Category: Crew On Two

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Binder Wins As Bagnaia Stretches Series Advantage

Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Ajo) started from his career first Moto2 pole position in the 2018 Moto2 Grand Prix of Aragon, and from it he took the holeshot, steaming clear of the pack through the opening bends.

However, Alex Marquez (EG 0,0 MarcVDS) was quick to latch onto the back of the South African, soon passed and started to escape at the front.
It did not last long, though, and after one lap, Binder had re-grouped and come back to the Spaniard, although he was in no hurry to make a move for the race lead.

Further back, meanwhile, Francesco Bagnaia (Sky VR|46) – who came into the fourteenth round of the season with an eight-point World Championship lead – had cleared Marcel Schrotter (Dynavolt Impact GP) for third place, and began closing in on the leading duo.

The now six-wheeled leading group was in something of a stalemate for a reasonable period. Aragon was proving a tricky circuit to pass on for the Moto2 machines, since the primary overtaking spots require a superior acceleration off the previous corner and a decent slipstream – both of which are hard to achieve on Moto2 bikes. This meant that to pass, the rider behind would have to catch the rider in front off-guard, and that is precisely what Bagnaia tried to achieve against Brad Binder in the final corner on lap thirteen.

But it didn’t pay off for the Italian. Binder had been running an especially wide line through the middle of the final corner all race long, and Bagnaia on this occasion was just close enough to have a look at passing the 2016 Moto3 World Champion with his more conventional, tighter line. However, Binder cut the KTM back, as every other lap, to take the apex of turn seventeen, and made contact with Bagnaia, forcing the Italian to sit up. It was a fairly hefty collision, so much so that it dislodged Binder’s rear-mounted camera from the back of the KTM, but fortunately both riders stayed aboard their machines with little-to-no damage.

But Bagnaia definitely came off worse out of the two, as he nearly high-sided, lost his rhythm and lost a position to Lorenzo Baldassarri (Pons HP40) – who had been closing on the leaders for a few laps by this point.

It took Bagnaia a few laps to regain his rhythm, and by the time he had reclaimed third place from Baldassarri, Binder had already had the lead for two laps, and started to pull away from Marquez.

It took Bagnaia two more laps to pass Marquez, which he did neatly down at turn one, but whilst he was able to escape from those behind, he was unable to make any ground on Binder ahead, and so was forced to consolidate his second position.

Brad Binder (41) dicing with Francesco Bagnaia (42)

That left Binder to collect his second win of the season, after Sachsenring, to match his championship-contending teammate Miguel Oliveira (Red Bull KTM Ajo) for 2018 victories. The key for Binder was certainly his pole position lap in Saturday’s qualifying session, which strangely came at the end of the session. His starting position allowed him to use the race pace of the KTM, both in the initial stages of the race, and the final part, and he showed the potential.

The second place was an important result for Bagnaia. With Oliveira, his main championship rival, qualifying down in 18th place, it was crucial for the Italian to take advantage, and whilst he didn’t maximise his score, he did increase his advantage in the standings, which could be crucial as the championship heads to Asia for the four fly-away races.

Baldassarri was able to steal third place from Alex Marquez in the penultimate lap. It was an important result for the Italian, as he had not been on the rostrum since Mugello in the beginning of June. Undoubtedly, though, the Italian could have done more with a better qualifying, and this can be said for many races this season. Baldassarri is by no means alone in suffering qualifying woes in Moto2 this season, but his race performances perhaps only make that more frustrating.

Fourth place for Alex Marquez will no doubt leave the Spaniard disappointed, especially as he led for much of the race, and to miss the podium in his home race by three tenths will not be something he is revelling in, particularly. But, for the first time since Assen, Marquez was in the podium fight from lights to flag, and from that he can take some heart, because it looks like he is finally back on the pace after a few months of struggling.

Despite a decent qualifying and some promising early-race pace, Schrotter could not keep the pace of the front four, and in the end came home in what turned out to be quite a lonely fifth place.

That said, the German did come under some pressure from Joan Mir towards the end of the race, although the rookie never posed a real threat. Perhaps Mir was pushing on towards Schrotter to try to keep out of range of Miguel Oliveira, who was fast approaching from behind.

It was a tough race for the Portuguese rider. He started eighteenth, and only came up to fifteenth by the end of lap one. It took him until lap four to break into the top ten, and he didn’t make any more progress until lap ten when he moved up to ninth. Two more places gained in the final eleven laps gave Oliveira seventh place, but his disappointment at his position and the losses he suffered in the championship will only be heightened this weekend by the victory of his teammate. If Oliveira can’t qualify well, his championship chances are done.

Eighth over the line was Mattia Pasini (Italtrans Racing Team), whose pace suffered in the latter part of the race. Despite this, he still ended up coming out on top of the three-way battle between himself, Fabio Quartararo (MB Conveyors SpeedUp) and Jorge Navarro  (Federal Oil Gresini) over P8, 9 and 10 respectively.

Luca Marini (Sky VR|46) suffered with the bike setting and his damaged shoulder all weekend, and in the end could only manage eleventh place, ahead of Simone Corsi (Tasca Racing Scuderia), Augusto Fernandez (Pons HP40), Iker Lecuona (Swiss Innovative Investors) and Tetsuta Nagashima (Idemitsu Honda) who completed the points.

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Jorge Martin Blitzes Field To Extend Lead Over Rivals

The 14th round of Moto3 world championship proved to be a decisive one, as Marco Bezzecchi narrowed the gap between himself and the series leader Jorge Martin.

It was Martin (Del Conca Gresini) who stole the show, after a great start saw him create a sizeable gap between himself and the rest of the pack. This lead would be too much for the rest of the grid, but that made the fight for second all the more brutal.

On paper, Juame Masia (Bester Capital Dubai) should have been Martin’s closest rival as he started from second on the grid, but a cracked collarbone from a previous accident caused him to fall out of contention fast. Masia and Martin were the only two riders to start the race where they’d qualified, as all other riders were handed heavy penalties that saw the likes of Enea Bastianini (Leopard Racing) starting in 15th and Bezzecchi (Redox PruestelGP) in 18th. Ultimately it was Martin who soared to his sixth race win, Bezzecchi in second and Bastianini in third.

With Martin out in front, the next riders expected to perform well at the AragonGP were title rival Bezzecchi, Bastianini and teammate Fabio Di Giannantonio (Del Conca Gresini).

All three riders fought for to try and finish in the top three, but Marcos Ramirez (Bester Capital Dubai), Tatsuki Suzuki (SIC58 Squadro Corse) and Adam Norrodin (Petronas Sprinta Racing) also kept up with the group which failed to dissipate for the entire race. Unfortunately, Suzuki and Norrodin slipped back and weren’t able to finish in the top five, after securing sixth and eighth respectively.

Those two were propelled forward in the standings after Aron Canet (Estrell Galicia 0,0), who would have been looking to put in a good performance to sustain his rivalry with Martin, retired from the race with a shoulder injury. He fell out of the top ten and was lingering in 16th position when he decided to call it a day.

Gabriel Rodrigo (RBA BOE Skull Rider) also crashed out of podium contention when he got too close to Albert Arenas (Angel Nieto Team) and slid out of the race. He had been flirting with the top four but wasn’t fast enough to really pull away from the pack, instead trading places multiple times before his Aragon race came to an end.

With about eight laps to go, further penalties were handed to Vicente Perez (Reale Avintia Academy) and Dennis Foggia (Sky-VR|46) for exceeding track limits. They had to concede positions for gaining an advantage when riding wide of the track. Ultimately, it would be Perez who finished within the points after crossing the line in 14th. Niccolo Antonelli (SIC58 Squadro Corse) was the only other rider to crash out though, just before Rodrigo did on the penultimate lap.

It seemed to be a race of hard tactics. On several occasions the rider in second would attempt to pull away whilst the pack behind him was too preoccupied with the rider in third (Di Giannantonio, Ramirez, Bezzecchi and Bastianini). However, this tactic was often hampered due to the nature of the track, and didn’t work for longer than a few laps. The Motorland circuit is very physical due to several elevation changes, so in many ways this tactic would work to take the pressure off of the rider in second but only temporarily. Slipstreams are also very common on this track, so riders had to make the most of them whilst also defending their own.

Points-wise, this was a very good race for Bezzecchi, Bastianini and Di Giannantonio. Bezzecchi managed to make up valuable points on Martin, who is now 13 points ahead of him. This means that the Championship is still all to play for, between the Spaniard and the Italian, both of whom are moving up to Moto2 in 2019. Third overall in the standings is Di Giannantonio, who finished fourth in Aragon. He’s been a consistent rider but not to the levels of Martin and Bezzecchi which means he trails behind by 28 points. This is substantial but would only take a few podium finishes to level it. There is every chance that the Gresini rider could still cause Bezzecchi a few headaches before the season is over. In fourth, Bastianini is 17 points behind Di Giannantonio.

Taking third place in the race really helped elevate Bastianini enough so that he could break away from Canet in the standings. But all of this could change when Moto3 goes to Thailand in October.

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Title In Sight For Marquez As Ducati Falter

In the heart of the Spanish desert, the destiny of the 2018 MotoGP World Championship has become a little closer to being decided this afternoon, after a thrilling grand prix at Aragon Motorland.

It was an explosive start from the lights as Jorge Lorenzo (Ducati) crashed out at the first corner. The pole-sitter ran in hot under braking and brutally high-sided out of the grand prix, completely wrecking his championship hopes. The Spaniard has looked strong all weekend, particularly over the long runs during Friday practice, and was considered the pre-race favourite. It is the first time that Lorenzo has crashed out in two consecutive races was in 2011, at Malaysia and Valencia.

Andrea Dovizioso (Ducati) therefore inherited the early race leader with Marquez (Repsol Honda) behind. Marquez had gambled pre-race by electing to run a soft slick rear tyre. Once settled into their rhythm, the two pushed on hard enough to comfortably clear their nearest pursuers, but still being slow enough to not burn out their tyres either. Once the rear tyre loses grip around Aragon and starts spinning, it’s generally game over for the rider.

Dovizioso and Marquez diced with each other throughout the race. The pair, reigniting memories of last season’s thrilling championship duel, put on a masterclass in racecraft this afternoon. The overtakes were hard won, and every last inch of tarmac would be used in the process. But each move was clean. Make no mistake, these are two riders at the very pinnacle of their trade.

Defying the recent convention of the long left-handed final corner being the prime overtaking spot, this contest was at its hottest through the highly technical corners of the opening sector. The Ducati would storm ahead through the sweeping right-hander at turn 2, whilst the Honda would have the edge through the fast left-hander at turn 5. All of which resulting in the two, more often than not, being locked next to each other as they dropped through the corkscrew section.

Marquez was finally able to break free after setting a scorching time on the penultimate lap. Having forced his way back into the lead at turn 12, the Spaniard used every ounce of rubber left on his tyres to prize himself away from his closest championship challenger. Such was the equality of performance between the Honda and the Ducati, the slender advantage of just 0.3 seconds was ultimately enough of a buffer.

Hunting in pairs – Alex Rins (#42) and Andrea Iannone (#29) gave Team Ecstar Suzuki their best finish of the year.

Team Ecstar Suzuki firmly enjoyed their day in the sun as Alex Rins and Andrea Iannone engaged in an equally thrilling battle for the final podium spot. The pair nearly came to blows early on, as Iannone forced his teammate to the edge of the track down at turn 12. Once the early race nerves had abated, the duo showed a remarkable turn of pace to always keep the race leaders within touching distance. The duo regularly traded places across the 23 laps sometimes cleanly – sometimes considerably less so. The gestures made to Dorna’s world feed cameras by team boss Davide Brivio aptly summed up the drama.

Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda) and Aleix Espargaro (Gresini Aprilia) both enjoyed a timely return to form this afternoon. The duo, although never in contention for the podium, spent the race locked together scrapping over fifth and sixth places. On this occasion, it was Pedrosa who took the bragging rights. Nevertheless, sixth place is the best result for Aprilia so far this season. To say 2018 has been a slog for the Noale factory team would be an understatement, but today is proof that progress with the RS-GP is being made.

Yamaha’s woes continued today. Valentino Rossi (P8) and Maverick Vinales (P10) was all that the factory team could manage. For Rossi, the result however should be classed as a recovery job well done, having started the race from the sixth row of the grid, in P18. Coming into this round it was clear to everyone that it would be difficult weekend for the factory team. However after testing here a few weeks ago which was reportedly very positive for the team, overall the Aragon GP will go down as yet another dark chapter in their Annus Horribilis.   

The European leg of the season has now been concluded. In two weeks’ time the MotoGP circus will make its debut at the Buriram circuit, Thailand.

You never say never in this sport, especially in grand prix racing, but with a lead of 72 points over his rivals, it is now very hard to see anyone other than Marc Marquez from being crowned 2018 world champion.

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Lorenzo Leads Dovi in Ducati 1-2 in Aragon MotoGP Qualifying

Qualifying for the 2018 MotoGP Grand Prix of Aragon got underway under glorious Spanish sun, giving almost ideal conditions for racing motorcycles, with forty-five degrees of track temperature, next-to-no cloud cover and essentially negligible wind.

And once Q2 rolled around, it was Jorge Lorenzo who took pole position. Whilst the other riders got caught up in the waiting game of “who blinks first”. Lorenzo found himself some good space on the track, and he set about going quickly. After his first run, he had one tenth to find compared to Marc Marquez’s provisional pole time from the first run, so he knew his third consecutive pole position was well within reach, and despite his teammate Andrea Dovizioso setting provisional pole moments before the Spaniard crossed the line, Lorenzo was indeed the rider to reign supreme on Saturday. Added to that is his race pace, from which you can deduce that Jorge Lorenzo has a reasonable opportunity to take his fourth win of 2018 tomorrow.

Jorge Lorenzo takes Pole at Aragon GP. Image courtesy of Ducati

But perhaps the rider with the best chance to win tomorrow is the one starting from the middle of the front row, Lorenzo’s Ducati teammate, Andrea Dovizioso. His final lap was far from perfect, as he had some traffic throughout, and faced the disturbance of having to bail out of his first lap of run two, also for traffic, before it even began. In addition to this, Dovizioso went into his final attempt at pole position knowing that Marc Marquez was somewhere behind him, as they had been trying to get behind each other for the two laps previous. But Dovizioso was able to put that out of his mind, and take second on the grid, knowing that he could have had pole, had he had some decent track position, and that he has an incredibly strong race pace for tomorrow.

Marc Marquez missed out on pole, like Dovizioso, for traffic. The Spaniard ran wide in turn eight on his final lap in Q2, but somehow gained time doing so (that is a mystery which sums up Marquez quite perfectly), only to lose half a second in turn twelve where he was distracted by traffic ahead do him, who were scattered across the width of the circuit. That was the verdict of Cal Crutchlow, anyway, who crashed due to this scattered traffic moments after Marquez and Dovizioso passed through it. Ultimately it was third for Marquez, and staying with the Ducatis tomorrow seems as though it will prove a difficult, if not impossible task. That said, Marc has not won since the Sachsenring, and in his home circuit will be desperate to end Ducati’s winning streak. Expect something quite spectacular from the #93 tomorrow.

Marc Marquez at Aragon GP. Image courtesy of Gold & Goose/Red Bull Content Pool

Despite his crash, Crutchlow did enough earlier in the session to take fourth on the grid, as the ‘best of the rest’ behind those riders who are almost 2018’s ‘aliens’. Like Marquez, Crutchlow will have a tough time hanging with the Ducatis tomorrow, his weekend made no easier by the fact that the hardest of the three front tyre compounds is too soft for his style with the Honda.

It was a decent qualifying for Andrea Iannone, who was clearly excited to be back in Q2 after missing out for the first time in 2018 back in Misano. He took fifth place, lapping only 0.288 seconds slower than Lorenzo’s pole time, but with that being said, it would be a surprise to see the Italian fighting for the podium tomorrow – the Suzuki, at least in his hands, simply does not have the tyre life.

Dani Pedrosa is getting somewhere close to being ‘back’. Despite his ongoing corner speed issues, Pedrosa took sixth on the grid today, after advancing to Q2 directly from FP3 for the first time since he announced his retirement. If things go his way, he could see his first podium of 2018 tomorrow, the soft front tyre compounds mean that he has some good confidence with the front, and that is helped by the high track temperatures the riders are experiencing this weekend.

The race tomorrow looks like it could be a difficult one for Danilo Petrucci, who qualified seventh, and is likely to struggle with tyre wear. He is one of the riders who stresses the tyre the most, because he rides the Ducati, with a lot of power, and he also has a lot of weight. Everyone is struggling a bit for tyre life this weekend, Davide Tardozzi in fact thinks tomorrow’s Grand Prix could be similar to that of Brno, with a large period of tyre saving in the first part of the race, before pins are pulled in the final laps.

The middle of the third row belongs to Alvaro Bautista, who impressed again for the Angel Nieto Team, and qualified ahead of Alex Rins who was ninth and completed the third row.

The top ten was rounded out by Jack Miller, which was something of a surprise because he had looked stronger than that through free practice. Maverick Vinales and Takaaki Nakagami – both of whom came through Q1 – completed the fourth row.

Eleventh might seem like a disaster for the factory Yamaha of Vinales, but with Johann Zarco in fourteenth and Valentino Rossi in eighteenth, it looks like he was getting the most and more out of the M1, whose manufacturer seems to be in absolute crisis this weekend. If Austria was ‘rock bottom’, then Aragon is proving positively subterranean.

Valentino Rossi coming 18th for the Aragon GP grid. Image courtesy of Yamaha.

That said, for all the flack Yamaha have taken in the past two years, Valentino Rossi has to take some blame for his performance today. His perpetual positivity seems to have run its course. The day started badly with a crash in FP3, and in Q1 he posted only one competitive lap time, otherwise being distracted by his want to get a tow, specifically from his teammate.

Rossi was out-qualified by Franco Morbidelli on last year’s Honda, Johann Zarco on last year’s Yamaha, Aleix Espargaro on an Aprilia which is worse than last year’s, Bradley Smith on an under-developed KTM and Karel Abraham on a 2016 Ducati in Q1. Perhaps the worst part is that tomorrow could yet be worse still.

In nineteenth place was Hafizh Syahrin, 0.3 off Rossi, ahead of Tom Luthi and Scott Redding who completed row seven.

Only two riders will be on row eight tomorrow, because Pol Espargaro further damaged his already-broken collarbone. This means that Xavier Simeon and Jordi Torres (replacing Tito Rabat) are the only riders on the back row of the grid.

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MotoGP Aragon Preview – A Desert Storm Awaits

The MotoGP circus rumbles into the heart of the Spanish desert this weekend, as the championship battle resumes at the breathtaking Motorland Aragon circuit.

Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda) arrives at his home round with a 67-point lead at the top of the standings, and perhaps with one hand already on the world championship crown already. The Spaniard has been formally recognised this week by the Motorland circuit, having had the sweeping left-hand turn 10 named after him. Form at this circuit is good for the four-time premier class champion, having claimed three victories here in 2013, 2016 and 2017.

That said, Marquez has not taken victory since the German Grand Prix back in July. Failure to win this weekend, would see him equal his longest winless streak in MotoGP (4 races Malaysia, Valencia (both 2017), Qatar and Argentina (both 2018). Whilst this is still a record which most mortals will dream they had, at this stage of the season – and with the world championship at stake – this is the sort of thing that could seriously test his mental resolve.

This weekend’s grand prix presents Ducati with its ultimate ‘litmus test’. The Desmosedici-GP18 is a missile in a straight line, much like its predecessors. However this year, the Italian team has been very vocal about the performance gains they have made with the stability and cornering ability of their machine. Aragon-Motorland will provide a thorough examination for these claims, with the circuit boasting numerous ‘S’ bend switchbacks, and long medium to high speed corners. It is a test which Ducati riders must not only pass, but completely out-perform their rivals if they are to realistically keep up the fight for the championship.

Expecting to lead the way for the factory team this weekend is Andrea Dovizioso. The Italian reasserted his position as Marquez’ closest title contender, having taken victory last time out at Misano. Motorland Aragon has not traditionally been a happy hunting ground for Dovi, having not finished on the podium here since 2012 with the satellite Tech3 Yamaha team. Nevertheless, he is confident that he will be able to continue his championship resurgence this weekend having spoken yesterday in the press conference that: “The bike is fine, it is now about setting a good rhythm”.  

Andrea Dovizioso last featured on the podium at Aragon in 2012, for the Tech3 Yamaha team (above).

Behind the main battle for the championship, there is the increasingly thrilling on-track scrap for the best of the independent riders. Cal Crutchlow (LCR Honda Castrol) currently leads the way on 119 points, after a strong ride in Misano saw him finish on the podium. Johann Zarco (Monster Tech3 Yamaha) and Danilo Petrucci (Alma Pramac Ducati) are both hot on his heels with 110 points each. Petrucci, buoyed by increasing support from the Ducati factory (in preparation for his arrival at the factory team in November), believes this weekend he will have the pace to push the frontrunners all the way: “We have same support as they (Dovizoso and Lorenzo) do. For sure we will have pace to fight for podium. Maybe more.”

For the Movistar Yamaha factory team however, this weekend is expected to be another painful experience. Although considerable progress has been made with the electronics since the summer break, the Aragon circuit relentlessly targets Yamaha’s other main deficiency – engine power. With three long straights around the course, a bike which is sluggish under acceleration will be severely exposed against the competition.

Valentino Rossi and Maverick Vinales know this, and as such will be focusing the M1 to perform as smoothly and efficiently as possible through the track’s 17 corners in order to recover as much lap time as possible. Such is the way the season has unfolded for the team, just having one bike in the top five here will be considered a good result.  

Finally, there is a newcomer to the championship this weekend. Jordi Torres will be make his MotoGP debut for the Reale Avintia-Racing Ducati team, standing in for the still injured Tito Rabat. Torres will be most familiar to followers of World Superbikes, with the Spaniard riding in the series for MV Agusta. He is no stranger to the grand prix paddock, having ridden for multiple seasons in the old 125cc category and the Moto2 class. In the latter he had considerable success, being a multiple podium finisher and a race winner back in 2014.

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Moto2 Championship Battle Ready to Resume in Aragon

Coming into round fourteen of the 2018 Moto2 World Championship, Francesco Bagnaia sits atop the standings, with a points advantage he extended last time out at his home Grand Prix in Misano; as the intermediate class approaches Motorland Aragon this weekend, the Italian’s championship lead stands at eight points over main title rival Miguel Oliveira. In fact, Oliveira is the only rider threatening Bagnaia, as the pair have completely dominated this season so far; Brad Binder sits third in the championship, 87 points behind Oliveira.

Motorland has proved bipolar for the pair, looking at their past results at the circuit. Oliveira has scored two podiums in Aragon, with a win in the 2015 Moto3 race, and a podium last year in the Moto2 race. Meanwhile, Bagnaia’s best result has been tenth, which also came in last year’s Moto2 race, and he has only one other points-scoring finish here, which came in 2015 when he rode the Aspar Mahindra to eleventh. The relative void between the pair’s records at this circuit could make this race pivotal for the World Championship, especially as it is the final European race before the four fly-away races.

That said, Bagnaia is in a supreme vein of form at the moment, having won the last two races, and it would be a considerable surprise to see him not in contention this weekend, and no doubt he will be aiming for his seventh win of 2018 come Sunday.

But, for Oliveira, this race represents a good opportunity to take some points out of Bagnaia, and perhaps reclaim the championship lead, partly thanks to his good form in Aragon compared to Bagnaia, but also because of how the KTM performed in Motorland last year. Oliveira’s late race fightback towards the front two riders of Mattia Pasini and eventual winner Franco Morbidelli was typical of KTM, as he made the most of the Austrian chassis’ impressive tyre management, although he finally ran out of pace to catch the Italian pair with a few laps remaining.

With this being the second year of the KTM Moto2 chassis, and the improvements that we have seen with it in 2018, the Red Bull KTM Ajo team will be highly anticipating an assault on the victory from the Portuguese rider. Furthermore, with Jeffrey Herlings wrapping up the MXGP world title last weekend in Assen, and Jorge Prado edging closer to the MX2 championship with one Motocross World Championship meeting to go, you would expect that a lot more attention would start to come the way of the championship-contending orange-framed road racers, Oliveira being of course one of those.

Outside of the two runaway championship combatants, there are riders in the frame for not only the podium, but also the victory this weekend.

Firstly, Mattia Pasini who – as previously mentioned – fought with Franco Mobidelli until the very end of last year’s Moto2 race in Aragon, will be looking to step back onto the podium for the first time since he won in Argentina. Coming off the back of two consecutive fourth places – which marked something of a return to form for the Italian – the #54 is certainly in a good position to be able to end his rostrum drought.

As well as Pasini, Luca Marini will be hoping to return to the podium this weekend, after a tough race in Misano where he had to retire because of a problem with the bike early on in the race. Previous to that home GP disaster for Marini, he had scored three podiums in a row in the previous three races, and he will be hoping that he can bounce back from his San Marinese disappointment.

As Marini did earlier in the year, Marcel Schrotter picked up his first ever Grand Prix podium in Misano last time out, ending a long period of waiting stretching back for most of the season. It took Schrotter 105 GPs to take his first podium, and now the aim for the German will be to make it 106 GPs before his first win.

It will also be worth keeping an eye out for the two Marc VDS riders this weekend. Alex Marquez took his first Moto2 podium in Aragon back in 2016 when he finished third behind Sam Lowes and his then-teammate Franco Morbidelli. Similarly, Joan Mir won in Aragon last year in the Moto3 class, so will hoping to be fighting at the front again this weekend, especially after something of a dip in form over the last few races.

That win for Sam Lowes back in 2016 was the last time he stood on the podium of a Grand Prix, and of course also his last victory. On the approach to this weekend, the British rider has pinpointed Motorland as a good opportunity for him to take a good result and you feel that the #22 will not be contented by anything less than a rostrum finish this weekend. Additionally, Sam Lowes has become a father since Misano, and we saw the positive impact that had on Cal Crutchlow back in 2016 as he took two wins in the second half of that season. However, the first of Crutchlow’s races as a father began with a ride-through penalty for a jump start and a fifteenth place. Similarly, Aleix Espargaro was out of the Catalan GP earlier this season after six laps, the Barcelona race being the first Grand Prix after the birth of Max and Mia Espargaro. It’s fair to say that in recent history, new fathers have not done especially well in Grands Prix, but it is entirely possible that Lowes could be the anomaly this weekend.

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Whisperings From Portimao

World Superbikes roared back into life over the weekend with Round 10 taking place in Portugal. Another brace of victories for Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team) means he just needs to score 9 points at Magny-Cours to secure his fourth consecutive world title.

However, there were other stories to emerge this weekend other than Rea’s dominance.

Schedule Success

Before the weekend had started, it was announced that WorldSBK would be trialing a new ‘race day’ schedule for the remaining rounds of the season. The objective of which was to boost attendances on the Sunday, which have been alarmingly sparse for the last few seasons.

The general consensus behind this was that spectators are ‘put off’ by the feature race opening proceedings, with the support classes following. In short, the day is effectively over by 1pm with most paying punters tending not to stay for the ‘junior’ categories.

By reversing the schedule, Sunday felt more like a traditional race day, with the Superbike race being the grand finale to the weekend. The success of this change was in clear evidence at Portimao as the attendance was visibly higher than last year.  Certainly a step in the right direction to bringing back the crowds.

Word in the paddock is that – following a ‘fan survey’ conducted in partnership with the Motorsport Leadership Group – Dorna will be implementing further changes to the race weekend schedule next season. Details of which will be announced during the winter.

Kept Waiting For History

The phrase “History waits for no man” may well be true – however, it is certainly having to wait for Ana Carrasco. The young Spanish rider is on the verge of becoming the first woman to win a solo motorcycle world championship series.

Carrasco (DS Kawasaki Junior Team) has had a tremendous year in the World Supersport 300 class, featuring two devastating race wins at Imola and Donington Park earlier in the season. The former was secured by a colossal margin of 13 seconds. To put that into perspective for an ‘average’ winning time gap, it is normally around 0.5 seconds as competitors slip-stream each other from lights to flag on their small 40bhp machines.

Although she was unable to secure the championship in Portimao, she heads into the French round (the final round for the ‘300 class) with a ten-point lead at the top of the standings. Provided she can finish on the podium, Carrasco will become the world champion – regardless of where her rivals finish.

Ana Carrasco (DS Kawasaki Junior Team) Is on the verge of creating history

Tom Sykes – Where To Next?

Whilst Rea was busy taking the 65th and 66th victories of his superbike career, it was another difficult weekend for his teammate Tom Sykes. The 2013 world champion secured a brace of 5th place finishes. Were it in any other team, this would go down as a very solid weekend. The Yorkshireman cut a gloomy figure this weekend. Despite best pretenses from rider and team, all is not well at his side of the garage.

If ‘silly season’ rumours have any substance to them then it appears likely that Red Bull Honda are making advances for him in 2019. He would almost certainly be partnered alongside Leon Camier, and would no doubt increase Honda’s chances of returning to winning ways next season.

Alternatively, speaking in an interview to Eurosport UK prior to Sunday’s race, Milwaukee Aprilia team principal Shaun Muir openly admitted to be interested in signing Sykes for next year.

Two things are certain: Sykes is still a quality rider, and does have options to remain in WorldSBK for 2019. A change of team could be just what he needs to bring the best out of him again.

All Change For Milwaukee

Finally, as alluded to above, Shaun Muir is openly looking at bringing at least one new rider into his team for next season. However, being the shrewd competitor and businessman that he is, the Milwaukee outfit seem set to change manufacturers for 2019.

Currently running factory supported Aprilia machinery, it the team are discussing options with them, BMW and Suzuki.

From a British fan’s perspective, a potential deal with Suzuki could open the door for Bradley Ray to make his move into world level racing. The 21-year old (currently wowing spectators and TV viewers in British Superbikes) has made no secret of his desire to move up and compete in world championships. With all his BSB experience on Suzuki machinery, it would be a straight forward move for both Mailwaukee and Ray to make.

However, it seems that BMW are in fact the most likely option which Muir will take up. With the S1000RR model being significantly upgraded by the German manufacturer for 2019, the promise of being the most competitive machinery  of the three is likely to be the deal maker.

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Super Six for Jonathan Rea at Portimao

Jonathan Rea stretched his winning streak to six straight races this afternoon at the Autodromo Algarve – also securing his sixth straight victory at the circuit (a run which began back in 2015).

Due to the partial grid reversal system implemented for Sunday’s race, Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team) started in ninth place. Such is his extraordinary ability, combined with the strong ZX-10R, he made light work of most of his rivals climbing up to fourth by the end of the opening lap. Unlike yesterday, Rea was made to work for his lead, and was not able to storm clear into the distance even when he had just clear tarmac in front of him. Today was about providing a timely reminder to the (very few) critics he has left, that his racecraft is as razor sharp as ever.

In the closing stages, as his rivals threatened to close him down, Rea managed to raise his own tempo, demonstrating to the others that he still had plenty of rubber left on his tyres should they want to push the limits with him. They were not. The art of subtly controlling a race is yet another area of strength for Rea. No matter what his rivals tried, Rea always had an answer good enough to beat them off. A sixth straight win secured, and the championship lead has now grown to 116 points.

Chaz Davies (Aruba.it Ducati) produced another heroic display this afternoon. Starting from pole position, the Welshman once more defied the pain barrier for as long as he could, dueling with Rea throughout the first half of the race for contention of the lead. When fully fit, Davies is the only man who can consistently challenge the triple world champion at the front of a race.

Even when nursing a badly broken collarbone like today, Davies was more than a handful. Wringing the neck of the volatile Panigale-R around the 20 laps of the roller coaster that is the Portimao track. Eventually though not even he could defy his injuries and, having eventually been passed by Rea, dropped back to a more manageable pace. Davies ended up finishing in P4, just ahead of the other KRT machine ridden by Tom Sykes.

Whilst a podium place was ultimately a step too far for Davies, it was not so for his teammate Marco Melandri. With his future in WorldSBK up in the air, the veteran Italian needed a strong showing this weekend. That is precisely what we got. Third place today means that Melandri has now featured on the podium three races on the bounce – equalled only by Rea. Although never really in contention to challenge for victory in either race, the points accumulated this weekend has seen Melandri close down Sykes in the rider standings to just 11 points.

Michael Van der Mark (Pata Yamaha)  produced one of the overtakes of the season to secure his second place finish today, disposing of both Davies and Melandri simultaneously at turn one on lap 14. Since taken his maiden victory in the class – back at Donington in May – the Dutchman has gradually begun establishing himself as the number one rider within the team. Today marked the ninth time this season that the 25-year old had finished on the rostrum.

In contrast, it was a very difficult weekend for Alex Lowes on the other Pata Yamaha machine. As with Saturday’s race, the British rider found himself caught up in the mid-field carnage on the first lap, and found himself bogged, scrapping for minor points places. Lowes finished down in P11 – some 20 seconds behind the front runners, and just fending off American rookie Jake Gagne (Red Bull Honda).

After the calamity of race one, today’s outing was far more straightforward for Milwaukee Aprilia. Having fallen off when a podium finish had beckoned, Lorenzo Savadori produced a solid ride to finish in P6, out-dragging his teammate Eugene Laverty to the line on the final lap. For Laverty, P7 draws a line under this weekend where lady luck so cruelly turned away from him.

Just behind the Aprilia riders came Michael Rinaldi (Aruba.it Ducati Junior Team) and Loris Baz (Gulf Althea BMW) in P8 and P9 respectively. The latter has enjoyed a good weekend on the privately run S1000RR machine, finishing both races inside the top 10.

The 2018 FIM World Superbike Championship resumes with the French Round at Magny-Cours, September 28-30.

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Dixon Holds Off Haslam For The Double

After the monsoon conditions earlier in the day, the circuit was drenched in glorious autumnal sunshine for the second race of the day. The track was still extremely greasy off the racing line, so those needing to make up positions would have to be brave under braking.

As the lights went out, Jake Dixon (RAF Regular and Reserve Kawasaki) hooked up the best start, leading his rivals by several bike lengths by the exit of turn one. The early gap allowed him to settle into his own rhythm without attention from his rivals. By the end of lap three, the 22-year old had over 3 seconds in hand to his nearest pursuers. In such a competitive field, a gap like that is very much “out of sight, out of mind”.

With the track drying lap by lap, and with nothing but empty tarmac in front of him, the Kawasaki man was able to consolidate his lead, and manage his tyres. The latter was certainly crucial in the final few laps. Having threatened to “pull the pin” this weekend, Dixon has duly delivered. A double victory around Oulton Park. The championship challenge is back on!

Falling in behind Dixon was Jason O’Halloran (Honda Racing BSB). The Australian shot up through the pack to second place and settled into a rhythm to chase down Dixon. He was followed closely in the early stages by Leon Haslam (JG-Speedfit Kawasaki) who diced with each other in a similar fashion to how they did earlier in the day.

Haslam eventually managed to force his way through and begin to hunt down the race leader. It was a display of relentless pressure as the series leader consistently chipped away at Dixon’s lead until he had closed to within just a few tenths of his rival. Unfortunately for him, he ran out of laps. Nevertheless, a brace of second place finishes means he has lost only 10 points to dixon in the showdown standings. Crucially, he’s extended his lead on all his over rivals. Not a bad day at all when you consider he began today from the back of the grid.

O’Halloran was then joined by Tommy Bridewell (Moto-Rapido Ducati), Tarran MacKenzie (McAms Yamaha) and Luke Mossey (JG-Speedfit Kawasaki). The quintet seemed to be locked in a battle for the final place on the podium. However at the start of lap 12, disaster befell the Honda rider. Under braking into Old Hall corner, he lost the front end of the bike and slid off onto the grass. His crash opened the door for Bridewell to make it a second visit to the podium this weekend, and he duly obliged. MacKenzie finished off another strong weekend in fourth place.

Further down the field, two riders provided a truly grandstand finish for the spectators today. Glenn Irwin (BeWiser Ducati) and Josh Brookes (McAms Yamaha) were locked for much of the race in their own private scrap. The Yamaha man winning the final drag to the line, out of lodge corner and securing fifth place. The result salvaged the weekend for the 2015 champion, having crashed out in race 1.

Michael Laverty (Tyco BMW) was the unfortunate recipient of a brutal highside crash, at the bottom of Cascades corner on lap 4. It looked like his front wheel just touched the grass on the apex – the front wheel dug into the soft ground, causing the rear wheel to unload and launch the Ulsterman across the track. Fortunately he was able to walk away (albeit very gingerly). A disappointing end to a difficult weekend for the team.

Showdown Standings (after Race 2)

Leon Haslam – 604

Jake Dixon – 573

Josh Brookes – 530

Glenn Irwin – 530

Bradley Ray – 524

Peter Hickman – 520

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Jake Dixon Lands First Championship Blow

Atrocious weather conditions greeted the riders as the ‘showdown’ officially got under way in earnest at Oulton Park this afternoon.

There was drama just before the lights went out, with Glenn Irwin (BeWiser Ducati) being forced to start the race from the back of the grid, after developing a problem on the grid following the warm up lap. A disastrous start to his showdown campaign.

The subsequent delay meant that the race was reduced in distance from 18 to 16 laps. Riders were additionally allowed two further warm up laps to assess the track conditions.

When the race finally got underway it was Tommy Bridewell (Moto-Rapido Ducati) who made the holeshot from polesitter Jake Dixon (RAF Regular and Reserve Kawasaki). The pair visibly much more comfortable with the conditions, pulled away from the rest of the field. For the first half of the race it was Bridewell who led the way. The 30-year old has looked a very assured presence on board the Panigale-R since joining the team mid-season, and today was the only Ducati rider to look even remotely in control on track.

However it was Dixon who ultimately took the spoils in the rain, calmly sliding his ZX-10R machine underneath the Ducati on the inside of Old Hall corner. From then on, he worked to build a manageable gap to his rival, and controlled the rest of the race. Job done, race win secured and crucially it closes the gap to the top in the showdown standings.

Behind, the battle for the final podium place was frantic. Jason O’Halloran (Honda Racing BSB) was joined in the closing laps by Leon Haslam (JG Speedfit Kawasaki). It was an incredible ride by the championship leader just to make it so far up the field, after a disastrous qualifying session on Saturday saw him start the race in P23. Even on a sodden track, the difference in speed between the two motorcycles ws clear. Haslam could afford to sit behind the Australian, and pick his spot to snatch third place.

It was a classy performance from the ‘pocket rocket’, carving his way through the pack which, in a series as competitive as British Superbikes, is no small feat. As damage limitation rides go, this result is about as good as it gets.   

O’Halloran was eventually forced to settle for a sixth place finish, after being passed by a duo of Ulstermen – Andrew Irwin (BeWiser Ducati) and Michael Laverty (Tyco BMW) respectively. In the final laps, it looked as though tyre wear was the reason behind the sudden decline in the pace of the Honda rider. Irwin meanwhile muscled his Panigale machine into fourth place – literally clinging on for dear life in places as the Ducati regularly attempted to launch its rider into orbit.

Coming home just behind them was Tarran MacKenzie on his McAms Yamaha. No doubt buoyed by a brilliant showing last time out at Silverstone, the youngster kept the pace of those around him, and brought the bike home in a very solid seventh place. However it was championship disaster for his teammate Josh Brookes, who crashed out of the race. Although he will be fine to ride again later today, his title ambitions are now firmly backed up against the proverbial wall.

Bradley Ray (Buildbase Suzuki) was forced into making perhaps the save of the season, on lap 13. On the run down to the famous Lodge corner, the 21-year old was forced to abort his braking as the back end of the bike violently stepped out from underneath him. Fortunately, despite running into the gravel run-off, he was able to rejoin the circuit and score a few points for the showdown.

Showdown Standings (after Race 1)

Leon Haslam – 584

Jake Dixon – 548

Bradley Ray – 524

Glenn Irwin – 520

Josh Brookes – 519

Peter Hickman – 512

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