Paddock Pass Podcast

Paddock Notes: Jerez Thursday – No, no, after you… by Apex Radio Collective

Ducati's dominance of the Dutch Round of WorldSBK was completed by a 1-2-3-4-5-6 finish in Race 2. It was a stunning performance by the red bikes and on this week's pod we break down what we saw at TT Circuit Assen. On this week's show Steve and Gordo are joined by David Emmett who gives his insight of what he saw, what he liked and what he thought of the WorldSBK paddock. Having seen him for years in the MotoGP paddock David was interested to see the relaxed and motivated Miguel Oliveira aboard the BMW M1000RR. The rookie has had an up and down campaign at the quarter post but has shown some flashes of potential.

Adam, David and Neil roll back the years on the Spanish Grand Prix with a journalist that was there from the beginning: Dennis Noyes. The guys also talk about the fabled Turn 13 (Jorge Lorenzo corner), Marc Marquez’s chances and their predictions for MotoGP round four. Photo by Polarity photo

Adam, David and Neil are joined by former world champion, WorldSBK race winner and ex-Grand Prix rider (as well as good egg and one of the smartest motorcyclists we’ve met) Chaz Davies to chat MotoGP gossip, guiding Senna Agius and how video is infiltrating the world of performance. Photo by Ducati Media House.

Adam, David and Neil offer their opinions on your opinions about Marc Marquez and whether he will (or should) stick or twist in MotoGP. Are time and ‘mileage’ catching up with the world champion? Or is he about to fan the embers of another smoking of his Grand Prix rivals? Time for discussion.

Miguel Oliveira was the man of the moment in Portimao. The home crowd came out in force with a packed paddock there to greet the Portuguese star's every turn. The BMW man delivered on track with a hat-trick of podiums. For Steve and Gordo there was no other place to start than with his performance. Nicolo Bulega continues to dominate WorldSBK with his perfect record maintained from pole position. His teammate, Iker Lecuona, impressed this weekend with a solid trio of runner-up finishes. The Spanish rider said afterwards that he "was doing my job" to complete a perfect weekend for the Aruba.it Ducati squad. There were plenty of other stories to follow inside the paddock from the Superbike class with Yamaha, Honda and bimota but with the brand new Sportbike class starting, a Chinese manufacturer winning for the first time in Supersport and the WorldWCR kicking off their campaign we'll be back on Patreon to cover the support classes. Sign-up at Patreon.com/PaddockPassPodcast

Five steaks on the BBQ: all black. Adam Wheeler and Neil Morrison complete their weekend at the Circuit of Americas by joining a sleep-deprived David Emmett to go over the talking points and topics from round three of 2026 MotoGP.

Adam Wheeler and Neil Morrison are joined in the paddock at the Circuit of the Americas by none other than local hero Joe Roberts to talk pathways for American riders to Grand Prix, bike builds and music!

Adam, David and Neil try to fit some scope to a first return to Brazil for MotoGP in more than two decades and with enough talking points to fill a start straight crater. A good Grand Prix or a farce? Where do Aprilia go from here? Winners/Losers and more! Thanks to Renthal Street for supporting the podcast. Head to the Renthal website for handlebars, sprockets, chains, and more, using the Fit Your Bike tool. www.renthal.com/road/ Sign up for for exclusive content from the MotoGP and WorldSBK paddocks https://patreon.com/paddockpasspodcast We have merch! Get your t-shirts, caps, hoodies and more here: https://paddockpasspodcast.com/shop

Adam, David and Neil call MotoGP’s superb pitlane report and presenter Jack Appleyard as the Brit shelters from another Brazilian deluge of rain in Goiânia. Jack tells us how the circuit is shaping-up, what are the wider impressions of the venue and predictions for the weekend.

The guys offer their takes on the return to Goiânia for the first time in almost thirty years by watching and reviewing the last ‘MotoGP’ race at the site: the 1989 500cc Grand Prix! Watch/listen here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KccfYmZGIBY and then watch and listen and give us your view. We also speak to technical guru Craig Scarborough about MotoGP aero and Michael Scott tells us about the GP trips to South America. Pic by Gold and Goose. You can find Craig Scarborough as Scarbstech on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/scarbstech/ X https://x.com/ScarbsTech and BlueSky https://bsky.app/profile/scarbstech.bsky.social Thanks to Renthal Street for supporting the podcast. Head to the Renthal website for handlebars, sprockets, chains, and more, using the Fit Your Bike tool. www.renthal.com/road/ Sign up for for exclusive content from the MotoGP and WorldSBK paddocks https://patreon.com/paddockpasspodcast We have merch! Get your t-shirts, caps, hoodies and more here: https://paddockpasspodcast.com/shop

This week Adam, David and Neil talk with Red Bull KTM Tech3 Team Principal Guenther Steiner on his transition to the Grand Prix paddock. We also have a fantastic paddock pass competition for Patreon subs, so, on that note, we go into our favourite Grand Prix venues and experiences for 2026. Sign up for our Patreon for a chance to win Paddock Passes! https://www.patreon.com/posts/competition-to-2-151623101 Adam's article on MotoGP contracts: https://www.motorsportmagazine.com/articles/motorcycles/motogp/thai-motogp-opener-had-it-all-but-off-track-tensions-rise-in-team-series-stand-off/ Merch: https://paddockpasspodcast.com/merch Neil's article on Pedro Acosta: https://motomatters.com/analysis/2026/03/07/neil_morrison_pedro_acosta_from_buriram.html

Italian sauce for your Pad Thai? Adam, David and Neil go through their calls and categories for the opening round of the 2026 MotoGP season. ‘Moments’, ‘Winners & Losers’, ‘Grades’ and much more as we Tuk Tuk our way through the first review show of the year.

Adam and Neil bring you the first of the MotoGP Grand Prix Notes shows in 2026 and both are joined by veteran Spanish journo Manuel Pecino to talk Marc Marquez, the state of the paddock, the Yamaha and Fabio Quartararo dysfunctionality and more. Join up to Insider or Expert tiers for the shows on Friday and Saturday!

Is there any better for a race than Phillip Island? Well, given all the news at the weekend Steve and Gordo report from on the ground with the thoughts of the locals, the staff and the paddock on the bombshell news that MotoGP will move to Adelaide. Will WorldSBK follow? It certainly seems that way. On track, Nicolo Bulega was imperious as he starts his quest for global domination. The Aruba.it Ducati star man is a little more likeable than a bond villain and a hell of a rider. We break down his weekend which featured an incredible, almost unnecessarily, dominant performance in the wet conditions of Sunday. There are plenty of stories to follow this weekend. The first double podium for bimota since 1988 has confirmed the resurgence of Axel Bassani. His Sunday double will have given him a huge boast in confidence that this season he can be a closer challenger to his teammate, Alex Lowes. Lowes was one of the fallers in the wet conditions in Race 2 and we look at what caused many of the falls. The rise and fall of Independent Ducati's is set to be a big story this year. Steve said in our preview show that "on your good days you've got to take advantage of the package." Lorenzo Baldassarri certainly did that. The Italian, who refuses to acknowledge his season aboard a GMT94 Yamaha as a Superbike campaign, impressed the paddock this week. In testing he was quick but to withstand the pressure from Bassani in the closing stages of Race 1 was rewarded with his first career podium finish. Yari Montella had his first career front row and podium too. At BMW are the reigning World Champions in a tailspin? It depends on who you ask. That being said the two-day Portimao Test on March 9-10 will be critical for them. It was a weekend of highs and lows Miguel Oliveira. The rookie had everything thrown at him over the weekend. A superpole crash that relegated him to the back of the field was followed by two superb recovery rides in both conditions to leave him one point ahead of his teammate, Danilo Petrucci, in the standings. The performance gap between them seemed much higher this week. Yamaha's Xavi Vierge was the fastest man in blue this week but came away with zero points after a big crash in Race 1. Andrea Locatelli looked lost for most of the opening round but in wet conditions he found some confidence and came away fifth position. Thanks to Renthal Street for supporting the podcast. Head to the Renthal website for handlebars, sprockets, chains, and more, using the Fit Your Bike tool. www.renthal.com/road/ Sign up for for exclusive content from the MotoGP and WorldSBK paddocks patreon.com/paddockpasspodcast We have merch! Get your t-shirts, caps, hoodies and more here: paddockpasspodcast.com/shop

Adam and Dave set a hard alarm clock in Europe to join Neil from Buriram airport and talk about the second and final MotoGP pre-season test: Are Aprilia favourites? Is Marquez struggling? Why have no more riders been announced? And are things really that bad for Yamaha? Plus, our verdict on the future of the Australian Grand Prix. Oriol Puigdemont's article on why the rider contract announcements have been delayed https://es.motorsport.com/motogp/news/equipos-motogp-anuncian-fichajes-2027-motivo-analisis/10799669/ Thanks to Renthal Street for supporting the podcast. Head to the Renthal website for handlebars, sprockets, chains, and more, using the Fit Your Bike tool. www.renthal.com/road/ Sign up for for exclusive content from the MotoGP and WorldSBK paddocks https://patreon.com/paddockpasspodcast We have merch! Get your t-shirts, caps, hoodies and more here: https://paddockpasspodcast.com/shop

Adam, David and Neil are joined this week by Motorsport.com’s Oriol Puigdemont, one of the best news breaking journalists in MotoGP. The guys tackle their expectations and anticipations for the season ahead: Best GPs, sources of worry and excitement, riders we’ll say goodbye to for 2027 and more.

Laughter, mockery or jealousy? Adam, David, Neil and Steve chat the latest in 2026 MotoGP – the championship launch - and then also work through a slew of hot takes sent into the show after the Sepang test. Pic by MotoGP.com Adam's piece on the MotoGP launch in Kuala Lumpur: https://race19.substack.com/p/perspective-motogp-opens-2026-with Thanks to Renthal Street for supporting the podcast. Head to the Renthal website for handlebars, sprockets, chains, and more, using the Fit Your Bike tool. www.renthal.com/road/ Sign up for for exclusive content from the MotoGP and WorldSBK paddocks https://patreon.com/paddockpasspodcast We have merch! Get your t-shirts, caps, hoodies and more here: https://paddockpasspodcast.com/shop

Adam, David (housed in his Malaysian hotel), Neil and Steve gather to air their thoughts, impressions and offer their ‘winners’ and ‘losers’ in the immediate wake of the first MotoGP test of the year. Pic by MotoGP.com

Adam, David, Neil and Steve wade into this episode with opinions and expectations for the resumption of MotoGP duty and the first of two official tests to start 2026. Sepang will have the curious backdrop of a manic silly season of rider contract talk…but will also provide the first views of the last MotoGP race bikes of the current era. Photo thanks to MotoGP.com