Dominique Aegerter has been stripped of his Misano Moto2 win after the Kiefer team had been found to be using an illegal oil in qualifying, gifting Tom Luthi the victory and five extra points. Swiss rider Aegerter brilliantly fended off Interwetten rider and countryman Luthi in treacherous conditions at Misano in September to secure his first win since […]
Andrea Dovizioso knew he could win the Motegi MotoGP race if he could line Marc Marquez up for a pass at Turn 11, as his Ducati was performing much better on the brakes than the Honda. The Italian made his way from ninth on the grid to the podium positions in a matter of four laps […]
Andrea Dovizioso reduced his deficit in the MotoGP championship to just 11 points after prevailing in a thrilling battle with standings leader Marc Marquez in a wet Japanese Grand Prix. Marquez swooped into the lead at the first corner off the line, while Jorge Lorenzo slotted in behind and team-mate Dovizioso jumped up to fifth. […]
Alex Marquez took his third win of the season in a wet shortened Japanese Moto2 race as team-mate Morbidelli extended his standings lead after a tough race for nearest rival Tom Luthi. Like the Moto3 race that preceded it, Moto2 ran to a shortened race distance of 15 laps due to delays in the morning warm-up sessions. […]
Romano Fenati became the most successful rider in Moto3 history after romping to his 10th career win at a rain–lashed Motegi, as Joan Mir finished outside of the points. The race was run over a shortened 13–lap distance after a lengthy delay in morning warm-up, caused by an oil spill from Andrea Migno’s Sky VR46 […]
Maverick Vinales feels there is nothing more he can do to make the 2017 Yamaha competitive in the wet after qualifying an equal MotoGP career-worst 14th at Motegi. The 2017 YZR-M1 has struggled for traction on a wet track, and the problem has persisted despite numerous chassis updates – including the introduction of a 2018 […]
Despite it costing him pole for the Japanese MotoGP, Marc Marquez believes his laps on slick tyres gained him a better understanding of grip limits should a similar situation arise on Sunday. Marquez laid down an impressive gauntlet on his opening lap in a damp-but-drying Q2 of 1m53.903s to go almost two seconds clear of […]
Takaaki Nakagmi denied Alex Marquez at the death of Moto2 qualifying to take a home pole position for the Japanese Grand Prix. The 2.98–mile Motegi circuit was not quite dry enough for slick tyres when qualifying got underway, though the ever–improving laptimes in the opening stages suggested dry running was not far off. Mattia Pasini […]
Johann Zarco took a second career MotoGP pole after a gamble from Marc Marquez to run slick tyres backfired in the closing stages of qualifying for the Japanese Grand Prix. While most opted for wet tyres at the start of Q2, Yamaha’s Valentino Rossi – who had just one bike at his disposal after a crash […]
Nicolo Bulega stormed to his first Moto3 pole since Jerez 2016 after beating Niccolo Antonelli to top spot in qualifying for the Japanese Grand Prix at a damp Motegi. Aspar Mahindra’s Albert Arenas set the early benchmark pace with a 2m12.654s, and improved to a 2m12.102s on his second flying lap. Friday pacesetter Bulega soon […]
Marc Marquez topped the timesheets in a damp third Motegi MotoGP practice, though Andrea Dovizioso continued to lead the combined standings by virtue of his Friday time. Maverick Vinales missed the Q2 cut. Despite the track having less water on it than was seen on Friday, no-one was able to improve on their times from second […]
Valentino Rossi says Yamaha is in ‘trouble’ after a difficult opening day of practice at Motegi for the Japanese MotoGP, in which all three factory riders finished outside of the top 10. The 2017 YZR–M1 has struggled with a lack of traction in extremely hot conditions and in the wet this season, and while a […]