It’s time for the MotoGP riders to take a vacation, but also to take stock. In sport there is only one judge and it is the results, so at this point in the season some drivers can enjoy good grades, while for others July will be a month to reflect on the mistakes made. Nine Grands Prix have passed and not everyone is satisfied.
Not so with Fabio Quartararo, who left Assen at the top of the table with a good lead over Zarco (34 points) and Bagnaia (47). Last year the Frenchman was in the lead after 9 races, but this time there is a lot more substance behind the result. Compared to 2020, he has 41 points more, one win and, above all, a lot of consistency. The 6 podium places say a lot about the change of the Yamaha rider who either won or sunk without a trace last season, while now he is always among the best and without the problem with his arm at Jerez and his leather at Le Mans, his numbers could be even better.
While the French are de facto the “summer champion”, Ducati can also rub their hands for joy. For the post-Dovizioso period, it has chosen to focus on young drivers and at the moment it has proven to be right. The progress made by Zarco and Bagnaia is particularly surprising. Pramac’s French rider is second overall in the overall standings, with 4 podiums and 75 points more than last year, a result that makes him the driver who has made the greatest improvement. After risking getting completely lost in KTM, Johann found himself wearing the red colors of Pramac and has already won his personal battle.
Betting on Bagnaia wasn’t wrong either, seeing the jump he made compared to 2020 (even though he missed 3 races last year due to injury). Definitely, Pecco was more consistent and shone even on tracks that he or his motorcycle didn’t like too much. However, with a few pitfalls, such as the Mugello crash. So the rider from Piedmont is still chasing after the MotoGP victory, which seems to be within reach if something doesn’t always happen. A goal that has already been achieved twice this year by his teammate Miller, who is also significantly better than a year ago, but still too volatile, even without the compartment syndrome problems that affected him at the first two GPs in Qatar.
Oliveira and Aleix Espargarò are also among the climbers before the summer. Miguel had already shown in 2020 that he is a rider to keep an eye on and this year, after the initial difficulties caused by the KTM, he started again where he left off. With the points lost, he is well in Quartararo’s table, but it is also clear that he will be a protagonist in the second half of the season as well. Even for Aprilia, which only depends on one driver, but reaps what she has sown, things are going well. Aleix has got his head in order, he’s 37 points more than a year ago and may think that the podium is no longer a pipe dream.
Reigning Master Joan Mir is still with a neutral note on the scorecard (waiting to return to school not in September, but in August). Its results are in line with those of 2020, but now the level is different, with less uncertainty and surprises, and consistency is no longer enough. Vinales, on the other hand, deserves its own chapter. A year-end divorce from Yamaha has already been announced and, as in previous seasons, Maverick has alternated perfect races with other disastrous ones. In his case, we’ll have to wait until 2022 to see if air change solves all of his problems.
Now for the red marks and the disappointments of this first part of the championship. Honda takes pride of place (apart from Marc Marquez’s win). While Nakagami made a positive impression last year, this 2021 season he was little more than a walk-in extra. Alex Marquez has also disappeared after improving at the end of last season. For Pol Espargarò, the switch from KTM to Honda only brought pain and three podium places less.
Even for Petrucci, a winner on a Ducati and well below his standards on the KTM, the change was not easy. His best result that year was a 5th place at Le Mans, a track he triumphed on in 2020 and that says it all. Alex Rins, who has the talent and the bike to shine, also picked up a ‘Fail’ badge, but makes too many mistakes.
Franco Morbidelli, on the other hand, didn’t change anything and that was his biggest problem. Staying on the 2019 M1 is a major limitation and the Petronas driver can only comfort himself with a podium, a paltry win for the reigning runner-up. One last nail in the coffin was hammered into the coffin for lack of a better expression with his knee injury, which will probably keep him away from the paddock in Austria as well.
Our roundup ends with Valentino Rossi, who is allowed to wear the black jersey of this special classification. Compared to 2020, the doctor has the worst difference of all with 41 points less in the overall ranking. The 17 points accumulated in 9 GPs mirror one of the worst (if not the worst) moments of his entire career. Sometimes Valentino still proved something of the polish of the old days, but in the end everything was always solved with practically nothing. Especially at the time when he has to decide about his future.