MotoGp

16th February 2019

It will come to an end, but not yet

Valentino Rossi turns 40 today, and in a few weeks will embark on his 24th season in Grand Prix racing, his twentieth in the premier class. Since 1996, Rossi has won 115 Grands Prix, 9 world titles, ridden for four different manufacturers, raced in each of the four iterations of the premier class (500cc, 990cc, 800cc, 1000cc), seen regulations change and evolve, and witnessed the entire face of racing morph into a wholly professional franchise which is as much a business as it is a sport.

In spite of the vast changes which have occurred in the racing scene in the past quarter-century, Rossi has managed to maintain his grip on the top of two-wheeled sport, both on track and off it.

In 2013, Valentino Rossi moved back to Yamaha after a couple of difficult seasons with Ducati, in which he managed only three podiums aboard the Desmosedici, and no wins. The first season back with Yamaha was mostly disappointing, scoring only one win – at Assen – and consistently being the slowest of the four Japanese factory riders, behind teammate Jorge Lorenzo, 2013 World Champion Marc Marquez and one of the first riders to receive some sort of racing tutorage from Rossi, Dani Pedrosa.

Valentino Rossi with his 2019 Yamaha YZR-M1. Image courtesy of Yamaha

This sparked a revolution for Rossi. The then-35-year-old decided to formalise his rider training with fellow Italians Franco Morbidelli and Andrea Migno into what is now the VR46 Rider Academy, and to it he signed many more riders, such as Lorenzo Baldassarri, and Romano Fenati and Francesco Bagnaia, who would be the riders in the Sky Racing Team VR46 squad for its maiden campaign in the Moto3 World Championship.

The Doctor also underwent a transformation on track, himself. From 2014 preseason testing it was clear that the Italian was playing with his riding style, moving his body around the bike in a way more associated with the young riders – like the ones he was signing to the Academy – not one who had nine world titles and a thirty-five-year-old body. In addition to this, there was a new crew chief in the #46 box, as Silvano Galbusuera replaced Jeremy Burgess, who had been ever-present in Rossi’s garage since the Italian’s debut in the premier class in 2000. It was this on-track, in-garage transformation that catalysed Rossi’s impressive 2014 season, in which he won two races – Misano and Phillip Island – and finished second in the championship behind a dominant Marc Marquez.

2014 lay the foundations for what was a spectacular title fight in 2015 between Rossi and Jorge Lorenzo, who went head-to-head for the first time since 2009 for a MotoGP World Championship title. Whilst the final result of the championship did not go the way of the Italian – thanks to a situation which occurred largely of his own volition – 2015 showed Rossi still has the capability to fight for a World Championship.

2016, ’17 and ’18 followed similar paths, with Rossi evolving his style each year and, whilst he went winless last year, he ended the championship in third place behind champion Marquez and Andrea Dovizioso, both of whom had unquestionably superior machinery.

With Rossi now into his fortieth year, and 24th of racing grand prix bikes, it remains to be seen whether he can muster another championship assault, but there is little doubt that The Doctor will have been working on evolving himself over the winter in preparation for this season to remain in the front fight. Forgetting numbers, Rossi’s ability to stay competitive year on year, suffering few injuries and seemingly ignoring age, is perhaps his greatest achievement.

10th February 2019

MotoGP Sepang Test: Ducati Fastest, Yamaha Improving, Suzuki Contending, Marquez Hiding

MotoGP 2019 testing got underway this week and, as ever, was full of intrigue, with rookies impressing and factories unveiling some interesting innovations, visible and otherwise.

It was Ducati who ended the test on top, with a lockout of the top four on the final day, including a new unofficial track record for Danilo Petrucci with a 1’58.239, over half a second clear of Jorge Lorenzo’s previous track record from the Sepang test last year, and interestingly set without the FUBAR rear brake attachment. That lap from Lorenzo just over one year ago was performed on an early version of the Ducati GP18, the bike from which Pecco Bagnaia’s bike for 2019 is derived (Bagnaia is riding the latest version of the GP18, from the 2018 Valencia GP), and with that bike Bagnaia managed to go just 0.063 seconds shy of Petrucci’s time. Whilst Bagnaia was keen to play himself down, emphasising that he needs to work on his race pace this early speed is surely a positive sign going forward.

Danilo Petrucci & Andrea Dovizioso at Sepang circuit in 2019 preseason testing. Image courtesy of Ducati

Ducati brought out some interesting things on the second two days of the test, with Andrea Dovizioso – who ended up fourth on the final day behind Jack Miller who was third – debuting a handlebar widget on the second day, thought to be a ‘holeshot device’ the compresses the front suspension on starts to decrease wheelie when launching. On the final day we saw Ducati’s new aero fairing, a three-winged affair which was destroyed on his first lap out of the pits by Danilo Petrucci. Dovizioso suffered no similar fate, but Ducati will be after more data, of course, in Qatar in a few days’ time.

Maverick Vinales was the best non-Ducati rider on the final day of the test – 0.4 seconds from Petrucci – after topping day two. Despite his deficit to the headline time, the consensus amongst the riders seems to be that Vinales is one of – if not the – strongest on pace from this test, and this supports his positive view of Yamaha’s winter development.

Valentino Rossi’s report is less extreme but positive nonetheless, the Italian encouraged by the signs he sees from Yamaha itself, sensing that the factory is keen to return to the front on a regular basis this season. But still, The Doctor wants more from Yamaha, he doesn’t feel he has enough to win at the moment.

Valentino Rossi on the YZR-M1 at Sepang preseason testing.
Image courtesy of Yamaha Motor Racing Srl

Across both factoy riders and Petronas SRT pilot Franco Morbidelli, the main complaint remains acceleration, with all three feeling they are still losing out on corner exit, especially in comparison with the Ducatis.

Most of the new additions to the M1 in this test were internal, and the riders were mostly reluctant to speak about that which we could not see. One thing which was visible on the M1 in Sepang was a new fairing, which came out of the box on Friday. Like Ducati, Yamaha will be after confirmation on their findings from Sepang in the final preseason test in Qatar, and Rossi confessed it is unlikely there will be anything new to try between now and March 10.

There were only two Hondas in the top ten on the final day in Malaysia, the LCR machines of Cal Crutchlow (6th, +0.541) and Takaaki Nakagami (9th, +0.909), whilst Marc Marquez could only manage 11th, 0.931 seconds off Petrucci.

After topping the first day with alarming speed and consistency, the blistering speed largely deserted Marquez for the remainder of the test, as he tried to evaluate the new items Honda had brought to Sepang despite his weakened physical condition.

It was always set up to be a tough test for Honda with three of their five riders injured, and Jorge Lorenzo to such an extent that he was absent, all of which made the work of Stefan Bradl all the more crucial, as the German test rider focussed largely on long runs. Despite their difficulties, which will largely remain unalleviated in Qatar (both for the test and the race), the feeling is the Honda is ready for winning, and the onus is still very much on the opposition to Marquez to make as much advantage in this period where he is not at 100%.

A twelfth place for Alex Rins on the third day seems initially quite underwhelming, but looking at the average times of all the riders, it is #42 who comes out on top. Suzuki had their engine design confirmed for 2019 before Sepang, so the test in Malaysia was just about the details. The biggest/most obvious additions to the GSX-RR in Sepang were a new aero fairing – essentially a slimmed-down version of what they had last year – and a new, shorter exhaust, designed to give the Suzuki a little more top end.

As well as the impressive pace shown throughout the three days by Rins, Joan Mir ended the test as the second-fastest rookie, in fifteenth place and 1.247 seconds from the top time.

KTM had a decent test, with an impressive time coming from Pol Espargaro on the first day, followed by good progress from both Johann Zarco and Miguel Oliveira on days two and three.

After the first day, Zarco was left wondering how long he might have to wait to receive the parts he felt he needed to allow the RC16 to suit him, and on the final day he was the top KTM in 17th, a tenth clear of Espargaro (18th); 1.4 seconds off the top. This progress will come as a relief to Zarco, who up to the first day in Malaysia looked to be struggling to adapt to the Austrian bike.

A similar thing can be said for Oliveira, who was 19th and three tenths shy of Zarco. On the other hand, Hafizh Syahrin still seems to be struggling to adapt to the KTM after a year on the Yamaha and ended the test as the slowest of the full-time riders and down in 21st place, 2.5 seconds from Petrucci.

Miguel Oliveira KTM RC16 Sepang International Circuit 2019 during preseason testing. Image courtesy of Gold and Goose/KTM

Aprilia decided, that 2018 did not happen when designing the 2019 RSGP, and it was a decision much to the delight of Aleix Espargaro, who was happy with the bike from when he jumped on it in the shakedown test preceding the official MotoGP test. There is still a lot of work to do in Noale for the engineers, but the seventh fastest time for Aleix on the final day shows they are in the right direction.

Unfortunately for Andrea Iannone the test was not as positive, as it was marred by a dental infection for the Italian. Either way the #29 was able to get his hands on the new RSGP for the first time after sampling the Aprilia itself for the first time back in November. He and his team will hope he can be back to full strength in time for the Qatar test in a few days.

Featured image courtesy of ducati.

22nd January 2019

2019 Ducati MotoGP Team Launch

Ducati became the first team to launch their 2019 MotoGP team last Friday. Having said goodbye to Jorge Lorenzo who has joined Honda, the Bologna factory welcomes Danilo Petrucci alongside Andrea Dovizioso for the 2019 MotoGP season. Petrux and Dovi were joined at the launch by Michele Pirro, who will once again be spearheading the Desmosedici’s development as Ducati’s MotoGP test rider in 2019.

There were a couple of things to note about the launch. The first was the livery. Two things were notable: Mission Winnow is now a major sponsor of the Italian marque’s MotoGP team, bringing Phillip Morris International back to the forefront of MotoGP (although they had maintained links with Ducati since losing their place on the Desmosedici’s fairing back in 2010 due to tobacco sponsorship regulations); and Audi Sport is now visible on the side of the GP19, a sign that Ducati is very much not for sale.

Face on with the “GP19” Image courtesy of Ducati Media

Another item of note in the launch was that Gigi Dall’Igna is not particularly impressed with MotoGP’s aero regulations. The Italian brought wings to MotoGP back in 2015 and ever since has kept Ducati at the forefront of aero development in prototype motorcycling’s premier class – and now in the production-based premier class, too, with the V4R. As such, Gigi would very much like for the regulations surrounding aerodynamics in MotoGP to be nice and relaxed, so he could turn the Desmosedici into an upside-down biplane – or triplane, or more. As it is, he and his Italian engineering squad are quite limited in what they can do with the aero – hence they looked at rear wings in Jerez, although to little success, as well as a FUBAR rear end, designed to help rear contact under braking.

Something Dall’Igna was happy about, though, was that they had managed to find more horsepower out of the L4 motor, which will no doubt delight the opposition. Whether this additional power will be sufficient enough to cause any significant problems with the electronics remains to be seen, but Ducati has proven itself the most effective user of the Magneti Marelli ECU since it became mandatory in 2016, so should problems arise you would expect them to be resolved fairly quickly.

The relationship between Andrea Dovizioso and Danilo Petrucci this year will be a fascinating one. Compared to the mutual co-existence between Jorge Lorenzo and Dovizioso from the last two years, the Ducati box could be comparatively cheery this term, with the two Italians already working well together – Petrucci is even using Dovizioso’s trainer and psychologist, as well as training motocross together with his 2019 teammate. A strong relationship with Petrucci could prove vital to Dovizioso’s title chances this year – he needs a wingman who is willing to ride shotgun rather than play team leader in a situation like Valencia 2017 if he is to take on Marc Marquez.

The “GP19” with Misson Winnow and Audi Sport branding. Image courtesy of Ducati Media

One thing that was missing from the team launch was the GP19 itself. A late GP18 resplendent in Ducati’s new livery was used, because they don’t want to advertise their new ideas for free to the likes of Honda, Yamaha, Suzuki and the likes. The first opportunity we will get to see the GP19 will be in Sepang, on February 1st for the pre-Sepang-test-test. Michele Pirro will ride the Desmosedici there, before Dovizioso and Petrucci get their hands on the latest edition of the Bologna Bullet for the first time on February 6th for the Sepang test ‘proper’.

The next team to launch their 2019 MotoGP programme is Repsol Honda, on January 23rd.

Image courtesy of Ducati Media

24th December 201824th December 2018

Interview: Can Oncu on his 2018 win and what his plans for 2019

Can Oncu, Moto3. Photo curtesy of Red Bull KTM Ajo

After a whirlwind last Moto3 race of 2018 in Valencia, Can Oncu solidified his place on the grid with an impressive debut and a record-breaking win. The 15-year-old Turk became the youngest GP winner and the first Turkish winner of a GP, smashing many more records along the way. Winner of the Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup (with his twin brother Deniz securing second place) and finishing 24^th(out of 36) in the Moto3 standings after only one race – the trophy cabinet will be well stocked in the Oncu household after this year. Oncu’s 2018 might have ended in spectacular style, but his 2019 season will continue with Red Bull KTM Ajo as he races for the Finnish team in Moto3 and chases down even more podium finishes. A new flurry of Moto3 riders will be filling the grid in 2019, as Jorge Martin, Fabio di Giannantonio, Marco Bezzecchi, Nicolo Bulega and Enea Bastianini all head for debut Moto2 seasons. However, the Turk will have competition from Aron Canet, Gabriel Rodrigo and Lorenzo Dalla Porta, as well as newer riders like Celestino Vietti. Jade du Preez put some questions to the youngster, to find out how you celebrate such a historic win, and what’s next for the rookie to accomplish.

Jade du Preez: How do you feel after your first win?

Can Oncu: I really wanted race with Jorge Martin and Marco Bezzecchi before they went to Moto2. I was lucky and my wish was fulfilled. Martin was my favourite all year long. That I can get involved in the front I spotted FP2 and FP3 and after qualification it was clear. Martin and Bezzecchi brought a very good performance all year. I was very surprised that I won. When I heard after the race that I had broken some records I could not believe it – the youngest Moto3 rider of all time, the youngest Moto3 rider to win a race, and more. Everyone from the paddock congratulated me. Except from the north pole and south pole, congratulations were sent to me from all over the world. The feeling of happiness is really indescribable. I thank everyone who supports me.

JdP: What are your goals for 2019 since you’ve already won a race?

CO: I know that I am not perfect, that I still have much to learn and I try hard to do so. Aki Ajo and my race team help me and my brother. I will try to be in the top 10 at the end of the year.

JdP: How did you celebrate your win in Valencia? Did you cheat on your diet, hangout with friends, etc.?

CO: I was celebrating with my entire team and eating delicious food in Valencia. I do not like alcohol, I like fruit juices. When I arrived at home in Alanya I was immediately visited by many friends and suddenly we had a party.

23rd November 201823rd November 2018

MotoGP Valencia Test, Part 2: Suzuki, KTM and Aprilia

It might feel like the 2018 season has just come to an end, but the 2019 season is well underway at the Valencia tests for Suzuki, KTM, Tech 3 KTM and Aprilia.

Suzuki’s main weakness in 2018 was straight line speed, so they had a new engine for Valencia. It has a lot of power, but currently the Ecstar squad are looking for new electronic solutions to harness those extra horses, and as of right now they are faster on the old engine. Only Alex Rins tried the new motor, as Joan Mir looked to get himself better acquainted with the GSX-RR. The 2018 Moto2 rookie of the year had ridden one day with Suzuki after the Japanese Grand Prix back in October, but still had a lot of work to do to acclimatise himself to MotoGP. He did fairly well, ending the test less than one second off the top time.

Alex Rins and new Suzuki teammate Joan Mir. Photo curtesy of Suzuki Racing.

Johann Zarco got off to a tough start with KTM. He pinpointed corner entry as a weak point on the first day, and didn’t find the improvements he expected on Wednesday, ending 1.7 seconds off the top. On the other hand, Pol Espargaro had a decent test, which he ended 0.871 seconds off front runner Maverick Vinales (Movistar Yamaha). He had a revised version of KTM’s Yamaha-style aero fairing, as well as some new electronic solutions and no doubt a raft of different chassis’ and engine specs to try. Like Yamaha, KTM suffered with tyre wear last year, hence the electronics focus.

The Tech 3 KTM riders did not have such a great time. Miguel Oliveira highlighted braking as something he needed to work on, as he adapts to the carbon disks of MotoGP. His teammate, Hafizh Syahrin, also made some progress on Wednesday, but feels he needs more time to understand the RC16. Of course, both Syahrin and Oliveira have the additional difficulty of their team changing manufacturer.

Aprilia seemed to have a mixed test. Aleix Espargaro was quite fast, if somewhat indifferent about a new chassis from Noale. In comparison, Andrea Iannone was pleasantly surprised by his first contact with Aprilia. He was running 2017 bikes because it is from last year’s machine that the 2019 bike will derive. There were two crashes for Iannone on the second day, which he put down to him finding the limit with a new bike. Bradley Smith also got his first contact with the Aprilia, using a 2017 and a 2018 machine. He wasn’t too far from Iannone’s time which, considering his job title of test rider, should perhaps worry Aprilia a little.

As previously mentioned, Joan Mir had a brilliant debut on the Suzuki but arguably Francesco Bagnaia’s first appearance on the Pramac Ducati was even more impressive. He ended his first real MotoGP test just 0.6 seconds from the top. Braking is Bagnaia’s main focus at the moment, which is a common thing with new MotoGP riders. His competitors will hope he can’t find too much time there. Fellow rookie Fabio Quartararo also made some big improvements on Wednesday, to end just over one second from Vinales and in front of Iannone on the Aprilia.

Fabio Quartararo at the Valencia MotoGP tests, November 2018. Photo curtesy of SIC Racing Team.

Franco Morbidelli also had a stunning test; to be four tenths ahead of Valentino Rossi (Movistar Yamaha) on his first day with Yamaha was really quite impressive. The young Italian was especially complimentary about the smoothness of the M1, and commented on how easy it was to ride in comparison to the 2017 Honda RC213V he rode during his 2018 season.

Although, the undisputed hero of the Valencia test was Tito Rabat. He rode his Reale Avintia Ducati to 15th on the second day, 1.1 seconds off Vinales, and completed 59 laps. The first day of the test was nothing more than exploratory for Rabat, as he looked to see if it was even possible to ride in his current condition. On Wednesday he made some more progress, but realistically it won’t be until Sepang that he will really start focusing on the setting of his GP18. The MotoGP paddock now heads south to Jerez, where they will have the final chance to define their direction before the winter break.

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22nd November 2018

MotoGP Valencia Test, Part 1: Ducati, Yamaha and Honda

Tuesday saw the beginning of the 2019 MotoGP season, as preseason testing started for the premier class in Valencia, following the conclusion of the 2018 World Championship on Sunday.

There was plenty to see: the Ducati GP19 had been highly praised ahead of the test; Jorge Lorenzo (Repsol Honda) would get his first taste of the Honda RC213V; Yamaha had two new engine specs to try in their search for tyre life; Franco Morbidelli (SIC Racing Team ) took to the Yamaha M1 for the first time; Danilo Petrucci moved to factory Ducati; Johann Zarco moved to KTM, as did Tech 3; and there were four rookies getting the chance to try out MotoGP machinery for the first time.

However, things did not go the way the teams would have liked. The first part of the morning was unusable for them because of overnight rain. Zarco was the only rider to go out before the track dried, but only for a couple of laps.

Eventually, the track dried and the riders were able to get their 2019 campaigns underway. Starting with Ducati, they did not manage to get much of anything done on the first day. Andrea Dovizioso spent the time he had making a base setting with the GP18, since he did not have the opportunity to run in the dry in the weekend. This was the same for everyone, of course, but the time Dovizioso spent on the 2018 bike meant he did not get to try the GP19 until Tuesday. It was the same situation on the other side of the garage, as Danilo Petrucci was acclimatising to his new box, and new team. That said, when they got around to the new bike, Dovizioso was enthused by what his team had discovered, and Petrucci essentially said the GP19 was perfect. Nonetheless, the next test in Jerez will be important for the factory Ducati team to confirm what they found in Valencia, and to determine their direction for the winter before Sepang.

Jack Miller (Alma Pramac Racing) was also highly impressed with the first version of the GP19, saying he couldn’t understand how it was derived from the GP17 he has ridden in the 2018 season. Miller noted that the biggest thing with the new bike compared to the 2017 Desmosedici was the ease with which the 2019 bike changes direction. They have only had one day on the GP19 so far, but already the three factory Ducati riders look strong for the new season.

Valentino Rossi during Testing in Valencia. Photo curtesy of Movistar Yamaha Factory Racing

The factory Yamaha squad’s entire focus over the course of the test was on the two new engine specs they took with them. On Monday, the focus was on an engine which they had already tried at Aragon. Both Valentino Rossi and Maverick Vinales were happy with the engine, especially Vinales who was particularly enthusiastic about the engine braking. Rossi reflected Vinales’ opinions, but was more realistic in insisting that there is still work for Yamaha to do before they’ll be in a position to fight consistently. A newer engine spec on the second day seemed indifferent to the one tried on Monday. Vinales could not decide which he preferred, whilst Rossi didn’t seem too happy with either of them. Whilst both of these engines helped in the engine braking, they were still not helping with the acceleration or the tyre life either. However, both riders were happy with the direction after a 2018 season plagued with technical issues.

Yamaha also had Jonas Folger out for his first MotoGP experience since September 2017. Whilst the German’s work in these two days was perhaps not so important, he could be critical for Yamaha come the middle of 2019.

Marc Marquez during the Valencia Test. Photo curtesy of Repsol Honda Team.

Honda face a difficult winter, and Valencia was the beginning of that. Marc Marquez is injured, as is Jorge Lorenzo (who is new to the bikes) and Cal Crutchlow (LCR Honda) who may still be unfit come the Sepang tests in 2019. Stefan Bradl was on the LCR Honda on Tuesday, but was just testing different suspension, whilst Takaaki Nakagami (LCR Honda) got his hands on 2018 HRC machinery, and was somewhat taken aback by the progression made from 2017 to 2018. Marquez was limited in his track time, due to that injured left shoulder, but had three bikes to test. One was the 2018 spec, there for comparison, and then he had two black bikes, which were 2019 prototypes. Marquez couldn’t say much of his testing, but it seemed as though at least one new engine spec was there for him to try. There was also a new chassis for Marquez to try, but because of limited track time, he and Honda will need to use the Jerez test next week to confirm their feelings from Valencia.

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18th November 201818th November 2018

Valencia GP: Dovi And Ducati Defy The Deluge

Andrea Dovizioso bested the treacherous conditions to take a brilliant victory at the Valencia Grand Prix.

Wet track conditions, as has been the case the almost the entirety of the weekend, greeted the riders on race day. In truth, jet skis would have been more appropriate at the Ricardo Tormo circuit than motorcycles, such was the almost biblical torrents falling on the asphalt

Dovizioso (Ducati) secured his third win of the season in commanding fashion. Avoiding contact at both race starts, the Italian settled into a metronomic rhythm, closing in the race leader, and passing effortlessly. As conditions worsened the Desmosedici GP18 remarkably began to perform better, the back tyre acting almost as a rudder helping its rider to square-off every corner and avoiding those treacherous painted lines and kerbs. Not once did Dovizioso put a wheel out of line, or even suffer a wobble. A true masterclass in wet weather conditions.

The result sees Ducati break their 10-year hoodoo at the Ricardo Tormo, following Casey Stoner’s victory for the team here in 2008.

Alex Rins (Team Suzuki Ecstar) had a near perfect weekend, surfing the rivers across the circuit to a brilliant second place. It was his fifth podium finish this season, and without doubt his finest to date. There will be a small air of disappointment as Rins had led for much of the curtailed race, and for the opening few laps following the restart. Once again, the fault – if any – lies in the lack of horsepower to the Ducati. Rins simply stood no chance on the main straight. If the team can coax enough power out of the engine to be competitive in a straight line, that first breakthrough win for Rins will become a certainty in 2019.

Pol Espargaro claimed his first podium finish for the Red Bull KTM team in the premier class. It was also the Spaniard’s first rostrum finish since moving up from Moto2 in 2014. Having had to fight his way through the field twice (courtesy of the red flag delay) the 27-year old produced without doubt his finest performance to date, carving his way ahead of his rivals with what looked like astonishing ease. The result will send a wave of confidence through the team as they head into winter testing on Tuesday.

Michele Pirro (Ducati) wildcarding this weekend, led the charge for best of the rest in 4th place. The Italian led home the retiring Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda). It was fitting that Pedrosa (P5) finished the lead Honda rider home. There were emotional scenes upon his return to the team box after the race.

Takaaki Nakagami (LCR Honda) claimed the best independent rider award with his 6th place finish. The young Japanese rider has steadily improved throughout his rookie season in the premier class, and brought home his best result to date in extremely testing conditions. A successful first season, and both team and rider will look to build on this over the winter.

Johann Zarco (Monster Tech3 Yamaha) and Bradley Smith (Red Bull KTM) spent the entirety of the restarted race locked together in a thrilling battle for seventh place. The Frenchman eventually emerging victorious and securing for himself the top spot in the independent riders’ championship. For Smith, it was a solid result as the British rider bids farewell for now to racing full time in the premier class. In 2019 he moves to the Aprilia Gresini team to take up duties as test rider – though he will still wildcard in up to five rounds next season.

It was a case of so near again for Valentino Rossi (Movistar Yamaha). Having produced a fine performance prior to the red flag delay – having originally started P16 on the grid – the former world champion looked set to finish on the podium, and once again spare Yamaha’s blushes. However, with just a handful of laps remaining, his bike lost all grip at turn 12, spinning him off into the sodden gravel trap. The Italian remounted and eventually finished in P13.

It was also a disappointing finish to Alvaro Bautista’s MotoGP career. The Angel Nieto Team rider, moving to spearhead Ducati’s factory effort in World Superbikes from 2019, crashed out with 6 laps remaining of the race.

Scott Redding (Aprilia Gresini) narrowly missed out on a top ten finish, finishing just behind Stefan Bradl (LCR Honda) and Hafiz Syahrin (Monster Tech3 Yamaha) respectively. A solid result and relief that his annus horribilis is finally at an end. The 25-year old now bids farewell to MotoGP and begins life in the British Superbike Championship, on very competitive Ducati machinery for next year.

There was an extremely high attrition rate, due to the deteriorating track conditions. Amongst the fallers there were spectacular highside crashes for both Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda) and Andrea Iannone (Team Suzuki Ecstar). Maverick Vinales (Movistar Yamaha) also endured a miserable race, despite starting originally from pole position. His season ending in a brutal crash with 15 laps remaining. None of the three were able to race at the restart, but all fortunately escaped injury.

17th November 2018

Valencia GP Qualiyfing: Top Lap for Top Gun

Maverick Vinales stormed to pole position ahead of tomorrow’s Valencia Grand Prix, after breathtaking display in drying conditions.

The rain, which had turned the three main practice sessions into more of a jet ski contest, had finally relented. With the track rapidly drying, slick tyres were finally shod for the first time this weekend as qualifying began.

It was not a straightforward hour for Vinales (Movistar Yamaha). The 23-year old, as he had to go through the first qualifying session, having not made to top 10 after the first three practice sessions. With the track drying with every lap, Vinales timed his Q1 effort to near perfection, being the last rider over the timing line, benefiting from the best possible conditions. With Q1 a rehearsal, the Spaniard nailed his final effort in Q2. Threading the eye of the needle with sheer confidence and precision (one glance of the painted kerbs would’ve ended in disaster), Vinales’ time – 1’31.312 – was good enough for pole position by 0.068s. The beaming eyes from inside the helmet, as he rode into parc ferme, said it all.

Alex Rins (Team Suzuki Ecstar) and Andrea Dovizioso (Ducati) secured the remaining places on the front row of the grid. Despite piloting bikes with polar opposite characteristics, both riders looked in complete control as the track constantly evolved throughout the session proving that in tricky conditions the riding style has more of an impact on lap time. Both will be expecting to deliver again tomorrow.

Danilo Petrucci (Alma Pramac Ducati) backed up his form from practice with securing P4. The Italian has been ever present in the top 5 throughout the weekend, and with the promise of more rain tomorrow it would be a brave punter to bet against him securing at least a podium finish.

Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda) crashed at turn 4 on his opening flying lap, dislocating his shoulder as the bike slammed itself and rider into the deck. Remarkably, the reigning world champion returned to the track with 6 minutes of qualifying remaining setting a lap time good enough for P5, and a slot in the middle of second row.

Rounding out the second row is Marquez’ compatriot Pol Espargaro (Red Bull KTM) – his best qualifying result since Australia 2017. He and the team will be hoping history can at least repeat itself tomorrow with a top 10 race result.

Andrea Iannone (Team Suzuki Ecstar) hooked it together in a frantic first qualifying session. The Italian mastered the drying conditions, setting the best lap time almost half a second clear of fellow qualifier Vinales. He heads up the third row of the grid tomorrow, in P7, and will be desperate to secure what is likely to be his last competitive result for some time.

It was, however, as disastrous qualifying for Valentino Rossi (Movistar Yamaha) who failed to make the cut into the pole position shoot out. The 39-year old will have to fight his way through the field tomorrow, from a lowly P16 on the grid.

Jorge Lorenzo (Ducati) just missed out on a place in Q2, the wrist injury was ultimately still causing him just too much trouble. Nobody can fault the Spaniard’s commitment to racing this weekend. Having steadily improved session-by-session this weekend, there will be a quiet confidence in his camp tonight that he can produce one final good result tomorrow for the team, before moving to Repsol Honda in 2019.

5th November 2018

MotoGP Report: Marquez secures victory after Rossi crashes out

The Malaysian Grand Prix certainly felt like a throwback race to about ten years ago; Valentino Rossi (Movistar Yamaha MotoGP) was leading until four laps to go and Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda) was riding better than he has almost all season.

The only thing missing was Jorge Lorenzo (Ducati) – who withdrew from the weekend following Friday practice, still very much struggling with injury.

It was a race that most dream of seeing, Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda) was chasing down Rossi who had a great start and managed to thunder past Johann Zarco (Monster Yamaha Tech 3) but the gap between the two was lengthening. It felt like Rossi had the race in the bag until he slid out with four laps to go and then Marquez romped to the finishing line. Zarco was over taken by a keen Alex Rins (Suzuki), and Maverick Vinales (Movistar Yamaha MotoGP) rather predictably had late race pace so only really performed near the end of the race.

It was a long race for most, there were no huge jumps like in Moto3, so instead it felt like riders would pick off a rider with each lap and slowly climb the leader board. It wasn’t fast paced, even though Marquez did set a new circuit record. Even though the Championship is all tied up for Marquez, Rossi would need to win in Valencia to secure second in the Championship, while Vinales could beat his team mate to third if he scores 3 points or more than Rossi does in the final round. So, there is still a lot to play for as the MotoGP class rolls into Spain one last time in 2018.

An area of great concern during the race however, was that Marquez had really abused his back tyre to gain on Rossi, so had Rossi finished the race – would Marquez be able to keep up or would his tyre have lasted at all until the end? Exploding tyres is not totally unheard of, but for someone as light as Marquez, it is rather surprising that the wear and tear was so evident. Repsol Honda probably would have looked into this but they’re most likely too busy celebrating their Constructor’s Championship title and Rider’s Championship.

Although, it was Hafizh Syahrin (Monster Yamaha Tech 3) who put in a stellar performance in front of his home crowd. The Tech 3 rider is the first Malaysian rider in MotoGP to race at the Sepang International Circuit, and to be in the top ten and the best Rookie is a feat in itself. He was probably hoping to secure more points again Franco Morbidelli (Estrella Galicia 0,0 Marc VDS) who is ten points ahead of him in the Rookie standings.

All in all, it was a memorable race for Marquez and Rossi fans alike, albeit for very different reasons but the Malaysian fans got something truly special out of their home favourite. But if you felt like this race lacked anything, it was a good old fashioned fight for the podium, unfortunately it just wasn’t meant to be this time around.

29th October 2018

Ducati Debrief: “We have made a good step forward”

Andrea Dovizioso secured yet another podium finish this season, with a hard fought third place during the Australian Grand Prix. Such were the scenes of celebration beneath the podium and back in the team garage, a casual observer could be forgiven for thinking they’d won the championship.

The celebratory scenes from Sunday starkly contrast with last year’s corresponding Grand Prix, which was a complete disaster for Ducati. Slow times during the practice and qualifying sessions resulted in the humiliation of both factory riders, Dovizioso and Jorge Lorenzo, having to start from the fourth and sixth rows of the grid respectively. The race fared even worse as between them they could only manage a frankly woeful three points. It effectively killed all realistic possibility that the Italian rider could become world champion that season.

Dovizioso demonstrated serious front running pace all throughout the weekend, rarely being found outside the top 5 of the timesheets. A remarkable feat in itself as, traditionally, the Phillip Island circuit is one of the worst for Ducati. Without any long straight to blast away from the pack, and a plethora of fast sweeping corners (so long the nadir of all Desmosedici machines), the Italian team generally grit their teeth and pray for the round to end quickly. To negate the severe loss of lap time due to the above reasons, riding style – and commitment – becomes of paramount importance.

It cannot be underestimated how brave Dovizioso is under braking, regularly being given the title of ‘Last of the Late Brakers’. Although there is no official measurement as to the stopping points of each rider, from the TV images the Ducati man does visibly brake later than the rest of his rivals. In addition to this, he possesses pinpoint accuracy with both his corner entry and exit lines. All of which results in an extremely competitive performance regardless of the circuit.

Speaking after the race, Dovi was beaming in the winners’ enclosure: “Phillip Island was a fundamental test to understand our level of competitiveness and now we know we have made a good step forward over last year.” Typically understated as always. Ducati have made an enormous step with the development of their bike.

Andrea Dovizioso battles with Andrea Iannone (Team Suzuki Ecstar) for podium honours. Such a thing was not even remotely possible last year.

Across the garage, there were equally joyous scenes. Standing in for the injured Jorge Lorenzo, 33-year old Alvaro Bautista enjoyed a brilliant first weekend on the Desmosedici GP18. Having not ridden this year’s machine at all before the Friday practice sessions, the Spaniard went to considerable length in the build up to the weekend, stating that Ducati “had no real targets to aim for”.

Perhaps predictably as a consequence, he took a few tumbles during the early stages of the weekend as he learnt where the performance limits of the factory bike were. Despite this, Bautista produced a faultless race day performance, looking completely at one with the factory bike – and racing it as if he had been for a full season. His riding style – comparable to that of Casey Stoner – suits the Desmosedici, and the Spaniard relishes the physicality required to haul and wrestle the bike through the faster corners. Having started from P11 on the grid, Bautista charged through the pack, dicing for a place on the podium alongside his teammate for almost the entirety of the race before falling back to consolidate fourth place.

Speaking after the race, Bautista explained the reason for dropping behind his teammate: “In the last few laps I made a few small mistakes and lost contact with Dovizioso and Iannone, but in any case I’m very happy with my overall result, especially for the team and for Ducati, whom I would like to thank once again for the trust they have shown in me.” Any disappointment for not making the podium quickly evaporated, having achieved a lifetime ambition to race for the factory team.

Having taken some time on Friday to adjust to the GP18 performance limits, Alvaro Bautista produced a stunning ride on race day.

Despite not taking the race victory, Dovizioso has nevertheless demonstrated to the full just how far Ducati have developed the Desmosedici this season. It is still a rocket down a long straight, but crucially they have now made a bike that is stable enough at most circuits to enable the riders to attack the faster corners with confidence.

As for Bautista, he has almost certainly secured the factory ride now for as long as Lorenzo remains out injured. The result for the Spaniard could not have come at a more opportune moment ahead of his move to World Superbikes next season, with the factory supported Aruba.it Ducati team. A clear statement of intent to the established front runners of the series, watching on from their hotel rooms in Qatar.