The longest season in MotoGP history ended on Tuesday, as Valencia’s traditional post-race test gave a glimpse at what’s to come in 2026.
There was much to look forward to, as all four Yamaha riders had one new V4 M1 at their disposal, while rookie Toprak Razgatlioglu (18th) made his first public appearance on a MotoGP machine, and Diogo Moreira (21st) jumped aboard the LCR Honda for the first time. Moto2 regular Celestino Vietti (22nd) also deputized for Franco Morbidelli after he fractured his left hand just ahead of Sunday’s race.
Overnight rain had left the 2.49-mile track wet ahead of the 7-hour session. After a few tentative runs from a handful of riders, the test was red flagged while the track dried with the assistance of trackside marshals. Action restarted around 1pm with test schedules cut and condensed.
And there was little to differentiate Tuesday’s final order with the race weekend that had preceded as Raul Fernandez led Marco Bezzecchi in an Aprilia one-two, with Alex Marquez and Fermin Aldeguer behind. With little of note to test, Fernandez’s fastest time (1m 29.373) was just over half a second off Bezzecchi’s outright lap record, which he set on Saturday.
There wasn’t a great deal of new items to spot in the garages down the grid. But Bezzecchi sported a radical new seat unit for much of the day as Aprilia sought further gains. “I was half a tenth slower with the new one,” said the rider who placed third in this year’s championship.
Pedro Acosta was fifth when testing a new aerodynamics package for KTM, with Maverick Viñales – still recovering from damaged left shoulder ligaments – an encouraging sixth. “Some of the parts made the bike feel more complete,” said Acosta, careful to not get too excited.
There were a few eye-catching times further down. World Superbike runner up Nicolo Bulega, deputizing for the injured Marc Marquez in the Ducati Lenovo Team, was eighth, 0.2s off Fernandez, and two places ahead of team-mate Pecco Bagnaia.
Not that it bothered the three-time World Champion. “Happy things went well,” said Bagnaia, who tried the first version of the GP26, and a new aero package. “The feeling in braking was much better.” A crash when pushing for a late time didn’t dampen his mood.
While reluctant to talk up Yamaha’s new V4, Fabio Quartararo was at least fast on the bike. After doing just two laps on his 2024 bike, his gradually got faster through the day. His best of 1m 29.927 was just over half a second off the day’s best time and was 0.2s quicker than what Yamaha test rider Augusto Fernandez had managed during his wildcard appearance at the final GP.
There was gentle optimism in the comments of Alex Rins (19th) and Jack Miller (20th), even if their times did little to quicken the pulse. “The bike has slightly improved,” said Rins. “I felt better than Misano even if the bike is almost the same.” Miller added, “We’re still going steady with the engine. The electronics still need a lot of work.”
As he’s still contracted to BMW, Razgatlioglu wasn’t allowed to speak at the end of play. But new Team Manager Gino Borsoi was impressed with his rider’s efforts. “I’m quite surprised and impressed with his mindset and riding style,” said the Italian. “He was able to change his riding style and is able to learn really fast.”
2025 Valencia MotoGP Test Results
| 1 | Raul Fernandez | SPA | Trackhouse Aprilia (RS-GP) | 1:29.373s |
| 2 | Marco Bezzecchi | ITA | Aprilia Racing (RS-GP) | +0.027s |
| 3 | Alex Marquez | SPA | BK8 Gresini Ducati (GP) | +0.084s |
| 4 | Fermin Aldeguer | SPA | BK8 Gresini Ducati (GP) | +0.177s |
| 5 | Pedro Acosta | SPA | Red Bull KTM (RC16) | +0.208s |
| 6 | Maverick Viñales | SPA | Red Bull KTM Tech3 (RC16) | +0.247s |
| 7 | Fabio Di Giannantonio | ITA | Pertamina VR46 Ducati (GP) | +0.268s |
| 8 | Nicolo Bulega | ITA | Ducati Lenovo (GP) | +0.288s |
| 9 | Brad Binder | RSA | Red Bull KTM (RC16) | +0.338s |
| 10 | Francesco Bagnaia | ITA | Ducati Lenovo (GP) | +0.358s |
| 11 | Ai Ogura | JPN | Trackhouse Aprilia (RS-GP) | +0.461s |
| 12 | Joan Mir | SPA | Honda HRC Castrol (RC213V) | +0.499s |
| 13 | Johann Zarco | FRA | Castrol Honda LCR (RC213V) | +0.521s |
| 14 | Luca Marini | ITA | Honda HRC Castrol (RC213V) | +0.543s |
| 15 | Fabio Quartararo | FRA | Monster Yamaha (YZR-M1) | +0.554s |
| 16 | Jorge Martin | SPA | Aprilia Racing (RS-GP) | +0.621s |
| 17 | Enea Bastianini | ITA | Red Bull KTM Tech3 (RC16) | +0.918s |
| 18 | Toprak Razgatlioglu | TUR | Pramac Yamaha (YZR-M1)* | +1.294s |
| 19 | Alex Rins | SPA | Monster Yamaha (YZR-M1) | +1.347s |
| 20 | Jack Miller | AUS | Pramac Yamaha (YZR-M1) | +1.491s |
| 21 | Diogo Moreira | BRA | Honda LCR (RC213V)* | +1.824s |
| 22 | Celestino Vietti | ITA | Pertamina VR46 Ducati (GP) | +3.138s |
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