Motorcycle. Aragon Grand Prix: Quartararo and Zarco expected at the turning point, like leader Marquez

The performances of Fabio Quartararo (Yamaha) and Johann Zarco (Honda-LCR) will be closely scrutinized this weekend at Aragon. The two French riders have three interesting Grands Prix under their belts and will still have a card to play.

Quartararo not very successful in Aragon

The two French players, who were not expected to have such a party, have indeed had a very successful last few weeks, as the Nice player took three consecutive pole positions , while the Avignon player won in France , a first since 1954, before finishing second in England.

But the Spanish circuit has never been good to them and they will therefore try to ward off bad luck. Quartararo, who has two retirements in the last two editions (2022, 2024 ), is unable to explain this lack of performance on the Aragonese track, which does not prevent him from aiming for another good performance.

"Just because you don't like a track doesn't mean you're not good at it. My last victory was at the Sachsenring in Germany (in July 2022, editor's note), even though it's my least favorite circuit on the calendar," the world champion said at a press conference on Thursday. "It will be important for us. If we're fast on this track and can be consistent, I think there won't be any questions for the next tracks, I think we'll be able to fight for good positions."

Zarco has gained confidence

Zarco, for his part, has never done better than eighth in six GPs at Motorland, difficulties which he believes come from the morphology of the track because "it turns a lot to the left and I realized that I am more comfortable on the right turns," he confided.

But his two consecutive podiums have boosted the morale of the double Moto2 world champion (2015, 2016) and his team, who saw that their Honda bike could perform even in normal conditions at Silverstone , after the victory in the rain at Le Mans.

However, the two Frenchmen will have their work cut out for them against the master of the place, local hero Marc Marquez . The Catalan has won six times in ten GPs in Aragon in the premier class and his reaction is expected after letting victory slip away in the last three Grands Prix.

The Marquez brothers, best enemies

Last September, it was on this track that the six-time MotoGP world champion ended his interminable drought by winning on his Ducati-Gresini after a 1,042-day wait. "I like this Motorland Aragon circuit; it suits my style very well with a lot of left-hand turns. I've won a lot and I've always been very competitive, so we'll try to keep scoring important points," said Marc Marquez.

Once again, his main rival is unlikely to be his Italian teammate Francesco Bagnaia, who has been struggling this season, but rather his younger brother Alex Marquez (Ducati-Gresini). "I know what I have and I believe it's the best bike this year. I know what I'll have available until the end [of the season] and I believe we have the best package," said Alex Marquez, putting pressure on the factory Ducati team and his brother, who leads him by 24 points in the championship.

As is often the case in the desert region of Alcaniz, the heat is expected to be a major factor this weekend, with temperatures of over 30 degrees Celsius in the shade expected, which should allow the drivers who are most comfortable managing their tyres to do well.