Top five… motorcycle racers to watch in 2020
The 2020 motorcycle racing season is just around the corner and we can be pretty sure we know the men to beat.
In MotoGP, Marc Marquez has won six titles in his seven years in the class, while Jonathan Rea has bossed world superbikes for the past five seasons. They will be the men to beat in the world championships, with Josh Brookes the pre-season favourite in British superbikes and Dean Harrison and Peter Hickman expected to battle it out for top honours at the Isle of Man TT.
But who are the riders who could topple them? We’re not talking about ones to watch for the future, but right here in 2020. These are the five men our experts will be looking out for this year. Let us know what you think on social media…
Fabio Quartararo (MotoGP)
A keen MotoGP fan would be foolish not to keep an eye on young gun Fabio Quartararo in 2020 as he looks to build on a hugely impressive rookie campaign last year.
The 20-year-old PETRONAS Sepang Racing Team Yamaha rider was the only rider to consistently challenge Marquez in 2019 and heading into year two with the team and increased Yamaha support, the big questions are can he win his first race and subsequently take the challenge to the Repsol Honda rider who has won the title for the last four seasons.
Quartararo’s rookie season was impressive. The only rookie to have outscored him in the modern era is the man he’s trying to beat – Marc Marquez. Quartararo’s debut year yielded more points and podiums than Jorge Lorenzo did in his rookie season in 2008 – albeit Lorenzo spent time out injured. The most recent comparison is with Johann Zarco, who scored 174 points and took three podiums in his debut year with Tech 3 Yamaha compared to Quartararo’s 192 points and seven podiums. Not bad for a rider who largely failed to impress at Moto2 level.
The question is can Quartararo carry that momentum into the second year? He’s already been confirmed as replacing Valentino Rossi at the official Yamaha team in 2021 and with a full-factory bike under him this year, there will be plenty of eyes on him.
Scott Redding (World Superbikes)
Many eyes will be on Scott Redding as the 2020 World Superbike season gets underway in February. Given how long he’s been around, it’s easy to think Redding is older than he is but, having just turned 26, he’s one of the younger riders on the World Superbike grid as he makes his debut in the production-based series next year.
After losing his seat in MotoGP, Redding switched to British Superbikes in a hope to save his career and kickstarted it in style. Despite having limited knowledge of the unique British tracks, Redding stormed to victory in his debut season in the notoriously difficult series, earning an instant promotion to the world stage with Ducati for the year ahead.
Redding has made no secret about wanting to get back to MotoGP, and the best way to do that is to mimic his BSB performance on the world stage. That won’t be easy, as the competition is tough.
Jonathan Rea is going for his sixth consecutive World Superbike crown. Ducati had already wheeled in a MotoGP star on the impressive new Panigale V4R in 2019, and eventually Rea got the better of him. However, the V4R’s potential was obvious. Bautista won the first 11 races and arguably, it was the Spaniard who lost the title by making mistakes in the second half of the season.
In BSB, Redding showed not only his skill but also his intelligence. He might not come across as super intelligent on social media, but Redding is smarter than he looks. He knew when to settle for points in BSB rather than trying to win everywhere – something Bautista quite possibly fell afoul of last year. Could Redding’s intelligence see him succeed where Bautista struggled?
Jorge Martin (Moto2)
The Moto2 grid is full of talent, so picking one rider to watch is quite tough but Jorge Martin has to be one to watch in 2020. The rookie struggled in 2019, but there were a number of factors against him. KTM took a huge wrong turn with their 2019 chassis – which ultimately resulted in the chatter which led to Martin, the 2018 Moto3 world champion, breaking his leg in testing at the start of the year.
With both of these things against him, the Spaniard had it tough in his debut Moto2 season but he fought through to shine in the end. The bike got better, but with KTM pulling out of Moto2 at the end of the year it was never going to take huge steps, but despite this, Martin finished on the podium in Japan and Australia, showing he can make it in the intermediate class.
This year, with KTM having withdrawn, the Red Bull Ajo squad will turn to the proven KALEX chassis, meaning there’s no longer a disadvantage for Martin, who will no doubt have his sights set on moving up to MotoGP with the Austrian marque in the not too distant future.
Christian Iddon (British Superbikes)
Christian Iddon is one to watch in BSB as he’s handed been the lifeline of joining the factory PBM Ducati team after four difficult seasons with the Tyco BMW squad.
When joining BSB, Iddon looked to have potential but that never seemed to amount to much as he joined the factory-backed BMW squad. Iddon never won a race and missed out on the showdown – a lot of the time through injury – in his four years with the Northern Irish squad, despite being a proven podium contender.
He’s now been handed what is undoubtedly the best bike on the grid – the Panigale V4R finished 1-2-3 in the championship last year, so if Iddon has what it takes to run at the front in BSB, he now has the tools to do it.
Glenn Irwin (Isle of Man TT Races)
One rider to watch on the roads this year will be BSB star Glenn Irwin as he takes on the gruelling Isle of Man TT for the first time with his new Honda team.
Irwin is already proven on the roads, he’s taken victory at the North West 200 and been on the podium at the Ulster Grand Prix, but the Isle of Man TT is a different ball game altogether.
Winning or even standing on the podium is hugely unlikely for Irwin, and so it should be as he learns the notoriously unforgiving mountain course, but it’ll be interesting to see where he ranks in terms of the all-time newcomer list. Good short circuit riders tend to do well on the roads, Josh Brookes was the fastest newcomer when he tried it and then of course, Peter Hickman shattered that record when he first turned to the roads in 2014 and is now one of the favourites to win at the TT, so it’ll be worth keeping an eye on how Irwin fares in his first year.
