MotoGP, 2024 marks a first in eight years for the French

Last year Fabio Quartararo and Johann Zarco missed out on bringing a podium to France in MotoGP for the first time since their debut.

Published 08/01/2025 à 09:00

Comment on this article! ⁰

The 2024 season marks a first in eight years for the French

A first year without a podium for the French in MotoGP - Red Bull Content Pool

Since 2019, France can boast of having two French people in MotoGP. A statistic that is rare in a championship where the seats are largely occupied by the Spanish and the Italians. But the two Tricolores are not in the premier category to make up the numbers, and have each distinguished themselves on multiple occasions.

fabio quartararo became world champion at the end of the 2021 season, while Johann Zarco took his first victory in the class in 2023, at the Australian Grand Prix. Despite everything, the two French representatives are experiencing difficult times with their respective brands, Honda and Yamaha.

Two factories that have known success, and which are now looking for solutions to return to their former level of competitiveness. In 2024, things have not been easy, and neither brand has reached the podium. A first in the modern era of Grand Prix, but also for France since the arrival of Zarco and Quartararo in MotoGP.

Indeed, since the promotion of the Cannes rider to MotoGP in 2017, each season had seen at least one Frenchman climb onto a podium. Seven seasons had thus passed without a French rider missing the top-3. 2024 will not have allowed this series to be extended.

Yamaha and Honda's strengths for 2025

Despite everything, we must remain hopeful for 2025. A season that each of the two manufacturers approaches with the hope of progressing further. To do this, Honda will be able to count on a brand new test team, which will not spare its efforts between the Grands Prix. Yamaha, for its part, will rely on the data from two additional bikes on the track. Pramac having divorced with Ducati to complete the workforce of the Iwata factory.

However, each manufacturer will have to start 2025 at least at the same level as in the last stages of the previous season, to hope to get something out of this campaign. A question that the first winter tests at Sepang will partly answer.