While the premier class – MotoGP – will not go ahead at the Grand Prix of Qatar, there is much to look forward this weekend with Moto2 and Moto3 classes to be held at the Losail International Circuit.
The opening race of the MotoGP season in Qatar on March 8 has been cancelled because of travel restrictions imposed on passengers from Italy due to the coronavirus epidemic. But the Moto2 and Moto3 categories will still race due to those teams and riders already being in Qatar for testing there last week. 
And after a few days on track at Jerez and then again Qatar, it’s safe to say we have a number of names who look like they’ll be challenging at the front in Moto2 this year. But testing never tells the whole story as some focus one way and others the other, and the first race of the season has plenty in store.
The man who was fastest by the end of testing at Losail International Circuit was Jorge Navarro (Beta Tools Speed Up), and the Spaniard is certainly on that list of those we expect to be fast. With a good number of intermediate class podiums to his name in 2019, Navarro already had some momentum too – and although he’s still looking for that first Moto2 win, his consistency has been impressive. His teammate Fabio Di Giannantonio was also a pretty consistent performer last year as he found his feet as a rookie as well, and testing showed another step for him so they’ll be coming out swinging.
Speed Up in general were impressively quick in preseason, which now includes the Aspar Team as they make to switch to the chassis, so it could be an interesting battle of the manufacturers. The headlines in the team were stolen by Aron Canet as the rookie Spaniard proved a revelation and was often up inside the top five or six, but Hafizh Syahrin had also started to re-adjust to Moto2™ by the end of testing as the Malaysian moves back into the class. Two more contenders? It seems so.
Jorge Martin (Red Bull TM Ajo), meanwhile, was the fastest Kalex runner overall – and another to switch chassis. The Spaniard was second to Navarro and showed off that momentum he’d been gaining throughout the latter half of 2019 despite the change in machinery; something that bodes well for him. Fellow sophomores Enea Bastianini (Italtrans Racing Team) and Nicolo Bulega (Federal Oil Gresini Moto2) were also inside the top ten after they impressed, and the interesting mix of veterans and newer faces continued in ninth as American Joe Roberts put in a stunner at Losail. Like Martin, he’s switched chassis – can that form continue into the race weekend?
Experience was scattered throughout the timesheets, however, with some fast after time attacks and others we expect to burst out the gates higher up once the flag drops and the talking stops. Remy Gardner (ONEXOX TKKR SAG Team) led the charge in third, Marcel Schrötter (Liqui Moly Intact GP) was fifth, Luca Marini (Sky Racing Team VR46) tenth, Xavi Vierge (Petronas Sprinta Racing) 11th… and the two men who duelled for the win in the desert last year, Lorenzo Baldassarri (Flexbox HP 40) and Tom Lüthi (Liqui Moly Intact GP), were 12th and 13th. With that amount of experience and success all a little further down the timesheets, it seems likely we’ve not seen everyone’s full hand – but now we will.


Moto3: predicting 
the unpredictable
The lightweight class of Grand Prix racing can usually be described in one word: close. And after six days of official preseason testing at Jerez and Losail, 2020 looks likely to be no different. There were a few standout performers who pulled a gap on the rest at times, but in a race scenario? We’ve seen before how hard it really is to break away – and that’s just how we like it.
On the combined timesheets heading into the first race of the season, it’s Czech rider Filip Sala? (Rivacold Snipers Team) who can arrive with a little swagger, having ended the test half a second clear of his nearest competitor. That nearest competitor was a very consistent frontrunner throughout preseason, however: Ai Ogura (Honda Team Asia). A rookie podium finisher, the Japanese rider has kicked it up a notch for season two and was on the pace in both Jerez and Qatar. (Motogp.com)