What a weekend it was in Austin! After an absolute classic at COTA, Maverick Viñales (Aprilia Racing) completed the Texas treble with pole, Tissot Sprint and Grand Prix victory. Pedro Acosta (Red Bull GASGAS Tech3) and Enea Bastianini (Ducati Lenovo Team) got themselves onto the podium once again, while it was a mixed weekend for the likes of Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team) and Marc Marquez (Gresini Racing MotoGP™)
After a Texas thriller, let’s take a look at some of the biggest Talking Points from the weekend.
"I feel like I’m in Gotham City!"
BatMav returned after Viñales’ incredible comeback win at COTA. The Aprilia was ecstatic with the mental strength he displayed after a torrid start saw him drop to P11 on the first lap. The result sees Top Gun rise to third in the Championship, and if he maintains this form, it’s hard not to see him putting together a Championship bid.
”I feel I’m in Gotham City! I said yesterday, we must be dreaming. So to close that circle, it’s just fantastic. I spent my night thinking about what we have to do to be back winning races again and finally, I did it.”
“This kind of result makes me believe I have enough talent, and dedication to be fighting for this.”
“To see someone winning with my bike is unbelievable!”
Viñales’ success means he is now just the second rider to win a race aboard the RS-GP after Aleix Espargaro. The Aprilia stalwart, who finished P7, was full of praise as he witnessed a project he has been at the helm of for years take another massive step.
Maverick is at Aprilia because I pushed him to come, I convinced him. I feel like it isn’t the Aprilia project but my project! So to see someone winning with my bike is unbelievable! From the bottom of my heart, I’m extremely happy for him, and for everyone at Aprilia!
“We are struggling”
Defending two-time MotoGP™ World Champion Pecco Bagnaia endured another challenging outing at COTA, with the Italian going without a podium for two Grands Prix in a row for the first time since the 2023 Americas GP (not including Tissot Sprint results).
”Right now, it’s the maximum result we can get. For sure we have to do a reset because it has been two weekends in a row that we are struggling.”
“Let’s think about Jerez and not the Championship”
The kid is something special. Rookie Pedro Acosta secured back-to-back podiums in Austin, and he has entered the fray as a Championship contender. Sitting fourth in the standings, the Spaniard will head to Jerez among the race favourites on his first premier class Grand Prix on home soil, though the 19-year-old is keen to temper expectations regarding a title bid.
“Let’s think about Jerez and not the Championship. All the people is talking about, it’s only pressure. We are in a sweet moment with the bike and team. Let’s enjoy the moment. Close the finger if we can fight for the Championship at the end of the season but it’s not the priority now.”
"With how fast you're going, I'll have to follow you"
Speaking of Jerez, the Spanish GP will see one of MotoGP™’s favourite sons return to action as Dani Pedrosa is poised for a wildcard appearance. The MotoGP™ Legend was on punditry duty with Spanish broadcaster DAZN, and had plenty of praise for Acosta!
"I think you have to be very proud: in three races, you've been on the podium twice. Now comes Jerez, I hope you give me a bit of a wheel because it was going to be the other way around, as you're still learning, but with how fast you're going, I'll have to follow you."
"We crashed, we know why we crashed"
There was major disappointment for Marc Marquez, as the Gresini rider hit the deck and slid into the gravel moments after seizing the initiative in Austin. It meant there was to be no eighth win at COTA, though he is looking at the positives following a frustrating day.
“During the entire race I had problems with the front brake and I was struggling a lot and that created the crash.
“We crashed, we know why we crashed, and that is the most important thing.”
"We didn’t improve compared to last year"
Having taken the win at COTA 12 months ago, there were minimal positives when looking at the timesheets for Honda. All four RC213Vs started at the very back of the grid, while just Luca Marini (Repsol Honda Team) managed to finish the race, crossing the line P16 and the only finisher not to pick up points.
”We didn’t improve compared to last year, and to the other manufacturers which gave a huge step forward. The times on the track improved, but for us the lap times are quite bad.
"I think the direction is clear about what we need to change.”
"I got the best launch of my life"
Having underperformed for large portions of the weekend, the factory KTMs showed potential during the early stages of the race before encountering separate issues. Brad Binder said he had “the best launch of my life” before losing some crucial pieces of his RC16 early on, while Jack Miller ran into serious tyre trouble after running with the lead group across the opening laps.
Binder: “Unfortunately, I got clipped on the outside with a bit of a mess on the inside. I broke my rear wing and my front left wing. I had to do 20 laps around COTA missing two wings which wasn’t very fun."
“One to forget and carry on”
Miller: “I felt good in the group over the first six or seven laps. Everything was looking rosy but then on Lap 7 I started running into some issues. Off gas on the left hand side, things started coming around, basically felt like I was on base rubber immediately and it continued to get worse. I couldn’t carry any corner speed going in, any exit speed going out.
“The last 13 laps, I was just trying to hold position and make it as hard as possible for the other boys to come past. A strange one, an issue I hadn’t felt all weekend and just to come up like that wasn’t the nicest.”