Portuguese rider Miguel Oliveira will compete in his final MotoGP Portuguese Grand Prix this weekend, marking an end to his tenure in motorcycle racing’s premier class at his home circuit.
Oliveira, 30, is set to transition to the World Superbikes series with BMW beginning in 2026 after seven seasons in MotoGP. This weekend’s race in Portimão represents his last appearance at the home event in the top-tier championship.
The event takes place at the Algarve International Circuit (AIA), a track that has delivered both significant triumph and unfortunate incidents for the Portuguese rider.
Oliveira famously secured victory at the inaugural MotoGP race held at AIA in 2020. He started from pole position and led every lap of the race.
However, the circuit has also been a source of injury and crashes for him. In 2023, he suffered his first injury of the season at AIA after being involved in a collision at the start of the race.
Oliveira has accumulated five MotoGP victories and seven podium finishes across 115 starts in the category. His wins include races in Styria, Algarve, Catalonia, Indonesia, and Thailand.
Despite his 2020 victory, he experienced a challenging 2021 at AIA, crashing in both races hosted there that year. He later achieved a fifth-place finish at the circuit in 2022.
His 2023 season was severely impacted by a right shoulder ligament injury sustained in Argentina. The injury forced him to miss multiple races and affected his performance throughout the first half of the season.
This downturn in performance led his satellite Yamaha team to activate a clause in his contract, allowing his early release from an agreement that was initially set to run until 2026.
This weekend, Oliveira will ride for Yamaha, having previously competed with KTM and Aprilia at the Portuguese circuit.
He is one of only four riders to have secured a victory at the AIA circuit. Others include Fabio Quartararo, Francesco Bagnaia, and Jorge Martin.
The Portuguese Grand Prix is the 21st of 22 rounds in the MotoGP World Championship season. Racing takes place from Friday to Sunday.
Seven-time MotoGP champion Marc Márquez, who was involved in the collision with Oliveira at AIA in 2023, is absent from this year’s race due to injury. Jorge Martin, a 2024 champion, is also out due to injury.