No rider has won more times at this weekend’s venue for the Spanish Grand Prix than Valentino Rossi. The Italian legend claimed victory at Jerez on seven occasions, setting a benchmark that remains unmatched. Right behind him is Mick Doohan with four grand prix wins – a tally Marc Marquez and Francesco Bagnaia aim to equal this weekend.
The Spanish Grand Prix was first held at Jerez on 26 April, 1987 – exactly 38 years ago this Saturday. Since then, the Andalusian track – which opened in 1985 – has hosted the Spanish GP every year. Its total of 39 MotoGP grands prix also includes the double-header in 2020, when the pandemic reshaped the calendar and Fabio Quartararo won both events for Yamaha. Those July races – the second was named the Andalusian GP – were also the only occasions when MotoGP’s Jerez trip was not in the European springtime.
Rossi, who remains the undisputed king of Jerez, first triumphed in 2001, the final season of the 500cc era. This launched a hat-trick of wins from 2001 to 2003. After switching from Honda to Yamaha in 2004, he was narrowly beaten by Sete Gibernau. But the following year, Rossi secured an iconic win by diving past Gibernau at the final corner – a move that has since become part of MotoGP folklore.
The man who had famously run into a portable toilet on a Jerez victory lap during his 250cc days went on to win again in 2007 and 2009. Then, after a seven-year drought, Rossi returned to the top step of the podium in 2016 with a masterclass in slippery conditions, finishing 2.4 seconds ahead of Jorge Lorenzo and more than seven ahead of Marquez.
Doohan, second on the Jerez all-time winners list, conquered the circuit in 1991, 1992, 1994 and 1996. His dominance was interrupted by Kevin Schwantz in 1993 and Alberto Puig – now HRC’s team manager – in 1995. Alex Criville then took up the torch for Spain, winning three consecutive times from 1997 to 1999.
Mick Doohan and Alex Criville, Repsol Honda
Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images
Criville’s fierce rivalry with Doohan, particularly as Honda team-mates, added drama to the late ’90s. That was most evident in the 1996 Spanish GP, when Criville was leading until a premature track invasion by fans robbed Criville of a likely Jerez breakthrough and handed victory to the Australian. Sadly, Jerez would also mark the end of Doohan’s career when he fell in practice for the 1999 edition.
Besides Criville, four other riders boast three Jerez wins. Two of them – Dani Pedrosa (2008, 2013, 2017) and Jorge Lorenzo (2010, 2011, 2015) – are now retired. Lorenzo’s 2010 win was especially memorable, as he jumped into the circuit’s lake to celebrate, nearly drowning in the process.
The other two three-time winners are current factory Ducati riders – Marquez and ‘Pecco’ Bagnaia. Marquez claimed his first Jerez victory in 2014 and added two more in 2018 and 2019, all with Honda. His 2020 campaign started with the first of those ‘pandemic summer’ fixtures at Jerez but ended prematurely due to a right-arm injury sustained at the opening race.
Since then, Ducati has taken over Jerez, at least on Sundays. A track where the Bologna factory had only one previous win (Capirossi, 2006) has become red territory (though Brad Binder won the 2023 sprint there for KTM). Jack Miller started the streak in 2021, followed by Bagnaia’s dominance in 2022, 2023 and 2024 – with last year’s duel against Marquez going down as one of the all-time greats.
This Sunday marks 40 years since the circuit opened, 38 years of MotoGP racing at the venue, and the 39th grand prix at the track. And once again, the spotlight is on Ducati’s leading duo, who will both attempt to match Doohan’s tally and inch closer to Rossi’s legendary record at the Andalusian circuit.
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