FERNANDEZ EXPECTS EMOTION AT PHILLIP ISLAND’S FINAL MOTOGP

Raul Fernandez expects an emotional weekend as MotoGP makes its final visit to Phillip Island before the Australian Grand Prix moves to Adelaide in 2027. The Trackhouse rider won his first premier-class race at the circuit last year, and says the farewell will mean more than simply revisiting that breakthrough moment.

“Yes, I will cry a little bit,” Fernandez said. “Not because I got my first MotoGP victory here but also because I always enjoy it a lot coming here to Phillip Island — it is super nice.” He added that the venue has produced memorable racing across MotoGP, Moto2 and Moto3, and is “a track that everybody will miss a little bit.”

His clearest memory of the 2025 victory is the final corner, where he saw his team and thought, “we made it.” Fernandez took the lead after Marco Bezzecchi began serving a pair of long-lap penalties, then held off Pedro Acosta, Alex Marquez and Fabio di Giannantonio to secure the win for himself and Trackhouse’s first in MotoGP.

Fernandez arrives in Australia after a landmark Indonesian Grand Prix weekend. He claimed his first MotoGP pole position at Mandalika and finished second in the race despite a broken finger, sustained in a Sprint collision with Bezzecchi. Trackhouse team principal Davide Brivio said the team hopes the injury will not limit Fernandez and that he can contend for victory. Brivio called Phillip Island special for Trackhouse because of last year’s win, and said the squad was heading there encouraged by strong results in Indonesia.

Aprilia’s form will also draw attention. Bezzecchi and Fernandez both reached the podium at Phillip Island last year, and the manufacturer was again strong in Indonesia. Asked why the bike suits the fast, flowing circuit, Fernandez pointed to its “very good stability in the fast corners.”

Team-mate Ai Ogura is looking for a much stronger result than his 13th place in 2025. That was his rookie season, and the race came just after an injury. “Going to Phillip Island and to race there would have never been easy,” he said. With a year of MotoGP experience behind him, Ogura hopes that familiarity will help him improve. He arrives after contributing to Aprilia’s historic top-four sweep at Mandalika.

Brivio said Ogura had produced a strong Indonesian weekend despite crashes and difficulties, and that Trackhouse would aim to repeat the approach that worked there. The team, he said, was travelling to Phillip Island “full of hope” and seeking the best possible result.