Category: Crew On Two

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BSB: Can Ducati be Beaten at Brands?

After the usual break for the Isle of Man TT, the British Superbike Championship is back in action this weekend, three weeks on from a historic round at Donington Park.

Scott Redding (Be Wiser Ducati) became the fiftieth rider to win a BSB race in the first outing at Donignton three weeks ago, and backed up that debut win with two more on Sunday to take the triple. Redding was able to make winning a BSB race look fairly straightforward in Donington, however that is expected to change this weekend in Brands Hatch, where Redding has never raced. It will be interesting to see how the #45 fares at a track where the whole field, essentially, have infinitely more track knowledge than him. This will be a new experience for Redding, since in Oulton Park he at least had the benefit of eighteen laps at the test day in the run up to the race weekend to learn where he was going.

Scott Redding at Donnington park. Image courtesy of Ducati

On the other side of the Be Wiser Ducati garage is the double winner from twelve months ago, Josh Brookes. That double came on the McAMS Yamaha in 2018, and with the Panigale V4R that Brookes is piloting this year having won the last five BSB races – with Brookes doubling up in Oulton Park before Redding’s Donignton treble – and with Brookes’ record in Brands, where he is second only to Shane Byrne for total wins, it is hard to see past the Aussie to at least take an overall this weekend.

However, the McAMS Yamaha riders, Tarran Mackenzie and Jason O’Halloran, should be able to take the fight to Brookes and the V4R with the YZF-R1 which suits the fast, flowing nature of Brands Hatch quite well. Both McAMS Yamaha riders have arguably disappointed since round one at Silverstone, where they were quite dominant, with only one podium between them since then, courtesy of Mackenzie in the third race at Donington. Perhaps it is important to remember that 2019 is just Mackenzie’s second season in BSB, and the first year for O’Halloran in BSB outside of Honda. Either way, the expectation will be there for the two riders this weekend, one in which they will both be expecting top results.

Tommy Bridewell at Donnington Park.Image courtesy of Ducati

Tommy Bridewell (Oxford Racing) has enjoyed a fantastic start to the BSB year, and that earned him a place on the WSBK grid for the previous two rounds at Imola and Jerez in place of the injured Eugene Laverty at Team Goeleven. With Laverty expected to be back on the World Championship grid from the next round in Misano, Bridewell can now return his entire focus to BSB, a championship which is distinctly within the possibilities of the #46 – one that he can win. However, Bridewell is yet to win in 2019, and that monkey must be removed from his back quickly if he is to seriously contend for the title.

In addition to Redding’s success in Donington, the triple podium of Xavi Fores (Honda Racing) and the impressive performances of Hector Barbera (replacing Ben Currie at Quattro Plant JG Speedfit Kawasaki) meant it was a weekend for the international riders three weeks ago. With Currie out injured, Barbera is back this weekend for his first taste of Brands Hatch, whilst Fores – fresh from the announcement of his participation with the HARC-PRO Honda squad at the Suzuka 8 Hours in July – returns to Brands Hatch for the first time this decade in search of more top threes.

Peter Hickman (Smiths Racing) has had a slow start to the BSB year, scoring just forty-one points in the opening three rounds. However, despite missing out on the Senior TT on the Isle of Man, it was quite a successful week for Hickman, so it will be interesting to see if he can bring that form to the short circuit.

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Moto2: Can Baldassarri Respond to Marquez Pressure in Barcelona?

The Moto2 World Championship heads to Barcelona this weekend for the seventh round of the 2019 series, two weeks on from an Alex Marquez (EG 0,0 Marc VDS) win in Italy.

Team Estrella Galicia 0,0 Marc VDS boys Alex and Xavi Vierge at Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya. Image courtesy of Marc VDS

That win for Marquez last time out confirmed him as a championship contender. Coming off the back of his first win since Motegi 2017 two weeks earlier in Le Mans, Marquez was unstoppable in Mugello, where he completely dominated the race and won by nearly two seconds. Montmelo is something of a home round for Marquez, and he has a good history there, winning in 2014 by a comfortable margin in the Moto3 class on his way to the title, and standing on the top step again three years later in the Moto2 class. A third win in three races this weekend would certainly start the alarm bells in the ears of the other Moto2 championship hopefuls.

One such championship hopeful is Lorenzo Baldassarri (Flexbox HP 40). The Italian had a complicated home race, finishing fifteenth in qualifying ahead of the race. From that fifteenth grid slot, Baldassarri fought through, and finished fourth, which was a damage limitation job which was sufficient for him to maintain his championship lead. However, if Baldassarri wants to maintain that points advantage this weekend he needs to take the fight to Marquez on track, since the Spaniard seems to be the #7’s main threat for the title.

It would be unjust to discount Tom Luthi (Dynavolt Intact GP) at this stage, though. Aside from Marquez and Baldassarri, Luthi is the only rider to have won a race this year, his coming in Texas. Additionally, the Swiss has the same number of podiums as both Marquez and Baldassarri and sits just four points behind the championship lead. However, Luthi has never won in Montmelo, and has only four podiums at the Catalan GP.

Tom Luthi at Barcelona-Catalunya. Image courtesy of KF GLAENZEL /Dynavolt Intact GP

Luca Marini (Sky Racing Team VR46) had a strong race in Mugello, and was fast all weekend, finishing second in the end ahead of Luthi. It was a strong turnaround from the Italian after a dismal pair of races in Spain and France, and a subpar opening to the season for the winner of last year’s Malaysian Grand Prix. It will be interesting to see if Marini can continue that performance into this weekend in Barcelona.

Jorge Navarro (Speed Up) finished off the podium for the first time since Argentina in Mugello, where he came home seventh. Speed Up won in Barcelona last year with Fabio Quartararo, so Navarro, who won in Montmelo in 2016 in the Moto3 category, will be hoping to bring the Italian chassis back to the top step twelve months later.

Enea Bastianini (Italtrans Rcing Team) returns this weekend to the circuit which often brings a step up in his performance. In 2014, Barcelona was the site of his first GP podium, where he won the Catalan GP last year in the lightweight class. Additionally, La Bestia took to the podium in 2015 and 2016, and will hope to have a similar performance this weekend, after his strong weekend at home in Mugello, where he finished sixth behind Augusto Fernandez (Flexbox HP 40) who, himself, will be after a strong result in his second home round of the season, after finishing third in the Spanish Grand Prix just over one month ago.

Jonas Folger is back in action this weekend. The former Grand Prix winner is replacing Mattia Pasini, who was replacing Khairul Idham Pawi at the Petronas SRT team. Pasini broke his collarbone in training, so Folger is in at Petronas and will be keen to make an impression in his first GP since Aragon 2017 in the MotoGP class this weekend in Barcelona.

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Moto3: The Championship Remains Open Ahead of Round 7

Two weeks on from the Italian Grand Prix, the Moto3 World Championship heads to Montmelo for round seven of the 2019 season.

In Italy it was Tony Arbolino (VNE Snipers) who emerged victorious for the first time in his career, defeating Lorenzo Dalla Porta (Leopard Racing) in a drag to the line by 0.029 seconds. Arbolino’s first win had been coming for a while, so now it will be interesting to see how the Italian reacts this weekend, whether he follows similar patterns to the past where he has been quite inconsistent, or whether his win will give him more belief that he can go out and win again. Additionally, it is not too late for a title challenge from Arbolino, who is only thirty-two points behind championship leader Aron Canet (Sterilgarda Max Racing Team).

Aron Canet, at the Italian Moto3 2019 race. Image courtesy of Gold and Goose/KTM

Of course, it is a home round for Canet, although strictly speaking he is a Valencian. Mugello gave a disappointing result for Canet, as he finished seventh and, although he maintained his championship advantage, the #44 will be looking to return to the rostrum this weekend, especially with circuits on the horizon which may not suit his KTM as well as his rivals Hondas.

Perhaps the strongest rider of all in Mugello was Lorenzo Dalla Porta. Arbolino won but Dalla Porta’s pace in the twisty part of the lap was very strong. The Italian has quite a smooth riding style, you can see visibly that he does not bully the bike into doing what he wants it to, and perhaps that is a sign of how comfortable he is with his NSF250R. In Barcelona he will be looking for his third consecutive podium, and his first win of the season to try and overhaul the three-point deficit he currently suffers to Canet in the championship.

Although Tatsuki Suzuki (Sic58 Squadra Corse) finished only eighth in Mugello, he was also only 0.595 seconds off the win. In fact, Suzuki looked like the only rider who could get near Dalla Porta’s pace in the corners of Mugello. Last year’s Catalan Grand Prix was a tale of two halves for the Japanese rider, having broken away with Jorge Martin in a front pairing at the start, he was left by himself when Martin just a few laps into the race at turn nine. He was then swamped by the group, but managed to stay standing when others around him fell, and finished fifth in the end. Suzuki was on the podium in the last Spanish round at Jerez, so will be hoping to double up on his Spanish trophies this weekend.

Like Suzuki, Niccolo Antonelli (Sic58 Squadra Corse) has only been on the podium once this year, and that was also in Jerez when he won. Since that win, Antonelli crashed in France and was fourth in Mugello after being penalised in qualifying. Despite that, the championship is still well within reach for Antonelli, who is only twelve points behind Canet.

Jaume Masia, third place at the Moto3 race, Italian MotoGP 2019. Image courtesy of Gold and Goose/KTM

Jaume Masia (Bester Capital Dubai) returned to the podium in Mugello after missing it since Texas. After two disappointing results in Spain and France, Masia’s Italian rostrum was enough to fire him back into championship contention, as he now sits eighteen points behind Canet in the standings. However, it will be important for the #5 to once again take to the podium in Barcelona this weekend to confirm that Jerez and Le Mans were blips.

Finally, after missing the Italian GP, Ai Ogura is back this weekend for Honda Team Asia following successful surgery for the Japanese rider after his accident on the opening lap of the race in Le Mans.

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MotoGP: Can Petrucci Match Dovizioso & Lorenzo?

Two weeks on from a magnificent race in Mugello at the Italian Grand Prix, the MotoGP World Championship heads to Barcelona for round seven of the 2019 season.

This weekend will be an important one for MotoGP, as it marks the seventieth anniversary of the motorcycle world championship, the first of course taking place on the Isle of Man back in 1949. Much has changed since day one, of course. The Ducati Desmosedici GP19 that Danilo Petrucci (Mission Winnow Ducat) rode to victory in Mugello two weeks ago almost unrecognisable in comparison to the Norton which won the 1949 Senior TT in the hands of Harold Daniell, and the story is the same when it comes to the tracks, the people involved, the culture of world championship motorcycle racing and politics involved. MotoGP is now a sport for complete professionals. Valentino Rossi (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) has said on many occasions how the sport of today misses some of the “romance” of that of his early career in the 1990s and 2000s. You would suspect that Daniell’s reaction to 1996, the year of Rossi’s World Championship debut, would be quite similar.

But, whilst MotoGP in its current form may be missing “romance”, it is certainly not missing entertainment or excitement. Mugello was a prime example of that, with four riders and three different bikes separated by only half a second over the line. Petrucci’s winning margin over Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team) was just 0.043 seconds for his first ever MotoGP victory, and that is the MotoGP we see today: closer, more competitive than ever before.

Fresh from continuing Ducati’s reign in Mugello, which stretches now for three years, Petrucci arrives In Barcelona looking to continue a trend of the last two years, which has seen Ducati pilots take victory in Mugello, and then Barcelona, back-to-back, first with Andrea Dovizioso in 2017 and then with Jorge Lorenzo in 2018. Perhaps it seems less likely for Petrucci to continue this, especially considering his declarations in Mugello where he stated that from now on his primary focus is to help his teammate, Dovizioso, win the World Championship. However, it remains to be seen how Petrucci reacts to winning his first race, whether it will trigger him to continue winning, and to go on to win a lot more races as we have seen with other riders in the past – Dovizioso himself being a prime example.

Losing points to Marquez in Mugello was a disappointment for Dovizioso (Mission Winnow Ducati) who will have seen the Italian round of the series as a chance to claim points back on the Spaniard. Instead, the #04 arrives in Montmelo in the knowledge that he must win, or at least beat Marquez, if he is to keep his championship hopes alive. The gap at the moment is twelve points, which may not seem like much, but with Assen and Sachsnering on the horizon, taking points in Spain this weekend will be vital for Dovizioso.

Marc Marquez at Montmelo,2019. Image courtesy of Box Repsol

Strangely, Marquez has only won in Barcelona once in the premier class, back in 2014 when his then teammate Dani Pedrosa ran into the back of him in what was turn eleven, costing himself the win despite arguably being faster at the end of the race than the #93. Despite his low frequency of top step visits in Montmelo, Marquez has missed the podium only once in MotoGP at the Circuit Barcelona-Catalunya, and that came in his troubled 2015 season, when he was pushing over the limit to try and go with Jorge Lorenzo on the Yamaha M1, who eventually won. Marquez has finished second in each of the three Catalan Grands Prix since then, to Valentino Rossi in 2016, to Dovizioso in 2017 and to Lorenzo last year. The reigning champion is, though, on great form, and will be a strong favourite going into this weekend.

The fourth rider in the group at Mugello was Alex Rins (Team Suzuki Ecstar) who had yet another strong comeback from a poor qualifying. What Mugello exposed was Suzuki’s continuing lack of top speed. Fortunately for Suzuki, whilst they miss top end they have a bike which can punch off corners well from low speed, which is what Yamaha miss. Rins was able to use this to stay with the group, although had he managed to establish a gap of half a second or more, he could have gotten away such was his speed in the corners. The straight in Montmelo could also prove a problem for the GSX-RR this weekend, but in his home race Rins could be the only rider with a strong shot at challenging Marquez – but he needs to qualify well.

Valentino Rossi has won ten times in Montmelo, the most recent of those being that 2016 triumph over Marquez. The last two years have been contrasting for the Italian, though, with Barcelona proving one of Yamaha’s weakest tracks in 2017 when he finished only eighth, although it was a return to the Catalan podium last year as he finished third behind Marquez and Lorenzo. After a disastrous home round in Mugello, and with questions being asked about his commitment to his Yamaha contract in the current, disappointing, moment in the Iwata marque’s history, Rossi will be eager to put the voices considering a close retirement for The Doctor on hold this weekend, especially with Assen next up on the calendar, which could prove his last opportunity to win in 2019.

Valentino Rossi at Montmelo 2019. Image courtesy of Yamaha Racing

For Rossi’s teammate at Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP, Maverick Vinales, Mugello was little better. Vinales came home as top Yamaha in Italy, but that meant only sixth place. In fact, Mugello was a catastrophe for Yamaha. At a track where they had been on the podium for fifteen consecutive years, the top Yamaha was almost seven seconds from the rostrum. Anyway, like Rossi, Vinales will be aiming for redemption this weekend, at his home race.

It should be noted that Barcelona is the circuit at which, twelve months ago, Fabio Quartararo (Petronas Yamaha SRT) took his first GP victory. One year one, he could be Yamaha’s best bet of a win in Barcelona and is looking in fine form, having nearly taken pole in Mugello before finishing tenth in the race as top rookie.

Finally, the grid will have twenty-four bikes this weekend, as Suzuki test rider Sylvain Guintoli and Aprilia test rider Bradley Smith will be in action for their respective factories.

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MotoGP: Petrucci Holds Off Marquez for Emotional First GP Win

Mugello is a special race track, and it often throws up some special races when MotoGP visits for the Italian Grand Prix. That was no different for the 2019 edition, which saw Danilo Petrucci (Mission Winnow Ducati) claim his first Grand Prix victory.

The race started dimly, as Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team) hit the front from the beginning of the race, which he started from an intelligently-won pole position. The championship leader led from Cal Crutchlow (LCR Honda CASTROL) early on, but before the end of the first laps, the factory Ducatis of Petrucci and Andrea Dovizioso (Mission Winnow Ducati) had scythed their way through the Briton and set their sights on Marquez.

Marquez was expected to have the pace to get away, hence the dim prospects in the initial stages. However, it soon became clear that this would not be possible for the Spaniard, and the front group remained as large as ten riders for the first half of the race. Whilst the group was big, there was a lot of fighting, like a 1000cc Moto3 race.

Over time, though, the group thinned, to eight bikes, then six, and finally we were left with four riders: Marquez, Petrucci, Dovizioso and Alex Rins (Team Suzuki Ecstar).

They were clear of the rest coming into the final lap, onto which Petrucci led. However, when they arrived at San Donato for the final time it was Marquez who made it to the apex first. Unfortunately for the #93, he then steamed straight past the corner, and allowed Dovizioso underneath him. Unfortunately for Dovizioso, he had his teammate underneath him. The #04 backed out, which let Petrucci off the hook in the lead, and Marquez into second round the outside.

Danilo Petrucci taking the chequered flag from Marc Marquez. Image courtesy of ducati

When you watch MotoGP, things are very visual, and two of the most visual things on the final lap in Mugello were the different characteristics of the Ducati and the Honda, and the riding styles of their pilots; and that Marquez had run out of edge grip, as a result of the characteristics of the Honda and his riding style. Marquez was running visibly more lean angle than the Ducati riders all race, because Ducati don’t use the edge of the tyre, and minimise their mid-corner speed, whilst Marquez on the Honda maximises his corner speed, and thus sacrifices his edge grip. By the final lap, there was little for Marquez to fight with. He tried to set up a pass in Palaggio, to run round the outside of Scarperia to put himself on the inside for Palaggio, but he couldn’t carry the speed, and throughout the lap Marquez’ Honda was wildly out of line on the right-hand braking zones.

Those issues for Marquez, combined with a fantastic final lap for Danilo Petrucci, handed the ex-Superstock rider his first race win since the final round of the STK1000 championship at Portimao in 2011. To win your first GP in Italy, at Mugello for the Italian Grand Prix, on a factory Ducati, to make it three wins in succession in Mugello for the Desmosedici, is an incredibly special achievement, one which was worthy of Petrucci’s emotional explosion in the moments after the race. He told the post-race podium press conference that he wanted to dedicate his debut MotoGP win to his teammate, Dovizioso, as he had “adopted me like a brother” since the start of the year when Petrucci began life as a factory Ducati rider.

Dovizioso’s hesitation in San Donato on the final lap was all it took to secure Marquez second place, and to extend his championship lead over the #04 by four points to carry a twelve-point advantage into his home Grand Prix at Montmelo, where it is going to be exceedingly difficult for Dovizioso to take points from Marquez.

Rins, Marquez, Petrucci and Dovizioso fighting for the top four positions at Mugello MotoGP 2019. Image courtesy of Suzuki Racing

Whichever way you look at it, it was a stunning race from each of the riders on the podium, and the rider who finished just off it – Alex Rins. The Spaniard had a go at Dovizioso in the final corner, but couldn’t make it stick. Some more horsepower could have seen Rins win quite comfortably, as he was so fast with the GSX-RR throughout the lap. It was just the straight where he was losing out, but when the races are so close, the straights are perhaps more important than the corners when it comes to a dogfight on Sunday.

Takaaki Nakagami (LCR Honda IDEMITSU) took the top ‘independent’ spot with fifth place, his best finish in MotoGP, to return to the top ten after missing it for the first time in Le Mans where he crashed. The Japanese also had the satisfaction of beating the factory Yamaha of Maverick Vinales (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) who was limited to sixth by a bad start, a bad first lap and the poor straight line performance of the M1. Similarly limited as Fabio Quartararo (Petronas Yamaha SRT), who started second but was ninth by the end of the first lap, and tenth at the end of the race.

Between Vinales and Quartararo were the wildcard Michele Pirro (Mission Winnow Ducati) in an impressive seventh, Cal Crutchlow in an eighth place likely the result of a hole in his rear tyre, and Pol Espargaro (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing).

Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia Racing Team Gresini) finished eleventh, although felt that a top ten was possible without contact with Johann Zarco (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing). Joan Mir (Team Suzuki Ecstar) recovered from some contact with Valentino Rossi (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP), which caused both riders to go off the track at Materassi/Borgo San Lorenzo, to finish twelfth, ahead of Jorge Lorenzo (Repsol Honda Team), Karel Abraham (Reale Avintia Racing) and Andrea Iannone (Aprilia Racing Team Gresini) who took the final point in fifteenth.

Miguel Oliveira (Red Bull KTM Tech3) was sixteenth, but ahead of the factory KTM of Zarco in seventeenth, who wad the final classified rider.

Tito Rabat (Reale Avintia Racing) had to start from pit lane, and was out before the end of the first lap; whilst Franco Morbidelli (Petronas Yamaha SRT) crashed on lap five. Valentino Rossi’s miserable home GP was over two laps after Morbidelli’s when he crashed at Arrabbiata 2; then Hafizh Syahrin (Red Bull KTM Tech3) retired with fourteen laps to go, two laps before Francesco Bagnaia (Pramac Racing) ended a strong home race in the gravel of Bucine. Finally, Jack Miller (Pramac Racing) crashed out at Materassi, eight laps from the flag.

Featured image courtesy of Ducati

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Moto2: Marquez Makes it Two on the Spin

The sixth round of the 2019 Moto2 World Championship took place in Mugello, for the Italian Grand Prix, and saw Alex Marquez (EG 0,0) claim his second successive victory, and second of the season.

It was Tom Luthi (Dynavolt Intact GP) who made the best start, leading from teammate Marcel Schrotter (Dynavolt Intact GP) on the opening lap. Their gap over the rest of the field was increased thanks to a quite audacious move by Luca Marini (Sky Racing Team VR46) on Alex Marquez in the Sevelli corner. Marquez held his position but the gap to the Dynavolt duo was already quite large.

Tom Luthi and Marcel Schrotter at the Mugello Moto2 2019 GP. Image courtesy of Dynavolt Intact GP

Marquez had shown strong pace over the course of the weekend – the strongest, in fact – and he needed that pace to overhaul the advantage of the two leaders. When he arrived he had brought Marini with him, but the Spaniard was able to pass both Dynavolt bikes in quick succession and make a break in the lead before Marini could do the same.

In fact, it seemed like Marini had accepted that it was not going to be possible for him to catch Marquez even if he passed Luthi quickly, so the Italian observed the Swiss rider, before finally making his move on lap thirteen.

With championship leader Lorenzo Baldassarri (Flexbox HP 40) not far behind, it seemed that Luthi would struggle to make the podium, but once Marini passed him the #12 was able to rally, and he picked his pace back up to stick with the Italian.

In the final laps Baldassarri’s pace, after charging through the pack from down in fifteenth on the grid, started to slow and that ensured a podium position for Luthi, although he could do nothing about Marini in front.

No one, though, could begin to think about doing anything about Alex Marquez, who was completely dominant in winning his second race of 2019. Two wins in a row have brought him right into title contention, as the 2014 Moto3 World Champion heads to him home round at Montmelo just two points behind the championship leader, Baldassarri.

Luca Marini’s second place was the result of a complete turnaround in form from the previous European races. The start to the season had not gone to plan for Marini, especially the Spanish and French rounds which preceded Mugello, but after a positive test in Barcelona after the French Grand Prix , the Italian was able to be strong throughout his home Grand Prix weekend, and he will hope for this to continue as the series heads towards the halfway point.

Third place was an important result for Tom Luthi, who was previously without a podium since his win in Austin at round three. With Baldassarri’s poor weekend, it was always going to be important for the Swiss to make in-roads into the Italian’s championship advantage in Italy, and he did just that.
The strong comeback from Baldassarri, though, limited the damage he took.

Coming from fifteenth the Italian finished fourth, his first finish of the season off the top step. With the momentum swinging the way of Alex Marquez in recent races, the Catalan Grand Prix could prove a pivotal one in the course of this championship, and it will be important for Baldassarri to respond.
Just a couple of tenths behind Baldassarri was his teammate, Augusto Fernandez (Flexbox HP 40), who swapped places with Tom Luthi in that he missed the podium for the first time since the championship arrived in Europe as he finished fifth, owing to a bad start.

Enea Bastianini (Italtrans Racing Team) was the top rookie in sixth place, having battled in the final laps with Fernandez for the top five, losing out by only 0.012 seconds. It seems that this season continues to improve for Bastiaini.

One second back from Bastianini was Jorge Navarro (MB Conveyors Speed Up) who missed the podium for the first time since COTA as he finished seventh, ahead of Schrotter, Sam Lowes (Federal Oil Gresini Moto2) and Fabio Di Giannantonio (MB Conveyors Speed Up) who recovered from contact with Xavi Vierge (EG 0,0 Marc VDS) on lap one to score his first Moto2 top ten.

Mattia Pasini, once again replacing Khairul Idham Pawi at Petronas SRT, finished a disappointing eleventh, ahead of Vierge and Remy Gardner (ONEXOX TKKR SAG Team) who is still yet to show the form he displayed in the fly away races in Europe. Tetsuta Nagashima (ONEXOX TKKR SAG Team) and Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Ajo) completed the points, Binder being the top KTM rider in a lowly fifteenth.

Jorge Martin, Italian Moto2 race 2019. Image courtesy of Gold and Goose/KTM

Jorge Martin (Red Bull KTM Ajo) took sixteenth place, ahead of Dominique Aegerter (MV Agusta Idealavoro Forward), Andrea Locatelli (Italtrans Racing Team), Bo Bendsneyder (NTS RW Racing GP) and Lukas Tulovic (Kiefer Racing) who completed the points. Twenty-first went to Philipp Oettl (Red Bull KTM Tech3), ahead of Steven Odendaal (NTS RW Racing GP), Marco Bezzecchi (Red Bull KTM Tech3), Dimas Ekky (IDEMITSU Honda Team Asia) and Xavi Cardelus (Sama Qatar Angel Nieto Team) who was the final finisher in twenty-fifth.

The contact between Xavi Vierge and Fabio Di Giannantonio on lap one at Poggio Seccho caused Diggia to collide with Iker Lecuona (American Racing). The Spaniard fell and his race was over before the first lap. Somkiat Chantra’s replacement at IDEMITSU Honda Team Asia, Teppei Nagoe, was the next to go on lap four, before Stefano Manzi (MV Agusta Idealavoro Forward) and Nicolo Bulega (Sky Racing Team VR46) both crashed with fourteen laps to go. Simone Corsi (Tasca Racing Scuderia Moto2) was the next to go a lap later, before Jake Dixon (Sama Qatar Angel Nieto Team) fell eleven laps from the flag. Joe Roberts (American Racing) was the final retirement on lap sixteen.

Featured Image courtesy of David Goldman/Marc VDS.

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Moto3: Arbolino Seals Maiden Win

The Moto3 race in Mugello is always spectacular, the long straight meaning the group rarely gets an opportunity to split thanks to the slipstream. The 2019 edition was no exception to these trends.

The group was large from the start, with twenty or more bikes, but the group split slightly in the middle of the race, with the top ten fighting for first. Eventually, the group merges again, but not before one or two riders had identified themselves as the favourites entering the final stages.

Tony Arbolino (VNE Snipers) set pole position on Saturday by over six tenths, and had looked strong in the race despite falling back in the middle; whilst Tatsuki Suzuki (Sic58 Squadra Corse) had fought through from a poor grid position after getting his flying lap cancelled in Q2, and was seemingly able to pull away through most of the lap before the slipstream brought everyone back together. Similarly, although arguably to a larger extent than Suzuki, Lorenzo Dalla Porta (Leopard Racing) seemed to have an advantage in the more technical part of the lap, especially from Casanova to Scarperia. On several occasions, Dalla Porta was able to make a significant gap throughout the lap, but on no occasion was that gap large enough to defend him from the slipstreaming behind, and he was swamped by the pack time and time again.

A divebomb from Jaume Masia (Bester Capital Dubai) at San Donato on the final lap sent him temporarily into the lead, but it also sent both himself and Dalla Porta wide, allowing Arbolino and almost Dennis Foggia (Sky Racing Team VR46) up the inside of the pair of them.

Masia, Dalla Porta, Arbolino, Moto3 race Italian MotoGP 2019. Image courtesy of Gold and Goose/KTM

Arbolino led to turn two at Luco, where Masia put another strong move, this time on the #14 to reclaim the lead, whilst Dalla Porta secured third place from Foggia and Niccolo Antonelli (Sic58 Squadra Corse) took fifth place from John McPhee (Petronas SRT) who was now contending with Suzuki, whilst Aron Canet (Sterilgarda Max Racing Team) was sat at the back of the group.
Whilst passing Foggia for third in Luco, Dalla Porta carried good enough speed to put him on the inside of Arbolino in Poggio Seccho, claiming third as the group headed for Materassi.

It took the Tuscan until Corentaio to be able to claim the lead from Masia, but the Honda had looked to have a speed advantage on the KTM throughout the race, so it seemed the #48 was safe. This safety was jeopardised by Arbolino’s move on Masia in Bucine, the final corner, and the #14 was able to slipstream past Dalla Porta to the line to win his first Grand Prix, at his home Grand Prix, by 0.029 seconds. Arbolino’s first win has been coming for a while, so for him to finally achieve it now could be an important moment for the future of his career. It will be interesting to see now how Arbolino’s season goes from here, whether he will push on and take many more podiums and wins and fight for the championship now that the pressure of trying to win his first GP is lifted.

Dalla Porta was not too disappointed after the finish to forget the similarity between his second place in Mugello and the one he took in Qatar at round one, and he noted it to Simon Crafar in the parc ferme interview. After returning the podium in Le Mans, Dalla Porta has now taken his third podium of the season, moving him to just three points behind the championship leader, Aron Canet who finished seventh in Italy. The championship momentum is again moving the way of the Leopard rider.

Jaume Masia, third place at the Moto3 race, Italian MotoGP 2019. Image courtesy of Gold and Goose/KTM

Jaume Masia returned to the podium after missing the top three since Austin where he was second. After COTA, Masia was level with Canet atop the standings, but leaving Mugello, despite his podium, the Spaniard is eighteen points behind his compatriot. However, that gap is not impossible to overcome, and the season is still very long.

Missing the podium in his home race by a whole 0.078 seconds was Niccolo Antonelli who, like teammate Suzuki, had to fight through from a lowly grid position after his flying lap was cancelled in Q2. Fourth for Antonelli leaves him thirteen points behind Canet as the series heads to Barcelona for round seven.

Dennis Foggia rounded out the top five after a strong race for the #7, of which the entirety was spent in the front group. John McPhee had a poor qualifying, but a good start, although he was not able to repeat his Le Mans win and finally finished sixth, ahead of the aforementioned Aron Canet, whilst Tatsuki Suzuki was at the back of the front group in eighth, a whole 0.595 seconds off the win.

One second back of Suzuki was Celestino Vietti (Sky Racing Team VR46), the rookie continuing his 100% points record in 2019, with five of those six rides being inside the top ten. Darryn Binder (CIP Green Power) spent some time in the front of the race, but ultimately rounded out the top ten.

Raul Fernandez, Italian Moto3 race 2019. Image courtesy of Gold and Goose/KTM

Raul Fernandez (Sama Qatar Angel Nieto Team) finished eleventh on his first visit to Mugello, ahead of Albert Arenas (Sama Qatar Angel Nieto Team), Sergio Garcia (Estrella Galicia 0,0), Jakub Kornfeil (Redox PruestelGP) and Makar Yurchenko (BOE Skull Rider Mugen Race) who completed the points finishers.

Ai Ogura’s replacement at Honda Team Asia, Gerry Salim, finished sixteenth, less than one tenth off the final point on his GP debut, and ahead of Estrella Galicia 0,0 wildcard Ryusei Yamanaka, as well as reigning Red Bull Rookies Cup champion Can Oncu (Red Bull KTM Ajo), Vicente Perez (Reale Avintia Arizona 77), Filip Salac (Redox PruestelGP) and Riccardo Rossi (Kommerling Gresini Moto3) who was the twenty-first and final finisher in his first home Grand Prix.

Kazuki Masaki (BOE Skull Rider Mugen Race) was the first rider to retire, before Gabriel Rodrigo (Kommerling Gresini Moto3) fell at Materassi one lap later. Wildcard Kevin Zannoni (RGR TM Official Team) was the next to fall five laps later, as well as Alonso Lopez (Estrella Galicia 0,0). Next it was the turn of Tom Booth-Amos (CIP Green Power) to crash out, before Marcos Ramirez (Leopard Racing) fell for the second race in succession. Romano Fenati (VNE Snipers) then came together with Andrea Migno (Bester Capital Dubai) at Bucine with five to go, before Kaito Toba (Honda Team Asia) high sided on the exit of Poggio Seccho with four laps to go having been passed by Darryn Binder. The crash of Toba left Ayumu Sasaki (Petronas SRT) nowhere to go, and he went down as he hit his compatriot’s abandoned Honda.

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WorldSBK: Van der Mark Takes First 2019 Win, Bautista Crashes

The second race in the sixth round of the 2019 Superbike World Championship was a lively one to begin with, with strong fighting in the opening laps, before the pack stretched out and Michael van der Mark (Pata Yamaha WorldSBK) proved a dominant winner for the first time in 2019.

It was Marco Melandri (GRT Yamaha WorldSBK) who made the holeshot but, as in the Saturday race, Bautista was through at turn five. It was expected at this point that, as per usual, Bautista would disappear. However, the Spaniard went on to make his first mistake in a race of the year, crashing out early on at turn one. He got the bike back to the pits and, eventually, back out into the race, but was unable to score points.

Alvaro Bautista crashing out of Race Two of WSBK Jerez 2019. Image courtesy of Ducati

This presented a golden opportunity for Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) to take some points out of the championship lead of Bautista, which was forty-three points before the weekend. Ordinarily, the absence of Bautista would see Rea win, but Michael van der Mark had other ideas. After struggling to pass Rea for a number of laps the Dutchman managed to secure a lead. Rea hung on for several laps, but with six to go van der Mark started to pull away from the reigning champion.

The race was then cut short by a red flag for a crash for Ryuichi Kiyonari (Moriwaki Althea Honda Team). The crash brought gravel onto the track, which was deemed to unsafe by race direction. Since there were only two laps to go, the result was declared, and van der Mark declared the winner. Although he was unable to be strong in Superpole on Saturday, van der Mark’s race pace was strong all weekend, second only to Bautista. The mistake from Bautista gave van der Mark the opportunity, which he took with a dominant performance.

The second place of Rea was an important one with the non-scoring ride of Bautista. Unusually, Rea was unable to fight for the victory in Bautista’s absence, but van der Mark was simply too fast. Anyway, the reigning champion ended the weekend two points closer to Bautista than where he began it, which seemed unlikely on Saturday.

Toprak Razgatlioglu (Turkish Puccetti Racing) took his third career WorldSBK podium. He was with Rea and van der Mark when Bautista went down, but was unable to live with their pace when van der Mark started to push on. Nonetheless, it was a strong result for the Turk, and shows his rostrum in Imola was not a fluke.

It was a strong ride for Michael Ruben Rinaldi (BARNI Racing) who scored his best result in WorldSBK in fourth, ahead of Leon Haslam (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) who complered the top five. Sandro Cortese (GRT Yamaha WorldSBK) was sixth ahead of Tom Sykes (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK), Jordi Torres (Team Pedercini Racing), Loris Baz (Ten Kate Racing – Yamaha) who took the first top ten since his return to WSBK, and Tommy Bridewell (Team Goeleven) who completed the top ten.

Leandro Mercado (Orelac Racing VerdNatura) was eleventh, ahead of Markus Reiterberger (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK), Yuki Takahashi (Moriwaki Althea Honda Team) who scored his first WSBK points, and Alex Lowes (Pata Yamaha WorldSBK) who was the final finisher in fourteenth, two laps down thanks to a crash on lap one at turn two.

Chaz Davis at Jerez WSBK 2019. Image courtesy of Ducati

Chaz Davies (ARUBA.IT Racing – Ducati) and Marco Melandri (GRT Yamaha WorldSBK) came to blows on lap five, when the Italian tried to use the superior mid-corner performance of the R1 to pass Davies in turn five. However, he didn’t get the move done, made contact with the Ducati rider and took them both down. Davies was out on the spot, whilst Melandri get his bike back to the pits, although he didn’t get back out. Alessandro Delbianco (Althea Mie Racing Team) saw his race end on lap seven, whilst Bautista was only able to complete nine laps despite getting back out on track after his crash. Ryuichi Kiyonari was okay after his turn eleven crash which caused the race-ending red flag.

Featured Image courtesy Yamaha Racing

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WorldSBK: More Bautista Dominance, Rea From Last to Fourth in Jerez Superpole Race

The Superpole race from the sixth round of the 2019 Superbike World Championship saw Alvaro Bautista (ARUBA.IT Racing – Ducati) starting from pole position as retrospective penalties for Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) after the first race of the weekend saw him start from last in the sprint race.

That meant there was a great race in prospect, with Rea fighting through from the back, whilst the riders starting from the front would be fighting hard for the crucial top nine positions for the race two grid.

Rea was quick to come through the pack, and was in the top ten from nineteenth after the first two laps, while Bautista had cleared off out the front after converting his pole position to a holeshot. At the same time, Marco Melandri (GRT Yamaha WorldSBK) made a good start, launching ahead of Alex Lowes (Pata Yamaha WorldSBK) off the line, and making good his case for a second top-three of the weekend, pulling away from the rest of the pack as they fought behind.

Michael van der Mark and Alex Lowes at Jerez WSBK 2019. Image courtesy of Yamaha Racing

One of those fights was between the Pata Yamaha WorldSBK riders of Lowes and Michael van der Mark, with the two exchanging positions on several occasions in the opening lap. Van der Mark was eventually able to establish himself in fourth place ahead of Lowes after the pair overcame Tom Sykes (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK), and not long after the battle came to a close courtesy of a crash for the 2013 BSB champion.

Lowes’ crash promoted Rea to sixth place, which he soon turned to fifth by passing Sykes, and then fourth by overtaking his teammate, Leon Haslam (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK), just five corners later.

At the same time, van der Mark was closing on Melandri ahead in an all-Yamaha battle for second. Rea was no faster than either of the Yamaha riders ahead of him, so was in need of a battle between the Dutchman and the Italian.

Unfortunately for the reigning World Champion that battle never arose between Melandri and van der Mark, as the #33 was not able to retaliate when van der Mark made his move.

Once again, though, no one could touch Bautista out front, who won by 2.743 seconds over the ten laps. With Rea finishing in fourth, it was a six-point increase to Bautista’s championship advantage, which now stands at sixty-one points.

It was another strong performance from van der Mark to finish second, his second top two of the weekend. There were some strong moves from the Dutchman in the early laps, but once he smoothed himself out it was almost inevitable that he would end up second.

This is in spite of another strong ride by Marco Melandri, who continues his turnaround from the last few races where he has been seen to struggle a lot. Finishing ahead of Jonathan Rea on merit is testament to that.

Álvaro Bautista winner of Super pole at Jerez WSBK 2019, Michael van der Mark second and Marco Melandri Third Image courtesy of Ducati

For Rea himself, fourth place is perhaps as much as he could have hoped for, considering the strength of the Yamaha in Jerez this weekend, an it was another exceptional comeback from a lowly grid position for the four-times champion.

Tom Sykes’ gamble on the SCX tyre was enough to hold off Leon Haslam to round out the top five, whilst Haslam took sixth place ahead of Toprak Razgatlioglu (Turkish Puccetti Racing); Jordi Torres who is continuing his exceptional weekend for Team Pedercini Racing; Sandro Cortese (GRT Yamaha WorldSBK) and Chaz Davies (ARUBA.IT Racing – Ducati) who completed the top ten despite making a step forward in morning warm up, in which he was fourth fastest.

Michael Ruben Rinaldi (BARNI Racing) took eleventh place, ahead of Tommy Bridewell (Team Goeleven) who made steps, like Davies, in warm up. It was Leandro Mercado (Orelac Racing VerdNatura) in thirteenth, ahead of Yuki Takahashi (Moriwaki Althea Honda Team) and Markus Reiterberger (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK) who completed the top fifteen. Alessandro Delbianco (Althea Mie Racing Team) was sixteenth ahead of Ryuichi Kiyonari (Moriwaki Althea Honda Team) who was the last of the seventeen finishers.

Loris Baz (Ten Kata Racing – Yamaha) started from pit lane, and was out by the end of lap one, whilst Lowes crashed on lap four of the Superpole race, leaving his team some work to do before the second full length race of the weekend.

Featured Image courtesy of Ducati

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WorldSBK: Bautista Back on Top as Rea, Lowes Collide

Race one for the sixth round of the 2019 Superbike World Championship took place in Jerez, as the series reverted to type after the double of Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) in Imola, as Alvaro Bautista (ARUBA.IT Racing – Ducati) returned to the top step in his home round.

Jonathan Rea made the holeshot from pole position, his first pole in Jerez, but it took Bautista all of five corners to pass the reigning champion. After this, despite the best efforts of Rea, the Spaniard could not be caught.

Alvaro Bautista and Jonathan Rea during Race One at Jerez WSBK 2019. Image Courtesy of Ducati

Soon, Rea had the attentions of the two Pata Yamaha WorldSBK riders, Michael van der Mark and Alex Lowes, to deal with. Van der Mark did not take long to move through on the Kawasaki rider. Trying to go with the Dutchman, Rea lost the front at turn two which allowed Lowes through.

Rea was back at turn six after Lowes had a big slide in T5, and this let van der Mark escape. However, there was no separating Lowes and Rea, who swapped positions multiple times in the final ten laps, and the battle went down to the final corner. Lowes defended the line well, but Rea cut back to the inside, clipping Lowes’ left hand and taking away the bar. Lowes lost the front and his left glove, and looked to be in pain with his left hand. Rea was apologetic when he returned to the pit but, understandably, the Yamaha team was uninterested in the reigning champion’s consolation. The incident was investigated after the race but no punishment was handed the way of the Northern Irishman.

Either way, no one could get near Bautista who, once again, destroyed the field with his Panigale V4R. After missing the top step in both races in Imola, it was the perfect way for the #19 to bounce back in his home round.

The ride of van der Mark, from seventh on the grid, was fantastic. He scythed through the pack in the early laps, dealt with his teammate early on, then dragged Lowes up to Rea. Once he was past the World Champion, van der Mark proved superior to all but Bautista out front.

Third place for Rea was fortunate, as he didn’t have the tyre for it. Either way, out of a difficult race where he had a poor feeling with the front, Rea comes away with yet another podium, one which equals the record of Colin Edwards for consecutive podiums, as he took his twenty-fifth in a row. Perhaps, though, this is not one that Rea will want to remember, and he certainly was not celebrating it on the podium.

Marco Melandri (GRT Yamaha WorldSBK) has been back on form this weekend after missing confidence in his Yamaha R1 since his podium in Australia. Fourth place, and nineteen seconds off the win is perhaps not precisely where Melandri wants to be, but it represents a step forward from where he has been since the first round, and it gave him the top ‘independent’ award.

Alvaro Bautista, Michael van der Mark and Jonathan Rea on the 2019 Race One WSBK Jerez Podium winners. Image courtesy of Ducati

Toprak Razgatlioglu (Turkish Puccetti Racing) completed the top five, having come out second best of a race-long battle with Melandri.

Tom Sykes (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK) took sixth, ahead of a struggling Chaz Davies (ARUBA.IT Racing Ducati). Sandro Cortese (GRT Yamaha WorldSBK) was eighth, ahead of Leon Haslam (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) and Michael Ruben Rinaldi (BARNI Racing) who completed the top ten.

Eleventh went to Markus Reiterberger (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK) ahead of the returnees, Loris Baz (Ten Kate Racing – Yamaha) and Leandro Mercado (Orelac Racing VerdNatura). Eugene Laverty’s replacement at Team Goeleven, Tommy Bridewell, was fourteenth, whilst Alessandro Delbianco (Althea Mie Racing Team) was the top Honda in fifteenth, taking the final point.

After his incident in the final corner, Lowes got back on his YZF-R1 to finish sixteenth, ahead of his 2013 teammate at Samsung Honda in BSB, Ryuichi Kiyonari (Moriwaki Althea Honda Team) who was seventeenth and last on his first ever race in Jerez.

WorldSBK debutant, and replacement for Leon Camier at the Moriwaki Althea Honda Team, Yuki Takahashi, was the first retirement, crashing out unharmed at turn one. Jordi Torres (Team Pedercini Racing) was the only other retirement, as he came back into the pits on lap fifteen.

Featured image courtesy of Ducati

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