The final three races of this enthralling 2024 MotoGP™ campaign have arrived and Round 18 brings us back to a beauty: Buriram, and the PT Grand Prix of Thailand. Ahead of a scorching weekend of action, we got the low down from the chief title contenders and more as another crucial three days on track were previewed.

Press Conference 1 saw Championship leader Jorge Martin (Prima Pramac Racing) sit alongside title rival Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team) and Australian GP winner Marc Marquez (Gresini Racing MotoGP™) before Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing), Fabio Di Giannantonio (Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team) and Luca Marini (Repsol Honda Team) had a chat in Press Conference 2.

JORGE MARTIN (Prima Pramac Racing)
Buriram was one of your strongest weekends of the season last year, how confident are you to have the potential to repeat the treble again, and how big will that be for the World Championship?
“I’m happy that I’m still battling for this World Championship. I’m in a good moment as we come from Indonesia, Japan and Australia, which were all really good. Australia was really good, I wanted to win, but it was really difficult. I’m confident about this race, it will be really difficult and hot, and both Marc and Pecco will be really strong, so I think it will be a tough weekend.”

FRANCESCO BAGNAIA (Ducati Lenovo Team)
How important is it to not lose points to Jorge, and do you feel you can show your full potential this weekend?
“The ambition is to recover points and be competitive, we know that this track is better for me in terms of performance. I have always been on the podium at Phillip Island in the last three seasons, but I have not always been the fastest, and I have been struggling more or less every year and this year more. We went in the wrong direction on Saturday, and then it was a bit too late on Sunday, and these two guys were just faster. I had to slow down and just try and finish the race as I was struggling with the tyres. We arrive here at a track that I like and a track where our potential can be higher, and I love the layout, so hopefully we can have a good weekend.”

MARC MARQUEZ (Gresini Racing MotoGP™)
How high are expectations that you can be in the fight again, and do you expect it to be another last-lap decider?
“It will be difficult, especially because these two guys will put the level super high if you want to fight for victory. But we will try to continue our progress, the last races have been super good, we have been consistent and have been fast enough to fight for the podium, so let’s see if we can fight for the podium here.”

BRAD BINDER (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing)
What do you think is possible this weekend as we know it’s a track which has worked for KTM and yourself?
“I think this is a circuit which has worked well for us, not only last year but before that. In general, I feel pretty good, we come into this race quite prepared; we tried a few things at Phillip Island, and we have seemed to make some small steps forward. I am really looking forward to getting back on the bike here, and my goal will be to put a strong weekend together. It will be great to fight for the victory again, of course, that is my goal, and I am definitely planning on trying hard over the weekend to try and make up some of the difference.”

FABIO DI GIANNANTONIO (Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team)
How motivated and determined are you to end your season with another fight for the season?
“It was an amazing weekend for us at Phillip Island. It was fantastic to be back on the level that we showed until our crash in Austria this year, so I am super proud of our comeback. Also, there is a bit of sadness as I have never needed to end my season early or miss a few races due to injury in my career. I’m fully motivated to do a good job this weekend, I want to give my maximum for myself and the team, and it would be fantastic to end the season with a podium as I am also missing it from last year.”

LUCA MARINI (Repsol Honda Team)
Is it possible or realistic to be able to fight for the top 10 finish this weekend?
“I think we have to wait until Friday because every time that we are at a different track, we have to set up the bike and understand our performance in that situation. But we made a huge step forward in these last races. The bike has improved so much, and it is super nice to ride, but it is still missing some performance. This is a track which uses a lot of the bike’s power, and we need to understand the grip level. If we are able to find a good compromise in the bike, then we can try and pass through to Q2. This will be our first target, and then if you start from a good grid position, the race can be really positive.”