Lets get straight into it, shall we?
The name on everyone's lips right now is our rookie sensation, Pedro Acosta. Every pundit has compared him to the greats; Marc Marquez, Casey Stoner, Jorge Lorenzo, but Pedro Acosta isn't the new anyone. He is himself, and he is glorious. With Portimao being the first track where the rookie had not done any pre-season testing, this past weekend was his first demonstration of what he can really do, and my word, that boy is coming for the crown.
Acosta began the weekend rather hesitantly, having to go through a Q1 session, but he ended up qualifying in a very serviceable P7 - ahead of all world champions on the grid other than Pecco Bagnaia. Similarly, his performance in the sprint race was nothing spectacular - still excellent for a rookie - but again taking a P7 finish, which shows that maybe the sprint races are Acosta's only weakness thus far, which is understandable with the new format having been a learning curve for all riders on the grid.
But let's talk about the feature race on Sunday, because that's where everything gets juicy.
I believe that no one bet against Acosta getting a podium in his debut year in the premier class - the only bets were how long it would take him to get a taste of the Prosecco. But I don't think anyone truly expected that it would come in only his second ever feature race.
Yes, you read that right. At 19 years, 304 days old, Pedro Acosta became the third youngest rider in the entire 75 year history of our sport to take a podium finish. And he absolutely deserved it. Of course, some dramas on the track ahead and behind him possibly affected the race outcome (I'll get onto that in a little bit) but Acosta rode like a demon. The tyre graining and wear that so impacted his stint in the Qatar opening round, is rather lesser at Portmao, due to the differing track conditions - namely the lack of sand blowing in from the Qatari desert. As such, Acosta's aggressive style on the bike meant that his big push at the beginning of the race, ensured that he was able to fight for positions as the race went on, with him making overtakes on factory team compatriot Brad Binder, 8x world champion Marc Marquez and an incredible block pass on reigning champion Pecco Bagnaia. Acosta's surge through the pack was easily the most interesting aspect of an otherwise rather steadfast race, and that's very promising for the future of the sport. With overtakes and wheel to wheel racing becoming far rarer occurrences, the fact that this new kid on the grid is willing to rub elbows, shoulders and even swap paintwork on the track means we could be in for some very exciting races in the future, and I say bring it on!
The little shark ate up his competition to take 3rd on Sunday, but who else besides Acosta was making headlines?
Before we get to the good stuff, lets talk about the embarrassing moment yes?
Other than Acosta's brilliance, the other major headline of the weekend was of course, *that* Pecco Bagnaia and Marc Marquez collision. Whose fault was it? Is Marc too aggressive, is Pecco too demanding? Is this a brand new rivalry for the ages, Marc Marquez rekindling the fire with Valentino Rossi through his foremost apprentice?
Yeah, I can do sensationalism too.
Let's face it, Marc and Pecco crashed because they were both racing hard for P4, and wanted the same bit of tarmac. They're some of the best riders in the history of our sport, and really, we want to see them clash on track - it makes everything that much more exciting!
The stewards ultimately decided that it was a racing incident, so for the first time ever they may have made a correct call! Will wonders never cease?
But of course, with this crash there are two rather major takeaways. First and most excitingly (for me anyway) the fact that Marc showed such aggression in the race, not to mention his P2 finish in the sprint, is evidence that he's feeling comfortable with the Desmosedici. With COTA the next track in our calendar, dare I hope for a Marc Marquez win? Not to get my hopes up but, well... the fact that there's hope at all is beautiful in and of itself.
Secondly, Pecco's DNF in the feature race and a P4 in the sprint, meant that Pecco took just 6 points out of the weekend, dropping him to P4 in the championship standings. Of course, it's early days but a deficit like that when the season opener went exactly his way must be humbling to the 3x world champion.
So who has taken advantage of Pecco's fall from grace?
Well, I did say history had been made, and I wasn't just talking about Pedro Acosta.
Maverick Vinales has had one of the most incredible roller coaster racing careers that I think I can remember hearing about in recent times. From entering the premier class with the Suzuki project, and developing the bike to deliver their first race win in Silverstone 2016 since their re-entry to the grid, to the dazzling highs of Yamaha, his title opportunity in 2017, becoming team mates with the ultimate hero of the sport, Valentino Rossi, and then the downfall. Fabio Quartararo joining the factory team in 2021, outperforming Maverick at every turn, and eventually winning the title, and Maverick's increasing unhappiness, leading to his shocking mistreatment of the bike at the Styrian GP, which resulted in him being let go from the Yamaha project halfway through the 2021 season.
Maverick has certainly taken his turn as the villain of our sport.
But there's always a redemption arc on offer for villains, and that's what Aprilia have given him. It may have taken Maverick some time to get to grips with the difference in style between the silky smooth inline 4 engine of the Suzuki and Yamaha to the aggressive power of the v4 Aprilia engine, but there's no denying we're seeing the results now.
In Saturday's sprint race, we saw Maverick dominate the field to take his first victory with the Noale team, making both riders race winners for the factory, but more importantly, Maverick made history as the first rider to take a victory with 3 different manufacturers.
It was unfortunate that in the feature race Maverick had a mechanical issue with the gearbox, which ultimately ended with him highsiding out of a safe 3rd place finish, but the overall positives of the weekend are clearly there. Is Maverick a possible title contender this year? I doubt it - we've all seen him go backwards in races before, but the momentum is with him and its good to see the man smiling and displaying his talents again.
But lets focus on the top two now, because these boys have some big balls.
Jorge Martin and Enea Bastianini have both suffered devastating crashes at the Portimao circuit. Last year Enea fractured his collarbone during the sprint race at Portimao, the tip of the iceberg for his injury laden season, and in 2021 Jorge Martin suffered a crash there that almost ended his premier class racing career before it had properly begun.
Now in 2024, with both in fine form to be competing for the title, these rivals took the top 2 positions in the race and finally put their Portimao demons to rest,
It's wonderful to see Enea Bastianini back to his competitive best. As I said before, his 2023 season was riddled with injuries, and has made many people question his worthiness to be in the factory Ducati team alongside Pecco Bagnaia. Especially when his main rival for the seat was Jorge Martin who was left in the Pramac Ducati team, yet still fought for the title all the way to the final round last year.
Jorge Martin taking top honours also means that he finally lead the championship for longer than 24 hours, a feat that only he has achieved in the sport's 75 year history, and one that he has managed twice in his career.
With these two operating at their best, I think the title fight, much as it has only just begun, is going to be incredibly closely fought this year, and with many more contenders.
So, a devastatingly quick rookie, champions making mistakes and two more title contenders thrown into the mix...
Can't we just have the next race now?
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