Is it time to start looking at Aprilia as the new kings of MotoGP?

Keep a very close eye on Aprilia Racing as the 2026 MotoGP campaign rolls on, as Ducati is seemingly looking very close to home with regards to where its main competitor is coming from this season.

That’s because the Noale-based manufacturer has won the first three MotoGP races of 2026, and Ducati is struggling to find the answers needed to beat Aprilia.

It’s no surprise that Aprilia is taking the fight to Ducati this year, but why do we say that? Well, on the one hand you have KTM, which has been strong at times over the last few seasons in MotoGP. However, it’s been clear that Ducati has had a better package overall, and one that’s a lot more consistent race-to-race, circuit-to-circuit.

Honda - although making a big comeback it seems - is still in the process of trying to develop a bike that’s faster, but also more consistent. Then there’s Yamaha, which sadly, seems to have taken a step back with its new V4 engine, which is not a great sign because the Japanese company also struggled throughout 2025 while using its iconic crossplane inline-four power unit.

That said, we didn’t really need to mention those other three manufacturers, because the results in previous years already told us that Aprilia would again be Ducati’s main rivals.

However, Aprilia has not just been competitive so far in 2026. Instead, it has absolutely dominated Ducati through the first three grand prix races. The sprints have been a lot tighter, as has qualifying. But when everything matters, Aprilia has been untouchable.

We expected Marco Bezzecchi to be strong, which has been the case as he’s won all three grand prix’. Although team-mate Jorge Martin has also shown that the RS-GP26 is a bike that lends itself to going very fast with different riding styles.

In Brazil (round two) and last weekend at the Circuit of the Americas (COTA), in the United States, Martin finished second to his team-mate on both occasions. But the threat from Ducati, mainly in COTA, was nowhere to be seen.

In fact, the final podium position went the way of KTM’s Pedro Acosta, with Ducati riders Fabio Di Giannantonio and Marc Marquez taking the flag in fourth and fifth, respectively.

There’s still 19 races to go so a lot can still change, and very importantly, Marquez has not been fully healthy so far this season, either. That could change Ducati’s fortunes in a big way.

However, what is clear is that Aprilia is going nowhere but up, as the results, consistency, rideability of the RS-GP26, and confidence of its riders suggest all of the above to be true.

Let’s be honest, in recent years Ducati has wiped the floor with the competition. Win after win, podium after podium, pole after pole - the Italian brand has achieved it all and broken records in the process. 

It has also won titles with different riders including Francesco Bagnaia (2022 and 2023), Martin (2024) and Marquez (2025). But we’ve not seen another brand dominate against Ducati like this since the early stages of 2021.

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