MotoGP Mid-Season Rankings

The German Grand Prix marked the midway point of the 2025 season, so it seems fairly appropriate to start discussing how the riders have been performing this year. In the next episode of the Ahead At The Apex Podcast, we will be giving our numerical rankings, after the Czech Grand Prix; but let's take a look at the first half of the season, rider-by-rider.

Note: Our mid-season rankings are based on the first 11 races. but are influenced by the Czech Grand Prix.

Aprilia

Aprilia have had a strange year. On paper they have one of the strongest lineups on the grid (after Ducati of course), with the reigning world champion and a fast Bezzecchi at the factory team, and two fast youngsters on the satellite bike. It was an almost-clean sweep of new riders this year for the Italian manufacturer, and it should have been a great year for them. But it has been somewhat overshadowed, so far, by the off-track drama.

Their start signing, Jorge Martin - the reigning world champion, backfired when he suffered an injury in pre-season testing, a further injury prior to the start of the season, and a third injury on his return in Qatar. Since then, the Spaniard has spent a lot of time in the public eye trying to get out of his contract. Martin returns to Aprilia this weekend, and was quick in free practice, so there's hope for Aprilia that they can really start putting a fight together.

The Fallen Champion: What Is Going On With Jorge Martin?

MotoGP’s biggest drama right now is reigning champion Jorge Martin. His injury-riddled season has left the sport with a contract-dispute that is quickly dividing public opinion.

Ahead At The Apexaatapex

They currently sit second in the constructors' standings and the factory team is in the mix with KTM and Yamaha factory teams.

Jorge Martin - Marco Bezzecchi

It's really hard to sum up Martin's season so far. The reigning champion has only competed in two race sessions, a sprint and half a race in Qatar, before he was run over by Digia and suffered some horrendous injuries. In the sprint, Martin finished in sixteenth and 15.775 seconds behind the leader. He beat Fernandez on the Trackhouse Aprilia, but Ogura and Bezzecchi were 5 seconds ahead and in the points. His season has largely been dominated by his injuries and the off-track drama, and for that I have to give him quite a low rating. Martin's return at the Czech Grand Prix, however, was nothing short of heroic. The reigning champion scored points in the race, and finishing within 6 seconds of Marquez in the sprint.

Martin's replacement, Lorenzo Savadori, has done a decent job, scraping 8 points in the first half of the season. The German Grand Prix was a particularly low point of his season, with two falls during the race and an eventual retirement. His best Grand Prix was in France, where through careful riding and strategy, he was able to secure a ninth place. Savadori probably will remain as a super sub for Aprilia, but we might not see him again for a long time with Martin's return at the Czech Grand Prix.

Now onto Bezzecchi. Bez quietly had a reasonable start to the season, securing a handful of points in the first six races. But Silverstone was his time to shine. As the Marquez brothers struggled and Quartararo had a mechanical failure, Bez rose to the top. Since then, he's been pretty much best of the rest after the Ducatis, even taking the fight to Marc in Assen and at the Czech Grand Prix. As many other did, Bez retired from the German Grand Prix as tyre wear began to set in, but there's no doubt that he's done an excellent job so far this season and sits fourth in the standings with 156 points.

Raúl Fernández - Ai Ogura

On paper, Aprilia's rookies at Trackhouse are fairly evenly matched, Fernandez sits thirteenth and Ogura sits sixteenth in the standings, with 66 and 51 points respectively. However, since neither of them has really had a standout season, it's hard to rank them fairly. Ogura definitely had the more impressive start to the season, particularly as he is a true rookie this year. In the first few races, he was the top finishing Aprilia rider outright, that's impressive. His points have suffered a little due to the team running a non-homologated ECU in Argentina, which would see him much further up the order. Of late, though, it seems that his form has struggled, with a handful of DNFs and injuries in recent history.

Fernandez has had a quiet but consistent season, having only finished out of the points on 2 occasions, 1 of which was a retirement at the first round. I suspect the experience Fernandez has will come to serve him well in the second half of the season, and if he can maintain consistency over Ogura, it will benefit him greatly. With contracts now settled at the factory team, it seems unlikely he will be promoted anytime soon.

Ducati

Ducati have maintained their advantage from the last few years in 2025, with regulation changes not scheduled until 2027. It seems Ducati will continue to dominate for the rest of the season, and probably keep a good edge into 2026. Aprilia and Yamaha, though, are right there to pounce whenever they stumble. The Italian team have the biggest stable of riders too, which obviously helps with bike data and development. Their biggest asset this year though? Marc Marquez, the multiple world champion has a stranglehold on the championship this year.

They've got a good mix of consistency, speed, and aggression in their stable too, which makes for some pretty good racing. Their factory team are leading the standings, followed by Gresini and then VR46. Ducati sit with 393 points ahead of Aprilia's 161, and Lenovo Ducati have 594 points to Gresini's 358 and VR46's 281 points. Their biggest problem right now, though, is their most recent champion - Pecco Bagnaia. The double-world champion seems to have lost his mojo lately, something we have discussed on numerous occasions. The team are fortunate that, for the most part, they've locked out the podium at most of the races this year, but things might not be all wonderful at the factory team for much longer.

Francesco Bagnaia - Marc Márquez

Pecco has had a year he will likely want to forget, despite taking victory in America and six further podiums, only finishing outside of the points in France and Silverstone - perhaps his lowest moments. He'll also probably be beating himself up about finishing off the podium at his beloved Mugello, but he is still third in the standings and isn't far off Alex in second. Yes, he's a double-world champion who lost last year to a satellite team, and is losing this year to his new teammate who has come into his team and shown him who's boss, but it's not the end of the world for Bagnaia. The GP25 doesn't suit his needs yet, and he's up against the GP24 (perhaps the best bike ever built) and Marc Marquez, perhaps the best rider ever built.

Mugello Magic: MotoGP at its Finest

Marc Marquez (#93) takes his 93rd Grand Prix win in all classes on Ducati’s home turf amidst boos of the Italian fans as Bagnaia tumbles down the order.

Ahead At The Apexaatapex

Speak of Marc, there's nothing more I can say about him, other than - what a season. Marc returned from injury last year on a Gresini Ducati and took a handful of victories, enough to earn himself a ride on the factory Ducati. The grid's greatest fears have been made a reality, and it really does seem like the only person who can defeat Marc is himself. A silly fall in America and in Jerez are his only real mistakes. Yes, he also fell at Silverstone, but he recovered to third place. Other than that, he's finished second in France and won every other Grand Prix. He's dropped one sprint victory to his younger brother, and he's dominating the standings. He's also just become the first Ducati rider in history to win 5 races in a row, scoring a perfect 37 points at the last five events. Perfection, almost.

Fabio Di Giannantonio - Franco Morbidelli

Fabio Di Giannantonio currently sits just 55 points behind Bagnaia on the same Ducati GP25 after a first half of the season full of points scoring finishes. He has suffered only one DNF this year, at the German Grand Prix along with many others, and one result outside the points, in Qatar. In all fairness, he did run over Jorge Martin during that race, and was having a pretty terrible weekend. Fabio's problem has been his aggression, it's got him into trouble on more than one occasion, and even up against his teammate, like at the Dutch TT. He's putting in a strong performance when you think he's also on this "hard-to-ride" GP25 bike.

His teammate, on the other hand, should be second in the standings. Morbidelli has the GP24, just like Alex, but instead sits behind his teammate in fifth in the standings. Again, Franco's aggression is his own worst enemy this season, with his overtaking yielding many a long-lap penalty. He's had a good run of points, a retirement, and a DNS in Germany after two huge crashes, but it's not been the impressive season we have seen from the other GP24 rider(s).

Fermín Aldeguer - Álex Márquez

Fermin Aldeguer is having a very respectable rookie season on the Gresini Ducati this year, scoring a handful of points at 8 of the 12 races this year. He had a standout performance at the chaotic French Grand Prix too, making good progress in the rain and even taking on the likes of Pedro Acosta in the dying stages of the Grand Prix. He may have been overshadowed by the other Ducati riders this year, consistently being sixth of six, but we must remember that this is his first year on a MotoGP bike. Tenth in the standings and 97 points at the summer break is no shame.

Alex Marquez, pre Dutch TT, was going to get a full 10/10 from us, just like his older brother. But the inconsistencies are starting to creep in. A double fall at the French Grand Prix, a poor race in Qatar, a fall at Silverstone, a huge crash at Assen, and now he takes a desperate lunge at Joan Mir at the Czech Grand Prix to retire again. He may be second in the standings, he may have been the only person to take a sprint win of Marc, and he may have taken his first Grand Prix win this year, but he's slowly falling out of form. Any more, and he's going to be in serious threat of dropping place to Bagnaia and Bezzecchi.

Honda

Sadly, long gone are the days where Honda were a superpower in MotoGP. The mighty Japanese Manufacturer are fourth in the constructors' standings at the summer break this year, with 147 points. They lead only Yamaha, who believe me are going to get some criticism later in this post. But Honda's only saving grace has been consistency; they may not be fast, but they have been consistently scoring points, Luca Marini being their consistent rider. Their other saving grace is Johann Zarco, let's start with him.

Johann Zarco - Somkiat Chantra

When chaos comes, in 2025, you can pretty much count on Johann Zarco to deliver. At the French Grand Prix, while everyone else scrambled to figure out which tyres they should be on, the experienced head of Zarco chose correctly. He lead most of the Grand Prix and even pulled away from Marc Marquez to take his second victory, and a record breaking French GP win. He also took an impressive second place at the British Grand Prix. However, since then it's been a bit of a rough time, with a string of DNFs and poor strategy choices from the LCR Team.

Zarco’s Zenith: A Historic and Chaotic French Grand Prix

Johann Zarco’s record-breaking triumph was a moment for the ages, a true testament to perseverance and seizing an unexpected opportunity amidst pure chaos.

Ahead At The Apexaatapex

If anyone is having a rough ride this year, it's Somkiat Chantra. Firstly, he's a rookie, and secondly he's on a Honda. The fact he's scored any points at all this year is a miracle. Unfortunately, he suffered a lateral collateral ligament injury in his right knee in July and has missed the German GP and Czech GP. It's hard to rate Chantra, because Zarco has done a pretty good job at times on the Honda, and other riders are scoring points. A low rating seems appropriate based on the singular points score, but he has to be boosted a little for at least finishing races and getting well-needed track time.

Luca Marini - Joan Mir

Luca Marini has been Mr. Consistent for Honda this year, scoring points at every race up to Aragon. Unfortunately for Marini, he suffered a huge crash on the second day of testing for the Suzuka 8 Hours, dislocating his left hip, suffering ligament injuries in his left knee, fracturing of the sternum and left collarbone, and a right-sided pneumothorax - the same as Martin. Somehow, Marini made his return at the German Grand Prix, and scored points! He did the same at the Czech Grand Prix too, proving that when he is on that bike, he will score points. That's mega!

On the other side of the HRC team, Joan Mir has had a terrible season. He's finished four races, scoring points in all of them, but for some reason or another, he's retired from every other race. Even this weekend, at the Czech Grand Prix, Mir was running well until Alex Marquez took a risky move and took him out of the race. Tough to determine a rating for Mir, who's got a pretty good split of mistakes and bad luck so far this year, but when your teammate recovered serious injuries and kept it in the points, you've got to take a look at why you're in those situations.

Aleix Espargaró - Takaaki Nakagami

Honda have used these two as their replacement and wildcard riders at various events this season, so it seems only fair that we give them a rating like everyone else. Aleix decided last year that he was going to retire from the sport, seeing out a long stint with Aprilia (poor timing to be honest). He's appeared at the Spanish, British, and the Netherlands Grand Prix this year racing for HRC Honda - serving as a wildcard rider and a replacement for Luca Marini. His results have been terrible, and he's not been quiet about it either. He's criticised Honda's approach to testing and their qualifying pace, stating that it seems the Honda's downfall is switching new tyres on. That's fair, his race pace has been fine, but his qualifying has meant he can't make any progress. Hard to rate, but it has to be a low score based purely on performance.

Nakagami is another rider who decided last year was time to retire and leave his long-standing team Honda. So far this year, he's made two appearances, as a wildcard rider at the French Grand Prix, and as a replacement for Chantra at the Czech Grand Prix. His performance at the latter was nothing to write home about, but a sixth place at the French Grand Prix in tricky conditions is very impressive. It's the reason he is still ahead of some of the full-time riders in the championship, with 10 points in twentieth position.

KTM

KTM have had a mixed season so far. At the start of the year, the manufacturer was in serious financial trouble; despite claiming that this would not affect the racing team, it was clear that it was affecting the racing team. They had serious chattering issues, which they tried to solve with a "salad box" rear end, that for some reason was passed around each rider to see how it was performing. Since the buyout from Baja though, the Austrian bikes have been right there in the hunt, both the factory and satellite bikes proving to be absolute rocket ships in a straight line, and now with the cornering prowess to match. They're taking the fight to Aprilia in the standings, currently third with 175 points. There's still some doubt over the fate of KTM and their riders for 2026, but for now, they're right there fighting at the front.

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It’s the summer time, which for motorsport means it’s time to find out who will be racing where in the coming season. MotoGP, is no different. It’s called silly season because rumours are flying around, the media and teams are speculating about who will be where and which teams will

Ahead At The Apexaatapex

Brand Binder - Pedro Acosta

Brad Binder has had a pretty underrated season this year, quietly scoring points at all but 3 races this year. At the Americas GP, Binder suffered an electrical issue, he was one of many to fall at the French GP, and dropped it pushing too hard at Aragon. But, other than that, it's been a decent season. He's not been as impressive as Acosta or Vinales this year though, and for that, we're going to have to drop his rating a little, but not bad from Brad that's for sure.

It was a terrible start to the season for Pedro Acosta, who finished nineteenth at the opening race. Since then though, Acosta has been the leading rider for KTM. As with Binder, he's had three DNFs, but his finishes have been significantly higher. At the Czech Grand Prix, he took a double podium finish and gave Marquez a hard time in the sprint. For that, we have to give him a slightly higher ranking than his teammate.

Maverick Viñales - Enea Bastianini

The KTM Tech3 team have two riders who each have their own specialties: Maverick can be the best rider in the world on a random weekend in the year, and Bastianini is a master of late-race pace. Unfortunately for the pair of them, the early KTM woes mean they're quite far down the order. Vinales had a superb Qatar Grand Prix, blowing away any preconceptions anyone had about KTM going into 2025, but was given a post-race penalty for tyre pressure infringement that dropped him way down the order. He had a good run in Spain, France, and the Netherlands, but other than that he's been out of the top ten. A huge crash at the German GP means Mav will sit out the next few races too.

Bastianini has had impressive pace throughout the season, but unfortunately for the beast, he's started down the order at most races this season. His major asset, therefore, hasn't been able to carry him to major points. To really add salt to the wounds, just as KTM's pace started to turn around, Enea got food poisoning and was ruled out of the German Grand Prix. He returned strong for the Czech Grand Prix, securing a third place in the sprint, but taking a nasty fall in the Grand Prix while he was on for a great result. It's hard to tell if the pair of them have out-performed their machinery or not this year, their grade reflects this.

Pol Espargaró

Pol Espargaro has been KTM's only substitute rider this year, serving in place of the injured Vinales at the Czech Grand Prix. What a weekend it was for the former rider, who retired two years ago. A double points finish in the sprint and the Grand Prix, showing good pace and consistency throughout. It's obviously hard to rate him over a season, but for a one-shot opportunity, he did not let KTM down.

Yamaha

Yamaha have by far been the worst manufacturer of the season, currently sitting last with 133 points. The factory team is sixth with 144, and their satellite team Pramac are eleventh and last with 61 points. It's certainly not been an easy 2025 for the former superpowers of MotoGP (Yamaha and Honda). However, it seems that the riders' spirits have not been damped. Yamaha are the only manufacturer capable of trying every combination of hardware currently in development. As far as we are aware, there are 3 or 4 different variations of the Yamaha M1 out there, and they're just building for 2026 and beyond. How can they do this? Well, Yamaha have a huge amount of development time, just like Honda and KTM; but unlike Honda and KTM, they can afford to try things and can be adventurous with their development. When it clicks, you can expect the likes of Quartararo and Miller to be fighting towards the front, that's for sure.

Fabio Quartararo - Álex Rins

Yamaha's golden boy, Fabio Quartararo has been one of the hardest riders to rate this year. The first four rounds were difficult, finishing in the points, but low down and lacking pace. In Spain, he took pole position and finished the race in second, securing Yamaha's best result since the Austrian Grand Prix in 2020. He went on a three-race streak of pole positions, but suffered a crash at the French Grand Prix and a mechanical failure at the British Grand Prix. His worst streak of races in his career continued with an unforced fall in Aragon. Since then he's scored a lot of points, but the theme has been that of dropping down the order from a good qualifying.

Alex Rins, on the other hand, has had a very consistent season. Consistent, but not good. Aside from a seventeenth at the Thai Grand Prix, he has finished between eleventh place and fifteenth place consistently. That was, until the Czech Grand Prix, where he returned to eighteenth place. With just 42 points this year, Rins sits in eighteenth in the standings, just ahead of Mir and behind Bastianini. It's difficult to watch, especially as he's behind Jack Miller on the satellite bike.

Jack Miller - Miguel Oliveira

Jack Miller is one of those riders who has done it all. He's been on a Honda, a Ducati, a KTM, and now he's on the Yamaha for the first time in his MotoGP career. It's a bit of a poor time to have to switch from the KTM to the Yamaha, and the results have reflected that. Jack's been around the points at every race he's finished this year, but his problem has been finishing races. Jack has been quick on the Yamaha, but as is the case with Quartararo, pushing hard on the Yamaha often results in heavy tyre wear and potentially a crash. Miller is showing Quartararo-levels on pace on the Pramac machine, and for that we should give him praise.

Saved the worst until (nearly) last, I'm afraid. There's no easy way to say this, but Miguel Oliveira has been one of, if not the, worst rider of 2025. Not all of it is his fault, as he did suffer an injury that kept him out of three rounds of the season, but a string of retirements, a couple of points, and some poor race results, means he is in the section of the championship standings occupied by reserve/wildcard riders. He only has 6 points to his name and is in twenty fifth position. I feel, too, that we've hardly seen him on screen, hardly heard anything about him all year, and he's had a relatively quiet season. With low media attention and a low points score, that can only mean he's had a pretty rubbish time of it.

Augusto Fernández

After not being retained by KTM last year, Fernandez has found himself in a test rider role at Yamaha. So far this year he has replaced Oliveira during his injuries, and he's served as a wildcard for two events with the factory team. He's scored a handful of points at the Americas Grand Prix and Aragon, but his other races in Qatar, Spain, and at the Czech Grand Prix were mildly disappointing. He currently sits twenty fourth in the standings with the same amount of points as Oliveira. He's not set the world alite, but it's a decent substitute performance.

Our Rankings