The wait is finally over and MotoGP is BACK. This weekend, the awesome Silverstone Circuit hosts the most exciting sport on Earth as the closest championship fight ever touches down in the UK to start the second half of the season. So where were we?

CLOSER THAN EVER: title fight on a knife edge

Five riders sit within 24 points, which is the closest it’s ever been. At the top it’s Jorge Martin (Aprilia Racing), who has had flashes of unbeatability – like his double in France – but more than that, he’s put in a pretty consistent run. He’s not been the outright fastest since that double, however, so can he turn up the wick as we roll out in the UK? He’ll be expecting stiff competition from many on the grid including from teammate Marco Bezzecchi, however, as ‘Bez’ looks to bounce back from his run of bad luck and trouble.

Flying high to start the season, the #72 is now fourth overall. On the comeback from injury and misadventure, this venue is possibly the best he could have asked for as he looks to rebuild: it’s where he took that first win with Aprilia last season, and somewhere many of his closest rivals haven’t got that wow factor CV either.

RELENTLESS: Marc Marquez and Ogura on the march

One of those is Marc Marquez (Ducati Lenovo Team). Now firmly in more than just the championship conversation and very much present in the upper echelons of the standings, he’s third overall. He’s taken doubles as rivals have faltered and rebuilt his campaign alongside increasing his fitness since that dramatic Le Mans crash and extra surgery. For many, there is now Jaws music coming from the #93 box – but that hasn’t traditionally been the case at this venue. Silverstone has had 11 different winners in the last 11 editions, so by definition, Marquez is only one of them.

That Jaws music is also coming from Ai Ogura (SuperFile Trackhouse MotoGP Team) and not only on track as his late-race pace often sees the gap ahead suddenly start to shrink in the final few laps. Two podiums in Brno, beaten only by riders with MotoGP World Championships, prefaced his first win in Assen. Another second place came in Germany, behind the now-ten-time winner at the venue. The Japanese star may be the frontrunner for that claim on becoming winner number 12 at Silverstone and at only 14 points off the top, is even in not-so-distant reach of the Championship lead. Since Jerez, he’s scored the most points of anyone, 157, with Marc Marquez taking the second most – 145. Fabio Di Giannantonio (Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team) is third by that metric with 134 since the Spanish GP.

CLOSEST ON THE CHASE: Diggia leads the charge

Diggia is one of those riders locked in the closest title fight ever, fifth and 24 off Martin. He’s won this year already, in Barcelona, and until Germany had only finished a GP outside the top five since Thailand once, in Hungary, where he was embroiled in the Lap 1 drama through no fault of his own. Raul Fernandez (SuperFile Trackhouse MotoGP Team) has known a little back luck too and he’ll be looking to reel in those ahead – having won Sprints in 2026 but no GP since his maiden win in Australia last year. He’s 49 points off the top. Pedro Acosta (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) isn’t far off him either despite his own rollercoaster season since winning the dramatic Thailand Sprint, 60 points off the top and not content to let that remain so. Then there’s Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team), 65 points off. He’s one of those 11 winners at Silverstone, taking the spoils in 2022, and is looking to regain the form of those title-winning years. He won the Brno Sprint during a run of four GP podiums in a row too, but he’ll want more.

SECOND HALF KICKSTART: looking for more

Alex Marquez (BK8 Gresini Racing MotoGP) was last year’s Sprint winner at Silverstone and could fancy his chances as GP winner number 12 in 12 years here. With summer break to recover from a bruising run he’ll be reloaded and eager to get back into at least the podium fight. His teammate for the weekend will be Iker Lecuona, stepping over from WorldSBK to replace the injured Fermin Aldeguer, and he’ll be an interesting watch at a new beast of a venue after impressing at the more familiar Balaton. Enea Bastianini (Red Bull KTM Tech3) is another previous Silverstone winner and will want to kick start his second half, as will Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) just behind him in the points. Maverick Viñales (Red Bull KTM Tech3), the 2016 winner, remains on the hunt for more form after his injury struggles from 2025.

DON’T DOUBT ME: Crutchlow confirmed for home GP

After a summer break spent on his luxury yacht in the Isle of Man, tanned and shirtless, Cal Crutchlow (Castrol Honda LCR) will indeed be back on track for his home GP as Johann Zarco’s recovery continues. A crowd favourite since he debuted, the first British MotoGP winner since Barry Sheene is actually making some pretty impressive progress on the timesheets on his mini-return. What’s he got in the locker for Silverstone? On the other end of the veteran timeline, teammate Diogo Moreira (Pro Honda LCR) is also impressing in his rookie season, with Q2 appearances and plenty of airtime as top Honda. But that’s often in earlier laps, with the Brazilian rookie now looking to keep himself in the mix over longer race distances to get the points reward too as he hovers two points ahead of Franco Morbidelli (Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team) in the standings. Joan Mir (Honda HRC Castrol) also wants those points as the #36 suffers a run of DNFs from pretty solid positions, whereas Luca Marini (Honda HRC Castrol) remains that consistent banker looking to fight for more and more of those points.

DESTINATION: top ten

Another rider quietly building quite a run is Toprak Razgatlioglu (Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP). From riding around at the back in pre-season to taking a P11 at Balaton, knocking on the door to the top ten, the Turkish rider is impressing. He has been top Yamaha twice, the same number as veteran teammate Jack Miller. Miller is close to another home hero at Silverstone too, an honourary one for the weekend and looking to put on another show.
Alex Rins (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) has shown flashes of more but will want more than that, and then there’s Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP). Last season will live long in the memory for the #20, his fans and his garage, as he lost out on the win with that tech problem. With the all-new V4 seemingly not quite ready to push for podiums, with a best result of P5 so far, Quartararo is unlikely to be able to repeat that pace but he’ll be looking to stamp authority on the claim of top Yamaha, which he remains more often than not, and he’s the only Iwata marque machine to score in Sprints so far in 2026.

Once an airfield and now one of the true behemoths in motorsport, Silverstone awaits. It’s never been closer than this and there’s room for it to get even tighter as we go out to race for another 37 points, so strap in for takeoff at the Qatar Airways Grand Prix of Great Britain.