MotoGP Japanese Grand Prix – Preview, Session Times and Where to Watch?

MotoGP returns to Motegi for the Japanese Grand Prix, a long circuit with multiple straights and many overtaking opportunities. In this article, you can find a preview, the session times and where to watch the MotoGP Japanese GP this weekend.

The Motegi circuit has hosted the MotoGP championship since 1999, with many iconic races coming from the iconic venue. Most notably, the thrilling battle in 2010 between Valentino Rossi and Jorge Lorenzo comes to mind, with Rossi beating his teammate to glory. Marc Marquez and Andrea Dovizioso would also duel at the 2017 event in the wet conditions, with Dovizioso coming out on top, on that occasion.

Last season, spectators were treated to a chaotic race, as the rain poured down from above – There would be chaos in the pit lane as each rider came in for their pit stops onto the wet tyres and their wet setup motorcycles.

Jorge Martin would take victory in 2023’s Japanese Grand Prix, with Francesco Bagnaia finishing just behind the Spaniard. In 2024, the MotoGP championship is in an almost identical position to last season, with Bagnaia and Martin the favourites coming into this weekend, the pair both duelling for the World Championship, separated by just 21 points as the championship approaches the five remaining races.

The Motegi Circuit

A lap record of a 1:43.198 by Jorge Martin in 2023, the Motegi circuit is a long lap which has 14 corners. 8 corners to the right and 6 corners to the left, separated by multiple straights – this is a circuit which requires patience, precision and power from the motorcycle, in order to complete a fast lap.

The main overtaking zones will most likely be at Turn 1, the long right-hander almost acting as a double left-hander if taken from a certain racing line. This corner will likely see riders attempting to dive to the inside, running deep and being undercut by another rider. However, they will likely sacrifice momentarily losing track position in order to fire out of the corner, down the straight and into Turn 2.

Turns 2 and 3 will likely see the riders going side-by-side, each taking slightly different racing lines in the attempt to get the better exit for the run onto a smaller straight and into the tight right-hander of Turn 4. As the riders race through sector two, the circuit gets tighter and much more difficult to overtake. However, the Turn 9 and Turn 10 hairpins will likely see riders once again, racing different lines and attempting to best their opponent by running onto the back straights that separate both of these corners, and the corners ahead.

Turn 11 sees another difficult corner after the longest back straight runs into the tight right-hander, with the bikes main objective simply to be able to get stopped in time to make the corner. This section is then followed by a few quick-fire corners which become increasingly more difficult to overtake at, though not impossible before a short run to the start/finish line.

Bagnaia vs Martin – The Final Five

The MotoGP championship approaches the final five races in what has been an extraordinary season of close racing. Jorge Martin leads the standings by 21 points to Francesco Bagnaia, the Italian will be looking to close that gap as much as possible with only a handful of races remaining. The pair have both made many mistakes over the course of the season, therefore one of their focuses will be on simply not crashing.

Motegi Weather Forecast

Currently, the Friday running is expected to be in wet conditions, with early Saturday running also likely in the wet. However, despite some clouds over the circuit, both the Sprint Race and Grand Prix will seemingly remain dry. This may catch some riders out, if they are not quite able to adapt to the dry circuit having raced on a relatively wet track for the majority of the weekend.

Owen’s Predictions

As for myself, I am predicting an enthralling weekend with many unexpected results. My hypothesis is that, Francesco Bagnaia will likely have better pace throughout the weekend, with the Ducati Desmosedici GP24 performing better on corner exit than its’ predecessor, the GP23. I do think that Bagnaia will beat Jorge Martin, and will close the gap to Martin to around 10 points after both the Sprint and Grand Prix.

I think that Francesco Bagnaia will take glory in Japan, with Marc Marquez and Enea Bastianini likely in the mix and ready to duel with the Italian, as well as Jorge Martin for the podium places.

Session Times – UK time

Friday 4th October
FP1: 02:45 – 03:30
FP2: 07:00 – 08:00

Saturday 5th October
FP3: 02:10 – 02:40
Qualifying: 02:50 – 03:30
Sprint Race, 12 laps starting at 07:00

Sunday 6th October
Japanese Grand Prix Race Start – 06:00

Where to Watch the Japanese Grand Prix?

UK viewers can watch all the racing action on TNT Sports, which is also available on Discovery Plus.
U.S viewers will be able to watch on truTV via TNT Sports, as well as the action being streamed on Max.

Featured Image: Red Bull Content Pool