Moto2: British GP Preview: Who will it be this weekend?

The 2018 Moto2 championship has really come to life over the last few meetings, with three different winners in the last three races. Francesco Bagnaia beat title rival Miguel Oliveira last time out at the Red Bull Ring to take back control of the championship lead, whilst Luca Marini stepped on the podium again. The VR46 boys will be looking to gang up on the Portuguese sensation, whilst Alex Marquez, Lorenzo Baldassarri, Mattia Pasini and Marcel Schrotter are also all capable of a race win. The British GP could be a decisive round in this year’s championship.

Championship leader Pecco Bagnaia has been nothing short of spectacular in 2018, finishing every race in the points and, had he not been caught up with the wayward Mattia Pasini in Germany, it’d probably be every race in the top ten. 2nd in Moto3 in 2016 and 5th in Moto2 at Silverstone last season, Bagnaia may well be a race winner again. He’s yet to take back-to-back victories in his GP career and who’d bet against that happening now? Whilst the championship is indeed the closest it has been for a while, Bagnaia could build up a stranglehold if he plays his cards right in the next two or three meetings.

Miguel Oliveira has the power of a nation behind him, as the Portuguese star is looking to win again. Two wins, five other podiums and no finishes lower than 6th prove that consistency is key and that Oliveira, who keeps peppering his season with wins, is in the championship hunt whether he is a main rival to Bagnaia or not. The Red Bull KTM team only have the disadvantage of not having Brad Binder at the very front to help out his teammate. Oliveira was 8th at Silverstone last season and is also yet to mount the podium in any class at the circuit. Will his first podium at the track come in the form of a win?

Despite a catalogue of errors and a winless 2018 so far, Alex Marquez is lying a miraculous 3rd in the championship and will be eager to take his first win of the season at the Silverstone circuit. He is without a top ten since his 3rd place at Assen and that is a recent form that the Spaniard doesn’t need going into the final third of this championship. A distant 76 points from the lead of the title, another season may well have gone with Alex Marquez not being a champion but if he would just cut out the mistakes and maybe witness bad luck for the two ahead of him, the title would be back on. A best result of 4th in his first British GP on a Moto2 bike is his best intermediate result, whilst he was 3rd in 2013 in Moto3.

Brad Binder has been ultra consistent in Moto2 this season, finishing all but one race inside the top nine and taking a historic first win for South Africa in Moto2 at the Sachsenring. Had he not tangled with Jorge Navarro at the Argentine Grand Prix, he probably would be quite a distant 3rd place rider and ahead of Alex Marquez. Just two points behind the Spaniard, Binder will be looking to secure another win and at the same time, help out his teammate by taking points off the VR46 team. Binder was a winner at Silverstone in 2016 on the Red Bull KTM in Moto3, whilst he was 9th in Moto2 last year and just 0.3s off 7th placed Stefano Manzi.

Lorenzo Baldassarri has more up and down results than I have raves about black pudding and it is quite a shame, given his obvious bundles of talent. The super-fast, uber-cool Italian has had bad luck too, with a puncture in The Netherlands and a strange crash at the Red Bull Ring last time out. ‘Iron Balda’ is, on his day, an out-and-out race winner and there is no reason why he couldn’t deliver the goods this weekend. However, just seven points from the 3rd placed-Marquez in the championship, Baldassarri knows he can exceed that position if he keeps the Pons Kalex on two wheels and the right way up.

Joan Mir has had a difficult few rounds, with a first lap crash at Brno and a horrendous 7th row qualifying in Austria. However, Mir comes to Britain having never finished outside of the top ten at the circuit and that is a record that he will be keen to uphold. MotoGP bound for 2019 with Suzuki, Mir is yet to win a race in the Moto2 class and no matter how impressive he has been, that is something that we can simply not overturn nor overlook. Three podiums to his name, Mir is on 103 points and just 10 off his teammate who is in 3rd – not bad for a rookie to be giving the team leader and rider who’s been in the class for 3 years already a bit of a headache. Keep an eye on Mir, he may well spring a surprise.

Marcel Schrotter is next up and we know how quick he can be and I have a feeling that the British GP may be a little bit special for the German. Xavi Vierge is next up, having just signed up for the Marc VDS Moto2 team for 2019. Fabio Quartararo in 9th place has confirmed his move into the premier class with the SIC Racing Yamaha team and will be keen to prove doubters (such as me) that he wasn’t just a one race wonder back at Catalunya. Mattia Pasini was the pole-sitter at Silverstone last year so expect something big from him, whilst Luca Marini – who has been on the podium in the last three races – chases his first win and the more shocking thing is that he is 11th in the championship.