Jerez to Le Mans. From one legendary venue to another. Round 5 of the 2026 MotoGP season brings us back to one of the most famous stages of them all – and one which hosted an unforgettable 2025 edition after home hero Johann Zarco (Castrol Honda LCR) became the first-ever French MotoGP winner at the French Grand Prix since 1954.
HRC’s #5 and his compatriot Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) will soak up a loud and passionate majority of the support in front of another capacity Le Mans crowd, but a host of storylines are building nicely in this compelling early season title race in MotoGP.
HOMECOMING HEROES
We’ll get to that in a moment, but a lot of focus will be on last year’s winner Zarco and the ever-popular Quartararo. Zarco rolled out his best weekend of the season so far in Jerez after bagging a front row start, and then a very solid P7 in Sunday’s encounter. A top five was on the cards if he had held on for another few laps, but it was a lovely injection of confidence for a rider who is very much looking forward to being back at a venue which owns such special memories.
A positive Jerez Test for Quartararo hopefully gives the #20 a better chance of producing some magic on home turf, but given Yamaha’s development journey, expectations will remain guarded before a wheel is turned in anger at Le Mans. However, if anyone can pull a rabbit out of the hat when needed, El Diablo is a top contender.
APRILIA & BEZZECCHI MARCH ON
That history-making unbeaten Sunday run may have ended in Jerez, but Marco Bezzecchi and Aprilia Racing land in Le Mans as the package to beat. Still. The Italian was a winner here back in 2023 on the VR46 Ducati, so he’s got form around the 4.1km layout – not good news for the rest.
Bezzecchi’s P2 in Andalusia saw his championship points lead rise to 11 points over teammate Jorge Martin, who continues to churn out the consistent results. It was P4 from 10th on the grid in front of his home fans in Jerez, and after crucial kilometres were gained on Monday in Jerez, Martin – the 2024 French GP winner – arrives with added weapons in his already stacked arsenal.
To add fuel to another fantastic weekend for Aprilia, Sunday saw all four of their full-time machines finish in the top six. Ai Ogura’s last-race charge saw him dispense teammate Raul Fernandez on the final lap, with a P5 and P6 for the Trackhouse MotoGP Team keeping the American outfit second in the Teams’ standings.
DIGGIA FRONTS DUCATI FLEET
It’s safe to say there were contrasting emotions down in the Ducati boxes in Jerez. While Saturday’s Tissot Sprint 1-2 gave Ducati Lenovo Team something to shout about, Sunday’s double DNF didn’t. Marc Marquez’s Lap 2 crash and Francesco Bagnaia’s technical problem saw them lose further ground in the championship, with the reigning World Champion now 44 points adrift of Bezzecchi. A response is craved on French soil, a circuit where Danilo Petrucci, Jack Miller, Enea Bastianini, Bezzecchi, and Martin have won on the Ducati since Marc Marquez’s 2019 victory with Honda.
While spirits were low in the red corner, the blue and yellow corners certainly enjoyed their Sunday outings. Alex Marquez’s (BK8 Gresini Racing MotoGP) fourth MotoGP victory was his second in a row at the Spanish GP, and that flawless ride to a maximum points haul was needed after a low-key start to the season. Now he’ll want to back it up. Meanwhile, Fabio Di Giannantonio’s (Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team) P3 in Jerez meant he retook control the Ducati reins in the championship off Marc Marquez, with Diggia’s great launch into 2026 seeing him also climb to P3 in the title race.
A rain-soaked Le Mans was the scene of Fermin Aldeguer’s (BK8 Gresini Racing MotoGP) debut MotoGP podium last season, so the rider who's still getting back up to speed after his pre-season femur fracture will have happy memories of the French GP. And having pocketed a Sprint medal in Jerez, can Franco Morbidelli (Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team) find the missing ingredients he needs to be back challenging at the front in France?
KTM SEEK ROUND 5 RESPONSE
Enea Bastianini (Red Bull KTM Tech3) coming home as the fastest KTM rider in P8 wasn’t what the Austrian factory would have been expecting in Jerez last time out. Not because it was Bastianini spearheading the RC16s, but because they were some way off that podium fight after a start to the season that saw Pedro Acosta (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) lead the Championship earlier in the year. In Jerez it was a P10 result for Acosta, one place ahead of his teammate Brad Binder, and that saw the #37 relinquish P3 in the championship to Di Giannantonio. However, important questions sounded like they were answered at the Jerez Test. Fingers crossed that’s the case. We had our fingers crossed Maverick Viñales (Red Bull KTM Tech3) would be able to get back in the saddle at the Tech3 team’s home race too, but the team say it's just a few days too early so it's Jonas Folger stepping in.
HRC & YAMAHA AIM TO LEVEL UP IN LE MANS
Luca Marini and Honda HRC Castrol teammate Joan Mir didn’t have their most enjoyable Sundays in Jerez. The former suffered damage in the opening exchanges and nursed his RC213V to the chequered flag in P13, while a double Long Lap penalty, garnered earlier in the weekend, for the latter saw chances of a top 10 diminish. The duo will be gunning for a turnaround in fortunes in France.
Zarco’s P7 was some solid points and another clear sign of progress being made in the HRC stable, while Diogo Moreira’s (Pro Honda LCR) mission will be to get back into the points.
The leading light for Yamaha in Jerez was Quartararo, but a P14 won’t cut the French mustard. He’ll be aiming for even more. Meanwhile, Alex Rins (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP), 2021 French GP winner Jack Miller (Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP) and his teammate Toprak Razgatlioglu will all be looking to get back into the points in Le Mans as they continue to work on moving back towards the front.
Le Mans is legendary for its pure noise and passion, and 2026 will be no different. Can Aprilia hit back? Will rain come into play? It could be another huge twist just around the corner so tune in for the Michelin® Grand Prix of France!