Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team RC213V) hopes to take another step towards an historic fifth MotoGP crown in six years this weekend at MotorLand Aragon, where the paddock completes the main, five-month European segment of the season. Only five rounds remain after Sunday’s racing – four in Asia and Australia plus the season-ending Valencia Grand Prix.

The 25-year-old Spaniard – already the youngest rider in history to have won four premier-class titles – brings a 67-point lead to his third race of the year on home ground, having ridden another stellar season. Marquez has taken five victories – including the Spanish GP in May – and five further podiums from 12 races, with his other two outings spoiled by a tumble and a penalty. Last time out at the San Marino he finished a close second to Andrea Dovizioso, who lies second in the title chase.

Marquez’s five race wins and a sixth by fellow HRC rider Cal Crutchlow (LCR Honda CASTROL RC213V) also put Honda on top of the Constructors World Championship, thanks to ongoing improvements to its magnificent RC213V machine. Honda is currently chasing a seventh constructors in eight seasons. The RC213V has won four of those most recent titles, with its RC212V predecessor taking the previous two, in 2011 and 2012.

With two second-place finishes and one third-place result from the last three races, Marquez is keen to return to the top step of the podium at Aragon, where he can count on massive home support. On Sunday his strategy will be the same as usual: push at 100 percent for victory and, if victory isn’t possible, make sure he finishes on the podium to maintain his impressive championship advantage.

Marquez is certainly looking forward to racing at MotorLand Aragon. One of his main training techniques is dirt-track riding, around anti-clockwise ovals, so he particularly enjoys left-handed MotoGP tracks like Aragon. He has won four Grands Prix races at the venue, situated outside the town of Alcaniz, which has a long motorsport tradition. Not only has the youngster won on his last two visits, in 2017 and 2016, he also won his first MotoGP race at the track in 2013 and his first Moto2 outing there in 2011.

This year’s Aragon Grand Prix will include a new experience for Marquez, who has spent the last few seasons rewriting the sport’s record books. For the first time a circuit has named a corner in his honour, with MotorLand choosing turn ten, a fast, downhill left-hander which just happens to be Marquez’s favourite corner of the entire championship!

Crutchlow also comes to Aragon on top form. Two weeks ago at Misano he joined Marquez on the podium, thanks to a strong ride to third place. The result crowned an excellent run of results, with six top-six finishes from the past seven races. The 32-year-old Briton attributes his current speed to improvements to the RC213V, especially to its mighty V4 engine, which allows him to run a fast, consistent pace, whatever the layout of the circuit.

MotorLand Aragon is a popular venue with riders. Designed by famed racetrack designer Hermann Tilke, the circuit winds its way across hillsides with dramatic elevation changes that turn the layout into something of a rollercoaster ride. The track also features one of MotoGP’s longest straights, which riders enter in first gear and finish in sixth gear, at around 340km/h (about 210mph). The layout is a huge challenge, both for riders and for engineers.

Marquez’s team-mate Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda Team RC213V) took MotoGP victory at Aragon in 2012, so he knows the fast way around the undulating layout. The 32-year-old former 125cc and 250cc World Champion finished second last year and also in 2015, so he will be chasing another return to the podium this Sunday.

Pedrosa, currently contesting his 13th MotoGP season with the Repsol Honda Team, has had easier campaigns. This year he has struggled to adapt the set-up of his RC213V to the latest Michelin tyres. The Spaniard, who weighs 51kg, feels better on the bike in hot conditions, when it’s easier to bring his tyres to optimum temperature. He will no doubt be happy to see this weekend’s weather forecast, which predict a daytime average of around 30 degrees. Pedrosa currently stands 11th in the championship. His best results so far are fifth-place finishes in the French and Catalan rounds. Pedrosa recently announced that he will retire from MotoGP at the end of this season.

While Pedrosa contests his final season in MotoGP, Honda has three rookies in the class, all of them working to adapt to the fastest, most complex bike-racing series of them all.

Reigning Moto2 World Champion Franco Morbidelli (Estrella Galicia 0,0 Marc VDS RC213V) is so far the best of the three. The 23-year-old Italian leads the Rookie of the Year contest with eight points-scoring rides so far. At his home race at Misano he took the chequered flag in 12th position, just five seconds outside the top ten. Morbidelli won last year’s Aragon Moto2 race, but he already knows very well that riding a 250 horsepower MotoGP bike around a track is a very different proposition from riding a 125-horsepower Moto2 machine around the same layout.

Fellow rookie Takaaki Nakagami (LCR Honda IDEMITSU RC213V) also had an excellent ride at Misano, chasing Morbidelli during much of the race and finally crossing the finish line in 13th, just half a second behind the Italian. The 26-year-old from Chiba is enjoying a strong rookie season in the class of kings, with six points-scoring rides so far.

Morbidelli’s team-mate and 2017 Moto2 runner-up Thomas Luthi (Estrella Galicia 0,0 Marc VDS RC213V) is having a more challenging apprenticeship in MotoGP. The 32-year Swiss rider is still chasing his first points in the premier class. Aragon could provide him with an opportunity for points – he finished a close fourth in the 2014, 2016 and 2017 Moto2 races at the track.

After Aragon the paddock packs its flight cases and jets eastward to the inaugural Grand Prix of Thailand on October 7. The Japanese, Australian and Malaysian rounds follow, with the season concluding at Valencia on November 18.

Marc Marquez 93
 
“Aragon is one of my favourite circuits on the calendar, a track where I normally feel at ease and I can ride very well. I look forward to racing in front of my home crowd, and this year will be special because it will be the first time that a circuit dedicates a corner to me, and I’m very excited about that. Last year we arrived there equal on points in the championship, but this season we have an advantage. This doesn’t mean that it’s over though; on the contrary, we must keep working hard because it seems that Ducati are fast and consistent at every track. We must find something that allows us to fight with them as well as possible. In Aragon we’ll try and be competitive from the beginning. We’ll try to find soon a good base and prepare well for the weekend.”

Cal Crutchlow 35

“It’s good to arrive in Aragon leading the independent rider standings. Our third place in Misano gave us more confidence for the rest of the season. My team is doing an excellent job to give me a competitive bike every weekend. We have to continue this way. Obviously the target is always the podium and Aragon is a track where I’ve had decent races in the past [including third place in 2014], so we have to remain focused and work together with Honda to obtain the best result possible.”

Dani Pedrosa 26

“I always enjoy going to Aragon, like every time I race in front of my fan club and my home crowd. I also like the track; I’ve had good results there in the past and it would be good to achieve another one. I can’t wait to get there and enjoy one more Spanish GP!”

Franco Morbidelli 21

“I am really looking forward to going to MotorLand Aragon because it’s a track where I have always been fast since my first year in the World Championship. It’s very technical with lots of different challenges and I can’t wait to see what it will be like to ride it on a MotoGP bike. I think at Silverstone we made a step with the setting of the bike and improved the electronics and I showed that in Misano, which was a very positive weekend to go through Q2 and then fight in the top ten for part of the race. I’m keen to see if the improvements we have made work in MotorLand Aragon too and hopefully I can put on another nice performance like I did in Misano.”

Takaaki Nakagami 30
 
“Misano was a tough weekend for me but, in the end, scoring ten points in the race was a good result for me and the team. Now we go to Aragon where the Honda has been very competitive in the last years, so I feel very confident about this weekend. As always since my debut in the premier class I will need a bit of time to adapt to the circuit riding the RC213V, but I’ve been learning since the beginning and I am determined to do my best to finish every race in the points.”

Thomas Luthi 12

“I’m looking forward to the race in Aragon because it’s a track I have never ridden a MotoGP bike at before and that makes it a very exciting prospect. It’s a nice track with a lot of undulation and a lot of technical sections. This is going to make it a challenge but I’m looking to try and make some steps forward with my feeling on the bike, which is very important for us. We will continue to keep working hard like always and I and all of my crew are pushing at 100 percent to have some success in the next races.”