The top 10 MotoGP riders of 2020

The 2020 season was a truly banner year for MotoGP, with nine riders winning races and a total of 15 riders scoring podiums in a campaign that very nearly didn't happen owing to the coronavirus crisis.

Five new faces etched themselves into the record books as winners, while injury for six-time world champion Marc Marquez opened the door for someone else to claim his throne.

In a season of wild inconsistency, Suzuki and Joan Mir prevailed to end a 20-year title wait for the Japanese manufacturer.

PLUS: How MotoGP's wildest season unearthed a new superstar

With a mix of factory and satellite riders finding success in 2020, and new machinery coming to the fore, narrowing down those who truly stood out was no easy task.

But, after much deliberating, Autosport has come up with its pick for the top 10 MotoGP riders of the 2020 season.

10. Brad Binder (KTM)

Championship position: 11th, 87 points
Wins: 1 (Czech GP)

The Moto2 runner-up from 2019, Binder's MotoGP promotion came under different circumstances than originally planned. Signing for Tech3 initially, Johann Zarco's departure left a vacancy KTM felt the South African could fill at its factory squad.

After a tough start to life in MotoGP, finishing the November post-season tests in 2019 at the bottom of the timesheets, Binder's step up in form coincided with that of the RC16's when testing resumed in February of 2020.

While many tipped Binder to do something special on the KTM in his first year, such was the 2016 Moto3 champion's reputation, few could have predicted just how quick he was in the opening rounds.

Although mistakes thwarted podium charges at the Jerez double-header, Binder stormed to a stunning maiden victory for himself and KTM in the Czech Grand Prix in just his third MotoGP race outing. KTM's decision to re-sign him for 2021 before he'd even raced was fully vindicated, even if he wouldn't scale the same heights as he did at Brno in the rest of the season.

Despite three DNFs costing him shots at strong results from the remaining races and only two further top five appearances, Binder still emerged from 2020 as rookie of the year.

Needing to step up in a big way in 2021 as he gets set to lead KTM alongside team-mate Miguel Oliveira, Binder's stunning debut season has done nothing to dispel thoughts the South African is a true star of the future.

What Binder said about his season

"It's funny, because you kind of lie in bed and think 'where did this all go wrong?' Because it seemed to not be easy, but everything just fell into place in the beginning. But I slowly started to realise that was the strange point of the year - winning was the strange point of my rookie year, not the crashing and making mistakes, riding into people, going off track.

"All of that is the natural point of your rookie year, so all in all I'm grateful I had the opportunity and took advantage when I did. I know it's going to happen again. I don't know when, but I'll get it right for sure. It's just a matter of time."

9. Maverick Vinales (Yamaha)

Championship position: 6th, 132 points
Wins: 1 (Emilia Romagna GP)

After a strong end to the 2019 season, the old Maverick Vinales who burst out of the gate with three victories from his first five races as a Yamaha rider back in 2017 looked like he was coming back in 2020 with a vengeance.

But from the off, he looked destined to play second-fiddle to Yamaha stablemate Fabio Quartararo after Vinales could do no more than trail him home in second in the opening Jerez races.

A rider ultra-sensitive to any changes in his bike, Vinales' season was thrown off the rails from the third round at Brno when the inconsistent performance of the 2020 M1 first reared its head.

Struggling with a now-traditional Yamaha issue of a lack of rear grip, Vinales was 14th and 10th at Brno and the Austrian GP, before a frightening brake failure in the second Red Bull Ring race that was of his own making - after ignoring advice from Brembo to run different brake material - gave him his only DNF of the year.

When all was perfect, Vinales was able to unleash his talent, picking up the pieces in the Emilia Romagna GP at Misano when Francesco Bagnaia crashed from the lead. But this would be the high point, Vinales seeing the top five just once more from the remaining seven rounds and his championship challenge disappearing.

That he finished top 2020 Yamaha rider in the standings highlighted his maturity more than anything, but there was little solace to take from what he branded as the "worst" season of his career.

What Vinales said about his season

"[I'm trying to keep] something positive inside myself [with this fact], but obviously it has been a total disaster season, my worst season of my career. So, it is hard to believe that, anyway now it is time to go home, stay calm and it is the other ones that have to worry about it."

8. Andrea Dovizioso (Ducati)

Championship position: 4th, 135 points
Wins: 1 (Austrian GP)

When Andrea Dovizioso and Ducati reflect on their 2020 season, they will see it as a huge missed opportunity, perhaps the biggest of Dovizioso's career.

With Marc Marquez ruled out through injury, the championship runner-up from the past three seasons would surely never be afforded a better chance to win the world title. But it was never to be.

The change in construction to Michelin's rear tyre for 2020 hit Dovizioso hard, the added grip from the new tyre stopping the 34-year-old from being able to ride the Ducati in the way he has done previously. Still, he managed to wrestle the GP20 to third in the Spanish GP and would claim victory in the first Red Bull Ring race just 24 hours after his Ducati exit for 2021 was confirmed.

Consistent top 10 finishes and just one DNF ensured Dovizioso remained in the title permutations until Joan Mir put his hands on the trophy at the penultimate round. But Dovizioso never considered himself a real threat, which was a sad comment from the man who'd been Marquez's nearest rival for so long.

He held onto fourth in the championship to cap off a disappointing year in which his relationship with Ducati had soured beyond repair.

PLUS: Why the Ducati-Dovizioso divorce was unavoidable

Heading into a sabbatical in 2021 and with no clear path back onto the grid full-time in 2022, this season isn't a fitting epitaph to Dovizioso's stellar career. But at least he was still able to show the class which carried him to title tilts from 2017-2019.

What Dovizioso said about his season

"At the end with the feeling I had in this season, to finish fourth is another confirmation my approach and my mentality about the championship works. But the feeling was not good to really fight for the championship, so [I'm] disappointed about that."

7. Jack Miller (Pramac Ducati)

Championship position: 7th, 132 points
Podiums: Four (Austrian GP 3rd, Styrian GP 3rd, Valencia GP 2nd, Portuguese GP 2nd)

The pressure was off Jack Miller's shoulders when racing finally got underway at Jerez in July, as the decision to promote him to the works Ducati squad from Pramac in 2021 had already been made.

PLUS: Why Miller's Ducati move completes MotoGP's changing of the guard

A strong fourth in the Spanish GP alongside Marc Marquez's injury gave him thoughts about a title tilt in 2020, but it never really materialised. Despite this, every race Miller finished was inside the top 10, four of those podiums.

That haul, though one less than he managed in 2019, could well have been higher had it not been for some woeful luck in the second half of the season. His Emilia Romagna GP ended early when a discarded visor tearoff belonging to Fabio Quartararo was hoovered up by his Ducati.

The rainfall ahead of the Le Mans race start forced him to switch to his second bike, which had developed an engine issue in warm-up and the team had no intention of it seeing race action. And he was wiped out by Brad Binder at the start of the Teruel GP.

Nevertheless, his back-to-back seconds in the final two rounds netted him his best championship positioning in MotoGP, seventh, and secured Ducati the constructors' championship - a fitting prologue ahead of his step up to the works squad.

Proving he can challenge for wins on the Ducati, Miller now has to prove he can see those challenges through next year.

What Miller said about his season

"I finish seven points off third with four DNFs, one I crashed. So, you know for sure a little ticked off about that but as I think everybody is this year. When you made a mistake as everyone has this year, you look at the points. To be able to get the constructors championship for Ducati is massive honour and pleasure for me. I'll take that.

"In a year like this we will take what we can get. No victory just yet, but we are getting there."

6. Miguel Oliveira (Tech3 KTM)

Championship position: 9th, 125 points
Wins: 2 (Styrian GP, Portuguese GP)

Miguel Oliveira was KTM's first choice to replace Johann Zarco for the 2020 season, but the Portuguese rider opted instead to continue his growth in MotoGP with the Tech3 squad.

It was a move which would prove inspired, as Oliveira sprung one of the surprises of the season by winning the Styrian GP with a last-corner move on Pol Espargaro and Jack Miller when both ran wide.

PLUS: Why Oliveira was right to pass on 2020 works KTM ride

It was clear from the beginning of the year Oliveira would be a factor for a podium at some stage, matching his best result from 2019 of eighth in the Spanish GP. That first podium may well have come at the Austrian GP had it not been for a collision with Espargaro, while a strong result in the second Jerez round went wanting when Brad Binder clattered into him at the start.

He would breach the top six five times in the next nine races following his Styria win, before dominating from pole at his home round in Portugal for a second MotoGP victory that proved his Austria success was no fluke.

Chosen to lead KTM alongside Binder in 2021, Oliveira's charge to ninth in the standings with Tech3 this season has set him up to be a major player in the title battle in his third season in the premier class.

What Oliveira said about his season

"It's quite a close championship. I think this season we have seen a different kind of format of races, but also different kind of competitiveness in terms of riders and also teams. You could see now factory and satellite teams winning races, being on the podium and it becomes a lot more unpredictable to manage the race weekends.

"One thing is for sure you need to be on your best every time and I predict next year it's going to be even harder to stand out and beat the leader."

5. Fabio Quartararo (Petronas SRT Yamaha)

Championship position: 8th, 127 points
Wins: 3 (Spanish GP, Andalusian GP, Catalan GP)

Despite 2020 being just his second season in MotoGP, Fabio Quartararo's run to seven podiums in his debut campaign last year meant few ruled him out of being a player for the championship.

And when Marc Marquez was ruled out through injury, Quartararo became the firm favourite, his back-to-back wins at Jerez to end a 21-year drought for French riders in the premier class doing nothing to sway opinion.

But much like Yamaha stablemate Maverick Vinales, Quartararo's season was thrown off by the inconsistency of the 2020 M1. In fact, Quartararo admitted at the end of the year he never felt like the 2020 M1 was his from the moment he rode it in testing.

PLUS: How Quartararo plans to bounce back from 2020 struggles

Not seeing the top five again until the Emilia Romagna GP, where he was demoted from the podium owing to a track limits penalty, Quartararo held onto his championship lead having briefly lost it to Andrea Dovizioso after crashing out of the first Misano race.

Winning the Catalan GP and set for a repeat at Le Mans before rain fell for the start, which relegated him from pole to ninth in his first wet MotoGP race, Quartararo's run in to the end of the campaign from this point was truly awful.

Knocked from his championship lead after a career-worst 18th in the Aragon GP, Quartararo slipped to eighth in the standings as he struggled to find a way to turn the troubled M1 around.

Yamaha's factory line-up for 2021 had its confidence battered in 2020, but Quartararo proved when the M1 was working his 2019 heroics were no fluke. He just needs a better bike to be able to consistently show that next year.

What Quartararo said about his season

"It's hurting a lot - I'm not happy about my season. Of course, when everything is going well, everything is perfect. But, unfortunately, Le Mans was already a track where the bike was straight away perfect, we could fight for the win [but it rained and he was ninth]. But it's a win or nothing, or we are super-good or we are super lost."

4. Pol Espargaro (KTM)

Championship position: 5th, 135 points
Podiums: 5 (Styrian GP 3rd, Emilia Romagna GP 3rd, French GP 3rd, European GP 3rd, Valencia GP 3rd)

Pol Espargaro's season may largely have been dominated by the news of his signing for Honda for the 2021 season, but the Spaniard's final campaign on the KTM he has piloted since the marque's debut in 2017 was one which proved his status as one of MotoGP's elite runners.

PLUS: Why Espargaro faces Marquez with no fear at Honda

Although sixth would remain his best result from the first four rounds, Espargaro had shown pace enough for the podium in all of them - with KTM's famous day at Brno so very nearly being his but for a collision with Johann Zarco.

Victory also could have been his at the Styrian GP had his KTM crew given him more accurate information on his pitboard on the gap to Jack Miller, stopping him from unnecessarily defending his line into Turn 3 on the final lap.

Ending his time at KTM without a victory was of little consequence to Espargaro, who said his run of five podiums and march to fifth in the championship (equal on points with Andrea Dovizioso) was something KTM could only dream about pre-season.

Generally consistent throughout 2020, the narrow working window of the RC16 and its need to use the harder front tyre compounds meant his form dipped at several races, with a few mistakes denying him additional strong results.

But moving onto his toughest challenge in MotoGP with Honda, Espargaro has shown he's up to the task, while KTM's results in 2020 prove HRC was right to secure his signature as it looks to end its barren run next year.

What Espargaro said about his season

"What I miss was that race in the Czech Republic, to finish it, because I think I was very strong and I had big chance to win that race. But apart from that, no regrets.

"I gave my all and if the win didn't come, it's because I didn't deserve it or because I didn't make the correct move in the time I needed to. I had it many times, just that time [at Brno] it was out of our hands, but the last two times [in the Austria races] where we could fight for the win it was our problem, our mistakes that makes us not win. So, no regrets. I'm pleased with myself and super-happy with what I achieved in the end."

3. Alex Rins (Suzuki)

Championship position: 3rd, 139 points
Wins: 1 (Aragon GP)

Alex Rins came into the 2020 MotoGP season as a proven winner in the premier class, following his stellar victories against Valentino Rossi and Marc Marquez at COTA and Silverstone in 2019. And after a strong pre-season on the evolved GSX-RR, the Spaniard's name was being bandied about as a real title threat.

But a crash in qualifying for the opener at Jerez left him with a broken and dislocated shoulder, and this would ultimately cost him a chance of the championship.

Missing the Jerez opener, he gritted his teeth in the oppressive heat of the Andalusian GP to finish 10th a week later and was narrowly denied a podium at Brno. Still suffering from a lack of power in his shoulder in the following races, Rins finally broke through to the rostrum at the Catalan GP.

A crash at Le Mans had thrown away a nailed on second, but he made amends at Aragon when he fended of Alex Marquez to take the win. Two more seconds followed to keep his slim title hopes alive, but a tricky finale in Portugal where he slipped back to 15th with a tyre issue meant third in the standings was all he could manage in the end.

It's easy to say in retrospect, but Rins' injury really did cost him dear when you consider his results in the second half of the season. Errors in Austria when he crashed having just taken the lead and his Le Mans tumble showed he still has some kinks to iron out, but there's no reason Suzuki won't have two title hopefuls in its ranks in 2021.

What Rins said about his season

"I keep the effort that I put in after the injury. I have learned to fight and the bad times we have experienced in that part of the championship have made me much stronger. What I would change is some of the crashes we suffered at Le Mans and Austria, it was the most painful.

"Personally, I would put an 8.5 for the season, we have managed to improve the final result, which was the fourth last year. I don't give myself a 10 because that would have been the runner-up, and we haven't achieved it."

2. Franco Morbidelli (Petronas SRT Yamaha)

Championship position: 2nd, 158 points
Wins: 3 (San Marino GP, Teruel GP, Valencia GP)

Few would have predicted Franco Morbidelli to emerge from 2020 as Yamaha's top rider - not least the manufacturer itself, who opted in the pre-season to strip him of the factory bike he was meant to race in favour of the 'A-spec' machine, essentially the 2019 M1.

Admitting to feeling like the "lowest rated" rider within Yamaha's ranks, Morbidelli was ultimately its strongest. A fifth in Spain was a solid start, while a maiden podium was on the cards in the second Jerez race before an engine issue killed his hopes.

Getting to the rostrum in second at Brno while the other Yamahas struggled was indicative of what was to follow, although he was lucky to still have a season after a horrifying crash with Johann Zarco in the Austrian GP.

Rattled by this, Morbidelli responded emphatically at the San Marino GP with his first win. Two more would follow, Morbidelli having a controlled romp in the Teruel round and winning a last-lap thriller against Jack Miller in the Valencia GP.

Claiming third in the finale was enough to secure him runner-up sport in the championship, an amazing achievement when you consider the high mileage forced on his engines owing to Yamaha's well-publicised mistake with its valves leaving Morbidelli pretty much only able to use two following the Spanish GP.

And ultimately, it was Yamaha's fragile engines which cost him the title, as the fourth he was running in at the Andalusian GP before his late retirement would have netted him the 13 points which split him from champion Joan Mir - with Morbidelli's three wins to the Suzuki rider's one being enough to break the points deadlock.

PLUS: How Yamaha's MotoGP engine woes haunted it in Portugal

That Morbidelli remains on the 'A-spec' M1 for 2021 is as baffling as Yamaha's problems with its 2020 bike, but the Italian's growth this season will almost certainly have forced the Japanese marque's management to reconsider where it ranks Morbidelli within its roster.

What Morbidelli said about his season

"Huge congratulations to the team, huge thanks to Yamaha as well, who supplied me with a good package, even though I can't hide that I was feeling maybe the fourth strongest [in Yamaha] this year. In the beginning of the year we were able to exploit the maximum from what we had and actually it came out very good, very well.

"We did a very good job. It's definitely a year I'm going to remember and it's definitely a year where I learned a lot. I learned that putting work in pays off."

1. Joan Mir (Suzuki)

Championship position: 1st, 171 points
Wins: 1 (European GP)

Not even Suzuki was expecting Joan Mir to battle for the title in his second season in MotoGP, and after the first three rounds having crashed out of two of them, few considered him much of a threat.

A maiden podium in the Austrian GP when he pipped Jack Miller to second ultimately set the ball rolling for a sensational run that would take him to championship glory.

With consistency missing from almost all of the major title players, Mir and Suzuki just chipped away from round to round. Fourth at the Styrian GP was unrepresentative, as he was on course for a comfortable win before a red flag period. But he rebounded with third at the first Misano round and a brace of seconds in the Emilia Romagna and Catalan races.

A first wet race in MotoGP for Mir halted his rostrum run at Le Mans, where he was 11th. But two thirds at Aragon as nearest rival Fabio Quartararo started to crumble put him into the lead in the standings, with a well-timed first win at the European GP all but sealing the deal.

Although he struggled in a "nightmare" Valencia GP to seventh, it was still enough for Mir to end Suzuki's 20-year wait for another premier class title.

PLUS: How Mir became Suzuki's humble MotoGP hero

Claims of illegitimacy to his crown were floated around owing to Marc Marquez's absence. Though both Mir and Marquez dismissed these, you only have to look at the way the last two titles were won to banish these claims entirely. Marquez was top two in all but one race in 2019, and Mir proved the most consistent in 2020 with the most podiums of any rider with seven.

If consistency is a Marquez trait, we can safely say Mir 'did a Marquez' in 2020.

Fully admitting he and Suzuki need to take a step forward in 2021 if it wants to fight Marquez (assuming he is back from injury, and so far it's unlikely we'll see him at the start of the season), Mir proved in 2020 that the rest should be extremely worried regardless if this season was simply just a glimpse of what the 23-year-old is capable of.

What Mir said about his world championship win

"Unbelievable. In five years, I have two titles. When I won the title in Moto3, I said 'I have to celebrate in a good way because maybe it will be the last one'. And now to have the second one, it's unbelievable and also with Suzuki because when I signed the contract with them, this was the first thing that happened on my mind that I remember.

"I said 'OK, maybe with the other manufacturers I get the title, but I will be one more who gets the title'. It would be super nice, but with Suzuki you are a boss, you become a legend if you get the title.

"Two years later... on my mind, I go to Suzuki and maybe the first years will not be easy. But then at the end we can have the chance to fight for the victory one day for sure. But then to have the title in the second year is a good beginning. Also I have two years more on my contract, which means this was a project for a lot of years and now to go to those two years with the title is not the same."

Honourable mentions

The 2020 MotoGP season was full of star performers, Honda rookie Alex Marquez amongst them under exceedingly trying circumstances. The difficulties of the 2020 RC213V in the pre-season bled into the start of the season, but Marquez still managed solid points-paying results in the opening four rounds.

A mid-season breakthrough with the bike at Misano gave way to back-to-back second-place finishes at Le Mans and Aragon, with the latter coming as he piled pressure on Rins for the win. Now in the slightly less frenzied surroundings of LCR for 2021, Marquez looks like he'll be bothering the podium more next year. As will LCR team-mate Takaaki Nakagami, whose consistent top six appearances and occasional podium charges were enough to secure him factory-supported machinery for next season.

Ducati has bolstered its line-up with exciting talent, Francesco Bagnaia stepping up to the factory squad in 2021. An early-season injury and a dip in form in the latter part meant Bagnaia remained largely anonymous on results sheets, but there were still flashes of genuine brilliance.

A mechanical issue robbed him of a podium in the Andalusian GP, while a crash leading the Emilia Romagna GP late on proved costly. However, he did get to the podium with a run to second in the San Marino GP, earning his factory promotion alongside Jack Miller.

Johann Zarco steps into Bagnaia's place at Pramac, completing his rise from a broken KTM rider in the middle of 2019 back to factory status. Sceptical of his Avintia move at first, Zarco assuaged all self-doubt with a charge to pole and the podium in third at the Czech GP.

PLUS: How Ducati rebuilt Zarco into a factory MotoGP rider

He wouldn't scale those heights again, but a smattering of decent results in the latter stages showed the old Zarco who won two titles in Moto2 and scored six podiums on a Tech3 Yamaha is slowly starting to reappear.

Valentino Rossi's final season as a factory Yamaha rider was hardly a fond farewell, as three DNFs in a row from Misano to Barcelona preceded a two-race layoff with COVID-19. But third in the Andalusian heat at the second round and a podium charge in Barcelona before his crash showed there's life in the old warhorse yet and justified his decision to extend his career into 2021 with Yamaha and SRT.

PLUS: Why MotoGP's ageing rock star isn't clinging to the limelight

Hampered by the change in rear tyre construction just like his Ducati team-mate, Danilo Petrucci's second year as a works team rider for the Italian marque was disappointing. But his stunning wet-weather win at Le Mans showed he'd not lost any of his class, and he will be a strong asset to KTM when he joins Tech3 next season.