Can anyone stop Jorge Lorenzo? That is the one question on everyone's mind as MotoGP heads to Catalunya.
The Movistar Yamaha rider has won the last three races in a row, and has looked simply untouchable.
Lorenzo has three premier class victories to his name at the Circuit de Barcelona, which will host the seventh round of the 2015 MotoGP World Championship, but finished just off the podium in last year's race (fourth).
Lorenzo's teammate and current points leader Valentino Rossi is the most successful rider at the Barcelona track ever since it was introduced to the calendar in 1992, with nine victories to his name across all classes. However, his last win at the track came back in 2009, with the Italian finishing second in the race last year, just 0.5 seconds behind winner Marc Marquez.
Rossi has not finished off the podium yet this season, but if he is to stop Lorenzo's charge, he must improve in qualifying. Rossi has effectively been giving Lorenzo a head start in recent races due to his poor qualifying performances, and will need to address this is if he wants to win his 10th title this year.
Marquez is facing the biggest crisis of his career so far after another nightmare weekend in Mugello which saw him take no points for second time this year. The Spaniard has identified a number of issues with his RC213V, as it appears his team has been treading water while his rivals have made giant strides. Marquez will be hoping to turn his season around in front of his passionate home support and reduce the 49-point gap to Rossi in the championship standings. Teammate Dani Pedrosa finished a comfortable fourth in Mugello, and will be confident of a good result in a race where he has not finished off the podium since 2011.
Ducati Team's Andrea Iannone will be looking to build on his first MotoGP pole position, and his best ever race result (second) last time out in Mugello. The Italian has had an extra two weeks to recover from the arm injury that was affecting him in Italy, and has won at the Barcelona circuit before in Moto2 (2012).
Teammate Andrea Dovizioso will be looking to bounce back after he was forced to retire from the Italian Grand Prix with a rear sprocket issue. He has tasted success at the Circuit de Barcelona before, winning the 2006 250cc race and finishing third on the Tech 3 Yamaha in MotoGP in 2012. Dovizioso has stood on the podium in four of the six races so far this season, and is currently third in the title standings, 25 points behind Rossi.
Team Suzuki Ecstar have announced they will be bringing an engine update to the Catalan Grand Prix, which will come as an added bonus to riders Aleix Espargaro and Maverick Vinales, who both felt they made a major breakthrough in their chassis setups in Italy. Espargaro will continue his recovery from ligament surgery he had on his right thumb while Vinales will be looking to follow up his best-ever MotoGP result last time out at Mugello (seventh).
The battle for the top Satellite rider took a further twist in Italy, as CWM LCR Honda's Cal Crutchlow crashed out of the race with just three laps to go, allowing compatriot Bradley Smith to cross the line in fifth and open up a 10-point lead in the Satellite championship fight. Crutchlow dislocated his ankle in the crash, and will have to pass a medical inspection by before he can race.
Pol Espargaro closed the gap to Crutchlow to just two points, as he followed teammate Smith home in sixth in Italy. Meanwhile, Scott Redding knows he needs to show his true potential on the Factory Spec RC213V after another finish outside the top 10 last time out.
The Monster Energy Catalan Grand Prix officially starts with the press conference on Thursday at 11 a.m. ET, while on-track action kicks off on Friday at 3:55 a.m. ET.
