The iconic British racing venue of Silverstone awaits the MotoGP™ paddock following the summer break. In the premier class, Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Racing MotoGP™) holds a commanding advantage in the title race, but is facing one of his biggest challenges yet in the current campaign.
The reigning Champion crashed out of contention in our most recent event at Assen, taking Aleix Espargaro with him into the gravel. Both riders rejoined the race, with the Aprilia rider claiming fourth after a sensational ride, but it was a double disaster for Quartararo, who fell a second time and recorded a first DNF of the season.
Culpable for the earlier Turn 5 collision, Quartararo, much to his dismay, has been slapped with a Long Lap Penalty for this weekend’s fixture. As a result, there is some added spice to this one as the likes of Espargaro and Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team) will be licking their lips at the prospect of reeling in his 21 point advantage. However, neither rider will get carried away with the Frenchman’s penalty, as the number 20 has already proven his pedigree at Silverstone with victory at the circuit in 2021.
The World Champion isn't fazed by the task ahead of him either, stating: "I am really looking forward to Silverstone - I won there last year. This time will be tricky because we know that we have that long lap penalty… But if I‘m really honest, that only motivates me to do even better."
Quartararo can also draw inspiration from the likes of Jack Miller (Ducati Lenovo Team), who mastered the LLP at the Sachsenring to take a third podium of the year in Germany, while the Aussie also took race victory at Le Mans in 2021 despite a double LLP, albeit in the wet at a French GP flag-to-flag race.
The factory Yamaha rider’s penalty adds another layer of intrigue to what was already primed to be a cracking event. We’ve seen seven different winners in our last seven visits to Britain, are we set to see an eighth, or can Quartararo pull off a Silverstone spectacular to go back-to-back?