What we Learned From Thai MotoGP
The first MotoGP race of 2025 is in the books and there were plenty of key takeaways from the season-opener
The Thai MotoGP is in the books and to nobody’s surprise there was very little change at the head of the field as Ducati rounded out the top three positions in both the sprint and Grand Prix.
But that doesn’t mean the action was any less thrilling, instead, there were plenty of things we learned from a very hot and intriguing Thai MotoGP.
Honda is back in business
No, we don’t mean in terms of winning races just yet, but it was clear that the promising pace shown in pre-season is here to stay for the Japanese brand.
Johann Zarco, Joan Mir and Luca Marini were all very fast at different stages, and had Mir not crashed out at the final corner in the Grand Prix, a top-ten finish was certainly a possibility.
Zarco was once again the most consistent Honda rider and continues to be leading the charge when it comes to getting the best from his RC213V. But the difference from last season is that getting the best from his Honda doesn’t just mean being 15th or lower, it means scoring good points thanks to the improvements Honda has made.
After losing time at the beginning of the race, Marini bounced back with top-ten pace throughout as he climbed up to 12th, which equals his best Honda result since joining the brand at the start of last season.
Ai Ogura is a special talent
We thought that what Pedro Acosta did at the 2024 MotoGP opener was special when he battled in the lead group during his first race weekend of the year, but that’s exactly what reigning Moto2 champion Ai Ogura did, and boy oh boy did he look comfortable doing so.
In both races Ogura was the top Aprilia rider, and let’s be honest, no other RS-GP rider, including Marco Bezzecchi looked like beating the Japanese star.
Only seven seconds off the win in the Grand Prix, Ogura had a similar margin back to Bezzecchi in sixth, who finished one place behind the Trackhouse rider.
Ogura was also the only rider to pose a serious threat to Ducati as he challenged Franco Morbidelli for fourth in the main race, as well as keeping Francesco Bagnaia on his toes in Saturday’s sprint, finishing fourth just a few tenths down on the two-time world champion.
KTM’s up and down last few months lead to inconsistency
Acosta was the best KTM rider in the sprint and showed good speed, however, a crash early on in Sunday’s Grand Prix meant he had no chance of scoring points.
Beyond Acosta, KTM’s line-up was neither impressive nor disappointing outside of Maverick Vinales, it was just very, meh!
Brad Binder managed to pip Enea Bastianini to eighth place in the Grand Prix, and while the main race was somewhat of a breakthrough for the Italian, he was victorious with Ducati in the sprint at Buriram just a few months ago, which demonstrates the difference in performance that still exists between the two companies.
Bastianini does have a solid Grand Prix result to build off, but Vinales on the other hand, well, he will want to forget the season-opener in a hurry. Vinales was only 16th in the Grand Prix as he was void of pace for much of the weekend.
Of course, KTM’s recent financial troubles can’t have helped the MotoGP project and everyone working within it due to the stress caused, but round one was not exactly a promising start to 2025.
Marc Marquez is the favourite for the title
Yes, we’ve only had one race of 2025, but Marc Marquez looked untouchable all weekend, and even when faced with tyre pressure issues, the eight-time world champion was calm, collected and confident as he did what he wanted with his bike and the competition.
The leader of every lap in the sprint, Marquez completed the hat-trick of pole position, sprint win and Grand Prix victory without the need to be on the limit at any stage.
And as we’ve seen from his Honda days, a Marquez that wins without needing to drag his bike through every corner, usually means an unbeatable Marquez over a full season. While Marquez was the pick of the bunch, Ducati was also untouchable as it finished both races with four riders in the top five.
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After graduating with a sports journalism degree, Robert joined Crash.net to lead the WorldSBK coverage in 2021, while also providing MotoGP coverage. Fulfilling that role for over three years, Robert was able to put his knowledge about all things racing to the test.
