MOTOGP HEADS TO AUSTIN AS MÁRQUEZ TARGETS SUCCESS AT FAVORITE TRACK
After the race in Brazil, MotoGP heads straight to Austin for the Grand Prix of the Americas, a track that has historically suited Marc Márquez.
The Brazilian round confirmed the strong form of Aprilia, which had already shown great pace in Thailand. However, there is no time to relax, as the third round of the 2026 season is already here. The race in Austin could give a clearer picture of the current level of competition, especially as Michelin is expected to return to the standard rear tire after using a reinforced version in the first two races due to high temperatures.
Austin is also considered “home ground” for Márquez. Since his debut in MotoGP in 2013, when he took his first win in the premier class, he has been almost unbeatable at the Circuit of the Americas until 2021, with only one exception in 2019. Although his recent results there have not been as strong, last year he was clearly leading the race before crashing.
If Ducati fails to win again at this track, it could raise serious concerns for the Italian team. On the other hand, after two consecutive wins, Aprilia and Marco Bezzecchi know that a strong result in Texas would confirm them as real title contenders.
Aprilia also has good memories at this circuit. In 2024, Maverick Viñales won both the Sprint race and the main race, showing that the RS-GP performs well on this track. Another rider to watch is Jorge Martín, who now seems to have recovered from the physical problems that affected him over the past year and is once again fighting at the front.
There are also questions about Pedro Acosta. After a strong start to the season in Thailand, where he even led the championship for the first time, he struggled in Brazil along with KTM. Honda will also be looking to improve after a difficult start to the season, especially on a track that has been favorable to them in the past. Meanwhile, Yamaha remains an unknown, as it continues to develop its new V4 engine project.
After the difficult conditions in Brazil, where rain, track damage, and delays affected the race, teams are hoping for a smoother weekend in Austin.
The Circuit of the Americas is one of the longest tracks on the MotoGP calendar, measuring 5.5 kilometers. Built in 2012, it first hosted MotoGP in 2013. One of its key features is the steep uphill run into the first corner, along with a mix of fast and technical sections inspired by other famous circuits.
The track runs in an anti-clockwise direction and has more left-hand corners than right-hand ones, which is one of the reasons why it suits Márquez so well. He won there every year from 2013 to 2018, although he has not finished the race in the last two seasons.
For this weekend, the MotoGP race will be 19 laps long, with a 10-lap Sprint race on Saturday. The circuit features 20 corners, 11 to the left and 9 to the right, and a longest straight of 1.2 kilometers.
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