Thailand hosts the first of the 22 Grands Prix scheduled for this year, with Portugal joining the calendar for the sixth consecutive year, again in November, from the 7th to the 9th, the penultimate race of the season.

This year will be marked by differences, as from this year the Italian team will be supplied by Yamaha instead of using the Ducati bikes that have dominated the MotoGP World Championship.

Ducati kept the former champion, Italian Francesco Bagnaia, but added Spaniard Marc Márquez to the official team, giving up Jorge Martin.

The Madrid rider felt wronged and left the Italian manufacturer to sign for Aprilia. However, a crash during a practice session at the weekend caused him to suffer ‘complex fractures to his left hand’ and his left ankle, which, according to the team's statement, will rule him out of this opening round of the championship. The Spanish driver was operated on yesterday in Barcelona for the second time this season, after having already had surgery on his right hand, which he fractured on the first day of winter testing in Malaysia.

The pre-season was one of the most hectic in recent years, with multiple team changes. Marc Márquez's move to the official Ducati team was one of the most significant, with the Catalan rider looking to equal Valentino Rossi, who has won seven MotoGP World Championships (2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2008 and 2009).

After the ordeal of injuries suffered since 2020, Márquez is confident that he can once again fight for the title, which has eluded him since 2019, after winning the competition consecutively since 2013.

Spanish rider Alex Márquez (Ducati), from the private Gresini team, has also been in good form with the 2024 Ducati, which looks more stable than this year's version.

For now, Spaniard Pedro Acosta, on a KTM, remains a potential contender for the podium. For the satellite team, Tech3, the manufacturer has signed Spanish rider Maverick Viñales and Italian rider Enea Bastianini.

The Thai GP kicks off on Friday 28 February with the two free practice sessions for the three categories in contention, Moto3, Moto2 and MotoGP.