For the fifth time in its history, The Buriram International Circuit in Thailand will play host to the second round of the Superbike World Championship.
The 2019 season began three weeks ago in Australia, with Alvaro Bautista (ARUBA.IT Racing – Ducati) taking all three race victories in dominant fashion. The Spaniard enjoyed a dream debut in WorldSBK, no doubt aided by the straight line performance of the new Ducati Panigale V4R, which should also be useful in Thailand, with the two long straights in the first sector. Whilst Bautista will undoubtedly arrive in Buriram the favourite for the victory in all three races, the Thai round could prove to be more of a challenge for the 2006 125cc World Champion.
Primarily, that challenge is likely to come from reigning World Champion Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK), who has won six out of the eight WorldSBK races held at the Thai track, including doubles in 2015 and 2017. Last year, the Northern Irishman faced struggles with on the brakes, as they overheated due to the heavy stops of the Buriram International Circuit combined with the extreme Thai heat. However, in response, the championship allowed larger brake ducts in Imola and Donington, which proved a successful remedy for the ZX-10RR’s problems. Still, though, it remains to be seen whether a similar situation will be encountered by Rea in this year’s Thai round of the Superbike World Championship – if he does it could leave Bautista free to take three more comfortable victories.
For the teammates of Rea and Bautista, Thailand is an interesting prospect.
Leon Haslam, (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) has not been to Buriram since 2015 when he rode the Aprilia RSV4 to two second places, meaning he can be fast at this track, but has less experience at the venue compared to his rivals. Haslam was strong in Phillip Island three weeks ago, and were it not for a crash in race one on Saturday, could have had three podiums.
Chaz Davis at Phillip Island 2019. Image courtesy of Ducati
On the side of Chaz Davies (ARUBA.IT Racing – Ducati), however, the weekend is more of an opportunity for him to get closer to finding the feeling he wants from the Panigale V4R, having struggled with the new machinery since he first tried it last November. Davies appeared to make some progress in the second full-length race in Phillip Island, and will hope to continue along a similar path this weekend, on a circuit at which he often struggled with the V-twin Ducati, but was victorious at last season.
The other two Panigale V4R riders of Eugene Laverty (Team GoEleven) and Michael Ruben Rinaldi (BARNI Racing Team) are looking along similar lines to Davies, trying to find a better feeling from the bike. The task is made more difficult for these satellite riders, though, since they have different suspension manufacturers compared to the factory team, and so what they can learn from Davies and Bautista’s data and settings is limited.
The Pata Yamaha WorldSBK team would have been disappointed with their weekend in Phillip Island, having looked promising with both Alex Lowes and Michael van der Mark throughout the weekend, and throughout the preseason – especially with Lowes – yet failed to make the podium in any of the three races in Australia. To add insult to injury, the new Yamaha team, GRT Yamaha WorldSBK, made the podium with Marco Melandri in the first race of the weekend. The battle for top Yamaha promises to be a great one in 2019, and the outcome of this weekend’s races will be interesting in respect to that fight.
It became clear during Phillip Island that strongest point of the new Ducati is its engine, whilst the new BMW S100RR had exactly the opposite issue. Tom Sykes (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK) rode superbly in the first race to take seventh place, but the power deficit of the BMW became more apparent in the two Sunday races, where Sykes made a bad start and could not find his way through the field, riders just powering away or past him on the straight. The situation will remain the same for this weekend, which will likely prove costly for both Sykes and his factory BMW teammate Markus Reiterberger in the first sector of the lap.
The 2019 Moto2 World Championship began under the lights in Qatar to the soundtrack of 765cc Triumph three-cylinder motors, and Lorenzo Baldassarri (Flexbox HP 40) came out on top in a last lap duel with Tom Luthi (Dynavolt Intact GP).
Xavi Vierge (EG 0,0 Marc VDS) made the holeshot from Baldassarri, but it took the Italian only one lap before he assumed the lead.
After a few laps, Vierge dropped another spot to Marcel Schrotter (Dynavolt Intact GP) – the polesitter – and the attack from the German was enough to destabilise the #97 rider to the extent that Remy Gardner (ONEXOX TKKR SAG Team) and Alex Marquez (EG 0,0 Marc VDS) soon found their way through as well.
From this point, Baldassarri and Schrotter engaged in a cold war, trading lap times but Schrotter was never able to get within range of Baldassarri.
As the race settled down, Tom Luthi started to make his charge from the back half the top ten. He had a lot of pace, but took his time in passing people. By the halfway point, though, Luthi had passed Alex Marquez for fourth place, and was setting on after Gardner for the final podium spot. With three laps to go, the Swiss veteran of the Moto2 class had seized second place from teammate Schrotter and by the end of the penultimate lap he had caught Baldassarri.
Thomas Luthi (Dynavolt Intact GP)
It was clear that Luthi had a large advantage in edge grip, able to carry significantly more corner speed than Baldassarri, and this was especially noticeable through the three fast right-handers towards the end of the lap.
However, despite showing a nose in turns fourteen and fifteen, Luthi was unable to make a pass stick on Baldassarri, and the Italians snaking on the run to the line was enough to keep the 2005 125cc World Champion at bay, as Balda took the first win of the Triumph era of Moto2, a year on from being beaten to the Qatar victory by Pecco Bagnaia.
It was a stunningly metronomic ride from Baldassarri, consistently lapping in the mid-1’59s, dipping into the low-‘59s when he needed to. Against a more aggressive rider, maybe he would have lost out on the final lap, but the Italian did what he needed to do to go to Argentina leading the Moto2 World Championship for the first time in his career.
Tom Luthi’s return to Moto2 was last than half a tenth of a second away from being precisely perfect. If he hadn’t been considered already, Luthi has, with this ride, announced his intentions of winning his first world title in fourteen years. The Swiss held on impeccably to his tyre, something which his rivals were unable to replicate. This could prove to be a critical advantage throughout this season.
Marcel Schrotter hung on to the last podium position on the final lap from Remy Gardner, the German just running out of pace at the end. It has deserted him so far but Schrotter seems to be edging closer to that first Moto2 win.
Having stolen third place from Schrotter in turn one on the final lap, Gardner lost it again towards the end. He arrived in Qatar as one of the favourites for the win, so disappointment from the Aussie would be understandable. However, it was perhaps the best dry performance of the #87 in his entire grand prix career, and a fourth place is a good beginning.
Marcel Schrotter in the Qatar Moto3 race. mage courtesy of Dynavolt Intact GP
Augusto Fernandez (Flexbox HP 40) had a quiet but impressive first ride of the season in fifth place, easily clear of those behind and closing in on the podium battle towards the end.
Behind Fernandez was Sam Lowes (Federal Oil Gresini Moto2). If Remy Gardner arrived in Qatar as one of the favourites, Sam Lowes arrived as the absolute favourite, and by a chunk. However, several mistakes when overtaking people hampered his progress from the second row, and it is difficult to avoid the fact that the Brit missed out on a lot of points at the season opener. Luckily for Lowes, the season consists of nineteen races, not just one.
Seventh place went to Alex Marquez, who like Lowes will be disappointed with his result, having felt he had a strong race pace for the season opener.
Equally disappointed will be Luca Marini (Sky Racing Team VR46). He had not looked to have the pace to fight at the front for the whole weekend, or even in the test. Luca who is both expected and expecting to fight for the title this season, when his supposed main rivals Lowes and Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Ajo) were struggling he would have hoped to take advantage, especially at a track where he has gone well in the past.
Brad Binder, Qatar Moto2 race 2019. Image courtesy of Gold and Goose/KTM
But, for Binder, the race was even worse. He started by climbing four places to fourth place, but slowly slipped back from there, and appeared to run completely out of tyre at the end, haemorrhaging positions in the last couple of laps to: Enea Bastianini (Italtrans Racing Team), Xavi Vierge – who suffered massively mid-race – and Fabio Di Giannantonio (+Ego Speed Up). Whilst it was a disaster for Binder, to beat such a recognised championship favourite in their first race would have been something to smile about for the rookies, Bastianini (finished ninth) and Di Giannantonio (finished eleventh).
Despite starting the weekend in a good way and with some good speed, Andrea Locatelli (Italtrans Racing Team) could only manage thirteenth in the race, ahead of Jesko Raffin (NTS RW Racing Team) who replaced Steven Odendaal and reigning Moto3 World Champion Jorge Martin who was the final points scorer.
Most of the retirements came on the first lap, as Nicolo Bulega (Sky Racing Team VR46) collected Iker Lecuona (American Racing Team) on the way into the first corner, and Jorge Navarro (+Ego Speed Up) got caught up in the melee as well. Marco Bezzecchi (Red Bull KTM Tech3) had a disappointing start to his Moto2 career as he crashed at turn six on the first lap after some contact with Jake Dixon (Sama Qatar Angel Nieto Team), who crashed at turn four early in the race as well.
The opening round of the Moto3 World Championship in Qatar is the only twilight race of the year, and the 2019 edition of the race was spectacular in vistas, but even more so in on-track action.
Aron Canet (Sterilgarda Max Racing Team) made the holeshot, with fellow front row starters Lorenzo Dalla Porta and Kaito Toba (IDEMITSU Honda Team Asia) close in tow. When Albert Arenas (Sama Qatar Angel Nieto Team) made his way into fourth at the end of the first lap, there started to become a gap between the top four and the pack behind. This gap was soon closed, and a nineteen-rider front group proceeded to battle it out for the podium.
Aron Canet, Qatar Moto3 race 2019. Image courtesy of Gold and Goose/KTM
Over the course of the race it became clear that the Honda of Lorenzo Dalla Porta was particularly quick, as was that of Kaito Toba. In comparison, Aron Canet’s KTM could not live with the two riders who started alongside him on the front row when it came to the front straight.
As such, Canet’s time was completely made in the corners, his laps spent recovering positions he had lost on the straight, before losing them all again between turn sixteen and turn one.
After a mistake in qualifying that prevented him from having a final push at the end of Q2 for pole position, Romano Fenati (Snipers Team) made quite a poor start from the fourth row, and slipped towards the back of the top fifteen. Eventually, though, he started to make his way through the pack and towards the front, with tremendously adventurous lines, characteristic of his previous season in the lightweight class back in 2017, as he seemed to have the ability to ride around the outside of almost anyone at almost any time. Fenati also had the ability to carry seemingly significantly more corner speed than any of his rivals, especially those riding KTMs, and could turn tighter than even any of his Honda stablemates. He looked nailed on for the win, until he received a track limits warning with three laps to go, and proceeded to, by mistake, take the long lap penalty, putting him out of contention.
With Canet written off from the race win by virtue of his lack of straight line speed, the victory candidates were left at three: Kaito Toba, Lorenzo Dalla Porta and Marcos Ramirez (Leopard Racing) who had come from twentieth on the grid to fight for the win.
In the end, Dalla Porta entered the final corner first, and looked good for the win – such was his straight line speed – but Toba lined up turn sixteen beautifully to carry substantially more exit speed from the final corner than Dalla Porta. A small dose of slipstream from the Leopard rider ahead was then enough to take Toba into the lead, and despite tucking back into the Japanese’s slipstream, there was nothing Dalla Porta could do to stop Toba taking his first win in grand prix racing, as well as becoming the first Japanese rider to win a Moto3 grand prix.
Whilst it was ultimately defeat for Dalla Porta, second place was a good way for the Italian to begin his campaign, in which he will aim to fight for the championship. From this weekend he can take many positives, and if he can match the speed he showed in the opening race with the consistency of 2018, he is sure to be a formidable title contender.
That will not have gone unnoticed by Aron Canet, neither will his straight line disadvantage. Nonetheless, the Spaniard came home in third place, again a strong way to start his season, and will hope to build on that in the races to come. However, the speed of the Hondas will be a concern for him – when the straights are as long as they are on Moto3 bikes, straight line speed is critical. If you can’t stay in the slipstream of your rivals, you can find yourself defenceless.
Marcos Ramirez’s impressive fightback ended with fourth place – a good way for him to mark his return to the team with which he fought for the Moto3 Junior World Championship in 2016, a title which he ironically lost to his teammate, Dalla Porta.
Celestino Vietti , Qatar Moto3 2019.Image courtesy of Gold and Goose/KTM
Celestino Vietti (Sky Racing Team VR46) looked strong for the whole race, never slipping outside the top ten, and eventually finishing in fifth, where he had spent most of the race. Like Canet, Vietti had to battle with bikes which were faster than him in the straight, but he didn’t have the same speed in the corners to fight back. Nonetheless, fifth place is an impressive ride from Vietti, in his first race as a full-time GP rider.
Albert Arenas, like Vietti, had looked strong all race, and came home in sixth place ahead of his Sama Qatar Angel Nieto Team teammate Raul Fernandez, who was also making his debut as a full-time grand prix rider, and impressed with seventh place – again, on an apparently under-powered motorcycle.
Niccolo Antonelli (Sic 58 Squadra Corse) had looked on for a podium for a lot of the race, but fell back towards the end and finally came home in eighth place, ahead of Fenati who only partially recovered after his apparently self-enforced long-lap penalty. Jakub Kornfeil (PruestelGP) rounded out the top ten.
Jakub Kornfeil , Qatar Moto3 2019. Image courtesy of Gold and Goose/KTM
Ai Ogura (IDEMITSU Honda Team Asia) was another impressive full-time debutant in eleventh place, and stayed amongst the leading group for the whole race, coming home just ahead of Alonso Lopez (EG 0,0 Monlau Competition), John McPhee (Petronas SRT), Andrea Migno (Bester Capital Dubai) and Gabriel Rodrigo (Gresini Racing) who completed the points.
There were several fallers. The first came on the first lap, with Ayumu Sasaki (Petronas SRT) and Jaume Masia (Bester Capital Dubai) getting caught up with Tom Booth-Amos (CIP Green Power) and Makar Yurchenko (BOE Skull Rider Mugen Race). The latter two continued to finish last and second-last respectively.
Darryn Binder (CIP Green Power) crashed with seventeen laps to go in the second of the fast rights towards the end of the lap. The South African was joined on the side lines a couple of laps later when Dennis Foggia (Sky Racing Team VR46) was tagged by Rodrigo, fell and collected Kazuki Masaki (BOE Skull Rider Mugen Race) and Tatsuki Suzuki (Sic 58 Squadra Corse) on the way. Masaki continued to finish nineteenth, but Foggia and Suzuki retired on the spot.
On Sunday, the 2019 MotoGP World Championship began under the lights in Qatar at the Losail International Circuit. There was much anticipation regarding some outstanding rookies and also how Valentino Rossi (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) and Jorge Lorenzo (Repsol Honda Team) would fair from the fifth row of the grid. The other interest circled was around Maverick Vinales (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) ability to cope with the pressure of pole position. In the end, though, the race boiled down to that contemporary duel: Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team) versus Andrea Dovizioso (Mission Winnow Ducati).
Ducati’s new ‘holeshot device’ had been seen clearly in action for the first time this weekend, with the world feed cameras picking up Ducati GP19s making unusual movements as they prepared for practice starts throughout the free practice sessions. Andrea Dovizioso proved the device works, by making the holeshot ahead of fellow GP19 rider, Jack Miller (Alma Pramac Racing), who came from the second row to beat both Marc Marquez and polesitter Maverick Vinales to the first corner.
Unfortunately for Miller, his race soon came undone when his seat came loose through the fast right-handers of turns twelve, thirteen and fourteen. The Australian tore his seat away between turns fifteen and sixteen, but the lack of grip he had without an actual seat meant it became impossible to rider quickly and consistently, and so eventually the #43 retired.
Miller left behind a group of around fifteen riders at the front, although that number soon dropped to ten as the field settled, and those incapable of keeping the front pace were dropped.
Andrea Dovizioso 1st, Marc Marquez 2nd and Cal Crutchlow third at the Qatar GP 2019. Image courtesy of Ducati
It was not long until the tactics of Dovizioso became clear. He would try to sit at the front of the race and control the pace, saving the tyre and taking few risks, knowing that he had the power on the straight to keep himself clear of any pursuers, as well as being safe in the knowledge that Marquez – the one rider in the group who could pass him in a straight line bar Dovizioso’ Mission Winnow Ducati teammate Danilo Petrucci – had no intention of leading the race himself.
It was not an easy task for Dovizioso, though, to stay in front. The Suzuki of Alex Rins (Team Suzuki Ecstar) soon made his presence known, and was able to pass Dovizioso on several occasions throughout the main portion of the lap, but was never able to hold Dovizioso’s Desmosedici at bay once they got to the straight. He did, however, lead three laps in the middle of the race, which showed the improvements Suzuki have made to the power of the GSX-RR over the winter.
Whilst Rins and Dovizioso had been fighting over the lead at the front, the top group had been diminished to nine riders, as Takaaki Nakagami (LCR Honda IDEMITSU) started to fall away. That left the three Yamahas of Vinales, Rossi and Franco Morbidelli (Petronas Yamaha SRT) at the back of the front group which, once Dovizioso had dealt with Rins, was still headed by the #04 Ducati.
Dovizioso, surprisingly, was somewhat assisted in his stronghold over the leadership of the race by Marquez, who passed Rins on lap eleven, preventing the Suzuki rider from mounting any further assaults on the Desmosedici. Marquez knew the game of Dovizioso, and he didn’t need Rins escaping at the front to complicate matters.
In the final five laps, things started to heat up. Maverick Vinales made a failed attempt at passing the extremely impressive rookie Joan Mir (Team Suzuki Ecstar) on he inside at the penultimate corner on lap sixteen. That let Vinales’ teammate Rossi through into seventh place, and the Italian made his way past Mir on the next lap. A small gap had now appeared between Rossi and the front group. Vinales could see that, but again failed in passing Mir, sliding wide at turn four on lap seventeen, costing himself a further second, that he would not recover.
Danilo Petrucci, Maverick Viñales and Valentino Rossi at the Losail GP 2019. Image courtesy of Ducati
The gap Rossi suffered to the first five riders after passing Mir was overhauled by the Italian between turns five and seven, and with three laps to go he made his move on Petrucci for fifth place, a move which went without response from the factory Ducati debutant.
At the same time as Rossi moved on Petrucci, Cal Crutchlow (LCR Honda CASTROL) – who had been quietly sitting in a top six spot all race – made his move for a podium, passing Alex Rins for third, as the Dovizioso and Marquez started to construct a small gap, and gear up for a final lap duel.
Marquez beat Dovizioso to the line on the penultimate lap, but Dovi out-braked him into turn one, and held the line, not allowing Marquez to slide through on the inside mid-corner.
Knowing what happened the previous year when Dovizioso beat him when Marquez left his attack to the final corner, the #93 tried to pass at turn ten, but ran wide and Dovizioso squared him off through the sweeping turn eleven.
Marquez tried to go to the inside of turn twelve, but Dovizioso did not allow the door to open, and after a good run through turn fourteen for the Italian, an attack into turn fifteen was impossible for Marquez. It had to be the last corner, but Dovizioso had a good exit from fifteen, and was exceptionally late on the brakes into sixteen. There was little Marquez could do, but anyway he let the brakes off and block passed Dovizioso. But, as one year ago, Dovizioso squared him off, and even despite the improved Honda engine for 2019 and a slipstream, Marquez could do nothing to stop Dovizioso from taking the win and the initial championship lead.
Cal Crutchlow finishing 3rd behind Marc Marquez. Round One – Losail, Qatar MotoGP 2019. Image courtesy of Hondanews.eu
Cal Crutchlow managed to hold off Alex Rins for what is in essence a second consecutive podium for the Brit, after his rostrum in Japan last year. It was a stunning comeback from a potentially career-ending injury for Crutchlow, one which surprised even him.
Fourth place for Alex Rins was unfortunate, as he had ridden superbly for the whole race, but in the end it was horsepower that cost him. Suzuki have made gains in the top end of their GSX-RR motor over the winter, but they need more if they are to challenge Honda and Ducati on a circuit with a 1.1km front straight, with the finish line way over halfway down it.
The same can be said for Yamaha. They have consistently been the slowest bike this weekend, and that cost Rossi, Vinales and Morbidelli. They all struggled to overtake anything which wasn’t a Yamaha and, to add insult to injury, Rossi was visibly weaker on traction compared to his rivals, especially through turn eleven where the bikes spin the rear tyre the whole way. Nonetheless, fourteenth to fifth was an impressive comeback from The Doctor, who is still without a podium since Sachsenring last year.
Danilo Petrucci was visibly distraught with sixth place, after seeming to have the pace to win throughout the weekend. Maverick Vinales came home in seventh place ahead of Joan Mir, who had fought with Marc Marquez on his MotoGP debut for half the race, and finished ahead of Takaaki Nakagami (9th) and Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia Racing Team Gresini) who completed the top ten.
Eleventh place went to Franco Morbidelli whose soft tyre gave up on him in the final part of the race, whilst Pol Espargaro (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) had a decent ride aboard the RC16, finishing twelve seconds off the win after a difficult weekend for the Austrian marque on a circuit which has been traditionally tough for them.
Jorge Lorenzo at an uneventful Losail GP. Image courtesy of Hondanews.eu
Jorge Lorenzo’s chances of a dream Honda debut went out of the window on Saturday, when he was hurt by two crashes in FP3 and then Q1. Fortunately for the factory Honda man, there is a three week break in which he can focus on recovering for round two of the season in Argentina. Behind him, Andrea Iannone scored points in fourteenth on his debut for Aprilia Racing Team Gresini, as did Johann Zarco in fifteenth on his debut for Red Bull KTM Factory Racing. It was also the closest top fifteen in MotoGP history, with just over fifteen seconds covering the points scorers.
Perhaps the most heart-breaking moment of the race was when Fabio Quartararo (Petronas Yamaha SRT) stalled his M1 on the grid before the warm up lap. The Frenchman had qualified fifth for his debut MotoGP and had been brilliant all weekend. From the start, Quartararo started to set fastest lap after fastest lap, and at one point had passed Jorge Lorenzo, before his tyre gave up and he slipped back to eighteenth. Nonetheless, the debut weekend of Fabio Quartararo in the premier class was exceptional, and the moment when he is racing against the very best in MotoGP at the front of the field is surely not far away.
There were only three retirements from the 2019 season opener, with Francesco Bagnaia (Alma Pramac Racing) joining his teammate Jack Miller back in the garage on his MotoGP debut thanks to having one of the winglets wiped off the GP18. It doesn’t sound like a big deal, but unbalanced aero would have made the bike un-rideable. Finally Bradley Smith (Aprilia Factory Racing) crashed in turn one on the penultimate lap.
Although he was running last at the time, Smith’s crash on the RSGP caused some controversy post-race, as Suzuki protested the result of the race on two counts. Firstly, it protested that Cal Crutchlow had overtaken Rins under yellow flags – this protest was rejected.
Secondly, together with Honda, Aprilia and KTM, Suzuki protested the Ducati’s new aerodynamics, in which one piece hangs from the bottom of the fork leg, whilst the other hangs from the swingarm. Dovizioso used this setup for the first time in the warm up session for the Qatar race, but Danilo Petrucci had been using it since the Qatar test two weeks previously. Again, the protest was rejected on a lack of evidence, but it has been referred now to the MotoGP court of appeal, meaning the result could be entirely different for the season opener once the paddock arrives in Argentina for the second round of the season in three weeks’ time.
The 2019 MotoGP World Championship enjoyed its first qualifying session of the new season in Qatar, with impressive-looking rookies and a tight field meaning it was to be a fantastic session.
Maverick Vinales (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) took his second pole in successive grands prix after his wet weather pole in Valencia last November. Vinales reeked of confidence, lapping on his own in what were treacherous conditions – and his aggression on the brakes into the final corner was spectacular, the weight catapulting onto the front tyre. Despite being just under two tenths shy of Marc Marquez’ (Repsol Honda Team) outright lap record from Friday night, Vinales took pole by nearly two tenths, and consistently fast times posted in FP4 suggest he could be in the frame for the victory tomorrow.
Maverick Viñales grabs the first 2019 MotoGP pole At Qatar. Image courtesy of Yamaha Corporation
But it will a difficult race for Vinales. Despite having a pace as strong as anybody, he will have to fight against bikes which are between 15kph and 20kph faster than him in the front straight.
One of those bikes is the Ducati Desmosedici GP19, and in particular the one ridden by Andrea Dovizioso (Mission Winnow Ducati). The Italian has been almost invisible throughout the weekend, but in the long runs he has perhaps the best pace, and when it mattered, he showed he had the one-lap speed to give him a good grid position, finally taking second place.
In the past, the equal pace with his rivals would have been enough for Dovi, thanks to the straight-line speed of the Ducati. However, in Q2 Marc Marquez displayed the new engine in the Honda in its full potential, drafting past Danilo Petrucci (Mission Winnow Ducati) on his way to the back of the front row.
Marquez had looked uncomfortable throughout the session, and in the end it was the tow provided by Petrucci that fired him onto the front row. Marquez also suffered two crashes on Saturday, in FP3 and FP4. The suggestion of a slightly weaker front end on the 2019 Honda compared to its predecessor means that its pilots could be some of those most at risk if the temperature is low tomorrow, and that seems to be what caught both Marquez and his Repsol Honda teammate Jorge Lorenzo out in Saturday night’s sessions.
Jack Miller (Alma Pramac Racing) took the fourth fastest time despite a crash late on in Q2. In this, Miller scored the first point in the sub-championship going on this season with himself, Danilo Petrucci and Miller’s Alma Pramac teammate Pecco Bagnaia, who are all fighting for the second spot in the factory Ducati team for 2020 alongside Dovizioso.
Danilo Petrucci and Marc Marquez at Qatar MotoGP Qualifying. Image courtesy of Ducati
The middle of the second row sees the surprise of the weekend so far, with Fabio Quartararo (Petronas Yamaha SRT) qualifying fifth on his MotoGP debut. Quartararo has been fast all weekend, especially over one lap, and he put that into perfect practice in Q2. Like Vinales he will have his work cut out tomorrow against bikes which are so much faster than his, but already this weekend has been a big success for the Frenchman, beating both his teammate, Franco Morbidelli (Petronas Yamaha SRT) and Yamaha stablemate Valentino Rossi (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) in in his first ever premier class qualifying, and supposedly all with five-hundred revs taken off the top of his M1’s motor.
The second row for tomorrow’s MotoGP race will be rounded out by Cal Crutchlow (LCR Honda CASTROL), who made a stunning return after an injury from which he is still recovering to qualify sixth on a motorcycle with which he does not feel completely comfortable. Crutchlow is worried for the race, just to finish, if it starts at the planned 8pm, so it will be interesting to see what he can achieve tomorrow.
Danilo Petrucci has some outstanding-looking race pace, but he will be hoping Ducati’s holeshot device will propel him past some of the riders in front of him tomorrow, so that he can use that pace, after qualifying only seventh, in front of Franco Morbidelli and Takaaki Nakagami (LCR Honda IDEMITSU on row three.
As disappointed as Petrucci will be, the feeling will be similar for Alex Rins (Team SUZUKI ECSTAR) after the Spaniard only managed tenth place on the grid for the opening race after such an impressive preseason. Rins will be joined by his teammate, Joan Mir (Team SUZUKI ECSTAR) and Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia Racing Team Gresini) on the fourth row tomorrow.
Francesco Bagnaia was the fastest of those riders who did not make it through to Q2, and will start thirteenth tomorrow. On the face of it, especially with fellow rookies Quartararo and Mir in fifth and eleventh respectively, thirteenth doesn’t seem so fantastic for the reigning Moto2 World Champion, but the Italian will share the fifth row of his first GP with some hefty names: Valentino Rossi and Jorge Lorenzo.
Valentino Rossi under the lights of Losail circuit. Image courtesy of Yamaha Corporation
Rossi’s problems started on Friday evening, when an out-of-balance front tyre destroyed itself in five laps and left the Italian out of Q2 overnight. FP3 was too hot, too windy and too dusty for The Doctor to make an improvement and get into the top ten, and then a difficult Q1 saw him end his Saturday early, qualifying only fourteenth for the opening round of the championship. Unfortunately for Rossi, he has become only too accustomed to failing to make it out of Q1, and now tomorrow he faces another big fight back – one which, on paper, he seems entirely incapable of achieving. Rossi needs something big overnight if he is to make a good result tomorrow night.
Lorenzo’s problems also started when he failed to make the top ten on Friday night. The Spaniard then suffered a nasty high side on the exit of turn six early on in FP3, meaning he had to miss the rest of the session. After starting Q1 quite strong, the Repsol Honda rider looked good to advance to Q2, but a crash at the start of his second run ended those hopes, and he will start fifteenth tomorrow.
Jorge Lorezno at Qatar MotoGP qualification. Image courtesy of Yamaha Corporation
Seventeenth on his debut MotoGP grid is what faces Red Bull KTM Tech 3’s Miguel Oliveira tomorrow, as the Portuguese starts between the Spanish duo of his KTM stablemate Pol Espargaro (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) in sixteenth and 2014 Moto2 World Champion Tito Rabat (Reale Avintia Racing) in eighteenth.
Andrea Iannone (Aprilia Racing Team Gresini) will head up row seven tomorrow for his debut on the RSGP. Iannone had a bike problem at the end of Q1, although it didn’t seem as though he had the speed to make it to Q2 regardless. The Italian will be joined on row seven by Karel Abraham (Reale Avintia Racing) and Johann Zarco who will make his Red Bull KTM Factory Racing debut from twenty-first.
Hafizh Syahrin (Red Bull KTM Tech 3) still looks to be struggling to adapt to the RC16, and the Malaysian will start twenty-second tomorrow, in front only of Aprilia wildcard Bradley Smith (Aprilia Factory Racing).
For the first time in the history of the intermediate class of grand prix motorcycle racing, the qualifying session in Qatar for the opening round of the 2019 Moto2 World Championship was split into two parts. In the same way as Moto3, the fastest fourteen riders from the combined free practice times would be joined in the pole position shoot-out of Q2 by the four fastest riders in Q1.
The four advancing riders from Q1 were: the Sky Racing Team VR46 duo of Luca Marini and class rookie Nicolo Bulega; Tetsuta Nagashima (ONEXOX TKKR SAG Team) and Iker Lecuona (American Racing KTM), the Spaniard the beneficiary of Fabio Di Giannantonio (+Ego Speed Up) having his fastest lap cancelled.
As in the preceding Moto3 Q2, there was some bunching out on track as riders looked to get a tow. However, the rider who took pole made his lap time on his own, and he did it over and over. Marcel Schrotter (Dynavolt Intact GP) took his first Moto2 pole position as a result of a 1’58.585, which followed a series of laps from the German which would have been good enough or pole.
Marcel Schrötter,gets the first pole of 2019 Moto2 Season. Image courtesy of Dynavolt Intact GP
In the end, Schrotter’s advantage over second place was 0.146 seconds, and it was over Xavi Vierge (EG 0,0 Marc VDS) who put himself in almost the perfect position for his debut with his new squad tomorrow.
Lorenzo Baldassarri (Flexbox HP 40) ensured it was three different nationalities on the front row of the first Moto2 round of the 2019 season, but also that it was a Kalex front row lockout for the first GP of the Triumph-powered era of the Moto2 World Championship. Baldassarri finished second in Qatar last season, and will hope that this good grid position will allow him to go one better this time round.
Fourth place went to Luca Marini after he made it through from Q1. The Italian could have been on the front row but a crash at turn two in the closing stages of the session put him out of contention.
Marini will be joined on the front row tomorrow by the two riders who arguably came into this season as the favourites for the race win: Remy Gardner (ONEXOX TKKR SAG Team) in fifth and Sam Lowes (Federal Oil Gresini Moto2) in sixth. Whilst both Lowes and Gardner would have perhaps hoped for more, the second row gives them a good position from which they can fight for the top positions.
Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Ajo) was the top non-Kalex rider as he put his KTM eighth place, between the two Kalex’s of Tom Luthi (Dynavolt Intact GP) – seventh on his Moto2 return – and Alex Marquez (EG 0,0 Marc VDS) who begins his fifth season in Moto2 from ninth on the grid.
Augusto Fernandez (Flexbox HP 40) will start tomorrow’s GP from tenth, ahead of Jorge Martin (Red Bull KTM Ajo) in eleventh. Martin had a crash midway through Q2, which limited his chances. Jorge Navarro (+Ego Speed Up) completed the fourth row.
Enea Bastianini has looked to have top ten pace all weekend, but could only manage thirteenth on his debut for the Italtrans squad. He will be joined by Tetsuta Nagashima and fellow rookie Nicolo Bulega on row five tomorrow.
After passing through Q1, Iker Lecuona qualified sixteenth, ahead of Andrea Locatelli (Italtrans Racing Team) – who like his teammate has shown better than his qualifying result throughout the weekend – and Bo Bendsneyder (NTS RW Racing GP).
Saturday in Losail for the first round of the Moto3 World Championship saw for the first time a segmented qualifying for the lightweight class. It would see the top fourteen riders from the combined free practice times compete in Q2 along with the four fastest riders from Q1.
The four fastest riders from Q1 were Celestino Vietti (Sky Racing Team VR46), John McPhee (Petronas SRT), Ai Ogura (IDEMITSU Honda Team Asia) and Raul Fernandez (Sama Qatar Angel Nieto Team). These would therefore fight it out for pole position in the second fifteen minute qualifying session, along with the fourteen fastest riders from the combined free practice times.
Although the new qualifying format for Moto3 was intended to reduce the amount of bunching on track, and to stop as many people waiting for a tow, the majority of the field – in both sessions – found themselves occupying the same 200 metres of track.
Aron Canet at Losail, Qatar 2019. Image courtesy of Gold and Goose/KTM
In the melee, Aron Canet (Sterilgarda Max Racing Team) managed to put together a strong lap, at the end of which he found a useful tow from Vicente Perez (Arizona Reale Avintia) with which he managed to set a time good enough for pole position. It was the perfect start to his partnership with Max Biaggi’s collaborative effort with Peter Oettl, and moreover the perfect way to start what he will hope to be a championship challenge.
Second fastest was Lorenzo Dalla Porta (Leopard Racing), just under two tenths shy of Canet’s time. The Italian has been largely under the radar for most of preseason and throughout the winter. However, let’s not forget that he took the first podium of his career in Qatar twelve months ago.
Completing the front row was Kaito Toba (IDEMITSU Honda Team Asia), for his first ever front row start in grand prix racing, and has had a good weekend so will be hoping to fight for the podium tomorrow.
John McPhee took fourth place from Q2 to start from the head of the second row, after a difficult start to the weekend (hence he went through Q1) the Scot seems to have turned it around, and has a good shot at making a good result tomorrow.
Niccolo Antonelli (Sic58 Squadra Corse) has been fast this weekend, despite falling twice (the first crash being the first of any grand prix rider this year). Fifth place gives him a good starting position for tomorrow, and he will hope to capitalise on that on a track at which he won in 2016.
Rounding out the second row for the first round of the season is Albert Arenas (Sama Qatar Angel Nieto Team).
Seventh fastest in Q2 was Tony Arbolino (Snipers Team), and he will be joined on the front row by Celestino Vietti in his first race as a full time grand prix rider and Vicente Perez – who is in a similar situation to Vietti.
The top ten was rounded out by reigning Moto3 Junior World Champion Raul Fernandez after he passed through Q1. He will be joined on the fourth row of the grid tomorrow by Romano Fenati (Snipers Team) – who should have been on the front two rows at least, but for a miscalculation in sending him out for the final run meant he didn’t get a flying lap in at the end – and the injured Gabriel Rodrigo (Gresini Racing).
Kazuki Masaki (BOE Skull Rider Mugen Race) took thirteenth place, ahead (provisionally) of Jakub Kornfeil (PruestelGP) who was seen blocking Kaito Toba mid-session. Ai Ogura impressively rounded out the fifth row on his debut as a full-time grand prix rider.
Dennis Foggia (Sky Racing Team VR46) will be disappointed with sixteenth place in the opening qualifying session of the season, as will Andrea Migno (Bester Capital Dubai) who was up inside the top ten before his lap was deleted. 2018 Valencia GP winner Can Oncu (Red Bull KTM Ajo) rounded out the sixth row.
This weekend the 2019 MotoGP World Championship begins in Qatar, under the lights of the Losail International Circuit.
Losail is an interesting circuit. The long front straight – one of the fastest of the season – means that power is necessary, but the intensity of the corners after that mean that a sweet handling chassis can also be of use, especially in the three fast right-handers towards the end of the lap.
Partly because of this good combination and partly because Losail is home to the final preseason test – allowing riders and teams to already arrive at a good setting before the Grand Prix weekend even begins – the Grand Prix of Qatar regularly throws up a good race. This year, there are predictions of a ten-rider battle for the podium.
Marc Marquez at the Qatar test 2019. Image courtesy of Box Repsol
Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team), is sure to be one of those riders fighting for the podium. It is slightly hard to believe that the reigning World Champion is about to embark on his seventh season in the premier class, and harder still, to believe that he could win his sixth title come the end of November. Regardless, the all-action Spaniard is not considered – by himself or anyone else – as a Qatar specialist. Marquez has never gone well in Doha – at least, not compared to other places. That said, he does have two wins to his name under the lights in 2012 – when he came back from his eye injury in Sepang 2011 to win – and 2014 when he won whilst with a fairly recently broken leg in a strong battle with Valentino Rossi. Marquez was also very close to the win last season, finishing just 0.027 seconds behind Ducati’s Andrea Dovizioso. With the additional power of the Honda this year, perhaps the Spaniard can reverse that deficit in 2019.
Marquez also suffered in preseason this year, and is still recovering from surgery on his damaged shoulder in December of last year. In a similar way, Marquez’s teammate, Jorge Lorenzo (Repsol Honda Team) had his preseason blighted by injury: a broken scaphoid, which he doesn’t expect to be fully recovered from until the championship heads back to Europe in May. That said, Lorenzo showed some impressive speed in the Qatar test, and should be able to make at least the majority of the race in the battle at the front.
Lorenzo’s record is good in Qatar, too. In fact, it is the best, with six wins across all classes in Qatar, starting back in 2004 when he beat Dovizioso to the 125cc win in what was then the heat of the midday desert sun. Lorenzo also holds the race lap record in Qatar, from 2016 when he rode the M1 to his most recent win at Losail. A repeat of that 2016 result would be a tough ask this time round, but it would be a surprise to not see Lorenzo figuring in the front group come Sunday night.
Jorge Lorenzo at the MotoGP Qatar test 2019. Image courtesy of Box Repsol
Losail was always the circuit which suited the Ducati best, back when it couldn’t turn in, or through a corner, and when it had concessions and softer tyres. In 2018, Andrea Dovizioso (Mission Winnow Ducati) finally delivered on the victory both he and the Desmosedici had been promising since 2015. Dovizioso was also arguably the most settled rider throughout preseason testing, and is probably the favourite for this race, despite two riders in particular having potentially better pace, because of the speed of the Desmosedici on the straight.
Whilst Honda have made gains in the motor department compared to Ducati, Yamaha and Suzuki have not. Suzuki have more power for this year, but they are still at a disadvantage to the Desmosedici in a straight line, and Yamaha’s engine development over the winter was primarily focused on using the tyre more efficiently compared to the last three seasons.
This means that whilst Maverick Vinales (Monster Energy Yamaha) – who topped the test in Qatar quite convincingly – and Alex Rins (Ecstar Suzuki Team) have arguably better pace than their rivals, their lack of straight line speed could make them easy prey for the likes of Dovizioso and Marquez in the straight.
Despite this, the pace the two Spaniards showed throughout testing – not just in Qatar, but in Sepang as well – means that they must be among the favourites for this weekends premier class Grand Prix.
Valentino Rossi (Monster Energy Yamaha) and Danilo Petrucci (Mission Winnow Ducati) should also be in the mix this weekend.
Valentino Rossi at the MotoGP 2019 Qatar test. Image courtesy of Yamaha Corporation
Rossi’s mood over preseason has been largely positive yet reserved, saying that Yamaha are on the right path but that they have more work to do. Vinales agrees with this, mostly, despite his superior pace. Even still, Rossi’s record (four premier class wins) in Losail means he will be expected to be fighting at the front this weekend. Additionally, Rossi has been on the podium in Losail each year since he returned to Yamaha in 2013, with the exception of 2016 when he finished fourth.
For Petrucci, there is a lot of pressure this weekend. It is his debut for the factory Ducati team, and he needs immediate performance. Fortunately for the Italian, his pace over the winter would suggest he is up to the task. He has showed on several occasions that he has the speed as well as the consistency to mean that the #9 Desmosedici GP19 will have a lot of expectation on it this season. The Italian does not have long to convince Ducati that they should keep him for 2020 – such is the nature of the MotoGP rider market – so a good result this weekend could be crucial.
Danilo Petrucci on his 2019 Ducati Desmosedici GP MotoGP bike at the Qatar test. Image courtesy of Ducati
As well as the factory riders, there are satellite rides who should have an eye kept on them this weekend.
Firstly, Franco Morbidelli (Petronas SRT Yamaha) has been impressive over the winter and could figure this weekend, although he appears to still be suffering with tyre life and acceleration issues.
Secondly, Cal Crutchlow (LCR Honda) must always be considered as a potential front runner. However, the Briton is still suffering with his shattered right ankle – although it affects him less whilst riding – and a poor feeling with the front of the 2019 RC213V, a complaint echoed by Marquez. This will be a difficult weekend for Crutchlow, but it would be unfair to discount him at this stage.
The battle for rookie of the year also gets underway this weekend, of course. Francesco Bagnaia (Alma Pramac Racing) was second fastest in the Sepang test, half a tenth away from Danilo Petrucci’s new unofficial lap record, and had some promising race pace in Qatar.
Meanwhile, Fabio Quartararo (Petronas SRT Yamaha) came alive in Qatar, figuring often in the top five, and setting some impressive long runs, too.
Joan Mir (Ecstar Suzuki Team) has missed the headline times, but in many ways that is typical of Mir, who only has one pole position in his Grand Prix career, back in Austria 2016. Mir has, though, looked good on race pace.
Miguel Oliveira (Red Bull KTM Tech 3) has not had the outstanding pace or speed of his three fellow rookies, owing largely no doubt to his machinery disadvantage – the KTM still very much in the early stage of its development – but compared to his KTM stablemates Oliveira has been impressive, setting comparative times to Johann Zarco (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) and being relatively close to Pol Espargaro’s (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) times, too.
The battle for rookie of the year could be one of the most intriguing and exciting parts of the 2019 MotoGP season.
The Losail International Circuit plays host to the first round of the 2019 Moto2 World Championship this weekend.
After three days of testing for the Moto2 field last weekend, Sam Lowes (Federal Oil Gresini Moto2) has emerged as the favourite for the win – dominating the three days and ending 0.2 seconds clear of the field. With two difficult years it seems Lowes is ready to return to the front with the team in which he made his most successful season in Grand Prix racing back in 2016. The Brit has always been competitive in Qatar, even in his Grand Prix debut in 2014. Where he finished inside the top ten with the Speed Up team, and it seems as though this year could be his best opportunity to finally take the win in Qatar – a win which would somewhat fittingly see, a British rider win the first race of the Triumph-powered era of Moto2.
From the test it seems that Remy Gardner (ONEXOX TKKR SAG Team) could be Lowes’ closest challenger for the season opener, the Australian finishing third in the combined times of the test, and showing a good rhythm. Back on a Kalex for 2019, Gardner looks set for what could possibly be his best season in the Moto2 World Championship – a podium to open the year would be a good way to start that for the #87.
Between Lowes and Gardner in the Qatar test on the combined times was Tom Luthi (Dynavolt Intact GP) who returns to the intermediate class after a year with the Marc VDS team in MotoGP. Interestingly, this will be Luthi’s first season in Moto2 outside of the Interwetten team with whom he enjoyed so much success previously. He has, though, joined a very strong team in the Dynavolt outfit, who has won races in the past with Jonas Folger, and scored many podiums last season with Xavi Vierge and Marcel Schrotter.
Vierge, who has now joined the EG 0,0 Marc VDS squad is certainly a dark horse for the championship after some strong performances last season for Dynavolt. He looked strong in testing too, and goes to Qatar with hopes of a podium, no doubt.
The same could be said for his EG 0,0 Marc VDS teammate, Alex Marquez, who ended the three days in Qatar just under a tenth behind Vierge and has looked strong throughout preseason. The critical thing for Marquez this season is to stop crashing. Hitting the deck last year cost him the championship – it cost him points and cost him his confidence. The regulation change for Moto2 this season could provide the mental refreshment necessary for the Spaniard to make an assault for the championship.
Brad Binder, Qatar Moto2 test 2019. Image courtesy of Gold & Goose/Red Bull Content Pool
But, aside from Lowes, the championship favourites are almost universally agreed to be Luca Marini (Sky Racing Team VR46) and Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Ajo). Both were over half a second off Lowes’ time in the Qatar test, but have also looked strong since preseason testing resumed after the winter ban.
Interestingly, neither one of the three main championship contenders have achieved a victory in Qatar and, as such, there is a good possibility for the likes of Vierge, Luthi and Marquez to take an early advantage. As well as those three, Lorenzo Baldassarri and his Flexbox HP40 Pons teammate Augusto Fernandez could be in the battle this weekend, although Baldassarri was not particularly spectacular in testing at the weekend. Fernandez, on the other hand, was fourth fastest at the end of the three days, only three tenths off Lowes.
Perhaps the most interesting part of this weekend, though, as far as the intermediate class is concerned is the beginning of a new era. The powerless, screaming Honda CBR600RR engines will have officially been replaced on Friday by the torquey Triumph 765 three-cylinder motor. As well as change in sound, these engines have also produced changes in riding style. The torque of the new engine means that corner speed is not as vital as before to lap time; now it is possible to square corners off and still make lap times. This should result in better racing, as riders can send more risky passes knowing they aren’t going to be so slow on the straight as a result. On Sunday we will find out if this is the reality.
Featured Image courtesy of Gold & Goose/Red Bull Content Pool
The 2019 Moto3 World Championship gets underway this weekend at the Losail International Circuit in Qatar.
Since the inauguration of Moto3 in 2012, the Qatar round of the World Championship has been won five times by Honda riders, including the last four years. In fact, the only rider to have won in Qatar on this year’s Moto3 grid is Niccolo Antonelli (Sic58 Squadra Corse), who both won Qatar on a Honda back in 2016 and is riding a Honda this year.
Honda have had a lot of work to do over the winter to make up the ground they lost last year to KTM in the horsepower department. The KTMs last year had a particular habit of steaming past Hondas on the straights, especially after the French Grand Prix at round five and particularly in the hands of championship contender Marco Bezzecchi for PruestelGP. Reports from the riders would suggest that this work has been successful, John McPhee (Petronas SRT) commenting in Jerez that it is possible to use the low-down power of the Honda now to power out of a corner if you didn’t carry the corner speed.
Despite their 2018 speed deficit, Jorge Martin (with Gresini) ensured, that the Moto3 World Championship will be Honda’s to defend in 2019. As well as having made some progress with the bike over the winter, Honda have also got a very strong rider roster.
Lorenzo Dalla Porta (Leopard Racing) perhaps comes into this season as the championship favourite, after a strong and consistent 2018 which also featured his debut win at home – sort of – in Misano. Dalla Porta remains with the Leopard team for this year, and also stays aboard a Honda, and a strong preseason could mark him out as a favourite among favourites.
It will not be easy for Dalla Porta in 2019, he will have a lot of competition, and possibly primarily in the shape of Romano Fenati (Snipers Team). After a disgraced 2018, Fenati managed to get himself a ride back at the squad that fired him after Misano last year. Keen for redemption after last year, Fenati has wintered very quickly, ending the Qatar test last week two tenths clear of the field, lapping largely on his own. It seems Fenati has no intention to make his current stay in Moto3 as long as his last, and is by far the favourite for this weekend’s victory.
But Moto3 is never that simple and, even Dalla Porta aside, there will plenty of opposition from Fenati to overcome, starting with his own teammate, Tony Arbolino (Snipers Team), who was second fastest at the Qatar test last weekend and is coming off the back of an inconsistent 2018. Perhaps remaining in the same team for consecutive seasons will be a help for Arbolino, and after throwing away a chance at a first ever GP win last year in Valencia, the Italian will be keen to put that right at the first opportunity.
Aron Canet the KTM RC250 Qatar Moto3 test 2019. Image courtesy of Gold and Goose/KTM
The main KTM challenge this year looks as though it will be coming from Sterilgarda Max Racing Team’s Aron Canet, who moves away from Honda and Emilio Alzamora after a number of years in that camp. Canet has been impressive throughout the winter – not spectacularly fast, but enough for consideration. Canet finished second in Qatar last season, but is without a win since 2017. Now into his fourth season in the Moto3 World Championship, it is time for Canet to make his mark.
Of course, the speed of Canet – riding for Max Biaggi’s team – will have come much to the annoyance of the Sky Racing Team VR46. Valentino Rossi and Max Biaggi, of course, shared a famous rivalry in the early-to-mid-2000s, and that rivalry will in some ways be reignited this year with both of them in the Moto3 World Championship as team owners. Rossi’s Sky VR46 squad has been winless since it picked up KTM’s only win of 2017 with Andrea Migno in Mugello, and coming into this season would have been hoping for Dennis Foggia to be fighting for wins regularly and to make a charge for the title. In testing, however, Foggia has not shown that pace, and it looks like it is going to take a fairly large turnaround in fortunes for Rossi’s squad to end that winless run this season, and especially this weekend.
