The third round of the MotoGP 2026 season is upon us, heading over to Austin, Texas. This is the second race of our first double header of the season.
Last year’s race saw Francesco Bagnaia win by two seconds after Marc Márquez crashed from the lead in the wet. The podium also featured Álex Márquez and Fabio Di Giannantonio. Moto2 saw a dominant win for Jake Dixion by four seconds from Tony Arbolino and Alonso López. And finally, Moto3 saw José Antonio Rueda continue his dominance, winning over Joel Kelso and Matteo Bertelle.
Ready for a rollercoaster ride?
After an intense first two rounds, the season is well and truly underway. Now heading to the most varied circuit with long straights, tight hairpins, and fast-flowing corners, you never know what to expect at The Circuit of the Americas.
Last year saw one of the most chaotic starts ever, with people running off the grid with minutes to go, leading to a delayed start. Now, rules have been put in place to prevent this from happening again, so hopefully, this year, we will be talking more about the racing than the grid.
Circuit of the Americas
The Circuit of the Americas (COTA) is in Austin, Texas, spanning 1000 acres and holding 120,000 spectators. The track drew inspiration from other tracks and borrowed their iconic parts to create one mega track.
COTA was opened in 2012 and has been a part of the MotoGP circus since 2013. Designed by Hermann Tilke, the 5.51km circuit runs anticlockwise and features 20 corners overall, 11 left and nine right. The current lap record was set by Maverick Viñales in qualifying for the 2024 race with a time of 2:00:864.
Since COTA came to the calendar in 2013, there has been one person who has dominated and been crowned king of COTA: Marc Márquez. He has seven victories and eight poles around the circuit.
What to Expect
With Marc Marquez‘s form around this circuit, he goes into the round as one of the favourites. M.Márquez will be looking to correct his mistakes from last year after crashing out of the lead. The Ducatis are not doing as well as last season. While Marquez did win the sprint last weekend, Fabio Di Giannantonio finished third in the Grand Prix; the rest of the bikes are further down the field.
Aprilia Racing and Marco Bezzecchi are the man and team on form at the moment after winning the Thailand Grand Prix and Brazilian Grand Prix. The Aprilia is the bike to beat at the moment, with all four bikes looking very strong in sprints and grand prix.
Yamaha is still struggling with the development of the new V4, having only eight points in the constructors’ championship. While Álex Rins has won around COTA twice, it may help with the bike’s development, but they will not be fighting for a win.
In Moto2, Daniel Holgado and Manuel González are looking to be the season favourites. Both have won a race so far this season. COTA is a tricky circuit to learn, so don’t be surprised if the championship veterans like Tony Arbolino or Arón Canet fight near the top.
Máximo Quiles finished 5th in last year’s Moto3 race, and with the form he has had at the start of the season, he will be a strong contender for the win. However, Moto3 is always unpredictable; anything can happen in races.
The weather is looking good for the weekend ahead, so we should be in for a good race.