Paddock Pass Podcast

Testing for the 2024 WorldSBK season is well underway, so at the two-day Portimão test, Steve English and Gordon Ritchie sat down to assess how testing has gone so far and look ahead to 2024. While they were there, Steve also had a chance to grab interviews with some of the main players in the coming season. He spoke to reigning world champion Alvaro Bautista, BMW's newest rider Toprak Razgatlioglu, Yamaha new boy Jonathan Rea, and WorldSBK rookie Sam Lowes.

Launch season has officially started, and Neil, Adam, and David sat down after the Ducati launch to chew over what we learned from both the Gresini Ducati launch and the factory Lenovo Ducati launch. We talk Ducati's new, more powerful GP24, why they spend so much money on the launch, what we think of Pecco Bagnaia's chance of defending the title, whether Enea Bastianini will be in the factory team next year, and what we thought of Ducati's new Desmo 450MX motocross bike.

In this week's episode of the Paddock Pass Podcast, Neil, Adam and David are joined by Michael Laverty, scion of the famous racing family, ex-MotoGP/BSB/AMA/World Supersport racer, team manager and TNT Sports commentator. Michael talks us through the challenges of owning a Moto3 team, the state of Honda's Moto3 machine, and how the arrival of Pirelli might change the class. 

He also gives his perspective on the state of MotoGP, as someone with a deep understanding of the sport. And the crew run through one or two bits of news, and look ahead to the team launches coming up. 

As on-track action draws nearer and nearer for the WorldSBK class, Steve English and Gordon Ritchie get together to look ahead to the tests for the World Superbike classes at Jerez and Portimão which start next week. There is much to talk about, and many questions to be answered. How will Toprak Razgatlioglu fare on the BMW, and will he drive development in the wrong direction for the other BMW riders? Will he extra revs Ducati are getting back cancel out the additional weight Alvaro Bautista will have to carry? What can Jonathan Rea do on the Yamaha? Will Alex Lowes be able to fill the gap left by Rea at Kawasaki? And what effect will all of the behind-the-scenes changes have on the series?

A new year, and a new episode of the Paddock Pass Podcast. Neil, David, Adam and Steve take a look ahead at the big stories of 2024, and how we expect them to develop. How will Pedro Acosta adapt to MotoGP, and the KTM? How soon before Marc Marquez gets up to speed on the Gresini Ducati, and can he challenge for the title? Who moves first in MotoGP's epic silly season to come? Will Jorge Martin be the prime target, or will it be Fabio Quartararo? And can Honda and Yamaha become competitive again?

The final show of 2023, and it's time to take a look back at a hectic MotoGP season. Adam, Neil, David and Steve discuss their rating for the 2023 MotoGP season, their race of the year, rider of the year, surprise of the year, what they loved and what they hated about 2023. Plus we pick our personal favorite moment of the year. Something for everyone in this episode!

The arrival of Trackhouse Racing to take over the CryptoDATA RNF MotoGP team caused quite the shock at the final race of 2023. Fans and media alike were left with a lot of questions. Fortunately, the Paddock Pass Podcast crew are on hand to get answers to those questions straight from the horse's mouth. Justin Marks, ex-NASCAR racer and owner of Trackhouse Racing, tells Adam, Steve, and Neil how he ended up with a MotoGP team, what attracted him, what his goals are for the 2024 season and beyond, and whether he believes he can be a conduit for more American involvement in MotoGP.

MotoGP may have packed up for the moment, but WorldSBK still had a couple of novelties to throw at us. In this episode of the Paddock Pass Podcast, Steve English and Gordo Ritchie are joined by David Emmett to chew over Toprak Razgatlioglu's debut on the BMW, and Sam Lowes' first ride on a WorldSBK Ducati. We have interviews with both riders, and Steve, David, and Gordo have a deeper, philosophical conversation about the differences between WorldSBK and MotoGP, and what the two series can learn from each other. We also give our top tips for the gift-giving season.

The 2023 Motocourse annual

Another day, another episode of the Paddock Pass Podcast. Adam Wheeler, David Emmett and Neil Morrison chew over the events of the Valencia test, including an assessment of Marc Marquez' first outing on the Ducati, and Pedro Acosta's impressive debut on the Tech3 GasGas. We also discuss Honda's prospects with their new MotoGP bike, what Yamaha have changed, and whether it is enough, and whether we should take Maverick Viñales topping the timesheets in Valencia seriously.

We also take a look at the arrival of a new team in MotoGP to take the place of RNF, and why so many sponsors in motorsports are opaque at best. And Adam sits down for a long interview with Freddie Spencer, to look back at 40 years of the American winning his first 500cc title in 1983.

Ahead of the final round of WorldSBK at Jerez, Steve English and Gordo Ritchie were joined by Speedweek reporter Ivo Schützbach and WorldSBK commentator Alex Raby to look at the state of the World Superbike championship. In a wide-ranging and at times philosophical discussion, the team talk over Toprak Razgatlioglu and Jonathan Rea switching teams, the 2024 rules and weight balancing regulations, and how difficult it is to balance a championship based on motorcycles which manufacturers have to sell.

It is a fascinating conversation, and one worth listening to multiple times, to get a deeper understanding of the series.