Ducati are winless in five Grands Prix and the factory team have not celebrated a Sunday podium since the 2025 Japanese Grand Prix, their longest wait since Aragon 2012 to Qatar 2014. Bagnaia, Marquez and Di Giannantonio all arrive at a circuit where Ducati has won every Sunday since 2021. Jerez is where they need to end the drought. Fast.
Marc Marquez used the April break to train at Aragon, targeting a physical step before his home Grand Prix after identifying himself as the main limitation in the opening rounds. Ducati boss Gigi Dall’Igna insists the reigning champion will be 100 percent fit for Jerez. Marquez sits 36 points behind Bezzecchi heading into Round 4 and remains without a Sunday podium this season.
Marco Bezzecchi arrives at Jerez with five wins in a row and 121 consecutive laps led. Aprilia heads to the Spanish Grand Prix looking to maintain its 100% Grand Prix record in 2026. A win on Sunday would deliver the Noale manufacturer its first ever victory at this circuit. Ducati has won every Sunday race at Jerez since 2021. The biggest test of Aprilia’s title credentials starts now.
Marc Marquez used the extended April break to train at Aragon, targeting a physical step ahead of Jerez after identifying himself as the main limitation in the opening rounds. The reigning champion admitted the bike becomes too aggressive in the opening laps when he cannot yet ride as he wants. Ducati boss Gigi Dall’Igna insists Marquez will be 100 percent fit for the Spanish Grand Prix.
German squad Penz13.com has signed Northern Irishman Shaun Anderson for the 2026 Isle of Man TT, with the Banbridge rider campaigning a BMW M1000RR in the Superbike, Superstock and Senior races. Anderson switches from Suzuki to BMW after being largely associated with the Japanese brand throughout his TT career. He brings 54 TT starts and 130mph Club membership to the established German outfit.
Conor Cummins will ride a BMW M1000RR for Bathams AJN Racing in the Superbike and Senior races at the 2026 Isle of Man TT. The Ramsey man will also run his own BMW in Superstock under the Conrod Motorsport banner and a Suzuki GSX-R750 in Supersport with North Lincs Components. This year marks his 20th season competing on the Snaefell Mountain Course. Michael Rutter sits out through injury.
Marc Marquez has opened up about the moment that scared him most in a long MotoGP career full of crashes, injuries and comeback stories. Speaking on the Imagin podcast, the reigning world champion revealed his most nervous day was not a race or a crash, but the first time he sat on a Ducati at the Valencia test in late 2023. The fear was not speed. It was the unknown.
Fabio Di Giannantonio heads to Jerez as the top Ducati rider in the 2026 MotoGP standings, but the gap to Aprilia is undeniable. VR46 has spent the April break focusing on braking and turning improvements to the GP26. With Ducati yet to win a Sunday race in 2026, Diggia carries the weight of the entire Borgo Panigale camp into their home circuit.
Marco Bezzecchi leads MotoGP 2026 with five straight wins and 121 consecutive laps led. But Jerez is different. Aprilia has never won at this circuit in the modern era, managing just one podium in the last five seasons. Ducati has taken every Sunday victory here since 2021. A fit-again Marc Marquez heads into his home Grand Prix ready to fire. Round 4 starts Thursday.
Peter Hickman’s 2019 Smiths Racing BMW S1000 RR is heading to auction at the Bonhams Spring Stafford Sale on April 26. The bike is estimated at £30,000 to £35,000. On a single machine in 2019, Hickman won the North West 200 Superstock, the TT Superstock and Superbike races and the Ulster Grand Prix. Four wins. One bike. One season. Remarkably reasonable money for a piece of road racing history.