Things To Look Forward for in the New MotoGP Season

This upcoming season of MotoGP will be the premier class of the 74th F.I.M (Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme) Road Racing World Championship season. A lot of efforts were made to make the grid tighter and more competitive than ever before, to build anticipation for an exciting season.

For 2022, Aprilia will enter the series with their own full factory team, an effort made for the first time since 2004. It is parting ways with Gresini, another team that will return as a fully-independent crew, with their bikes being supplied by Ducati.

At the end of 2021, Valentino Rossi (also known as The Doctor) retired from MotoGP after 21 years, 372 race starts, 89 wins, and 199 podiums. He is widely considered to be one of the greatest motorcycle racers of all time, winning seven World Championships in MotoGP, and a total of nine Grand Prix World Championships. However, The Doctor couldn’t stay away from his love, so say hi to his new team for the new season, Mooney VR46 Racing Team.

With a fully Italian drivers' lineup and bikes supplied by Ducati, the team is set to take the motorcycling world by storm. With the knowledge and experience of Rossi, and the energy of youngsters Luca Marini and Marco Bezzecchi, the future is looking good for Mooney Team.

Petronas SRT quit the sport after the 2021 season, with the management team forming a new entry for 2022. The team will continue to use Yamaha bikes for 2022, with options to extend for 2023 and 2024. Later it was announced that the team would officially enter the class as the WithU Yamaha RNF MotoGP Team.

The newly formed team has Andrea Dovizioso as he gets back up to speed on Yamaha machinery, and it's rookie Darryn Binder alongside the veteran Italian. Binder makes the huge leap from Moto3 to MotoGP, and a lot is expected from him.

On the motorcycle front, Ducati is the most popular manufacturer on the grid, with four teams choosing the Ducati Desmosedici model, followed by Honda, KTM, and Yamaha, with two entries each one.

Old GPs will return after a long absence, with the Finnish Grand Prix coming back to the calendar after a 39-year absence. The venue hosting the round will be the new Kymi Ring, instead of the Tampere Circuit used in 1962 and 1963, or the Imatra Circuit which hosted the round until 1982.

The Grand Prix was included on both the 2020 and 2021 calendars, but both races were canceled in response to the pandemic. It is set to take part in May, being the seventh race of the season.

At the same time, the Indonesian Grand Prix will return to the calendar after a 24-year absence. The venue hosting the round will be the new Mandalika International Street Circuit, instead of the Sentul International Circuit used in 1996 and 1997. Unfortunately, the Grand Prix was dropped after it had been included in the 2021 calendar as a Reserve Grand Prix.

A good mix of new drivers and old drivers completes the grid. With five rookies and veterans like Andrea Dovizioso or Marc Marquez, here are the riders to look out for this season.

The youngsters from Tech3 KTM Factory Racing, Remy Gardner (champion of Moto2 in 2021), and his teammate Raul Fernandez, another sensation in Moto2, are extremely talented. After impressive performance last year, a lot of eyes are set on them.

Fabio Quartararo is the winner of last year championship at only 21-years-old, finally reaching the potential many thought he had. Still, the question is the same as last year: when Marc Marquez will be fully back, can Quartararo be a match?

Marc Marquez was, at 26-years-old, already a six-time World Champion in MotoGP, winning four titles in a row from 2016 to 2019. He could have easily been an eight-time World Champion if it weren't for that horrific crash at the 2020 Spanish Grand Prix. This season could be his first when he is fully healthy.

Francesco Bagnaia, the golden boy of Ducati for years to come, finished second in last year championship. This year he will not settle for the second place again, and it will be a full-on attack by Pecco.

Joan Mir was the 2020 World Champion, in his only second season. He is very talented and outides the Suzuki bike's capability every time he is on the track. With some improvements and a little help from the team, Mir could become champion again.

I'm sure it will be another great season, with lots of winners and exciting moments, and it may be best to let racing speak for itself.