Yamaha team-mates Valentino Rossi and Jorge Lorenzo head to this weekend's British Grand Prix locked on 211 points each at the top of the MotoGP driver standings.
Lorenzo closed the gap to the long-standing leader Rossi with a classy display at Brno last time out. And with five wins under his belt already this season, he will be hopeful of pulling ahead of his team-mate with victory at Silverstone. But the Italian is an experienced competitor and will do his utmost to edge back in front.
Rossi and Lorenzo are neck and neck at the top of the driver standings.
Factor in the form of Honda's rejuvenated world champion Marc Marquez and this is a race not to be missed. Here's all the key viewing details you need for the grand prix and a closer look at the big favourites for glory.
MotoGP British Grand Prix 2015: Schedule Friday, August 28 9:55 a.m. - 10:40 a.m Free Practice 1 Friday, August 28 2:05 p.m. - 2:50 p.m. Free Practice 2 Saturday, August 29 9:55 a.m. - 10:40 a.m Free Practice 3 Saturday, August 29 1:30 p.m - 2 p.m. Free Practice 4 Saturday, August 29 2:10 p.m - 2:25 p.m. Qualifying 1 Saturday, August 29 2:35 p.m. - 2:50 p.m Qualifying 2 Sunday, August 20 1 p.m. RaceMotoGP.com
All the action can be streamed via the BT Sport website.
Rossi, Lorenzo DeadlockedThe win for Lorenzo at Brno left the title race perfectly poised with seven races remaining. The Spanish star is technically ahead of Rossi due to his five race wins (the Italian has three), but you get the impression there are plenty of twists and turns to come.
Lorenzo was imperious last time out, though. Alongside Rossi and Marquez on the front row, he could have wilted under pressure, but instead, Lorenzo coasted to an easy victory around a demanding circuit in what was arguably his best performance of the season so far.
Here's a look at the highlights of his virtuoso display, per BT Sport MotoGP:
Rossi is going to have to be at his best to halt Lorenzo's charge up the standings. The Yamaha man has had his struggles in qualifying this season, and although third place was a much better effort last time out, he got off to a really poor start, as we can see above, which left him battling for the minor podium spots.
Speaking of the buildup to this race, Rossi also admitted that he feels as though Lorenzo may have the edge on him around the legendary Silverstone track, per autosport.com:
Silverstone is difficult. In the past, I've struggled, but last year was a little bit better also. Always Jorge is very strong, from the first year MotoGP raced. …
It's difficult to say because each year is a little bit different. On paper, I think every track Jorge is stronger than me but also [there are some] tracks where we are very equal. I think this is not the way to think, the way to think is to try to understand the way to go faster in Silverstone. This is the way, step by step, weekend by weekend.
Lorenzo has the momentum, which will see him oust Rossi again this weekend. At the moment, he looks the far more comprehensive rider and is showing his quality throughout the entirety of the grand prix, not just on race day. By contrast, the Italian, while his showings in the races have been superb, is doing so in bursts.
So expect another classy performance from Lorenzo and for him to extend his lead atop of the standings. But it won't be enough to take the race victory.
Marquez the Man to BeatAlthough Lorenzo was a cut above in the Czech Republic, with two wins from the last three races, Honda's Marquez is still the in-form rider in the field.
The Spaniard has recovered well in recent weeks after a very slow start to the season, which included three retirements in the first seven races. While retaining the world title may be beyond the reigning champion as a result, he'll still be hungry to win races before the campaign comes to an end.
Marquez won this race last year.
While retaining his crown looks a long shot, if he can keep getting on the top step of the podium, anything can happen. While Marquez is coming into this weekend 52 points behind, as we can see here courtesy of Box_Repsol, he's been making up plenty of ground in recent weeks:
Who will win the world title? Who will win the world title?It's a track that Marquez has fared well at during his time in MotoGP, too. In his debut campaign in 2013, he was second to his compatriot Lorenzo, but last year the roles were reversed, as the youngster got the better of the Yamaha man in a thrilling battle.
With the pressure off and memories of his triumph 12 months ago still fresh, expect a confident Marquez to show his quality at Silverstone come race day. Lorenzo and Rossi will provide stiff opposition and are much more experienced around this unique circuit, but the young Spaniard will hold them off and keep his slim title chances alive.
Race Prediction: 1. Marquez, 2. Lorenzo, 3. Rossi
