The 2024 MotoGP season featured many memorable moments, however one race specifically stands out.
Throughout a 20-round calendar, 40 races had been run, with Ducati dominating the bulk on its strategy to the world title.
The Spanish Grand Prix at Jerez was no completely different, with Francesco Bagnaia popping out on high so as to add to his haul of 11 Sunday wins in 2024.
However he was pushed onerous all the way in which by Gresini’s Marc Marquez, who – on a 2023-spec Ducati – was nonetheless in his adaptation part of the bike after his huge transfer from the manufacturing facility Honda squad on the finish of the earlier season.
Marquez and Bagnaia got here into the Spanish GP having clashed within the Portuguese GP only a few weeks prior, including to the strain of these last laps.
For Crash.web’s social media supervisor Jordan Moreland, the celebrities aligned to make the Spanish GP 2024’s most memorable race.
“Persons are going to be shouting right here ‘it’s clearly obtained to be Sepang’,” he stated within the newest Crash MotoGP Podcast.
“Nicely, that was the primary 4 laps. You’d relatively have that on the finish. I believe the perfect races we’ve seen all-time have seen issues occur all in direction of the top.
“I believe the race that delivered that this 12 months, and I believe form of gave us an perception into what may occur subsequent 12 months, is Jerez.
“I believe Marc Marquez, Pecco Bagnaia going up towards one another, I assumed it was simply the one level of the season the place I used to be sat watching it and I obtained actually excited. I may really feel the strain whenever you’re watching it.
“Marquez is searching him down, he makes the overtake, Bagnaia will get again underneath him, they make contact, Marquez has a go at him the subsequent lap. After which they’re with one another proper to the top.
“The environment after it, the celebrations even from each of them, Marquez was so completely happy to be again on the rostrum.
“It form of gave that new Marquez take that he had for 2024. Bagnaia displaying his true grit towards somebody like Marquez after they’d beforehand come collectively at Portimao. I assumed it was a correct MotoGP race. It jogged my memory of ones years in the past.”
Marc Marquez, Gresini Ducati, 2024 Spanish MotoGP
© Gold and Goose
Crash Senior Journalist Lewis Duncan echoes Moreland’s sentiments, including: “My downside with Sepang is these first three laps, sure, had been incredible. However the remainder of that race was boring, it was absolute rubbish. It was not even value being up for.
“And if anybody needs to complain to me, by all means. A race isn’t concerning the first three laps. The race is concerning the finish of it. In the event you have a look at all these nice battles from the previous: Barcelona 2009, all these Austria battles with Marc and Dovi [Andrea Dovizioso], Silverstone 2019.
“Sepang was a terrific first three laps however the remainder of it, I don’t assume was good, as a result of I don’t wish to see every thing accomplished at first.
“You don’t wish to watch a movie the place the perfect of it’s the first 10 minutes and then you definately’ve obtained two hours of nothing.
“In order that’s why for me I believe Jerez has to have it as a result of it was like MotoGP at its finest, it was like these outdated battles and battles from only a few years in the past that we rant and rave about nonetheless.
“And clearly you throw within the facet of Marc on an older bike, the place perhaps on the time its deficiencies weren’t as prevalent because it may need appeared towards the GP24.
“However the GP23 even at that time wasn’t a terrific bundle. To have that as nicely, and that was his fourth weekend on the bike and to be combating with the man who everybody thought was going to be world champion, you’ve obtained to provide Marc numerous credit score for that.
“And, such as you say Jordan, it was this preview for subsequent 12 months – hopefully – coming off the again of Portugal.
“It simply had all of these parts: the needle from Portugal, the longer term state of affairs wasn’t actually recognized on the time, ready to see if Marc might be again up the entrance.
“And I believe Jerez delivered all of these issues.”
Crash MotoGP Editor Peter McLaren felt a number of races deserved a nod when reflecting on 2024’s high moments.
“It’s powerful, is not it?,” McLaren says.
“Sepang does spring to thoughts due to every thing that was at stake, as a lot because the battle as nicely. However sadly it didn’t final past the early phases. The same old problems with tyre strain and so forth, and so forth.
“I assumed the Misano races for drama had been each up there, each of them, in the event you had been searching for drama. COTA, perhaps once we look again and say ‘who spoiled that good Ducati season’ we’ll consider that one win and the way in which he [Maverick Vinales] did it from eleventh was a terrific trip as nicely.
“I suppose one different to throw in there’s the Catalunya dash. The drama that went on in that one, however racing drama with 5 leaders in 12 laps, I believe three completely different bike manufacturers main at one stage, then Bagnaia falls, Aleix [Espargaro wins] a couple of days after saying retirement at his dwelling observe.
“I believe that was one other one which jumps to thoughts. However actually I’d give it to any of these. I suppose Le Mans was additionally a great battle between the 2 title contenders and Marc Marquez as nicely.
“We’ve form of obtained a bit disillusioned with races within the center a part of the season, as a result of the motion wasn’t nice, however there was some good racing there.”
