MotoGP 2024 rider line-ups ranked from worst to best

Seven of the 11 MotoGP teams go into 2024 with different rider line-ups after a silly season that was getting wild even before Marc Marquez’s seismic decision to walk out on Honda.

Who’s done particularly well out of the rider switches? Who’s now weaker?

We asked our writers and pundits to rank the 11 teams’ line-ups from best to worst, focusing only on the riders’ ability/potential and not the quality of their teams or bikes. We then applied the MotoGP grand prix scoring system to create a collective ranking.

11 TRACKHOUSE APRILIA

Miguel Oliveira, Raul Fernandez

45 points

Down two places from 2023

Best ranking: 10th (Valentin Khorounzhiy, Simon Patterson, Glenn Freeman, Jonny Reynolds, Matt Beer)

Worst ranking: 11th (Toby Moody, Jack Cozens, Josh Suttill)

The team’s changing as NASCAR’s Trackhouse supplants RNF, but the rider line-up isn’t. Which might not be a good thing given our pundits’ lukewarm opinions of Miguel Oliveira and Raul Fernandez – or rather, their ability to actually deliver on their potential.

“A really strong line-up ‘in theory’ but whether it will equate to a full season of up-to-par production is anyone’s guess,” says Valentin Khorounzhiy.

“There is an absolute tonne of potential in this squad but 2023 showed that neither rider has learned how to fully utilise it just yet and until they do, it’s hard to rank them higher,” agrees Simon Patterson.

But several of our panel noted the effect of Oliveira’s plethora of injuries on his first Aprilia season (“when he was fit, he looked fairly competitive,” reckons Josh Suttill) and it’s Oliveira’s better days that convinced Glenn Freeman not to put Trackhouse last.

10 LCR HONDA

Johann Zarco, Taka Nakagami

46 points

Down two places from 2023

Best ranking: 9th (Glenn Freeman, Jack Cozens)

Worst ranking: 11th (Simon Patterson, Valentin Khorounzhiy, Jonny Reynolds, Matt Beer)

How does a line-up that includes the rider who finished fifth in the 2023 standings and won the year’s best race end up in the penultimate place on our list and ranked last by many panellists?

Because his team-mate Taka Nakagami is “probably the weakest rider on the grid when everyone is fit” – as Jonny Reynolds puts it.

That said, while there’s a lot of faith in LCR’s new hire Johann Zarco (“a cool signing” in Khorounzhiy’s eyes and “far too good to be riding a satellite Honda” according to Suttill), there are also doubts about him.

“I’m a long-time Zarco admirer but as this year proved he will occasionally just go missing for a few races,” says Freeman.

And while Matt Beer was “delighted Zarco finally got a MotoGP win”, sees his pair of top-five championship finishes from three Pramac seasons as “proof of what a quietly effective operator he’s become”, admired his back-up of previous team-mate Jorge Martin’s 2023 title bid and thinks “he’ll be a huge asset to Honda”, he’s also sure Zarco is “a downgrade” on LCR predecessor Alex Rins.

9 TECH3 GAS GAS

Augusto Fernandez, Pedro Acosta

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