of the four-stroke MotoGP™ formula in 2002, Honda has been the most successful manufacturer with eight victories at the Valencia circuit. The most recent was with Marc Marquez in 2014.
- Yamaha has had five MotoGP™ wins at the Valencia circuit, including last two years with Jorge Lorenzo.
- Ducati have had two MotoGP™ wins in Valencia: with Troy Bayliss in 2006 and Casey Stoner in 2008.
- Andrea Iannone’s third place finish last year was the first podium at Valencia for a Ducati rider since Stoner finished second in 2010.
- Suzuki’s only podium at Valencia in the MotoGP™ era is a third place finish with John Hopkins in 2007.
- The MotoGP™ race at Valencia has only been won once by a rider who has not qualified on the front row - Marc Marquez won the race in 2014 from fifth place on the grid.
- At least one of the three classes at the Valencia Grand Prix has been won by a Spanish rider for the last eight years.
- There has never been a year when the three World Championship winners have all won their respective races at the final event of the season since it has been held in Valencia.
- The seven Moto2™ races that have taken place in Valencia have been won by seven different riders: 2010 – Karel Abraham, 2011 – Michele Pirro, 2012 – Marc Marquez, 2013 – Nico Terol, 2014 – Tom Luthi, 2015 – Tito Rabat and 2016 – Johann Zarco.
- The five Moto3™ races that have taken place in Valencia have been won by five different riders, all of them riding KTM machinery: 2012 – Danny Kent, 2013 – Maverick Viñales, 2014 – Jack Miller 2015 - Miguel Oliveira and 2016 – Brad Binder.
- The last rider to win the lightweight class Grand Prix at Valencia from pole position was Julian Simon in 2009.