50 is the magic number, and Dalla Porta is currently 47 clear. So if he wins the race, he’s won the title. Anywhere else and it’s about the maths and getting above that pivotal number 50. Will he do it? He’s only had one top ten at Phillip Island before, but his track record hasn’t been the biggest tell this season as he’s shown serious pace everywhere. Canet, meanwhile, will hope the stats do tell a bigger story as the Spaniard took his first ever podium on the Island in 2016.
MotoGP’s mid-point on the three-week back-to-back tour around the Pacific Rim sees MotoGP in our backyard this weekend at Phillip Island for the Pramac Generac Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix.
Joining the stars of MotoGP will be two support classes for local competitors, however almost the entire regular ASBK Superbike grid are choosing to sit the event out.
There are no points on offer, the ASBK finale is the following weekend after MotoGP, and finding the extra ten grand (at least that for a major team – probably a quarter of that for a base privateer), to do the MotoGP round, after already trying to find enough budget for a seven-round ASBK Championship, just doesn’t add up for most.
Two of the regular ASBK front runners on the grid will be Penrite Honda’s Troy Herfoss and Mark Chiodo.
NextGen BMW have entered Glenn Allerton who will use the MotoGP round to shake down the new BMW S 1000 RR.
DesmoSport Ducati understandably seem to have elected to keep Mike Jones out of harms way ahead of the ASBK Superbike finale, but fronting up on their new V4R will be none other than Troy Bayliss.
Troy Bayliss on the Ducati V4R at Phillip Island – TBG Image
Jed Metcher and Ryan Taylor are capable of maybe springing a surprise on some of the Superbike front runners.
The Supersport 300 ranks are also quite slim compared to a regular ASBK round.
All this of course means that ASBK is hardly putting its best foot forward as a shop-window into the series in front of what will likely be a very healthy MotoGP crowd. Not their fault really, it’s just economics….
Check out the entry list and full weekend schedule for the Australian Grand Prix weekend below.
“I didn’t start badly,” started Lorenzo. “But with the chaos of the first lap, I lost some positions because I went to the inside of some corners and some riders passed me around the outside, costing me some positions. There, I really couldn’t have gone any faster. After with the full tank, I couldn’t play with the bike and it was the bike that pushed me into the braking zones. I had to brake early and I lost a lot of time, but with the tank starting to empty I began to feel a lot better. And that, with the important change to the ergonomics that we did in Warm Up, made it go from less to more, quite clearly.
Seven years later I ran down the track with notebook in hand towards the legendary Eau Rouge corner at Spa in Belgian determined to be the first journalist to speak to Freddie Spencer after his maiden Grand Prix win. As I breathlessly arrived Freddie was trying to turn the three-cylinder Honda with no steering lock round at the bottom of the hill to get back to pit lane and the celebrations. Unfortunately, after averaging 157.873 kph to win the 20 lap race an exhausted Freddie fell off at around 5 kph and the exclusive interview had to wait. Freddie went on to win 19 more premier class Grands Prix, two 500cc titles and is still the only rider to win 500 and 250cc titles in the same season just three years later.
“So I slowed down a little bit, probably a bit too much, and then I had Alex pass me which helped me out a little bit, but also it meant we never went forward in the race. We resumed our battle from last year, I was second last year and he was third, then this race we battled again so it was good fun.”
Carmelo Ezpeleta, CEO of Dorna Sports: “The Asia Talent Cup is one of the most important projects in our Road to MotoGP program and it’s an unrivalled opportunity for young riders in the region to begin their path to the top. We are excited to be heading to The Bend Motorsport Park in South Australia, as it adds a new track to the Cup, which is always good for competition. Australia is an important country for Grand Prix racing, with MotoGP having race there since 1989 and multiple World Champions hailing from the nation, and is therefore also a pivotal presence in our Road to MotoGP program.”
Victorian Police have warned riders heading to the Phillip Island MotoGP this weekend of increased patrols in and around the track.
The annual Operation MotoSafe will also concentrate on eastern Victorian roads leading to the venue.
Eastern Region Road Policing Inspector Stephen Cooper said that this year has been a “particularly challenging year” on Victorian roads, with a “lot of the trauma taking place in country Victoria”.
“At the beginning of the year we saw a lot of fatalities and serious injuries involving motorcyclists,” Insp Cooper says.
“With the warmer weather encouraging riders to get back on their motorcycles, we want everyone to know that police will be out enforcing against those who engage in risky behaviour.”
During the operation, police patrols will target drivers impaired by alcohol and drugs, as well as fatigue.
Track patrols
Between 25 and 27 October, police will patrol in and around the race track and on all roads leading to Phillip Island.
“With increased motorcycle traffic in the area, we need both motorcyclists and other road users to be alert and aware of their surroundings,” Insp Cooper says.
“The Grand Prix weekend is one motorcycle enthusiasts enjoy and look forward to every year.
“The last thing we would want is for it to end in tragedy.”
“I had an issue with rear grip,” said Miller. “It came at around lap five or seven, I think. After that, I was more or less in survival mode. I don’t know what happened really. I felt really comfortable, really strong. I was just trying to stay with Marc and Fabio and then all of a sudden, I couldn’t push anymore.
British rider Smith, who is still in the FIM Enel MotoE™ World Cup title fight, will be at MotorLand Aragon between 21-23 October onboard an RS-GP. Then, MotoGP™ Legend Dani Pedrosa and KTM arrive in Aragon for testing duties between 24-26 October. Meanwhile, Pirro will be at the Circuit Ricardo Tormo with the Bologna factory on the 23-25 October, ahead of his wildcard at the Gran Premio Motul de la Comunitat Valenciana in November.
“It wasn’t an easy race. I was pushing from the beginning, the strategy was clear – I had to try to open a gap. I felt strong and with the team we had calculated a pace of 1’46 low but then I was able to ride in 1’45 high – good news for me but I had to slow down a little bit. I worked on riding as smooth as possible and I was able to open the gap to two seconds but in the final two laps we were getting a little low on fuel because Motegi is always very demanding. There was a little bit of pressure to win the Constructors Championship in Japan, but I love the pressure and it is great to win it here for Honda because everyone works so hard. All the Repsol Honda Team did a great job to find the best setting and strategy for this race.”
Marc Marquez
Fabio Quartararo – P2
“I’m delighted with the weekend because the goal we set ourselves at the beginning of the season was to be best newcomer and we’ve already managed it. We have 163 points, which is an amazing achievement considering we were targeting between 50 and 90. We’ve been a big surprise to everyone, and it’s nice to be able to officially say that I’m Rookie of the Year. When I look back to last year when I was fighting for top 15 finishes in Moto2, I only think about how much I owe everyone at Petronas Yamaha SRT and Yamaha for putting their trust in me. I’ve done my maximum to help them believe in me, and together we’ve done an amazing job. We’re still fighting for good positions in the championship but trying not to think about it too much, so we’ll take the remaining races as they come and see what happens.”
Fabio Quartararo
Andrea Dovizioso – P3
“At the end of the race my feeling with the bike was really excellent, so much so that we did our fastest lap on the penultimate lap. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to pass Quartararo, who I saw was in a bit of difficulty in the final stages, but I think I could have overtaken him if there had been one more lap. I’m quite disappointed with my first part of the race however, because despite having good grip we were unable to be fast enough. We’ll now have to analyze the situation in detail to understand what the problem was and be ready for the race at Phillip Island.”
Andrea Dovizioso
Maverick Vinales – P4
“Actually, for me it was a very positive race. At the start I did a lot of fighting with Cal and Dovi. I tried to overtake quickly, but it was very difficult. At the end I found a very good rhythm on the last laps, trying to fight for the podium with Dovi, but somehow I couldn’t overtake. We made the most of our bike in this race and we’ll try to do more in Australia. I will do my best in Phillip Island, I will try to push and start from the front row, I think that’s very important. If we had started from first row today, we might have been able to fight for the race. We need to keep working, we’re very close, we just need a little bit more, which we’ll find for sure. Phillip Island is a track I really like, but anyway I will go there with the same expectations as I had for here, trying to work very hard and to be on the podium again.”
Maverick Vinales chasing Dovi
Cal Crutchlow – P5
“Today was a good result for me and the team. We are happy this weekend, we qualified fifth and finished fifth with a strong race. I wish my pace would have been a little bit quicker in the early part of the race, but I had to manage the situation with the bike to make sure that I finished the race and I was pleased to be able to catch some riders in the end, have a good battle and finish fifth on the line. It was a good Grand Prix for Honda with Marc (Marquez) winning and me inside the top five and I want to congratulate HRC for clinching the Constructors’ Championship here today. After a tough weekend in Thailand, we’ve bounced back to be able to get a good result here today. I want to thank my team for their hard work and we now look forward to Phillip Island with some great memories from the past and some not such good memories. I also want to wish Taka well with his surgery and hope he recovers well and is back stronger than ever next season.”
Cal Crutchlow
Franco Morbidelli – P6
“It’s a good result, we showed a lot of strength this weekend, and hopefully, we can bring the potential that we had here into the next round in Australia. That said, I’m a bit disappointed because I was expecting more from the race, but I understood as soon as it started that I didn’t have the same grip as I had had all weekend. We still managed to get the sixth position, which is good considering the feelings I was having on the bike, especially towards the end of the race. The big positive from Motegi is the speed we showed, so we need to find a way now to carry it forward.”
Franco Morbidelli
Alex Rins – P7
“I lost out a lot off the start, I really made a bad get away. But it was like that and there was nothing I could do apart from try to recoup positions. I stayed calm and focused and I was able to improve and move up the order. I was fighting with Crutchlow a lot and I’m disappointed that I finished behind him, because I felt I had potential for Top 5 but in the end we ran out of laps. I’m pleased to hold onto 3rd place in the standings, and it has been fantastic to be in Japan. Thank you to Mr. Toshihiro Suzuki for being with us all weekend and giving us a lot of support.”
Alex Rins
Joan Mir – P8
“I’m really happy about my weekend in general, and my race. Although I didn’t improve my position compared with Thailand, I feel I have taken another step in terms of performance. All weekend I’ve felt good with the bike and I know I’m getting closer to the podium and the top guys. I lost a lot of time today while I tried to pass Petrucci and that was a shame because I felt I could’ve done even better and closed the others. Anyway, it’s been amazing to be here in Japan for the first time as a Suzuki rider and to ride in front of the fans, and especially the President.”
Joan Mir
Danilo Petrucci – P9
“I can’t be satisfied with my result, even though I fought a lot in the race. Unfortunately, I struggled a lot in the early laps with the front tyre, which was heating up too much, but when I managed to get it back down to the right temperature I started to lap with good times and I was fast in the final part of the race. Something’s still missing for me to get back and race at the top, but I feel that I’m getting back to being close to my level at the start of the season. It’s clear that we must, and we want to do better and luckily Australia is only in one weeks’ time.”
Danilo Petrucci
Jack Miller – P10
“Unfortunately after 7 laps, I started to have some problems with the rear grip and the situation got worse in the following laps. From that moment on I could only try to get to the finish line. It’s a shame because I got off to a good start and I thought I could follow Marc and Fabio to the end. We have to analyse the data and see what happened. I am disappointed and can’t wait to be in Australia.”
Jack Miller
Pol Espargaro – P11
“Not a great weekend but starting from 15th position and to finish 11th – almost in the top ten and four seconds from Jack [Miller] – is not too bad. We started well but then dropped back and it was hard to keep the pace. Not what we wanted but we’ll look to Phillip Island which is one of my favourite tracks and one of the best in the world. We were in the top ten all weekend there last year so let’s see if we can do the same and enjoy the race because the last few have been tough.”
Pol Espargaro
Miguel Oliveira – P12
“A fun race! It was a tough start for me, I couldn’t position myself very well in the first two corners so I lost a lot of time in the first laps. It took me a while to gain my pace but once I got a bit of speed I could manage to do a very good race and finish inside the points, which was again our target. At the end of the race, I felt much better than in Thailand, so physically it’s a good sign. I just hope to keep this good line and continue to work together with the team for the next race in Phillip Island.”
Miguel Oliveira
Pecco Bagnaia – P13
“I can’t be too satisfied with the result. It is clear that I would have expected more but it was not an easy weekend. However, I have brought home a few points for the standings. I had a lot of problems in acceleration losing precious tenths of a second, especially in the straight. I want to congratulate Fabio on winning the Rookie of the Year award.”
Pecco Bagnaia
Mika Kallio – P14
“If we take the whole weekend into account then I think it finished quite positively today. To fight for points was the minimum target and we managed that. We were not far from Pol and Miguel was part of the group. It was just a bit of a shame I could not find the way to fight against them. Maybe just by riding I can keep improving and step-by-step get closer; it was only my first race this season and I am getting closer to my teammate. Phillip Island will be a completely different track compared to here and hopefully with more grip.”
Mika Kallio
Takaaki Nakagami – P16
“Thanks to the Japanese fans who came to the Twin Ring Motegi, I really appreciated their support this weekend. I felt a lot of energy from the fans and did my best all weekend. Of course, thanks to my team as well, they did a great job and gave me great support for my injured shoulder. This is not what I expected for the performance here, but it was the reality with my injury. But I want to congratulate Honda for winning the Constructors’ World Championship here today. The season is now over for me and now it’s time for surgery and to recover well for the future. I hope we can come back really strong for next season and I’m already looking forward to the Sepang tests.”’
Takaaki Nakagami
Jorge Lorenzo – P17
“We made an improvement on the bike this weekend and my feeling was better. Today in the second part of the race I was able to enjoy riding the bike again and go much faster than at the start of the race. At the end we were closer to the front than any of the other races since my injury, a second from the fastest in the last laps. The problem was at the beginning, I couldn’t play with the bike as much as at the end and this is where we lost all our time. But towards the end I was able to little by little, brake later and go faster. With the pace at the end I could have been closer to the leader. Now we try to keep the momentum for Phillip Island.”
Jorge Lorenzo
Karel Abraham – P18
“It has been a difficult race although the meteorological conditions have been quite favorable. I had a problem at the beginning and I got last. I had some problems that made it more difficult to overtake riders, however I was able to overtake three. We have to improve in the first laps so we don’t waste much time. Finally, in this race there have been only been two crash which is rare and we were not able to win more positions. “
Karel Abraham
Hafizh Syahrin – P19
“It was a good race from lap one until lap 18 but after that I knew I would struggle to control. I’m really sorry for my team, as I wanted to stay with Nakagami. I passed him and he passed me back, so I believe we could have made a decent race. Overall, it’s not bad, but I’m very sorry for everybody that I didn’t manage to do better.”
Hafizh Syahrin
Sylvain Guintoli – P20
“This weekend has been good. I really enjoyed FP3 in the wet and I felt so good on the bike. During the race we focused on gaining as much useful information as possible, and everything went OK. After a difficult start I settled into a consistent rhythm. I’m pleased to have been with the team for this home GP.”
Valentino Rossi – DNF
“I had quite a bad start, not in the first corner but after that I was in the middle of the chaos and lost time. My pace wasn‘t good enough to gain positions fast. I managed to recover a few, but I wasn‘t very strong. On some laps my pace wasn‘t so bad, but everybody was fast, so that made it very difficult to challenge from behind. I haven‘t seen the data yet, but I think I made a small mistake at the end, in Turn 1, and I crashed. It was a difficult race.”
Valentino Rossi
Team Managers
Razlan Razali – Petronas SRT Team Principal
“For MotoGP it was a great race for both riders even if it was close for Fabio at the end with Dovizioso closing him down and a shame for Franco getting pipped on the line for fifth by Crutchlow. Nevertheless, Fabio took Rookie of the Year and we scored a lot of points in the teams championships. It’s slightly mixed feelings in Moto3, with John McPhee scoring good points and Ayumu Sasaki making strong progress but our hopes being for slightly better. Adam Norrodin did a great job in Moto2. His remit is to use this part-season as a learning experience and he took another step forward which is all we can ask. We head to Australia after a very good weekend overall and naturally pushing for more of the same!”
Fabio Quartararo
Wilzo Zeelenberg – Petronas SRT Team Manager
“It was a very successful weekend for us and it’s great to see Franco stepping up his game, even though it’s a pity that Cal [Crutchlow] beat him right on the finish line. He’s seen the light now, understanding how to ride this bike in the best way. It was another great podium for Fabio with second place, his third of the year and his sixth podium. We’re on a charge now with three races to go, and we can be proud of what we’ve accomplished. Nevertheless, there’s still more we want to achieve before the season is over.”
Fabio Quartararo
Massimo Meregalli – Yamaha MotoGP Team Director
“We had hoped for more in today’s race. Maverick lost a few positions on the busy opening lap and it took some time for him to recover them. Looking at the pace he had during the race, it cost him a podium. Anyway, he scored important points that allow him to be a serious contender for third place in the rider standings, which he can continue to fight for next weekend in Australia. Today definitely was worse for Valentino. He was already further down the starting grid than he would have liked, on the fourth row, and on top of that he had a difficult start. Later his race was ended by a small crash in Turn 1, four laps before the chequered flag. Luckily, he was uninjured. It was a weekend to forget for him, but we get to start with a clean slate on Friday at the Phillip Island circuit.”
Valentino Rossi
Ken Kawauchi – Suzuki Technical Manager
“Alex did a lot of overtakes today but in the end he had to settle for 7th place, it was a difficult race. Joan also did well today with another good result. Both riders had a lot of potential today, but they couldn’t quite get the finishes they wanted. Of course, we will work hard and try to find a way to improve and be ready for next weekend. Thanks also to Sylvain and the test team who have helped us here.”
Joan Mir
Davide Brivio – Suzuki Team Manager
“Alex and Joan did a good race. Today it was difficult to finish higher than they did, because starting from 11th and 12th on the grid made it tricky. But they both recovered well, and their pace was actually very good. We know we have to pace so we just need to try again next time. This result is consistent, and we’re pleased. Sylvain got a lot of information for us too. Thank you to everyone from the factory who has been visiting us and supporting us this weekend.”
Pol Espargaro and Mika Kallio
Mike Leitner, Red Bull KTM Team Manager
“The result of the race is not too bad with three riders in the points but we wanted one in the top ten. However, since the beginning of the weekend it was tricky to get to this stage. FP3 was wet and so was qualification and this did not help us to get set-up for the best performance. We will take the result and the points today. Everybody was pushing hard. Let’s go to Phillip Island and try again.”
Pol Espargaro
Hervé Poncharal – Red Bull KTM Tech3 Team Manager
“Altogether this has been a very positive weekend for the Red Bull KTM Tech3 team here in Japan. It was a tough weekend for everyone, cool temperature on Friday, rain and a damp track on Saturday meant difficult conditions to master, a dry Warm Up this morning and a bit of a gamble for tyre selection. We run soft-soft in Warm Up and we knew it was going to be a bit warmer in the afternoon, so clearly, we decided with the medium front and rear, which was something we never tested the whole weekend. We told Miguel to be a bit cautious in the beginning of the race and this is what he did. The start was ok, but the pace was a bit average on the first laps, but when he understood the tyres and pushed them to the right temperature, he had a really strong pace. He did some good overtaking. We were a bit scared about his should towards the end of the race, but he made his fastest laps at the end, he was catching the guys in front. I’m truly proud, he was finally catching Bagnaia, who is a tough contender in his rookie season. This was a strong race. There was only one DNF ahead of us, so I think we can be proud of this top 12. We are not so far behind Pol (Espargaro) and clearly, we improve together with KTM. I’m very happy about what all the team, KTM and Miguel have done. We were also very excited to see Hafizh fighting and passing Lorenzo and Abraham. For once, he was right behind Nakagami, catching him, but when he was about to pass him, he made a big mistake and that was the end of our hope. But I would like to thank him also, because maybe this is one of the best races of the year for him, he was fast, some laps quicker than Miguel and he didn’t get a great reward because of the single mistake he did towards the end, but this is still a positive weekend. Let’s pack now and fly to Australia, which will also going to be an interesting weekend, as the weather seems to be difficult to handle. We’re ready to pack, enjoy a good night and then it’s off to Down Under!”
Motegi MotoGP 2019
Massimo Rivola – Aprilia Racing CEO
“This is a difficult moment. I feel like I need to send a message, first and foremost to ourselves. After qualifying and warm up, expectations for the race were high. The start was good but we realised straight away that something wasn’t right. In fact, Aleix was unable to replicate the pace he had demonstrated in warm up. When he came back to the garage, he complained of a lack of power. We need to look into the cause. Andrea also crashed, but after a technical problem. These are problems that happened to both on new engines and it is our duty to figure out these problems.”
Piero Taramasso – Michelin
“We came here with very high hopes of setting some fast times and breaking some records, but the weather intervened and didn’t make that possible. We are not disappointed though because the different conditions gave us plenty of opportunities to see how the tyres performed as the asphalt changed. It was cold on Friday, so the choice was really to go with the soft and medium slicks only, then we had heavy rain on Saturday morning, which meant we were able to use the full wet tyres. Then as it dried all the riders started to switch to slicks, this showed the amount of grip our tyres supply in those conditions as the best times were just outside race lap-record pace and no-one crashed in such difficult circumstances. Today for the race the track was not in a good condition, as it was slightly warmer, but the humidity increased, making tyre choice complicated. In the end just the front and rear soft and medium slicks were chosen, but it showed they all worked as each one was on the podium, in three different configurations and on three varying manufacturers. Overall it has been a positive weekend despite the weather and now we must focus on Australia and the added challenge of a test within the race weekend.”
