MotoGP returns to Silverstone for the eagerly anticipated British Grand Prix

Embed from Getty Images

MotoGP returns to the Northamptonshire venue for the first time since 2019, the race that produced a hair-raising photo-finish finale between Spanish duo Marc Marquez and Alex Rins.

Silverstone hosts the first British Grand Prix since 2019 as the COVID-19 pandemic forced the 2020 event to be cancelled.

The most successful rider on British soil in MotoGP is Valentino Rossi, who’ll be riding his final British Grand Prix this weekend before he hangs up his leathers at the end of the season. The Italian has won this event six times in the premier class (500cc and MotoGP), the first coming in the year 2000 at Donington Park.

Honda are the most successful manufacturer at the British Grand Prix with 16 victories in the premier class, with the latest coming from Marquez in 2014.

Silverstone anticipates a capacity crowd for an electrifying Round 12 of the 2021 MotoGP Championship as the series returns to the British Isles, where Fabio Quartararo will hope to clinch his fifth race win of the season and extend his comfortable gap at the top of the Riders’ Standings.

Fresh from his last lap heroics in Austria, Francesco Bagnaia will hope to close in on the dominant Quartararo. Pramac’s Johann Zarco fell to fourth in the standings after crashing out at the Red Bull Ring and the Frenchman will hope to make amends from a poor showing last time out.

Since the action-packed Austrian round, winner of the 2016 British Grand Prix, Maverick Vinales, had his Factory Yamaha contract terminated after investigation into an unexplained irregular operation of the motorcycle at the end of the Styrian Grand Prix. The Spaniard has been replaced by Brit Cal Crutchlow, and Moto2’s Jake Dixon steps up into the Sepang Racing Team for his home Grand Prix partnering Valentino Rossi.

KTM’s Brad Binder will be on cloud nine after a dramatic victory in Austria, the South African rider will hope for similar fate with the conditions at Silverstone.

Binder may get his wish, and although there isn’t any rain forecast for Sunday, the unpredictable British Bank Holiday weather may throw a spanner into the works ahead of the race.

In the last 10 visits to Silverstone, three races have been under wet conditions. In 2011, Casey Stoner overcame the downpour 15 seconds ahead of his Repsol Honda teammate Andrea Dovizioso, and Tech3’s Colin Edwards shortly behind the Italian.

Four years later, Valentino Rossi danced his way to a heroic victory in the battle for the 2015 title, ahead of his compatriots Danilo Petrucci and Dovizioso.

Unfortunately, in 2018 the race fell foul of the weather. Despite the best efforts of the marshals to clear the vast amount of standing water on the circuit, the race organisers decided to call off the event.

Silverstone also has a history of incredible last lap finale’s. In 2013, arch-rivals Marc Marquez and Jorge Lorenzo went toe-to-toe all race long before entering the final complex and Brooklands. Marquez, then a rookie, made an audacious dive on his compatriot with three corners to go, but Lorenzo snatched the lead back a corner later at Luffield to take his fourth win of the season, ahead of Marquez and Dani Pedrosa in third.

Six years later, it was Marquez involved in the last lap antics again, as he and Rins battled hard but it was the Suzuki man who took glory by 0.013 seconds in an epic photo-finish result.

Although Marquez’s last lap luck hasn’t been great, this will give him some fire in his belly to take his second premier class British Grand Prix victory.

Follow us on Twitter @ProstInt