Qatar MotoGP: The biggest show on two wheels is set to begin

Riders strike a happy pose ahead of the MotoGP season opener in Qatar.

Bengaluru, March 8: The wait is over as the 2019 FIM MotoGP World Championship season is about to start under lights at the Losail International Circuit in Qatar on Sunday (March 10).

With close competition being the name of the game, reigning world champion Marc Marquez, 2018 runner-up Andrea Dovizioso, MotoGP legend Valentino Rossi, Jorge Lorenzo, Maverick Vinales, Alex Rins joined rookie Fabio Quartararo for the customary pre-season press conference.

The Qatar Grand Prix begins at 8pm local time (10.30pm IST). Riders are ready, so too the bikes..are you ready?

Close to 100 per cent

Marquez, who heads into the weekend after shoulder surgery over the winter break said that he was close to regaining full fitness.

"It's nice to start the season again and I'm happy because I already forgot my injury, the shoulder problems. I'm just focused on the race weekend, that is the most important and in my current condition I'm close to 100 per cent, so this is positive news for us."

2018 winner

One of his biggest competitors, Dovizioso, was up next and the 2018 Qatar winner echoed a few of those thoughts:

"Testing is difficult to analyse the level of the competitors because every rider works in a different way. So it's difficult and like Marc says, everybody will be quite fast here because of the three day test. But the race week is always different, so I'm not too worried about that."

Positive story

Lorenzo also thinks it's a more positive story in race trim. Breaking a scaphoid so close to the season opener hasn't been ideal - and after some injury problems to conclude the 2018 season, too - but he sounded upbeat.

"We've been a bit unlucky in the last six months, in the last six months I've never felt 100 per cent. Here let's try to finish the race as well as possible and take some points."

First day at school

Rossi, meanwhile, returned to the subject of close competition and the 'Doctor', who starts the season at 40 after the recent milestone, started on that.

"40-years-old, an important moment in my life! For the rest I feel good, it's like the first day at school. I hope to be there, I hope to be strong. Yamaha have been working hard during the winter and we hope to be stronger than last year."

Qatar MotoGP till 2031

An announcement was made just before the press conference that the Losail International Circuit, which hosts the only night race of the FIM calendar, has got a contract extension till 2031.

The Grand Prix of Qatar debuted on the calendar in 2004 and then became the sport's first-ever night race in 2008. More than a decade later the spectacular in the desert only continues going from strength to strength in unique, floodlit style - as it will until at least 2031.