There is an age-old adage that sport is for men as soap operas are for women. The saying is antiquated in our modern times, of course, in a world where anyone of any gender or upbringing can enjoy sporting challenges and reality tv in equal measures, but it’s a curious comparison. Some people might snort at the concept, but are they really that alien to one another?
The best parts of sports are the storylines they produce, in my opinion. Champions rising from the ranks of their peers to achieve ultimate glory. The highs of victory and the lows of defeat. Teams banding together, brothers in arms against a common enemy. These core ideas span both immortal stories and sporting legends, and are a core part of what makes sports so entertaining to watch.
So as we turn our lens to the season that awaits in MotoGP, the question must be asked – what new chapters await us in the decades-long saga of the World Championship? What tales of glory and sacrifice will 2023 bring to our sport? Which of the riders will ascend to the highest successes, and who will ultimately fall short? Adventure awaits us, so let us begin.
The King Reigns Supreme
We start the 2023 season with a reigning champion in intimidating form. Pecco Bagnaia took Ducati’s first championship victory in fifteen long years back in 2022, and his reign looks set to continue into the start of the next. The Italian has been imperious in his pre-season form, laying down consistent lap times and improvements across multiple days and at multiple tracks, and all who seek to usurp him at the top fear it might already be too late.
The bike he won the title on last year was incredible, and Ducati have done the exact right thing with it over Winter testing – that is, very little. Minor tweaks and improvements have turned his weapon from a sword into a scythe, something lean and precise but still unbelievably powerful. If he was nigh unbeatable on the 2022 model, many dread their chances at stopping him on the up-to-date version of the bike.
Let’s not forget, either, that his opportunities to shred his opponents are double what they were last season thanks to the introduction of sprint races. Ducati is a manufacturer known for producing bikes that out-muscle their opponents in top speed and horsepower, an advantage that will be even tougher to overcome on a lighter fuel tank and in half the distance. Should Pecco reign imperious in the shortened races, the battle may already be won by the time Sunday rolls around.
As if to taunt his opponents, the King also wears his crown proudly and on display – the number 1 emblazoned upon his bike for the entirety of 2023. There will be no mistaking him out on track, and his fellow riders will be constantly reminded of where he stands coming into this championship. Long may he reign atop his blood-red steed.
Betrayers to the Crown
The King’s immediate issue coming into this championship is that of his own subjects. A massive 8 riders – one third of the grid, give or take – start this season with the same arsenal that he has, or at least something comparable. 3 of his stablemates ride upon the 2023-based engine that the King will use to defend his crown, and the other 4 have the exact setup he was so successful with last year.
You would think an army of this size would be nigh unstoppable, but there may be dissent in the Ducati ranks. His former teammate, an ally who could be relied upon to play second fiddle, has been replaced by a young gun with his own ambitions for the throne – Enea Bastianini, the Beast. His speed was proven last year, taking more wins than any of Pecco’s other rivals, but the machine underneath him was inconsistent and his battle was for stature within the red armada, not ultimate glory. This year, he seeks the crown.
The Beast is not the only traitor amongst the King’s allies. Jorge Martin, the young gun of the junior classes, wishes to prove to all that Ducati made an error in passing him over for the promotion to their top team. Marco Bezzechi and Luca Marini, trained by the legendary Valentino Rossi, are out to prove they represent more to the sport than just their mentor’s name. Even Alex Marquez, the newest recruit to the Italian manufacturer’s squad, will have designs on race victories after being bullied by a former employer obsessed with his family name. All great riders, all on great bikes.
The most tantalising part about all this is we have no idea who will fall into line behind their new King, and who will seek to dethrone him time and time again. An ideal sporting story gives us contenders with equal opportunities at success, and all of the Ducati riders have the same (or close enough to the same) monstrous bike underneath them for 2023. There will be contention from within and without, and Bagnaia will quickly learn who he can and cannot trust to aid him in the war to come.
The Fallen King Stands Alone
The current ruler of MotoGP had to vanquish several former champions to attain his crown last year, but none came closer to stopping him than his predecessor. Fabio Quartararo enters this season having lost his claim to the throne in 2022 in one of the biggest upsets in recent memory. After starting the championship off strong and defending his position as the greatest among his cohort, an underpowered machine underneath him and the increasingly imperious form of Bagnaia led to his eventual demise.
But Quartararo is a fighter, with revolutionary blood coursing through his veins, and he will see this as an opportunity to prove that he has what it takes to reclaim what was once his. He stands with his back against the wall, staring down the Ducati armada with nothing but his talents to guide him. His allies have been cut to shreds, with only one stablemate within his Yamaha box to assist in the coming battle, and his bike of choice remains surreptitiously slower than the competition.
This isn’t to say the Frenchman doesn’t have a chance against the Ducati’s, but rather that the deck is stacked against him. Despite finding additional top speed at the end of testing, the 2023 Yamaha still appears to be slower and less consistent than his rival’s machinery, which could spell trouble when the season starts in earnest. If he fails to qualify well and finds himself starting each race behind a wall of Italian bikes, then the battle may be over before a wheel is turned in anger.
His chances may look slim on paper, but those who have followed the sport in recent years know that Fabio is more than capable of surprising us all. He will have designs on returning to the throne and claiming his second world championship, and it would be unwise to bet against him despite the setbacks. The Frenchman will have a hand in the tale of 2023, by hook or by crook.
The Wounded Gladiators
One needs only to turn the history books back further to find more possible contenders for this season. The Repsol Honda team, arguably the most successful of the modern era, comes into 2023 with a dream line-up of two former champions: Joan Mir, Quartararo’s predecessor, and Marc Marquez, the legendary champion of old. Both enter this year bullish about their chances at returning to former glory.
The main issue standing in their way? Neither of the former monarchs will start this showdown on a particularly strong bike. Honda have failed to deliver a competitive package for their riders during the pre-season, and without a weapon to match the Ducatis at the top of the pile it may be a short-lived battle. Rider talent will only get you so far in this sport – the motorcycle underneath has to be able to deliver that skill into tangible results for any of it to matter.
This is disappointing to say the least. Mir is just as young and just as talented as Quartararo and Bagnaia, and keen to prove that his sole title in 2020 wasn’t a fluke. Marquez is in the conversation for the greatest rider to ever swing a leg over a bike, and appears to have finally put his injury woes of the last few years behind him. They both deserve a redemption arc in this tale, and it appears that the main thing holding them back is their own machinery.
Should the bike improve, then both men re-enter the conversation as candidates for the 2023 trophy, but until then they may have to sit patiently and scheme behind the faster riders. With a whopping 777 points on the table this year, there is plenty of time to prepare for a mid-season launch at the throne.
The New Pretenders
The 2022 championship introduced us to a new potential challenger. The Aprilia had finally evolved into a competitive bike, and in the hands of veteran rider Aleix Espargaro it was weaponised into a consistent thorn in the sides of Quartararo and Bagnaia. A first race win and a slew of podiums were nearly enough to secure him third in the title chase, but a stutter right at the end of the season allowed the Beast to squeeze through and steal the bronze medal away from him.
Aprilia return stronger and hungrier for glory this year. With 4 riders in their arsenal for the first time since they joined the class, the Italian manufacturer was able to take leaps and bounds during the testing season, and the result is a bike that looks like the best alternative to the red army. This is an Aprilia with all of the strengths of last year and even fewer weaknesses, a bike that should be able to both qualify and race with consistency and speed.
The only issue here is there isn’t a clear champion to lead the charge from within their ranks. Sure, Espargaro was their trusted captain last year, but his teammate Maverick Vinales will be keen to prove he can take over as the Top Gun in their squad. The new recruits in the satellite squad are no joke, either – Miguel Oliveira is a class act poached from KTM’s hold, and Raul Fernandez practically broke the Moto2 class with his speed back in 2021. Any of these riders could be Aprilia’s best hope for the season, and the answer likely won’t be clear for much of the early stages of the competition.
Still, it would seem these men represent the best chance at toppling the current order at the top, and that in itself is high praise and promise. Which of them does manage to rise to the challenge will be a very interesting storyline to follow.
Let Battle Commence
So, who will be the champion crowned come November? The proud King or his Beast, the fallen warriors itching for revenge, or the new wave of pretenders seeking to become contenders? 21 rounds and 42 races will determine who among them is destined for glory and success. Viewers today know them all by name, but history will only remember the one who stands tall among the rest when the dust settles. It’s time to go racing and find out.
Solomon Talks Bikes 