        Dorna Sports has announced that it has made an agreement with EM Motorsport to supply MotoGP with 22 panels that will serve as digital flags, in place of the traditional ones, to be used at every GP. Portimao the first test bench  In light of this new feature, as of 2022 all circuits hosting MotoGP races will have to install the panels known as 'T1' or 'T2'. They will be introduced already this year, to allow the circuits and riders to get used to the new regulation. The aim is to increase the visibility of information relating to the track conditions. The 22 new high-tech flag-panels, homologated by the FIM a few months ago, will make their debut during the Portugal GP. The type known as &lsquo;T1&rsquo; will be used through the long corners and along the fast straights while the &lsquo;T2&rsquo; type will cover the rest of the circuit. The two models differ in terms of their size and performance. The flag-panels will be full controlled by Race Control, equipped with a console that will be managed by the track marshals to localise the yellow or red flags in case of any incidents. Already used successfully in F1, this new feature has met with the approval of the riders, who are keen to replace the classic flags, which are often waved at points of the track where visibility is poor. Translated by Heather Watson Portugal GP, manufacturer stats       

Already used in other disciplines, the world championship is to introduce digital flags as a way to increase the visibility of information that marshals give riders on track

MotoGP Portugal: Dorna introduces F1-style digital panels

        Having suffered more than expected during the first two races of the season in Qatar, Valentino Rossi and the Petronas team now need to start over at the first European round, taking place at the Autodromo Internacional do Algarve in Portim&atilde;o. Number 46 is keen to ride in Portugal: &ldquo;It&rsquo;s always nice when we return to race in Europe, because its all a little easier. Portim&atilde;o is a great track, very difficult but wonderful, unique and with many changes in gradient which make it a lot of fun&rdquo;. &ldquo;The start of the season has been hard and we weren&rsquo;t where we thought we&rsquo;d be, so we need to work hard this weekend to be more competitive. Honestly, I don&rsquo;t know what the problem has been, but I don&rsquo;t think it has to do with my riding style, because all the Yamaha riders ride in a different way and Franco had various problems too&rdquo;, explains the Italian. &ldquo;M&aacute;rquez will be competitive right away&rdquo;  As for the race, Valentino thinks local rider Miguel Oliveira is the favourite: &ldquo;Last year he was so strong with the KTM. He dominated the race and I think he can be very fast again this time, but Miller and Morbidelli will also be dangerous and shouldn&rsquo;t be underestimated&rdquo;. Re Marc M&aacute;rquez&rsquo;s return, Rossi has clear ideas: &ldquo;M&aacute;rquez will probably be competitive right away. I expect a lot from him, because I see he&rsquo;s in great shape, and even if we don&rsquo;t know about his physical endurance, I think he can be quick right from Friday&rdquo;. &ldquo;I think Francesca is right&rdquo;  He finishes by touching on girlfriend Francesca Sofia Novello&rsquo;s comments about the motorcycle racing atmosphere: &ldquo;I liked her interview, because she was very direct, and I think she&rsquo;s right. She spoke about the paddock, but I think we could say similar things about many places, trade fairs for example, not only in the world of motorcycling, but in all places of this kind. To do a job like grid girl, a girl needs to be strong&rdquo;. Translated by Heather Watson Portugal GP, manufacturer stats       

After a tough season start, the nine-time world champion will strive to be competitive at Portim&atilde;o. "We need to work hard. I&rsquo;m pleased to see M&aacute;rquez on track this weekend"

MotoGP Portugal, Rossi confident: “It will be easier in Europe”

        On the eve of the third GP of the season, Franco Morbidelli is ready to race at the sharp end aboard his Petronas Yamaha M1. The Italo-Brazilian had trouble during the opening rounds in Qatar, but he hasn&rsquo;t lost his motivation ahead of the upcoming race at the rollercoaster Portim&atilde;o track, where he reached the podium in 2020. &ldquo;We start with a clean sheet in Portim&atilde;o&rdquo;, explains number 21. &ldquo;The two Qatar rounds were complicated and we weren&rsquo;t able to achieve the results we hoped for, so I&rsquo;m happy to head to a track like Portim&atilde;o, where we were very competitive at the end of last year&rdquo;. &ldquo;The basic bike set-up will be more or less the same as it was over the last weekends, but it should work better in Portugal. My motivation is still high, also after seeing the performance of the official Yamaha riders, who actually push me to work even harder to obtain better conditions and greater consideration from the manufacturer&rdquo;, continues 21. "Pleased about Yamaha&rsquo;s counter-measures"  As for the problems in Qatar, &ldquo;Morbido&rdquo; is quick to assure us: &ldquo;Yamaha has answered all my questions, both after the first races and once we got here. I&rsquo;m pleased with the counter-measures taken because that confirms that they are working hard for me too&rdquo;. &ldquo;Personally, I can only say that I&rsquo;ve worked hard, physically and mentally, over the last ten days and will aim to do my best with what I have available&rdquo;, concludes the 2020 runner-up. Translated by Heather Watson Portugal GP, manufacturer stats       

Despite a difficult start to the season in Qatar, the team Petronas rider knows he can be competitive in the Algarve: &ldquo;We were strong here last year&rdquo;

MotoGP Portugal, Morbidelli: “I’ve not lost my motivation”

Like last year, MotoGP is preparing for Portugal, and the Portim&atilde;o circuit. This is the sixteenth time that a championship round will take place in Portugal following many earlier editions at Estoril. The &ldquo;roller-coaster&rdquo; track of Portim&atilde;o is the 72nd different circuit to host a world championship race and the 29th to host a Motogp race.  Yamaha the most successful   Toni Elias won the 2006 Portugal MotoGP with a 0.002 second advantage over Valentino Rossi, which meant they tie for closest ever race finish with Alex Criville and Mick Doohan, at Brno in 1996.  Yamaha has enjoyed the most success in the reigning class, with eight wins scored by Eddie Lawson (1987, 1988), Garry McCoy (2000), Valentino Rossi (2004, 2007) and Jorge Lorenzo (2008, 2009,2010).  Honda&rsquo;s last victory dates back to the Casey Stoner era, in 2012, when the Aussie started from pole position. Four riders had won prior to him, namely Valentino Rossi (2001, 2002, 2003), Alex Barros (2005), Toni Elias (2006) and Dani Pedrosa (2011). Last year&rsquo;s fastest rider was Takaaki Nakagami, who crossed the line fifth.  The KTM win   KTM dominated last year&rsquo;s race with Miguel Oliveira, who also started from pole. That marked the first ever win for a Portuguese world championship rider at their home track. Oliveira finished ahead of Jack Miller and Franco Morbidelli, who made up the first full privateer podium since Qatar in 2004, when Sete Gibernau, Colin Edwards and Ruben Xaus were on the rostrum.  Ducati has scored four MotoGP podiums in Portugal, one with Loris Capirossi, third in 2003, two more with Casey Stoner, third in 2007 and second in 2009 and one with Jack Miller, second last year. Suzuki&rsquo;s best result in the reigning class is the second-place finish scored by Kenny Roberts Jr. in the 500 class in 2000. While, to date, Aleix Espargar&oacute;&rsquo;s eighth-place finish in 2020 marks Aprilia&rsquo;s best result in Portugal.  Translated by Heather Watson  MotoGP Portugal: Marc Marquez passes his final check-up 

The top class returns to the Portim&atilde;o track for the third round of the season. We look at who&rsquo;s scored the best results in Portugal and who holds the records

Portugal GP, manufacturer stats

He is known to most as &ldquo;Valentino Rossi&rsquo;s brother&rdquo; but, in truth, Luca Marini has grown over the years, his results speaking for themselves. So much so that Ducati has come knocking, wanting him in MotoGP next year. Time will tell as to whether he moves up as Moto2 world champion or not.  The last race   The battle for the title in the intermediate class is still wide open heading into the final round, with Enea Bastianini leading ahead of a Sam Lowes who is not in the best shape and &ldquo;Maro&rdquo; himself, who has an 18-point deficit. More than a few, but not too many, particularly now that the 23-year old has found his way again.  Luca started the season in a particular &ldquo;state of grace&rdquo;, clocking up three wins, two second place finishes and two pole positions, which saw him take the championship lead.  &nbsp;  The crisis   His victory at Montmel&ograve; was then followed by a more difficult period, in which he appeared to lose confidence aboard the Kalex and score two consecutive zeros, at Le Mans (seventeenth) and Aragon (DNF) before scoring just 15 points over the next two races.&nbsp; At the latest Valencia GP, he picked up the pace to close inside the top five, and ahead of the &ldquo;Bestia&rdquo;. A positive sign, particularly ahead of the final round, where everything is at stake.  Moto2, who will win? The pros and cons of Sam Lowes  Blind date   The final race will take place at a track that is unknown to many. The championship will run here for the first time and every session will be essential in order to adapt to the undulating Portimao, where the riders are in for some blind turns. After all the efforts and sacrifices of this strange and difficult year, the Sky Racing Team VR46 rider will battle it out with his rivals as he attempts to add his name to the Moto2 history books.  Far from an easy task, but if Marini is able to bring the Luca we saw during the opening round, perhaps lifting the title trophy becomes a mission possible. This, before he goes on to achieve every rider&rsquo;s dream, or rather to race in MotoGP in the reigning class, which has double meaning for him in that he will also achieve his other great dream, to race with his brother, Valentino Rossi.  Translated by Heather Watson  Moto2, who will win? The pros and cons of Enea Bastianini 

This weekend, the man from Tavullia could become world champion of the Moto2 class before moving up to the reigning class. Can he make up the 18 points to Bastianini?

5 risultati per 'Portugal GP'

MotoGP Portugal: Dorna introduces F1-style digital panels

MotoGP Portugal, Rossi confident: “It will be easier in Europe”

MotoGP Portugal, Morbidelli: “I’ve not lost my motivation”

Portugal GP, manufacturer stats

Moto2, who will win? The pros and cons of Luca Marini