Quartararo: MotoGP 'closer than ever', Binder expects Moto3-style racing

Forget Moto3 in terms of chaos, could MotoGP be just as crazy due to it being closer than ever according to world champion Fabio Quartararo? 

This weekend’s opening round of the 2022 MotoGP World Championship will see Quartararo kick off his title defence, a defence that could turn out to be extremely difficult given the level of competition currently in grand prix racing.

If Quartararo is to retain his title, he will need to do so with one of the least developed machines from last season, as the Frenchman was largely unimpressed by the lack of top speed gains made by Yamaha in pre-season. In fact, none were made at all according to the Yamaha rider.

Quartararo is viewed as one of a few riders who could potentially make up for a package that’s slightly less competitive and still be at the front. 

However, with Honda, Ducati, Suzuki and Aprilia seemingly taking big steps forward, Quartararo is perhaps facing a scenario where more than double the number of riders that won a race last season could do so in 2022.

Asked about both pre-season tests which resulted in the top 18 (Sepang) and 21 (Mandalika) being split by less than a second and what it means for this year, the world champion said: "It will make life more difficult. But I think for the show it’s nice to have not such a big difference. 

"I remember, not five but maybe ten years ago there were a few riders and then the rest. Now, basically everything is so tight and the level of riders is really high. Now it’s the closest ever."

One rider, who could and very much would like to be amongst the podium battles on a more consistent basis is Brad Binder, who believes Moto3 style racing may be on the cards this Sunday.  

Binder added: "I expect it to be an insane year. Times are closer than ever like you said and it’s super competitive. I expect Moto3 style racing on Sunday. 

"It’s definitely going to be super cool to watch, but let’s see how it all pans out."