Five rounds remain of a breathtaking 2026 MotoGP season and the battle for the title is intensifying between the three leading riders.
Only two points separates 2024 world champion Jorge Martin and Ducati's reigning world champion Marc Marquez at the top of the standings as we approach this weekend's Australian Grand Prix at Phillip Island.
A further 46 points back from leader Martin is his Aprilia team-mate Marco Bezzecchi, who outscored both of his rivals at the Indonesian Grand Prix to keep himself firmly in the title picture.
Another four riders remain in mathematical contention for the championship, from Ai Ogura in fourth to his Trackhouse accomplice Raul Fernandez in seventh, but the title battle appears to be a three-way fight between Martin, Marquez and Bezzecchi.
Marquez was untouchable in the previous campaign, but a shoulder injury sustained at Mandalika last year - coupled with Aprilia's vastly improved RS-GP26 prototype - resulted in the Spaniard enduring a slow start to the campaign.
By the time Marquez stood on the top step of the podium for the first time in 2026 at the Hungarian Grand Prix in early June, he was 72 points adrift of leader Bezzecchi and 52 points behind Martin.
Marquez has been the form rider since then, securing victories in Czechia, Germany, Aragon, San Marino and Japan.
Martin has only won once this campaign - a dominant weekend at Le Mans which saw him claim a sprint double - but the former world champion has nine podiums to his name and has been a beacon of consistency, which is why he leads the championship.
Very few envisioned the Aprilia ace being in the title picture after he missed two thirds of his 2025 championship defence due to a collapsed lung, fractured ribs and months of pain-staking rehabilitation.
He's returned to emphatic form in 2026, although Martin had no answer to Bezzecchi's scintillating start to the campaign.
It appeared the Italian was going to be the one to beat with four wins and two second place finishes from the opening seven races, but retirements at Balaton Park and Assen were sandwiched by a bizarre incident at the Czech Grand Prix where he slapped a steward and received a race ban.
Bezzecchi was then forced to miss the German Grand Prix after sustaining a broken collarbone during qualifying which required surgery.
While his rivals capitalised on a difficult four-race period, Bezzecchi has managed to keep his hopes of a championship alive with a string of podium finishes, and his victory at Mandalika will be a major confidence boost heading into the final stages of the season.
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