The 2023 MotoGP season proved to be one of the most competitive campaigns for the series, as the championship battle between Ducati duo Francesco Bagnaia and Jorge Martin raged until the final race of an historic campaign that also saw sprints introduced for the first time.
Bagnaia ultimately won out by 39 points to score his second championship, capping off a banner year for Ducati in which it won a record 17 GPs across six of its eight riders, achieved 43 total podiums and eight rostrum lockouts.
There were standout performances elsewhere, with Aprilia winning twice with Aleix Espargaro and Honda scoring a sole victory in a miserable campaign courtesy of Alex Rins. New winners emerged too, while others put in commendable performances without ever getting to the top step of the podium.
To decide who we consider the 10 best rider of the 2023 MotoGP season, we’ve taken results into account but also results relative to machinery at their disposal. Also included are how they fared in comparison to last year’s top 10 ranking.
10. Luca Marini (New entry)
Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images
A solid season earned Marini a factory Honda deal for 2024
Team: VR46 Ducati
Best GP result: 2nd (America)
Best sprint result: 2nd (Indonesia)
Total podiums: 6
Best qualifying: 1st (Indonesia, Qatar)
Championship: 8th (201 points)
Marini ended 2023 as one of only two Ducati riders not to win a grand prix, but did firmly mark himself out as more than just Valentino Rossi’s half-brother. A second in Austin was his best Sunday result, but his podiums were too few and far between for a third-year rider on the grid’s best bike.
A two-race injury lay-off due to a collarbone break of his own making, after he slammed into VR46 team-mate Marco Bezzecchi on the opening lap of the Indian GP sprint, certainly stopped him from achieving more in the second half of the season – having felt like he’d made a major step in understanding the bike at the Misano test in September.
He earned his factory Honda deal for 2024 and a solid bunch of results from 2023 will act as a good starting point.
9. Alex Marquez (New entry)
Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images
Alex Marquez took two sprint wins in his first season with Gresini
Team: Gresini Ducati
Best GP result: 2nd (Malaysia)
Best sprint result: 1st (Britain, Malaysia)
Total podiums: 4
Best qualifying: 1st (Argentina)
Championship: 9th (177 points)
After a solid maiden campaign with the…
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