MotoGP, At Losail Vinales chases Sheene, Mamola and Middelburg's record

29 world titles will be on track. Such a number has never been seen in MotoGP until now, with the new season set to open this weekend at Losail. The spotlights will be focused on Maverick Vinales. The Spaniard, having won at Silverstone with the Suzuki, will not try with the Yamaha. Before him, only Barry Sheene, Randy Mamola and Jack Middelburg have seen success with the two Japanese manufacturers.

Don't forget about Jorge Lorenzo, who's triumphed in Qatar on six previous occasions (no-one has ever done any better). This weekend he will compete in his first race on the Ducati. The Borgo Panigale bike will be aiming for its fourth win at Losail with the Majorcan and Dovi. The same goes for the Hondas of Marc Marquez and Daniel Pedrosa. The record lies with Yamaha though, which has scored the win on seven occasions at the Qatari track.

Valentino Rossi knows this well, his last win dates back two years. If he were to finish top three again this year, the Doctor would become the most enduring podium-sitter ever after Jack Findlay, who won the Austrian GP in 1977. Marc Marquez is also chasing records. The Spaniard has clocked up 51 podiums in the reigning class, the same number as Criville and Schwantz. One more and he'd equal Gardner.