The 2024 MotoGP title race is heading for an epic finale. After a thrilling showdown at the Malaysian GP, Jorge Martin (Prima Pramac Racing) has the upper hand, aiming to secure his first MotoGP™ Championship in Barcelona. But reigning champion Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team) is determined to claw back the 24-point gap in the season decider.
Once again, these two riders have dominated the field, just as they did last year when the title came down to the wire. In 2023, Bagnaia held the lead into the final race and triumphed with a decisive victory as Martin crashed out. This year, however, the roles are reversed. Martin arrives with a commanding advantage, but how has the dynamic between the title contenders shifted from last season to now?
Well, in short, it's consistency. If you are looking for a longer answer, read on!
Below, the tables outline the performances of both Martin and Bagnaia across the 2023 and 2024 seasons. It’s worth noting that the data for 2023 includes 20 GP races, and 19 Tissot Sprints, as the event was cancelled in Australia, while the 2024 data includes all 19 Sprints and feature races so far, with the season finale still to come.
| Martin | 2023 Tissot Sprints | 2023 GPs | 2024 Tissot Sprints | 2024 GPs |
| Wins | 9 | 4 | 7 | 3 |
| Podiums (excl. wins) | 5 | 4 | 9 | 11 |
| DNFs | 0 | 4 | 2 | 2 |
| Points | 168 | 260 | 164 | 321 |
| Total Points 2023 | 428 | Total Points 2024 | 485 |
| Bagnaia | 2023 Tissot Sprints | 2023 GPs | 2024 Tissot Sprints | 2024 GPs |
| Wins | 4 | 7 | 7 | 10 |
| Podiums (excl. wins) | 9 | 7 | 3 | 4 |
| DNFs | 1 | 3 | 5 | 3 |
| Points | 140 | 327 | 116 | 345 |
| Total Points 2023 | 467 | Total Points 2024 | 461 |
Key Differences: Martin vs. Bagnaia in 2024
Jorge Martin has become a more consistent contender in 2024, especially on Sundays. His Tissot Sprint performance has remained strong, but it’s his improved GP results that have propelled him into the title fight. Martin has scored seven more Sunday podiums in 2024 compared to 2023, including six second and one third-place finishes during a critical nine-race stretch between France and Indonesia. During this period, Martin didn’t win a race, but he consistently finished in the top three, while Bagnaia had his best run of the season, claiming five wins in six races.
Martin’s ability to limit damage when not winning races has been a key factor in his title charge. It should also be noted that he has only failed to see the chequered flag twice in 2024 on Sunday, as opposed to four times in 2023. His 2024 total of 485 points is a significant improvement over his 428 points from 2023, with his consistent podium finishes making all the difference.
Bagnaia has been dominant in terms of wins, claiming a remarkable 10 victories in 2024, up from seven in 2023. However, his Achilles heel this season has been in the Tissot Sprints, where he has struggled to score points. Bagnaia, who trails Martin by 24 points, has accumulated just 116 Sprint points in 2024, a decrease of 24 points compared to his 2023 total of 140. This drop in Sprint performance has been a major setback, as he has suffered four more DNFs in the Saturday Sprints, including a crash while leading in Barcelona, and more recently at Sepang.
The reigning World Champion earmarked the Sprint as his biggest weakness at the beginning of the season, and so it has proved. After the opening six rounds, he had just scored 14 points on Saturdays, as opposed to Martin's 56 and despite outscoring him in Sunday's races, the Ducati star was left playing catch up with a 39 point gap between the two. Bagnaia did manage to reel in the Pramac rider and return to the top of the standings in Germany, with the two exchanging positions again across the British and Austrian GPs, before Bagnaia endured a miserable outing in Aragon, placing ninth in the Sprint and crashing out of the race after a collision with Alex Marquez (Gresini Racing MotoGP™) with just a few laps remaining while Martin took a double P2 in what has proved to be one of 2024's most pivotal weekends. With one round to go, Bagnaia is just six points shy of his 2023 Championship-winning tally of 467 points, and though he is likely to surpass that amount, it may not be enough.
The Final Showdown in Barcelona
Heading into the finale, Martin holds a 24 point lead, and can secure his maiden premier class crown in Saturday's Sprint. Should he do so, it would be somewhat fitting given his brilliance in Tissot Sprints, and rub salt into the wounds of Bagnaia after the Italian has been plagued by problems in the same event.
However, as Martin has said, it ain't over til it's over and as we well know, anything can happen in MotoGP™! Make sure you tune in from Friday, November 15th for the Motul Solidarity Grand Prix of Barcelona, as we go Racing for Valencia.