All four Yamaha riders have featured on the MotoGP podium this season, with three of them winning races. But with six rounds to go, a split in their championship fortunes is threatening to form.
After seeing his podium and perhaps victory hopes scuppered by a fall in Catalunya, Valentino Rossi's first target at this weekend's French MotoGP is to recreate the speed that kept him in Fabio Quartararo's wheeltracks in Barcelona.
Franco Morbidelli converted his debut MotoGP pole position into an early race lead in Sunday's Catalunya Grand Prix. The Misano winner kept his Petronas Yamaha at the head of the field until being passed by 'factory-spec' team-mate Fabio Quartararo on lap 9 of 24.
Valentino Rossi is finally on the verge of putting pen to paper on a 2021 Petronas Yamaha MotoGP contract. The Italian had described his switch to the satellite team as '99%' certain when the revised world championship season got underway back in July.
Having silenced his doubters with a first win of the season at Misano, Maverick Vinales heads for his home Catalunya MotoGP knowing that a repeat performance would hand him the world championship advantage.
Valentino Rossi hopes of going one place better than last weekend and finishing on his home Misano MotoGP podium came to an end on only the second lap of Sunday's Emilia Romagna round.
Valentino Rossi isn’t ruling out a MotoGP move for his VR46 team but said it won't happen for 2021, when the focus is on trying to secure the Avintia Ducati place for his brother Luca Marini.
On the brink of a home podium last Sunday, Valentino Rossi began the second Misano MotoGP weekend with a bets lap time 0.635s from the top.On the brink of a home podium last Sunday, Valentino Rossi began the second Misano MotoGP weekend with a bets lap time 0.635s from the top.
Just as he had predicted after a disappointing sixth place in Sunday's Misano MotoGP, Maverick Vinales was back on form in the high grip conditions at Tuesday's official test.
A competitive Friday at his home Misano MotoGP made Valentino Rossi feel 20 years younger compared to the previous Austrian round. The power-hungry Red Bull Ring had taunted the M1 riders, with Rossi highest placed in fifth and then ninth.
Petronas Yamaha boss Razlan Razali has poured cold water on rumours that the team is now considering Andrea Dovizioso to replace Fabio Quartararo for the 2021 MotoGP season.
With 89 wins, currently stretching from the 2000 British Grand Prix to the 2017 Dutch TT, Valentino Rossi tops the all-time list for most 500cc/MotoGP race wins.
With four different winners from the opening five races, and reigning MotoGP champion Marc Marquez ruled out of contention, the 2020 title race looks wide open.
Valentino Rossi left Austria having finished as the top Yamaha rider in both Red Bull Ring rounds of the 2020 MotoGP World Championship. But fifth and ninth places in a pair of restarted races were of little cause for celebration.
Valentino Rossi, Fabio Quartararo and Franco Morbidelli switched over to an evolution Brembo front braking system, after overheating problems at the opening Red Bull Ring MotoGP round.
Valentino Rossi will start the Styrian MotoGP from just 14th on the grid after paying the price for 'two mistakes' on Saturday. The first was the costliest, sending the Monster Yamaha rider into Qualifying 1, where he then crashed out, ending his hopes of reaching Qualifying 2.