It's time to take stock! As every year for the past three years, Let's talk MotoGP is embarking on a rather important undertaking: taking stock of each driver at the end of the 2024 season, today it's Alex Rins' turn. For a good part of the winter, we'll be going back up the rankings, until we're talking in detail about the world champion's campaign. Are you ready? Let's go!
Yesterday we returned to the case of Takaaki Nakagami ; Click here to find this episode.
Broken
The case of Alex Rins is quite problematic. Rarely have we seen such a decline in just a few years., and contrary to what the statistics suggest, he is not entirely responsible for what is happening to him. From a double winner at the end of the 2022 season, Rins became a notorious injured rider at Honda LCR (but still a winner). Then, hired by the official Yamaha team, he did nothing all season long, except, as usual, a quick visit to the infirmary.
Alex Rins was one of my favorite drivers a few years ago, one of the ones I have supported for a long time. I loved watching him fight against Johann Zarco and Tom Lüthi in Moto2. However, this year I didn't recognize him. Everything seemed difficult with Alex, from its approach to its results.

One word to describe Rins: decadence. Photo: Yamaha MotoGP
Physically broken from the start of the season, he was never able to adapt to his YZR-M1. By the end, he was unrecognizable, as if he had aged ten years in three years. In fact, he just got old, a disease that affects us all.. At 29 years old, he is no longer in the category of young people who can reshuffle the cards, who can explode, or make a race weekend explode. I think this year has made me understand that, unfortunately.
Disappointing results… when he is there
As proof that I still believed in it, I imagined him competing with Fabio Quartararo in a few races; which, strangely, was the case at the start of the season. But once the Frenchman got the measure of his new mount, it was over. Besides, it's not as if the Spaniard's brilliant performances materialized in the form of smashing entries into the top 5 as he used to do in the past. No, in reality, he has never done better than eighth in 2024. Overall, he finished the year in 18th place in the general classification, with 31 points scored in 17 Grands Prix.. It's a little less races contested than Augusto Fernandez, but it's the same total.
His year 2023, short but marked by a resounding success in the United States, told me he would quickly adapt to the Yamaha. Sadly, he came at a critical time for the Iwata firm. In his defense, Quartararo and Yamaha have just had their worst season ever as well, so it would be dishonest not to acknowledge some mitigating circumstances for a rider, especially one who is so often injured.
Of course, his absences are not detrimental but they leave a bitter taste. It's the same thing every year, and I understand that it can wear down some spectators, who, in addition, notice that he comes back each time less strong than before. There is a proverb frequently used in the United States that perfectly suits his profile: “Availability is the best ability” understand "availability is the best ability". And Rins doesn't have it, that's a fact, whether we like it or not, whether it's detrimental or not. The worst, it's just that it doesn't fall much! With only ten shredded leathers, he is 15th in the 2024 falls rankings.

I think what hurts me the most is not having seen it. Photo: Yamaha MotoGP
Conclusion
Long story short, Alex Rins disappointed me, like many of you I think. He was unable to compete with Quartararo when the latter found some speed in the second half of the season, and was absent for three more rounds; which is not much – even for him – but already too much. We imagined him to be more explosive, more crazy, but that was not the case. To tell the truth, he did nothing special, apart from a few qualifications in Q2. His extremely discreet year contrasts with his character, but we will have to get used to it, I'm afraid of it.
I'm curious what you thought of Alex Rins' campaign, then, tell me in comments.
As a reminder, this article only reflects the thoughts of its author, and not of the entire editorial team.

Can he do better next year? It's hard to do worse, but... Photo: Yamaha MotoGP
Cover photo: Yamaha MotoGP