Great winners and losers of Texas GP / MotoGP

It doesn’t take an editorial meeting to name the biggest winner of the “Grand Prix of the Americas”. Without any discussion – Maverick Viñales was the star of the COTA weekend. His performance was outstanding in many ways.

“Batman” Vinales
The way the Spaniard moved throughout the event proves Viñales’ credentials as a master. The Aprilia RS-GP driver never showed any weakness in any session and kept his composure even when the conditions of the GP match turned against him. The return to the Grand Prix on Sunday was not only worth seeing from a sporting point of view, it also showed the strength of the past. Viñales has often been denied radical art in the past. Even insiders thought it would be impossible for Maverick Viñales to find his way back to the top after the bumps he faced at the start from 10th place. Too often in the past, Viñales seemed helplessly behind his rivals despite his superior speed.

But the 29-year-old taught the entire MotoGP community a lesson. His ride was great and he deserves full points – but these must be split equally between the teams. Because the Spaniard was only able to achieve this solid journey by trusting his support.
Pole position – sprint and GP victory – fastest lap. Cowboy hat. In the World Cup table, Viñales advances with the most points. After Portugal’s eighth place, “Top Gun” is now in second place, directly behind Enea Bastianini.

“The Beast”
Which brings us to another clear winner from the Texas trip. “Las Bestia” shined in the USA with speed and consistency. Thanks to his good riding style, Bastianini never looked spectacular, but his riding on the slopes of Austin was very impressive. Sixth place in the race and, above all, third place in the Sunday GP increased the championship points to such an extent that Bastianini is now the first chaser of Jorge Martin. Important for the #23 boss: In both races he had world champion and teammate Baganaia under control and in the GP he was also able to fight his way past the fiercest rival Martin.

Super-Acosta
There were storms of applause again for Pedro Acosta, the third-biggest winner of the Texas Rodeo. The 19-year-old’s greatest achievement is his consistency. The actor shows himself in every episode and, from a sports perspective, he finally gives a high-level image in Texas. In addition, there was an amazing speed on the “Circuit of the Americas”, which was even more frightening than the MotoGP race. For the first time, Acosta raced from the first row on the grid. When he realized during the race that it was not enough to win, he held on to his courage and managed to finish fourth. In the Grand Prix, the GASGAS star fought for victory until the last round. With a tough maneuver against the establishment, Acosta showed full determination, but still turned on his racing driver brain at the right time. Acosta also jumped off the table. Even ahead of Pecco Bagnaia, Pedro Acosta is in fourth place after the third GP.

Pecco Bagnaia
The first loser has already been named. The best part of the weekend, according to #1, was qualifying. Fourth on the grid was a very good starting position for the reigning champion. But the man from Turin had to miss both high scoring chances. The Ducati title managed to minimize the damage, but eighth place in the race and fifth place in the race were clearly below Pecco Bagnaia’s ability. Reflecting the fact that the Italian was not at the same level as Viñales, Acosta and Bastianini, Bagnaia slipped one place. The 2024 World Cup is still in its early stages, but there can be no question of the reign of the two-time world champion.

“Brad Attack” Binder
Things also went back a long way for the true star of the KTM team. In regards to World Cup status, Brad Binder was ice cold in the Texas heat. Before the sprint in Austin, Binder was the first follower of the “Martinator” and after the GP he found himself only in sixth place.
This was due to inconsistencies between the RC16 and its trials that could not be explained, which frequently meant a gap to second on the time sheets.

From a hopeless 17th place on the grid, ninth place in the Grand Prix was still a good result. All in all, Binder will see the trip to the USA as a terrible failure, as the technological competition was shown in an impressive way by the GASGAS boy in the next box. The “Brad Attack” example shows how thin the ice of MotoGP success is. Bad feeling and there is a risk of falling on the joint.

“MM93” Marc Márquez
Speaking of falling. Nobody wanted that for Marc Márquez. Even non-daredevil fans smiled with joy when the eight-time world champion and best MotoGP cowboy went to work in Texas. After the podium in the sprint, “MM93” put everything on one card at the Grand Prix – and lost. However, in the lead. Not surprisingly, Gresini’s guest Ducati was always at the forefront of music in Austin. Crashing the race due to an inconsistent braking system was also solely his fault. But even the speed of glory does not change the number of the second zero in a row. Directly behind Aleix Espargaro, the elder Márquez is now eighth in the World Championship. For #93 the overall picture in the World Championship is not a bitter defeat, but jumping from the same place he had already led from the RC213V will leave a hole in the Spaniard’s ego.

And Jorge Martin? Compared to the competition, the Spaniard went through the third stage of the MotoGP year relatively unscathed and unscathed. With a podium in the race and important points in the GP, Martin was able to confidently maintain his position at the top of the World Championship table. The impressive performance of the biggest winner in Austin will give “Martinator” and Ducati something to think about.

Status of the MotoGP World Drivers’ Championship after 3 out of 21 races
1. Jorge Martin 80 P.
2. Enea Bastianini 59 P.
3. Maverick Vinales 56 P
4. Pedro Acosta 54 P.
5. Francesco Bagnaia 50 P.
6. Brad Binder 49 P.
7. Aleix Espargaro 39 P.
8. Marc Marquez 36 p.
9. Fabio Di Giannantonio 25 P.
10. Jack Miller 22 P.
11. Marco Bezzecchi 20 P.
12. Fabio Quartararo 19 P.
13. Alex Márquez 14 P.
14. Miguel Oliveira 13 P.
15. Raúl Fernandez 7 P.
16. Augusto Fernandez 7 P.
17. Joan Mir 7 P.
18. Johann Zarco 5 P.
19. Alex Rins 3 P.
20. Takaaki Nakagami 2 P.
21. Franco Morbidelli 0 P.
22. Lucai Marini Marini 0 P.

Constructors’ championship standings after 3 out of 21 races:
1. Ducati 96 P.
2. KTM 76 P.
3. April 72 P.
4. Yamaha 19 P.
5. Honda 8P