It was the outcome that everyone had feared, one more drama of an already dramatic season, as Jorge Martin’s Aprilia team made the announcement that the rider would be taking no further part in the weekend’s action, the pain from his injured wrist too much to enable him to compete safely.
In terms of his own health, both now and in the future, it was undoubtedly the right decision; in terms of the championship, it may not be the end of Martin’s title challenge, given the ups and downs we’ve witnessed so far in 2026, but a clinical assessment has to tell us that the title is now Marc Marquez’ to lose.
Should the next race in Qatar be cancelled (at the time of writing, it is unclear if that will be the case), then that not only removes a potential points-scoring weekend from Marquez but also gives Martin more time to recover in time for the final two rounds. However, if Marc could leave Malaysia with another double victory, that would take his lead to 47 points and, on his current form, it seems unlikely that he won’t be fighting at the front in the remaining races. Martin could claw that back, but it would mean an unlikely run of bad luck for Marquez. And that all assumes that Martin will be fit enough to take the fight to Marquez.
The one possible thorn in Marquez’ side in Malaysia could be his brother, Alex, who took a sensational pole position and for whom the Malaysian circuit is one of his favourites, winning here last year. Would Alex move aside for Marc? The former was criticised for not attacking his brother last time out in Australia but, with so much at stake, he wasn’t about to make a move that might have consequences; not just the loss of points, but potentially taking him out of the race. You don’t overtake Marc Marquez without knowing you are a lot faster, and that doesn’t happen often.
The Sprint was a chaotic affair; declared a wet race shortly after the start, riders were free to come into the pits and change bikes. Not every rider did, and the type of gamble those who didn’t change took was amply demonstrated as the race finished and the heavens opened.
Acosta won, followed by Marc Marquez, Bezzecchi and Ogura. Alex Marquez ultimately played no part in proceedings as he crashed out on lap three, which at least removed the headache of whether to attack his brother, especially as the fight at the front was tight.
Between the races, a more worrying development was emerging. For the past week or so, there have been intense discussions surrounding the upcoming Qatar Grand Prix. With the region in turmoil thanks to the war in Iran and the possibility of an escalation of the offensive by the US after the mid-term elections on the 3rd November, being in that part of the world could be seriously dangerous. Imagine if the whole MotoGP circus heads there only to be stranded as airspace is closed. What a ridiculous situation to even think about going. But, of course, money rears its ugly head, as the financial implications of not going would be significant and, God forbid, that any of Liberty’s shareholders should be out of pocket! Oh no, that would never do—pathetic.
Naturally, the riders are, in the majority, against going, but now it has been reported that any rider who fails to attend for any reason other than illness or injury could face sporting penalties, including actual race bans for Portugal and Valencia, the last two rounds of the season.
The report comes from the Spanish-language publication, Motorsport. Can it be true? Can Liberty and MotoGP be considering forcing people to head to a region in the midst of a conflict, when various governments around the world are advising against unnecessary travel to the region, when all but one broadcaster will be covering the race remotely?
On top of sporting sanctions for riders failing to attend pre-race PR events, along with changes to race weekends announced with little or no consultation with the riders, these are unprecedented times for MotoGP, with a nasty undertone of bullying emerging. Do the powers-that-be really think that little of the very stars that make the show what it is? Of course, no one is indispensable; without Dorna and Liberty, the riders would have nowhere to race; without the riders, the teams have no reason to be in business; without the teams and riders, there is no championship. But it appears at the moment that those in charge consider the riders to be mere puppets in the spectacle that they preside over.
Of course, the report could be very wide of the mark, and it may be that the race in Qatar will not take place. But the latest news to come out of the MotoGP paddock is that Yamaha will not be travelling to Qatar – not the factory team nor Pramac Yamaha. The full statement reads as follows:
“Following its latest assessment of the situation in the Middle East, Yamaha has not identified sufficient grounds to change its existing company-wide travel restrictions. As a result, Yamaha has informed MotoGP Group about its decision not to participate in the 2026 Qatar Grand Prix. This decision reflects Yamaha’s assessment of the information currently available and is independent of the measures implemented by MotoGP Group and the event organiser. Yamaha remains fully committed to MotoGP and looks forward to returning to competition at the Portuguese Grand Prix.”
If Yamaha has the balls to say no, then you have to wonder which of the other teams will also now step up and say no. Already the VR46 team has said that it wouldn’t be sending a full contingent of team personnel to Qatar. Surely this is an untenable position for the organisers?
Jack Miller has been particularly vociferous on the subject: “I don’t want to go,” he said. “There are 19 of us who don’t want to go there. I don’t think we should be racing like that. We’ve made our opinion very clear on that. We’ll see what the decision is. As riders, we’ve united and done the best we can, and threatened the best we can with what ammunition we have. Not only for us as riders, but also for other people in the championship. You speak to 50% of the paddock; nobody wants to go. I don’t understand why we need to.”
And this is the crux of the matter. It’s not just 22 riders; it’s hundreds of team personnel, officials, TV crews, tons of equipment; the list is endless. Which organisation in its right mind would insist on going, when the risks are so great?
Anyway, there was the small matter of a Grand Prix to be run whilst all of this was kicking off and, if there was ever any real doubt that Marc Marquez would be fighting for the win, then those thoughts were soon to be dispelled, as he and his brother had a brief tussle at the head of the field, before Marc eased ahead for good. Behind the two brothers, Acosta, Agura and Bezzecchi squabbled over the final podium position, and that was about the extent of the action as far as championship interest was concerned. Bez failing to finish ahead of Marc effectively sealed his fate in terms of fighting for the title, and Marquez can settle the issue next time out, whether in Qatar or Portugal.
Maybe a slightly damp squib ending to what has been a brilliant season of racing – although let’s not forget that anything can still happen in the final two/three rounds – and it is unfortunate that Martin’s injury has robbed us of a grandstand finish in the final round. Meanwhile, let’s see if everyone heads to Qatar this weekend. If not, see you all in Portugal.
