When there are two rounds left to the end of the MotoGP season Jorge Martin leads the standings with a 17-point lead over Pecco Bagnaia, and as early as next weekend the battle between the two could conclude in his favor.
But what does Prima Pramac's Spaniard need to do secure his first trophy in the top class in advance? To become champion as early as Malaysia, the future Aprilia rider will have to score a total of at least 20 points more than the Italian.
We certainly will not see him celebrating in the Sprint Race even if he crosses the finish line first as there are only 12 points up for grabs.
It must be said that in the event of a tied finish on points at the end of the year the World Championship would be awarded to the two-time world champion, this is because compared to the 26-year-old he has won more Grands Prix, in Buriram we are at 9 against 3.
Unfortunately for fans of Pecco, this is going to be quite a challenging task, as it will not even be enough for him to win the two Sprints and the two GPs to get the better of Jorge should his opponent always arrive at the checkered flag in second place.
In that case it would be the Spaniard to triumph albeit by a single point with a total haul of 511 (the current 453 added to 58 for the second places), compared to his rival's 510 (today's 436, to which the 74 for the eventual successes should be added).
What the recent Thailand round has ruled out, however, is the possible inclusion in the battle of Marc Marquez and Enea Bastianini, who both crashed on Sunday and then returned to the race to finish 11th and 14th.
They currently have 355 and 345 points respectively in the overall standings.
