The 11th round of the 2024 MotoGP World Championship will take place this weekend, August 16-18, at the Red Bull Ring, located a few kilometres from the city of Zeltweg, in Austria.
The circuit was introduced to the calendar in 2016, and Ducati has triumphed in eight of the 10 editions of the Austrian GP held so far.
The Borgo Panigale-based costructor has been competitive since the first Grand Prix held in Spielberg, remaining undefeated until 2020.
The last two editions have seen Italian reigning world champion Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team) take the top step of the podium.
For the rider from Chivasso, last year’s weekend in Austria was one of the best: in addition to securing pole position and setting a new circuit record, he also achieved victory in Saturday’s Sprint and Sunday’s GP.
Second in the championship, just three points behind Spaniard Jorge Martín (Prima Pramac Racing Ducati), Bagnaia arrives in Austria motivated to fight for victory again and try to regain the top of the overall standings.
Bagnaia’s team-mate Enea Bastianini also arrives in Austria to be among the protagonists of the weekend.
After taking his first sprint win and first victory of the season at the British GP two weeks ago, the rider from Rimini aims to be just as competitive on the track where he earned his first MotoGP pole position in 2022.
“I am happy to be back racing in Austria,” said Bagnaia.
“The Spielberg circuit is among the tracks I like the most, and in the past, we have always been competitive.
“In general, it is a track where Ducatis have always been very fast; therefore, I expect many riders capable of fighting for the top positions. Our approach to the weekend will be the same as always.
“Now, the goal will be to get back on top of the overall standings and then try to open the gap in the Championship in the next races.”
Photo courtesy Ducati
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MotoGP World Championship standings after round 10:
Pos. | Entrant | Points | |||||
1 | Jorge Martin
Prima Pramac Racing (GP24) |
241.00 | |||||
2 | Francesco Bagnaia
Ducati Lenovo Team (GP24) |
238.00 | |||||
3 | Enea Bastianini
Ducati Lenovo Team (GP24) |
192.00 | |||||
4 | Marc Marquez
Gresini Racing MotoGP (GP23) |
179.00 | |||||
5 | Maverick Vinales
Aprilia Racing (RS-GP24) |
130.00 | |||||
6 | Pedro Acosta
Red Bull GASGAS Tech3 (RC16) |
122.00 | |||||
7 | Brad Binder
Red Bull KTM Factory (RC16) |
114.00 | |||||
8 | Fabio di Giannantonio
Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing (GP23) |
104.00 | |||||
9 | Aleix Espargaro
Aprilia Racing (RS-GP24) |
99.00 | |||||
10 | Alex Marquez
Gresini Racing MotoGP (GP23) |
92.00 | |||||
11 | Marco Bezzecchi
Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing (GP23) |
61.00 | |||||
12 | Franco Morbidelli
Prima Pramac Racing (GP24) |
61.00 | |||||
13 | Miguel Oliveira
Trackhouse Racing (RS-GP24) |
51.00 | |||||
14 | Fabio Quartararo
Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP (YZR-M1) |
49.00 | |||||
15 | Raul Fernandez
Trackhouse Racing (RS-GP23/24) |
46.00 | |||||
16 | Jack Miller
Red Bull KTM Factory (RC16) |
42.00 | |||||
17 | Augusto Fernandez
Red Bull GASGAS Tech3 (RC16) |
15.00 | |||||
18 | Johann Zarco
CASTROL Honda LCR (RC213V) |
14.00 | |||||
19 | Joan Mir
Repsol Honda Team (RC213V) |
13.00 | |||||
20 | Takaaki Nakagami
IDEMITSU Honda LCR (RC213V) |
11.00 | |||||
21 | Alex Rins
Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP (YZR-M1) |
8.00 | |||||
22 | Dani Pedrosa
Red Bull KTM Factory (RC16) |
7.00 | |||||
23 | Luca Marini
Repsol Honda Team (RC213V) |
1.00 | |||||
24 | Lorenzo Savadori
Aprilia Racing (RS-GP24) |
0.00 | |||||
25 | Stefan Bradl
HRC Team (RC213V) |
0.00 | |||||
26 | Pol Espargaro
Red Bull KTM Factory (RC16) |
0.00 | |||||
27 | Cal Crutchlow
Yamaha (YZR-M1) |
0.00 | |||||
28 | Remy Gardner
Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP (YZR-M1) |
0.00 | |||||