Toby talks to... Sylvain Guintoli, world champion racer and pundit

Is Fabio Quartararo the first truly elite MotoGP rider to be trapped in the series' midfield for as long as he has been? Host Valentin Khorounzhiy discusses this with Simon Patterson on the latest edition of The Race MotoGP Podcast, ahead of Quartararo's home race at Le Mans that comes on the heels of a best-in-years weekend at Jerez. The show also delves into Quartararo's decision to stay put at Yamaha for 2025, the chances of him doing so again in 2027 - and the question of whether his lack of championship opportunities as he enters his theoretical prime as a rider is weighing on him. Finally, Val and Simon talk about the rest of Yamaha's line-up, discussing whether Jack Miller should count on a 2026 extension, whether Alex Rins's disappointing-so-far Yamaha tenure is likely to improve and whether it would make sense for Yamaha to try to bring in Toprak Razgatlioglu. Want more MotoGP podcast content? Sign up to our motorbike-only Riders tier on Patreon for our 2015 revisited series, ad-free listening and more. Head to ⁠⁠Patreon for 75% off your first month! Follow the Race Moto channel on ⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠ Check out our latest videos on ⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

6 Maj 52min

Ducati’s 100% win rate in the 2025 MotoGP world championship masks the fact it’s not actually ever managed to race its full 2025 bike spec, its superstar new signing has crashed in confusing circumstances in two of the last three grands prix and its double champion is a tentative and puzzled shadow of his best form right now because he’s not ever quite sure what to expect from his bike’s handling. So what’s Ducati been working on to solve Marc Marquez and Pecco Bagnaia’s problems? A hungry and tired Simon Patterson in a very dark Spanish hotel room joins Matt Beer on The Race MotoGP Podcast to discuss everything that happened in Monday’s test and what it means for the rest of the season. As well as Ducati’s issues and Marquez and Bagnaia’s contrasting handling of them, we also get into potentially significant development steps for Yamaha and Honda, and the realisation that Aprilia might have bigger problems than Jorge Martin’s long-term absence. We also debate the big question of the Jerez race weekend: what’s going on at KTM that’s resulted in Maverick Vinales suddenly becoming its standout rider and Pedro Acosta suddenly looking overhyped? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

29 Apr 58min

Marc Marquez has won three of the 2025 MotoGP season’s grands prix so far but crashed out of the other two - and that means he’s once again lost the championship lead after the Spanish Grand Prix. Simon Patterson and Matt Beer convene for a quick mini-episode of The Race MotoGP Podcast to try to figure out what’s going on with Marc’s errors, how Fabio Quartararo and Yamaha came so close to winning a race and what Alex Marquez finally getting that elusive grand prix victory (and retaking the points lead) means for the season. And The Race Members’ Club had plenty of opinions on all three topics for us to factor in too. We’ll be back for a full podcast after Monday’s post-race test at Jerez to go deeper into the weekend’s many storylines. Want more MotoGP podcast content? Sign up to our motorbike-only Riders tier on Patreon for our 2015 revisited series, ad-free listening and more. Head to ⁠Patreon.com/therace⁠ Follow the Race Moto channel on ⁠Instagram⁠ and ⁠Twitter⁠ Check out our latest videos on ⁠YouTube⁠ Download our app on ⁠iOS⁠ or ⁠Android Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

28 Apr 39min

Ahead of the European leg of the 2025 MotoGP season kicking off at Jerez, what is the biggest question facing every manufacturer? Megan White and Valentin Khorounzhiy try to answer that question for each of Aprilia, Honda, Yamaha, KTM and Ducati. What does Aprilia do now that Jorge Martin - on whom there is another injury update - is facing a further spell on the sidelines? How should Honda play the expiring contracts of Johann Zarco and Luca Marini? How good does the Yamaha V4 engine - now being extensively track-tested - need to be before it is brought to races? And what can KTM learn from Maverick Vinales' formbook-breaking Qatar GP run? Finally, what approach should Ducati take to its longer-term rider roster? Want more MotoGP podcast content? Sign up to our motorbike-only Riders tier on Patreon for our 2015 revisited series, ad-free listening and more. Head to Patreon.com/therace Follow the Race Moto channel on Instagram and Twitter Check out our latest videos on YouTube Download our app on iOS or Android Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

22 Apr 1h 3min

There's no MotoGP race this weekend, so as a bonus we thought we'd share Val's Qatar GP rider rankings Q&A, which is usually members-only content. Regular listeners will know that Val's rider rankings are posted to The Race website after each race. We then invite The Race Members' Club to send in follow-up questions, which Val then answers in an exclusive video posted to Patreon. For example, in this one he muses on where Fabio di Giannantonio and Alex Marquez would have placed had they not crashed into other riders. If you enjoy this episode and would like to get every subsequent one, plus ad-free episodes and our exclusive MotoGP Revisited series on the 2015 season, why not join The Race Members' Club today? And don't worry if you're only interested in MotoGP and none of The Race's four-wheeled coverage - we have a riders-only tier! Head to Patreon.com/therace today to sign up. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

20 Apr 26min

A frenzied Qatar Grand Prix weekend is discussed on the latest edition of The Race MotoGP Podcast, with Maverick Vinales stealing the spotlight away from the Marc Marquez-Alex Marquez-Pecco Bagnaia title fight. Simon Patterson and Valentin Khorounzhiy discuss the Vinales performance - and the fact it has been effectively stricken from the record books by a tyre pressure penalty. But why was Vinales so quick, how encouraged should KTM be and what does the weekend say about Pedro Acosta? In terms of the title fight, should Bagnaia be worried about another heavy defeat versus Marquez - or can he simply view it as a consequence of his qualifying error? There's also a discussion of Jorge Martin's latest bad injury and of the collision between Alex Marquez and Fabio Di Giannantonio that left the former apologetic and the latter deeply incensed. Want more MotoGP podcast content? Sign up to our motorbike-only Riders tier on Patreon for our 2015 revisited series, ad-free listening and more. Head to Patreon.com/therace Follow the Race Moto channel on Instagram and Twitter Check out our latest videos on YouTube Download our app on iOS or Android Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

14 Apr 1h 9min

World Superbike Championship superstar Toprak Razgatlioglu is being linked to MotoGP yet again - but this time with a twist. Simon Patterson, Val Khorounzhiy and Matt Beer gather on The Race MotoGP Podcast to assess whether the mooted plan for Razgatlioglu to be part of Honda’s factory 2027 MotoGP line-up is realistic and how he might fare. With Jorge Martin expected to finally start his double-injury-delayed title defence at this weekend’s Qatar Grand Prix, we discuss what to expect from him and what an earth is going on at Aprilia in his absence. And there’s a little teaser of our Patreon exclusive Jack Miller Q&A - when the Pramac Yamaha star very much enjoyed answering The Race Members’ Club’s questions about his life, career and Cal Crutchlow. Want more MotoGP podcast content? Sign up to our motorbike-only Riders tier on Patreon for our 2015 revisited series, ad-free listening and more. Head to Patreon.com/therace Follow the Race Moto channel on Instagram and Twitter Check out our latest videos on YouTube Download our app on iOS or Android Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

7 Apr 56min

Marc Marquez’s 2025 MotoGP winning streak ended with a crash from the lead at Austin, but that wasn’t actually the most attention-grabbing part of his weekend. His audacious premeditated gamble that he could get the start aborted so he could switch to the right tyres for the drying conditions without getting a penalty paid off, but raised big questions over the robustness and interpretation of the rules around such situation. Simon Patterson, Val Khorounzhiy and Matt Beer explain what happened and why it was so contentious, as well as delving into Marc’s subsequent crash and how much he should be castigated for it. Plus our takes on Pecco Bagnaia’s sudden title bid revival, Alex Marquez’s appearance as world championship leader, Joan Mir and Pedro Acosta’s shunts, and a reminder of just how good Jack Miller can be. Want more MotoGP podcast content? Sign up to our motorbike-only Riders tier on Patreon for our 2015 revisited series, ad-free listening and more. Head to Patreon.com/therace Follow the Race Moto channel on Instagram and Twitter Check out our latest videos on YouTube Download our app on iOS or Android Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

31 Mars 1h 11min