Tag Archives: Marc Marquez

We will be keeping you updated with any news that there might be until the beginning of the schedule In the meantime, we will b…

We will be keeping you updated with any news that there might be until the beginning of the schedule

In the meantime, we will be going back over the years that Marc has been in MotoGP and from the very first days.

Today we will be following the #PortimaoTest 2023 #TheDayAfter

Marc Márquez #MotoGP 2023 #MM93 #MMM93 #Box_Repsol #HRC #Alpine #Shoei #Allianz #PullAndBear #Oakley #EstrellaGalicia

Source: Marc Márquez on Facebook

“We started to lose our way” – Marc Marquez debriefs Day 1

The eight-time Champion admits it was a tricky afternoon on Day 1 after testing “big things”, but he remains optimistic for the final day

We will be keeping you updated with any news that there might be until the beginning of the schedule.

Marc Márquez

In the meantime, we will be going back over the years that Marc has been in MotoGP and from the very first days.

Today we will be following the #PortimaoTest #FinalDay

#MarcMarquez #MotoGP 2023 #MM93 #MMM93 #Box_Repsol #HRC #Alpine #Shoei #Allianz #PullAndBear #Oakley #EstrellaGalicia

The eight-time Champion admits it was a tricky afternoon on Day 1 after testing “big things”, but he remains optimistic for the final day
Source: Marc Márquez on Facebook

Sin mirar atrás. Si estoy aquí, es para ganar. #MarcMarquezALLIN 20 Feb en Amazon prime Video (España) – No looking back. I’…

Sin mirar atrás. Si estoy aquí, es para ganar. #MarcMarquezALLIN 20 Feb en Amazon prime Video (España)

No looking back. I’f I’m here, it’s to win. #MarcMarquezALLIN 20 Feb en Amazon Prime Video

#ALLIN #MM93


Source: Marc Márquez on Facebook

Historic triumph for Bagnaia in dramatic deciderPecco crowned Champion with Ducati in a tense decider which saw the title conte…

Historic triumph for Bagnaia in dramatic decider
Pecco crowned Champion with Ducati in a tense decider which saw the title contenders make contact

#ValencianGP 2022 #Race #Weekend
Marc Márquez #ValencianGP 2022 #MM93 #MMM93 #MotoGP #HRC #Box_Repsol #MarcIsBackStronger #AllWithMarc


Source: Marc Márquez on Facebook

Marquez wins in Italy as Bagnaia and Miller crash out

2021 MotoGP – Round 16 – Misano II


Where do we start? First, the race winner. Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team) was back on top in the Gran Premio Nolan del Made in Italy e dell’Emilia Romagna, backing up his stunner at COTA with victory at a clockwise circuit for the first time this season. He was followed home by team-mate Pol Espargaro in the first Repsol Honda 1-2 since 2017 and the number 44’s first podium with Honda, with Enea Bastianini (Avintia Esponsorama) putting in another beast of a ride to complete the rostrum on home turf – after a last lap lunge on a newly-crowned World Champion, no less.

2021 Misano II MotoGP podium
1 Marc Marquez – Repsol Honda Team – Honda – 41’52.830
2 Pol Espargaro – Repsol Honda Team – Honda – +4.859
3 Enea Bastianini – Avintia Esponsorama – Ducati – +12.013

Meanwhile, Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team) escaped in the lead as he went all-in, searing around Misano in his bid to stop Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) taking the crown. But it was a push too far and Pecco slid out, rider ok but title hopes over as Quartararo’s 52 point advantage guaranteed him the crown – backed up by a fourth place in the race too.

MotoGP Misano II Race Report

Miller looked to have the better run into turn one but looked to allow Bagnaia through and play rearguard right from the off

Bagnaia didn’t get the best start but retained the holeshot as team-mate Jack Miller declined to engage in any friendly fire from second, with Miguel Oliveira (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) therefore briefly passing the Australian but Miller hitting back soon after to tag back onto the tail of his teammate. For Quartararo, the start wasn’t the best either as the Frenchman went from 15th to 17th, but he was soon back up three places to one ahead of where he started.

Bagnaia, Miller and Marquez quickly broke away

After only a couple of laps, there was a breakaway trio of Pecco, Miller and Marc Marquez, and some drama elsewhere: former reigning Champion Joan Mir (Team Suzuki Ecstar) jumped the start and was given the requisite Double Long Lap, but then the number 36 was out anyway, coming together with Danilo Petrucci (Tech3 KTM Factory Racing). No further action was taken, although it was investigated.

Mir took out Petrucci

The Bagnaia-Miller-Marquez train had almost a couple of seconds in hand by then, but Miller was starting to come under some serious pressure from Marquez. And then, even more drama – Miller crashed out. Rider ok but leaving his team-mate in the lead and Marquez on the charge behind him – with Pol Espargaro in third with company from Oliveira, Franco Morbidelli (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) and Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia Racing Team Gresini).

Bagnaia, Miller, Marquez

By 20 to go, Bagnaia and Marquez were nearly three seconds clear, Pol Espargaro vs Oliveira was the fight for third and Quartararo was still down in 10th, behind Jorge Martin (Pramac Racing) and Alex Rins (Team Suzuki Ecstar). Soon after though the Suzuki and the Yamaha managed to pass the Pramac machine, the tension still hanging in the air as Pecco led Marquez and Quartararo made his moves.

Rins, Quartararo, Martin

On Lap 13, Martin crashed at Turn 1 and Quartararo was then embroiled in a five-rider battle – with fifth to ninth split by less than a second. But the Frenchman, keeping calm, picked his way past teammate Franco Morbidelli and then front-row starter Luca Marini (Sky VR46 Avintia) to climb to P7 on Lap 15, although Pecco continuing to hold the relentless Marc Marquez at bay.

Quartararo, Aleix Espargaro, Rins

With 10 to go, Quartararo sliced his way past Rins for P6, with Aleix Espargaro then next on El Diablo’s radar. And sure enough, with nine to go, Quartararo was ahead of the Aprilia RS-GP and now in fifth. Barring a disaster from Oliveira, that was as good as it was going to get for Quartararo, with the KTM star eight seconds up the road. Or so we thought….

Bagnaia leading Marquez

Meanwhile, 17 seconds ahead of Quartararo, Bagnaia was holding up his end of the bargain. All Pecco could do on home soil was win, but he had an eight-time World Champion hanging onto his coattails. Looking incredibly strong, the Italian was starting to pull clear though… before Lap 23 of the Emilia-Romagna GP became the title-deciding lap of 2021. At Turn 15, where Miller crashed earlier in the race, Bagnaia suddenly slid out. Giving it all he had but just dancing over the limit with pace Marquez would later describe as ‘unreal’, it was over. Straight back up on his feet, Pecco knew. Ducati knew. Yamaha knew. Quartararo knew: a new MotoGP World Champion was about to be crowned.

Pecco’s crash, closely followed by an Oliveira crash right after, left Marc Marquez P1, Pol Espargaro P2 and Quartararo, the new World Champion, holding a sensational third place from P15 on the grid. But Bastianini had other ideas, the Beast on an electric charge in the latter stages. He wasn’t going to allow Quartararo to have an easy cruise home to the podium, and he was homing in.

Enea Bastianini

Up ahead, the chequered flag came out and Marc Marquez won his second race in a row, his third of the season, and first on a clockwise track in 2021… much more difficult turf. Pol Espargaro came home second to hand Repsol Honda a fantastic 1-2, their first since 2017, and returned to the rostrum for the first time in 2021 and first time with the Japanese marque.

Marquez takes the chequered flag

Meanwhile Bastianini, with a move at Turn 14, got the better of Quartararo on the last lap, cementing another stunning rostrum to take the lead in the Rookie of the Year fight. And then came the the 2021 MotoGP World Champion: Fabio Quartararo. Jubilation erupted for the Frenchman and Yamaha after a phenomenal season.

2021 FIM MotoGP World Champion Fabio Quartararo

Johann Zarco (Pramac Racing) crossed the line in fifth to beat sixth place Rins by 1.2s, with Aleix Espargaro taking P7. P8 went the way of Maverick Viñales (Aprilia Racing Team Gresini) who claimed his best result in Aprilia colours, and Marini secured his goal with a second top 10 of the season in P9 in his special Grazie Vale colour scheme.

2021 FIM MotoGP World Champion Fabio Quartararo

Speaking of, Valentino Rossi (Petronas Yamaha SRT) crossed the line in 10th in his final MotoGP race on Italian soil: a fitting send-off to the nine-time World Champion in front of his adoring fans after a tougher start to the race, and now two races remain in Portugal and Valencia to enjoy The Doctor doing what he loves best – racing motorcycles.

Rossi was given a big send off on home turf

Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) had an eventful day. The South African crashed on the sighting lap, started from the back of the grid and ended up finishing P11 after another impressive charge. Michele Pirro (Ducati Lenovo Team), Andrea Dovizioso (Petronas Yamaha SRT), Morbidelli and Takaaki Nakagami (LCR Honda Idemitsu) – the latter despite a crash – were the final points scorers at Misano.

2021 FIM MotoGP World Champion Fabio Quartararo

And so the sun sets on the premier class Championship fight and a dramatic day in Emilia-Romagna. An emotional one too, as Quartararo won, Rossi bid farewell to his home crowd and Bagnaia was forced to cede. But the Ducati man came out in pitlane to congratulate Quartararo, as did Miller, and will surely be a force to be reckoned with in next year’s battle too…

2021 FIM MotoGP World Champion Fabio Quartararo

Now we head back to Portugal for the Algarve GP, and the title fight may be over but the racing will remain as exciting as ever.

Repsol Honda 1-2
Marc Marquez – P1

For me this is the most important win of the year. Winning at a right-handed circuit, with the corners where I struggled a lot this year, I’m still struggling a bit but it’s progress and evolution, something special. It’s something that will give me a lot of confidence for these last two races but especially in winter time, to be calmer and more patient. With time everything is going a good way and that’s the most important. Toay the pace was unreal, Pecco was riding super fast. When I saw the 32 low, 32 low, I mean.. I don’t know how I was able to say there! But on the lap where I gave up, because I saw he was so fast on that lap, he crashed. I was putting pressure on him but Pecco was the fastest rider on the track today. And aside from that, today is not my day, it’s Fabio’s day and I want to congratulate him. He deserves it, he did an incredible season and job, so congrats to him and the Yamaha team… we’ll try and make it difficult next year for him!”

Race winner Marc Marquez congratulates newly crowned World Champion Fabio Quartararo

MotoGP Misano II Race Results

Pos Rider Bike Time/Gap
1 Marc MARQUEZ Honda 41m52.830
2 Pol ESPARGARO Honda +4.859
3 Enea BASTIANINI Ducati +12.013
4 Fabio QUARTARARO Yamaha +12.775
5 Johann ZARCO Ducati +16.458
6 Alex RINS Suzuki +17.669
7 Aleix ESPARGARO Aprilia +18.468
8 Maverick VIÑALES Aprilia +18.607
9 Luca MARINI Ducati +25.417
10 Valentino ROSSI Yamaha +27.735
11 Brad BINDER KTM +27.879
12 Michele PIRRO Ducati +28.137
13 Andrea DOVIZIOSO Yamaha +41.413
14 Franco MORBIDELLI Yamaha +42.83
15 Takaaki NAKAGAMI Honda +1m22.462
Not Classified
DNF Francesco BAGNAIA Ducati 5 Laps
DNF Miguel OLIVEIRA KTM 5 Laps
DNF Jorge MARTIN Ducati 15 Laps
DNF Iker LECUONA KTM 17 Laps
DNF Alex MARQUEZ Honda 18 Laps
DNF Jack MILLER Ducati 24 Laps
DNF Danilo PETRUCCI KTM 25 Laps
DNF Joan MIR Suzuki 25 Laps

Fabio Quartararo
2021 MotoGP World Champion

I already don’t have my normal voice just a few hours after, I’ve cried a lot an screamed a lot! It feels amazing. When I crossed the finish line I thought about all the tough moments I had, and to be World Champion in MotoGP is something I never expected when I was in bad situations only a few years ago. So right now I feel like I’m in a dream and I don’t realise what’s happening to me right now!

“Of course I had extra nerves, I never started further back than P11 in MotoGP, and I’m starting P15 in one of the most important races of my career! We chose the safe, let’s say, tyres but for us the hard would have been better and I think the podium was there with the hard. I didn’t have stability when I was with the group, I couldn’t overtake. But I’m really happy with my race, even if I hadn’t won the Championship it’s great to finish P4. Super happy about the race and of course with the Championship it’s something extra.

2021 FIM MotoGP World Champion Fabio Quartararo

“Just before starting the race I was with Tom in the office and I was nervous, feeling stressed and he said, ‘just think about the last three races you had last year’. They were a total disaster and I just wanted to finish the Championship whatever the position was. And today I started the race that made me World Champion. I think everything that happened last year helped me a lot to win the title today. Thanks to the people for supporting me in these tough moments, I think I learned a lot during these years in MotoGP and still have a lot to learn to achieve more results like that.

“To be honest, last year we fought to have the factory bike but with Covid and everything, the 2019 bike was better. But with the 2021 bike I felt much better, the feeling with the front is what has made me win this year, I think. The feeling I had. We know the power is something we have to work on, but the feeling on the braking to overtake – not this race but in general – has been much higher than 2019 and 2020. Yamaha has worked a lot, we still have a lot to improve for next year because we know that power is something important, but right now with the bike I was feeling like on, I’m enjoying riding. Also today I had a lot of struggles with the front but I still enjoyed it a lot, and that was the most important thing of the day.”

“I’ve cried a lot and screamed a lot

2021 FIM MotoGP World Champion Fabio Quartararo

MotoGP Championship Standings

Pos Rider Bike Nation Points
1 Fabio QUARTARARO Yamaha FRA 267
2 Francesco BAGNAIA Ducati ITA 202
3 Joan MIR Suzuki SPA 175
4 Johann ZARCO Ducati FRA 152
5 Jack MILLER Ducati AUS 149
6 Marc MARQUEZ Honda SPA 142
7 Brad BINDER KTM RSA 136
8 Aleix ESPARGARO Aprilia SPA 113
9 Maverick VIÑALES Aprilia SPA 106
10 Miguel OLIVEIRA KTM POR 92
11 Alex RINS Suzuki SPA 91
12 Pol ESPARGARO Honda SPA 90
13 Enea BASTIANINI Ducati ITA 87
14 Jorge MARTIN Ducati SPA 82
15 Takaaki NAKAGAMI Honda JPN 71
16 Alex MARQUEZ Honda SPA 54
17 Franco MORBIDELLI Yamaha ITA 42
18 Iker LECUONA KTM SPA 38
19 Danilo PETRUCCI KTM ITA 37
20 Luca MARINI Ducati ITA 37
21 Valentino ROSSI Yamaha ITA 35
22 Stefan BRADL Honda GER 13
23 Michele PIRRO Ducati ITA 12
24 Dani PEDROSA KTM SPA 6
25 Andrea DOVIZIOSO Yamaha ITA 6
26 Lorenzo SAVADORI Aprilia ITA 4
27 Tito RABAT Ducati SPA 1

Moto2

Sam Lowes (Elf Marc VDS) got his elbows out and put his foot down at the Gran Premio Nolan del Made in Italy e dell’Emilia Romagna, getting back on the top step in style at Misano. Teammate Augusto Fernandez made it an Elf Marc VDS Racing Team 1-2 despite a Long Lap penalty from qualifying, with the Spaniard just pipping compatriot Aron Canet after some late technical gremlins made life harder for the Aspar Team rider. Still, he completed the podium for another impressive race at Misano.

One moment stole the headlines, however, as Raul Fernandez (Red Bull KTM Ajo) suffered a huge crash out of the lead – rider ok – and on a day when teammate and Championship leader Remy Gardner was suffering some of his own dramas, a way back off the podium fight. But the Australian stayed calm, dug in, overcame a Long Lap given for some contact with Somkiat Chantra (Idemitsu Honda Team Asia) and crossed the line in seventh – doubling his advantage to 18 points ahead of the Algarve GP.

Polesitter Lowes grabbed the holeshot, with Canet making a good start to earn P2 ahead of Augusto Fernandez, with Raul Fernandez and Gardner P7 and P12 respectively at the end of the first lap. But by Lap 3, Raul Fernandez had made his way up to P4, with Gardner still scrapping away in the lower ends of the top 10.

A late lunge from Canet on then-race leader Jorge Navarro (+EGO Speed Up) at the tight Turn 14 right-hander allowed Lowes to retake the lead, while also gifting Raul Fernandez P3. The latter was then up to second on Lap 6, and with Gardner P8, as things stood Raul Fernandez was set to take the Championship lead…

Gardner then dived up the inside of Chantra at Turn 14 on his mission to make a comeback, but contact was made and the Thai rider crashed, adding a Long Lap Penalty to Gardner’s Sunday mountain to climb. Meanwhile, Raul Fernandez was swarming Lowes’ rear wheel for the lead…

By Lap 11, Lowes, Raul Fernandez and Canet were 1.3s clear of now fourth-placed Navarro, and then Augusto Fernandez passed Gardner too, the Australian back down to P8. Raul Fernandez then took the lead and the news of the Long Lap came for the Aussie in quick succession, with things seemingly going from bad to worse.

The everything changed. Heading down into Turn 8, Raul Fernandez was suddenly cartwheeling through the gravel, bike obliterated and out of the race, but rider ok. Another huge and unforeseen twist that left Gardner, despite the tougher race of it, suddenly holding a lot more cards. Still, he lost another position to Marco Bezzecchi (Sky Racing Team VR46), and the race was on to try and maximise the open goal…

Back up at the front, it was now Lowes vs Canet for victory. The Brit ran wide at Turn 8 to allow the Spaniard through into the lead, and another moment for the number 22 then allowed Canet to get up to an advantage of over half a second with five to go. A lap late though and Lowes was back in P1, elbows out to make his way through but clean aggression returning him to the lead.

Augusto Fernandez was also up to third after his Long Lap Penalty, the Spaniard passing a brightly coloured Celestino Vietti (Sky Racing Team VR46) as the rookie impressed on home turf, but just unable to stay with the podium fight.

As was Gardner, but the Australian did gain a position back as Bezzecchi slid out late on, putting the Championship leader back into seventh – enough to double his advantage, which seemed an unlikely feat until his teammate’s crash.

Up front though, the Lowes show rolled on and the Brit crossed the line over a second clear for an impressive return to the top step. Augusto Fernandez produced a stunning comeback ride to pick off Canet on the run to the line – handing MarcVDS their first 1-2 since 2017. Canet was disappointed with P3 as technical gremlins halted his final push, but it’s a fourth podium of the season for the Spaniard.

2021 Misano II Moto2 podium
1 Sam Lowes – Elf Marc VDS Racing Team – Kalex – 40’25.180
2 Augusto Fernandez – Elf Marc VDS Racing Team – Kalex – +1.233
3 Aron Canet – Aspar Team Moto2 – Boscocuro – +1.400

Rookie Vietti rode brilliantly on home soil to bag his best result of the season, and fifth place went the way of Navarro. Manzi had a quiet but impressive ride to P6 at his home track, and the Italian finished nine seconds up the road from Championship leader Gardner. It was a tough afternoon at the office for Gardner, but after Raul Fernandez’ crash, the Aussie extends his lead in the title race to 18 points with just two races to go.

Sporting a special Gresini livery, Fabio Di Giannantonio (Federal Oil Gresini Moto2) claimed P8 ahead of rookie Ai Ogura (Idemitsu Honda Team Asia) and 10th place Marcos Ramirez (American Racing). Reigning Moto3™ World Champion Albert Arenas (Aspar Team Moto2) was 0.6s away from a top 10 result in P11, Bo Bendsneyder (Pertamina Mandalika SAG Team) takes home a P12 as Jake Dixon (Petronas Sprinta Racing) rescues some points after his Long Lap Penalty. Tom Lüthi (Pertamina Mandalika SAG Team) and Marcel Schrötter (Liqui Moly Intact GP) picked up P14 and P15 at Misano.

That’s a wrap on Emilia-Romagna, and next up it’s a return to the Algarve and Gardner, after a rollercoaster day in Italy, has his first shot at the crown. But it’s an incredibly good venue for a few on the grid and one thing is for sure – no one will go down without a fight, whether in the battle for victory or the Championship! Come back for more in a fortnight!

Sam Lowes

It was a complicated weekend for everybody to have the perfect setting and honestly I think the longest run I’ve ever done with the soft front is maybe 8 laps. I decided to use it cause of the conditions this weekend, the second half of the race was really difficult because it was sort of unknown for me with this tyre and I started to struggle. So I’m very happy to keep digging and keep with the pace. Normally I find a good advantage with the hard front but these conditions this weekend have been so difficult with grip with the left corners, so I felt definitely in the first half of the race I could take an advantage and then it was a bit of a struggle at the end but I dug in, I rode well and kept my pace to the end, tried manage the tyres the best I could.

“I’m really happy with the ride, I feel like all year I’ve been close to where I need to be and just missing a few results here and there. It’s all about building up these last few races. Well done to the team! Augusto also rode really well, he took a gamble with the hard front and well done to him, with a Long Lap he’s come back to second, Really good for the team, really good for me. At Portimão after crashing at Turn 1 at the start of the year I get a second chance so I can’t wait for that!”

Sam Lowes

Moto2 Misano II Race Results

Pos Rider Bike Time/Gap
1 Sam LOWES Kalex 40m25.180
2 Augusto FERNANDEZ Kalex +1.233
3 Aron CANET Boscoscuro +1.4
4 Celestino VIETTI Kalex +2.554
5 Jorge NAVARRO Boscoscuro +4.243
6 Stefano MANZI Kalex +5.198
7 Remy GARDNER Kalex +14.261
8 Fabio DI GIANNANTONIO Kalex +15.868
9 Ai OGURA Kalex +18.905
10 Marcos RAMIREZ Kalex +19.069
11 Albert ARENAS Boscoscuro +19.675
12 Bo BENDSNEYDER Kalex +24.309
13 Jake DIXON Kalex +26.777
14 Thomas LUTHI Kalex +34.699
15 Marcel SCHROTTER Kalex +36.24
16 Fermín ALDEGUER Boscoscuro +37.59
17 Barry BALTUS NTS +37.899
18 Nicolò BULEGA Kalex +37.966
19 Simone CORSI MV Agusta +50.787
20 Lorenzo BALDASSARRI MV Agusta +1m02.974
Not Classified
DNF Marco BEZZECCHI Kalex 3 Laps
DNF Xavi VIERGE Kalex 9 Laps
DNF Tony ARBOLINO Kalex 9 Laps
DNF Mattia CASADEI Kalex 10 Laps
DNF Raul FERNANDEZ Kalex 11 Laps
DNF Hector GARZO Kalex 13 Laps
DNF Tommaso MARCON NTS 16 Laps
DNF Cameron BEAUBIER Kalex 17 Laps
DNF Somkiat CHANTRA Kalex 19 Laps

Moto2 Championship Standings

Pos Rider Bike Nation Points
1 Remy GARDNER Kalex AUS 280
2 Raul FERNANDEZ Kalex SPA 262
3 Marco BEZZECCHI Kalex ITA 206
4 Sam LOWES Kalex GBR 165
5 Augusto FERNANDEZ Kalex SPA 151
6 Aron CANET Boscoscuro SPA 140
7 Fabio DI GIANNANTONIO Kalex ITA 136
8 Ai OGURA Kalex JPN 120
9 Jorge NAVARRO Boscoscuro SPA 89
10 Marcel SCHROTTER Kalex GER 85
11 Xavi VIERGE Kalex SPA 83
12 Celestino VIETTI Kalex ITA 66
13 Joe ROBERTS Kalex USA 59
14 Tony ARBOLINO Kalex ITA 51
15 Bo BENDSNEYDER Kalex NED 45
16 Cameron BEAUBIER Kalex USA 39
17 Somkiat CHANTRA Kalex THA 37
18 Marcos RAMIREZ Kalex SPA 35
19 Stefano MANZI Kalex ITA 30
20 Jake DIXON Kalex GBR 30
21 Albert ARENAS Boscoscuro SPA 28
22 Thomas LUTHI Kalex SWI 23
23 Simone CORSI MV Agusta ITA 16
24 Fermín ALDEGUER Boscoscuro SPA 13
25 Hector GARZO Kalex SPA 12
26 Nicolò BULEGA Kalex ITA 12
27 Lorenzo DALLA PORTA Kalex ITA 10
28 Hafizh SYAHRIN NTS MAL 8
29 Alonso LOPEZ Boscoscuro SPA 4
30 Lorenzo BALDASSARRI MV Agusta ITA 3
31 Barry BALTUS NTS BEL 2
32 Tetsuta NAGASHIMA Kalex JPN 0
33 Manuel GONZALEZ MV Agusta SPA 0
34 Yari MONTELLA Boscoscuro ITA 0
35 Tommaso MARCON MV Agusta ITA 0
36 Miquel PONS MV Agusta SPA 0
37 John MCPHEE Kalex GBR 0
38 Fraser ROGERS NTS GBR 0
39 Taiga HADA JPN 0
39 Taiga HADA Kalex JPN 0
40 Xavi CARDELUS Kalex AND 0
41 Mattia CASADEI ITA 0
42 Piotr BIESIEKIRSKI Kalex POL 0
43 Keminth KUBO Kalex THA 0

Moto3

The heat was on for Dennis Foggia (Leopard Racing) in the Gran Premio Nolan del Made in Italy e dell’Emilia Romagna, with the Italian starting 14th on the grid as he aimed to stop key rival Pedro Acosta (Red Bull KTM Ajo) taking the title from fifth. But the Italian seared through after a tougher start to home in on the front group and then take the lead, thereafter pitching it to perfection to hold off an impressive race from Jaume Masia (Red Bull KTM Ajo). The fight for third went down to the wire, but Acosta did some damage limitation as he got back on the podium for the first time since the Styrian GP, keeping a healthy 21 points of advantage heading to the Algarve. In addition, the 2-3 wrapped up the Teams’ title for Red Bull KTM Ajo.

Niccolo Antonelli (Avintia VR46 Academy) took the holeshot from pole, the veteran getting the perfect launch as Izan Guevara (Gaviota GASGAS Aspar Team) shot up into second and Stefano Nepa (BOE Owlride) dispatched teammate Riccardo Rossi. Filip Salač (CarXpert PrüstelGP) lost out a little to drop from the top three, but by the end of the lap the bigger surprise was Foggia losing a few positions too. However, there were plenty of laps left to run.

As the race settled a little, Antonelli had Masia for company, with Salač back into third ahead of Nepa, Acosta and Guevara. Xavier Artigas (Leopard Racing) , Darryn Binder (Petronas Sprinta Racing) and Ayumu Sasaki (Red Bull KTM Tech3) completed the first breakaway group, with Foggia in the second group around a second and a half off the front freight train.

But Foggia was on a charge. What had been 1.7 seconds back to the second group was soon eight tenths, and only Andrea Migno (Rivacold Snipers Team) was able to go with him. By 15 to go the number 7 had arrived on the scene, immediately slicing past Salač and setting his sights on Artigas, his teammate. He got through on him too, but with 12 to go Acosta hit the lead. Could this be the break?

Ultimately not, and after a strange moment that saw Antonelli swamped between turns 7 and 8, Foggia was suddenly right in the mix at the front. By 9 to go, the Italian was in the race lead and Acosta back in fifth, with a gap to the front four as well. The front four became three with 6 to go as Guevara crashed, but the trio of Foggia, Masia and Binder had breathing space and experience on their side as Acosta duelled Nepa for fourth behind.

With three to go, the fight for the win was a duel. Foggia led, with Masia absolutely glued to the back of his teammate’s Championship rival. The gap back to Binder had shot out to 1.8 seconds, but the South African also had the same in hand over Nepa, who was back ahead of Acosta.

On the last lap, Foggia remained in the driving seat but Masia was stalking. The Red Bull KTM Ajo machine was as close as ever, but just behind them it was even closer. Binder had seriously faded, and both Acosta and Nepa sliced past the South African to add another twist to the standings. For Foggia though, nerves of steel prevailed. The Italian stayed pitch perfect on the final lap to take another win: just this season his second at Misano, third on home turf and fifth overall, keeping the Championship fight alive.

As Foggia crossed the line and Masia too, the fight to join them on the podium was still hot. But Acosta stayed cool and ahead of both Nepa and Binder, doing some impressive damage limitation despite not quite securing the crown. The gap is now 21 points ahead of the Algarve GP…

2021 Misano II Moto3 podium
1 Dennis Foggia – Leopard Racing – Honda – 39’33.170
2 Jaume Masia – Red Bull KTM Ajo – KTM – +0.292
3 Pedro Acosta – Red Bull KTM Ajo – KTM – +4.686

Binder took fourth and a solid result as only he and Foggia repped Honda in the top eight, with Nepa taking fifth and his best Grand Prix result so far. Antonelli took sixth and some solid points but couldn’t come back from his earlier moment, with compatriot Romano Fenati (Sterilgarda Max Racing Team) just behind him. Fenati taking P7 doesn’t sound like the normal heights of the Italian’s season, but considering a tough Saturday and a mountain to climb, the veteran clawed back an incredible distance on race day.

Sasaki took good points in eight, ahead of a good P9 for rookie Artigas. Salač completed the top ten, ahead of Ryusei Yamanaka (CarXpert PrüstelGP) in some space. Next up was Guevara despite the earlier crash for the Austin winner, the rookie taking P12, with Adrian Fernandez (Sterilgarda Max Racing Team), Jeremy Alcoba (Indonesian Racing Gresini Moto3) and Andi Izdihar (Honda Team Asia) completing the points.

And so it rolls on. Next up we return to the Autodromo Internacional do Algarve, where last time Foggia vs Acosta was already staging a show. Now the two will be fighting over the title, and it’s 21 points in the Spaniard’s favour – but the Italian far from throwing in the towel. Tune in for that in just under two weeks!

Dennis Foggia

It was a difficult weekend because all sessions in the wet… and in the wet I’m not good! I don’t like it. So this morning in Warm Up I was so relaxed because I knew the race would be in the dry. I started from 14th, and I said ok, ‘it’s time to attack’ because Pedro was in front, and I knew with my team I had good potential. Six podiums in a row is fantastic, my second win here and third in Italy, it’s fantastic. I don’t know about the Championship now given the points because Pedro got a podium, but I’m just happy and I want to thank my team because the bike was perfect. See you in Portimão!”

Dennis Foggia

Moto3 Misano II Race Results

Pos Rider Bike Time/Gap
1 Dennis FOGGIA Honda 39m33.170
2 Jaume MASIA KTM +0.292
3 Pedro ACOSTA KTM +4.686
4 Darryn BINDER Honda +4.797
5 Stefano NEPA KTM +4.853
6 Niccolò ANTONELLI KTM +5.052
7 Romano FENATI Husqvarna +5.335
8 Ayumu SASAKI KTM +6.642
9 Xavier ARTIGAS Honda +6.736
10 Filip SALAC KTM +6.8
11 Ryusei YAMANAKA KTM +10.535
12 Izan GUEVARA GASGAS +17.811
13 Adrian FERNANDEZ Husqvarna +18.05
14 Jeremy ALCOBA Honda +18.26
15 Andi Farid IZDIHAR Honda +19.264
16 Alberto SURRA Honda +20.217
17 Kaito TOBA KTM +24.704
18 Maximilian KOFLER KTM +24.902
19 Lorenzo FELLON Honda +24.976
20 Daniel HOLGADO KTM +25.323
21 Mario AJI Honda +46.495
22 David ALONSO GASGAS +1m25.207
Not Classified
DNF Yuki KUNII Honda 3 Laps
DNF Andrea MIGNO Honda 11 Laps
DNF Carlos TATAY KTM 11 Laps
DNF Tatsuki SUZUKI Honda 13 Laps
DNF John MCPHEE Honda 15 Laps
DNF Riccardo ROSSI KTM 18 Laps

Moto3 Championship Standings

Pos Rider Bike Nation Points
1 Pedro ACOSTA KTM SPA 234
2 Dennis FOGGIA Honda ITA 213
3 Sergio GARCIA GASGAS SPA 168
4 Jaume MASIA KTM SPA 155
5 Romano FENATI Husqvarna ITA 147
6 Darryn BINDER Honda RSA 136
7 Niccolò ANTONELLI KTM ITA 129
8 Izan GUEVARA GASGAS SPA 105
9 Ayumu SASAKI KTM JPN 104
10 Andrea MIGNO Honda ITA 90
11 Deniz ÖNCÜ KTM TUR 84
12 Jeremy ALCOBA Honda SPA 72
13 John MCPHEE Honda GBR 72
14 Tatsuki SUZUKI Honda JPN 69
15 Kaito TOBA KTM JPN 64
16 Gabriel RODRIGO Honda ARG 60
17 Stefano NEPA KTM ITA 53
18 Filip SALAC KTM CZE 52
19 Ryusei YAMANAKA KTM JPN 47
20 Xavier ARTIGAS Honda SPA 39
21 Riccardo ROSSI KTM ITA 29
22 Carlos TATAY KTM SPA 28
23 Jason DUPASQUIER KTM SWI 27
24 Adrian FERNANDEZ Husqvarna SPA 23
25 Yuki KUNII Honda JPN 15
26 Maximilian KOFLER KTM AUT 10
27 Elia BARTOLINI KTM ITA 7
28 Andi Farid IZDIHAR Honda INA 4
29 Syarifuddin AZMAN Honda MAL 3
30 Daniel HOLGADO KTM SPA 1
31 Lorenzo FELLON Honda FRA 0
32 Alberto SURRA Honda ITA 0
33 Joel KELSO KTM AUS 0
34 Takuma MATSUYAMA Honda JPN 0
35 Matteo BERTELLE KTM ITA 0
36 Mario AJI Honda INA 0
37 David SALVADOR Honda SPA 0
38 David ALONSO GASGAS COL 0

2021 FIM MotoGP World Championship calendar

Round Date Location
Round 1 Mar-28 Qatar, Losail (night race)
Round 2 Apr-04 Doha, Losail (night race)
Round 3 Apr-18 Portugal, Portimao
Round 4 May-02 Spain, Jerez
Round 5 May-16 France, Le Mans
Round 6 May-30 Italy- Mugello
Round 7 Jun-06 Catalunya, Barcelona
Round 8 Jun-20 Germany, Sachsenring
Round 9 Jun-27 Netherlands, Assen
Round 10 Aug-8 Styria, Red Bull Ring
Round 11 Aug-15 Austria, Red Bull Ring
Round 12 Aug-29 Great Britain, Silverstone
Round 13 Sep-12 Aragon, Motorland Aragon
Round 14 Sep-19 San Marino, Misano
Round 15 Oct-03 Americas, Circuit of the Americas
Round 16 Oct-24 Italy e dell’Emilia Romagna, Misano
Round 17 Nov-7 Portugal, Algarve
Round 18 Nov-14 Valencia, Circuit Ricardo Tormo

Source: MCNews.com.au

Valentino Rossi: A Full MotoGP Retirement

Italian professional motorcycle road racer and multiple-time MotoGP World Champion Valentino Rossi will officially retire from the MotoGP scene, effective at the end of the 2021 season. 

The news came announced via live coverage on MotoGP’s website, alongside the report that the young Italian made his decision in the shadows of the Styrian GP, where he first won a podium during his 125cc class debut in the Grand Prix motorcycling scene of 1996.

a view of Valentino Rossi during his 1996 125cc win at the Grand Prix
A view of Valentino Rossi during his 1996 125cc win at the Grand Prix
-Credit, Lalasport.

According to a release from Motorsport, Rossi has been hauling podiums with his decorated self for 26 seasons, making him one of the most iconic racers of our time. 

Of the years he has been leaning into track twisties, Rossi has competed in a total of 414 races – 115 of which stand strong as Grand Prix victories. 

Valentino Rossi at his first premiere with the Honda Racing Team's NSR500
Valentino Rossi at his first premiere with the Honda Racing Team’s NSR500
– Credit, Motor Sport Magazine

After his first win in the 250cc class of 1998 (The Dutch TT), Rossi signed on to Honda Racing Corporation (HRC) – and a very nice factory NSR500 – winning the first of his seven premiere titles for Y2K in what was then the highest class in World Championship motorcycle racing.

His success continued into his riding for the Honda REPSOL team at the MotoGP World Championship, carrying him into victories for both the 2003 and 2004 years, before he made an abrupt about-face switch to Yamaha in 2004. 

Valentino Rossi riding for Yamaha in the 2004 season on the YZR-M1
Valentino Rossi riding for Yamaha in his victorious 2004 season on the YZR-M1 – Credit, MCN.

With the Yamaha YZR-M1, Rossi made headlines again, blasting past Max Biaggi and securing a win for the Yamaha team in both the 2004 and 2005 seasons. 

 Despite a series of further wins for the young racer in 2008 and 2009, Rossi’s career came to a pause when he broke his leg, putting aside any hopes invested in the Italian 2010 title. 

2011 saw Valentino healing from the broken leg, as well as undergo surgery for a shoulder injury. He signed on to the big guns during this time with a move to red on a two-year Ducati contract. 

Valentino Rossi riding for Ducati in his 2011-2013 seasons with Ducati.
Valentino Rossi riding for the red team in his 2011-2013 seasons with Ducati.
– Credit, Visordown.

2011 was Rossi’s first winless season – the first time in his Grand Prix career – and the battles on the track were harder than ever.

His best finish on a Ducati to date was in his 2012 season in France, when he beat the Tech3 riders and finished second place. 

Rossi also experienced similar successes that year with his time on the track at Le Mans of San Marino (many contribute these successes in part to the new and improved swingarm and frame sliders installed on his Ducati around this time).

Valentino Rossi battling Stoner during his race at Le Mans in Misano, 2012.
Valentino Rossi battling Stoner during his race at Le Mans in Misano, 2012.
– Credit, MotorcycleSport.

Rossi soon rejoined the Yamaha team, where he was to stay until the present date.  During his 2014-2021 seasons with Yamaha, Rossi and fellow teammate Maverick Vinales struggled a bit with their racebikes, leaving the racers feeling frustrated and less than satisfied on the track.

Despite this, Rossi continued to secure a few wins, taking the podium twice in 2014. 

In 2015 the drama mounted when Rossi accused Marc Marquez of conspiring with Jorge Lorenzo to can his potential for Australia. The resulting consequence had the Italian in a back-of-the-grid start for the Valencia finale. 

Valentino Rossi criticizes Marc Marquez for working against him on and off the track.
Valentino Rossi criticizes Marc Marquez for working against him on and off the track.
– Credit, The Race.

Rossi’s further wins were dwindling; the Italian secured two wins for 2016, then one in 2017 (The Dutch TT). His podiums also were less frequent, from five podiums in 2018 to two in 2019, and a final podium last year at the second race of Andalucia. 

Despite the chaos and beauty that naturally accompanies the stats of a racer’s career, Valentino Rossi is an amazingly talented man.

With his generous personality and competition with Biaggi, Sete Gibernau, Casey Stoner, and Lorenzo, Rossi helped create a MotoGP that, today, is seen and loved by all.

“I have made my decision for next year – and I have decided to stop after the end of the season.  Unfortunately, this will be my last season as a MotoGP rider”, says Rossi in a live coverage.

“It was great and I had an unforgettable moments with my team, with all my guys that worked for me. Molto, molto bueno. ”

a view of Valentino Rossi, speaking at a press conference.
Valentino Rossi, speaking at a press conference.
– Credit, Crash.

The young racer will always live in our hearts, as well as through his recent work with the VR46 Riders Academy, founded in 2014.

Big names have arisen from this academy – including Morbidelli, Bagnaia, Marini, Bezzecchi, Nicolo Bulega, Niccolò Antonelli, Andrea Migno, Celestino Vietti, Lorenzo Baldassarri, Stefano Manzi, Dennis Foggia and others – and we look forward to the amazing moment that Valentino Rossi’s VR46 team graces the MotoGP stage, in 2022. 

Stay tuned for updates, and make sure to check out Rossi’s Sky Racing Team VR46.

Source: MotorbikeWriter.com

Marc Marquez talks recovery and Sachsenring success

Marc Marquez Interview


Marc Márquez made an emotional return to the top step of the MotoGP podium in Germany last weekend when he held off Miguel Oliveira to win around the Sachsenring track for the 11th straight time in his career.

The six-time MotoGP world champion had initially struggled this season to challenge for victory after a bad arm injury ruled him out of the 2020 season, however he drew on his love for the German GP track to raise his game and provide more hope in his continued rehabilitation.

The Repsol Honda rider survived a spectacularly vicious high-side overnight at Assen but walked away. After the Assen TT MotoGP then heads for its summer break before an August return, when the Red Bull Ring in Spielberg will host back-to-back races with the Styrian GP and Austrian GP.

Did you draw inspiration in your long injury comeback from top athletes in other sports?

The rehabilitation process was really long and I am still struggling a lot with my right arm. Of course, I try to find motivations and some reference. One of the guys I spoke to and understand his situation is Mick Doohan because of his big injury in 1992 and when he came back in 1993. He struggled a lot. Phone call with him to try and listen and understand his problems and learn about his experience. It helped me a lot. Another athlete was Rafa Nadal. One part of his career people thought he might retire because his knees were not so good. In the end he came back and won again. You take the good references and try to copy them. I have received many great messages since my victory at the Sachsenring, from legends in other sports to my best friend. It is true they are different kind of messages. The most important and nicest thing was when I crossed the line and arrived in parc fermé, I saw all my team crying and this was emotional.

A big day for HRC and everyone in Honda’s MotoGP effort after some very difficult times

How important was it to race at your beloved Sachsenring at this crucial point in the season?

Sachsenring has been a good circuit for me, a good layout. Normally on left corners I am really strong coming from the flat track and the characteristics of our bike. This year I feel from the Sachsenring to another circuit it is a bigger step because it is turning all the time on left corners and normally I feel more the arm in the right corners. There was a big step. It is true that during my career at Sachsenring I won many times and, when you arrive there, the layout suits well with your riding style and also you have extra confidence. Sachsenring is one of the most important victories in my career about the moment where we were, where we are and where we want to arrive. When you are in a difficult moment and you receive some great compensation that is a victory – it helps a lot myself, it helps a lot inside the team and it helps a lot the Honda engineers. It was a victory my body needs. Really happy and really proud.”

The relief was palpable

How impressed have you been with the strides Red Bull KTM have made during the last year?

When you are one year out from the best motorbike competition, you feel like all the other manufacturers and riders keep improving, they are even faster – every year the level increases. They are faster and I am slower, so it makes the situation more difficult. Step by step we need to work. Every race track is different. In Sachsenring I suffered a lot and, in future races, I may struggle again. My target in 2021 is a transition year. Try to find again the feeling and try to do the stupid mistakes this year, and 2022 will be time to keep a higher level.”

Marc Marquez

Has the injury and pandemic changed your way of thinking about life and riding in general?

The hardest injury of my career was together with a tough year in the world in 2020 with COVID-19. I learned many things – I learned that you need to enjoy life, you need to take care of many things and, if you can do something today, don’t wait tomorrow. The other side of course I learned is we must take care of our bodies. If you take care of your body during life, you can do many things.”

Marc Marquez

Are you looking forward to the August double-header at the Red Bull Ring?

Red Bull Ring is one of my favourite layouts, but it is true I have never won there. We will see this year. Fingers crossed that in the summertime, I will keep improving my physical condition. I have one month and a half to take a rest and also to train and try to be ready for the second half of the season. The double race in the Red Bull Ring will be interesting to understand if the body improves and if my right arm has improved or not, because there we have a very hard brake point. Looking forward to racing in Austria.”

Marc Marquez and Repsol HRC celebrate

2021 MotoGP Standings

Pos Rider Bike Points
1 Fabio QUARTARARO Yamaha 131
2 Johann ZARCO Ducati 109
3 Jack MILLER Ducati 100
4 Francesco BAGNAIA Ducati 99
5 Joan MIR Suzuki 85
6 Maverick VIÑALES Yamaha 75
7 Miguel OLIVEIRA KTM 74
8 Brad BINDER KTM 56
9 Aleix ESPARGARO Aprilia 53
10 Marc MARQUEZ Honda 41
11 Franco MORBIDELLI Yamaha 40
12 Pol ESPARGARO Honda 35
13 Takaaki NAKAGAMI Honda 34
14 Alex RINS Suzuki 28
15 Enea BASTIANINI Ducati 26
16 Alex MARQUEZ Honda 25
17 Jorge MARTIN Ducati 23
18 Danilo PETRUCCI KTM 23
19 Valentino ROSSI Yamaha 17
20 Luca MARINI Ducati 14
21 Iker LECUONA KTM 13
22 Stefan BRADL Honda 11
23 Lorenzo SAVADORI Aprilia 4
24 Michele PIRRO Ducati 3
25 Tito RABAT Ducati 1


2021 Motul TT Assen Schedule (AEST)

Source: MCNews.com.au

MotoGP riders reflect on the highs and lows of Sachsenring

2021 MotoGP Round Eight Sachsenring


Taking over at the front early on and then putting the hammer down even as rain threatened, Marc Marquez withstood ever-increasing pressure from Miguel Oliveira (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) to take his 11th win in a row at the Sachsenring, which is also his eighth in a row at the venue in the premier class.

Marc Marquez

Sachsenring Rider Quotes

Marc Marquez – P1

“This is one of the most important, and hardest, moments of my career. Today I knew there was a great opportunity to do something. When I crossed the line I just enjoyed it and then arriving with my whole team there, emotional, it helps a lot after such a difficult situation.

A big day for Marquez and HRC

“It’s impossible to come back alone, you need people, you need a good team, a good team of doctors, a physio, Honda, Honda respect me a lot. Alberto Puig, Emilio Alzamora, my family, they helped me a lot. Now it’s time to enjoy this weekend, we were looking for a petrol station but now we found one and the fuel tank is full again. It’s extra motivation for me, for Honda, for the engineers, for the team and let’s see what the future brings.

Marquez takes a moment to compose himself

“When I saw some drops of rain on lap four of five, I said; it’s my race. I started pushing at this point and then when it started to rain harder, I pushed even more and then the second race with Oliveira began. He pushed so hard and was very fast, it was hard to keep concentrated because all the memories, everything I have lived over the last year, came into my mind. But we did it. We will do it again.”

Marc Marquez and Repsol HRC celebrate
Miguel Oliveira – P2

“It was a little bit cat-and-mouse today. Marc was faster in some sectors and I was faster in the last part of the track. Visually though. I felt like I was gaining nothing! It was an interesting race and we battled at a distance. I will take a second any day at the Sachsenring to him. I’m happy to continue this run of podiums. I hope we can carry on this way. Thanks to the team, and everyone at home for their support.”

Oliveira got the gap down to just under a second but Marquez responded
Fabio Quartararo – P3

“I‘m happy with this podium. Honestly, it’s like gold. We‘ve been struggling all week. We were quite clear about this in our team. This morning we saw that our pace was good, but not good enough for the victory. That’s why I feel that this podium is really like gold, because I fought until the very end. I gave it my all, and I think that‘s so important for the team because we have been struggling so much. This GP was so tough for us. Now I‘m just looking forward to Assen, one of my favourite tracks. The bike will be fantastic there, so I can‘t wait for Friday because we will enjoy it a lot.”

Fabio Quartararo and Jack Miller
Brad Binder – P4

“I’m really happy with 4th in the end because we started the Grand Prix by being stone-last in FP1! I slowly worked my way forward through the weekend. It wasn’t easy for me to adapt to this place on the bigger bike. I gave it my absolute ‘all’ out there today. I tried as hard as I could. I wanted the podium – and I could see Fabio – but ran out of time to get close enough. In general, I’m happy with the job we did and the team worked fantastically because when I was struggling they continued to make the bike better and better and that brought my level up. We made a big step. Thanks guys, let’s see what we can do in Assen.”

Francesco Bagnaia – P5

“Despite the comeback, I’m not happy with today’s result because I know I could have fought for the podium. Unfortunately, during the first few laps, I had a different feeling than the last few days and I struggled to find my rhythm. However, in the second half of the race, I felt more comfortable, and I started to push. I managed the tyres well and was consistent right to the end, moving up to fifth place. Now we have to stay focused as in a few days we’ll be in Assen for another race weekend.”

Jack Miller – P6

“I expected more from Germany, I’ll be honest – I felt I had the pace to be right there in contention for the podium, so to finish sixth and fade near the end was a bit disappointing. But saying that, I’m still third in the championship, and in general I felt I rode a smart race, I don’t feel like I made any mistakes, and I was there or thereabouts the whole time. But anyway, today was not my day – and it was most definitely the day of Marc Marquez.

“You have to hand it to him – 11 wins in a row here, eight in a row in MotoGP – it’s pretty crazy really. But this one, with everything he’s gone through – I’m sure days like today, to feel like that again, would have kept him going last year when times were really hard for him with his injuries and surgeries, recovering the whole time. We’ve been seeing Marc get stronger and stronger each week and we came to ‘his house’ here in Sachsenring, and he did a fantastic job and managed the race really well. So full credit to him.

“That’s the sort of race that shows why Marc is a multiple-time world champion – the races like that where he sees a few spots of rain and just goes, puts a big gap out front and then manages it from there. He completely deserves it, so hats off to him.

Jack Miller

“For me, it was a frustrating one. I was managing my tyre well from the beginning of the race, but about a quarter of the way into the race I was switching the maps, I could feel a lot of lateral sliding off-gas and that was something we didn’t really have all weekend. From there I was trying to manage it, but by the end I had nothing left on the left-hand side of the tyre. I never really pushed incredibly hard in the race, but I didn’t have anything to fight with at the end.

“There’s nothing to regret, I feel like most of my issues today were out of my control. I was doing everything I could to manage the tyre and it just wouldn’t stay under me today – it can happen sometimes, and today was one of those times unfortunately.

“When the rain came I tried to pass Aleix (Espargaro) but then he passed me back and was really slow, and I could see Marc really pull out a big gap. There’s really only one place you can pass here, so I had to wait until the next lap to try to go. It was a shame to get held up by someone who wasn’t willing to push. I felt I had the speed to go with Marc at that point, but when I passed Aleix I had a bit of a moment when it was raining at Turn 1 and almost had a high-side. And that was kind of that.

Jack Miller

“Germany is a special track for me because it’s where I made my world championship debut way back in 2011 in the 125s – only lasted three laps that day, but this was where it all started. On a Moto3 bike it’s a fantastic track, but on these MotoGP bikes she’s a bit tight. But Sachsenring is fun because it has its own unique character, and it’s nice to have it because a lot of the tracks we go to are pretty similar. You wouldn’t want 18 tracks like this one, but as a one-off it’s nice to have something that’s so left-field.

“Sachsenring is definitely not, let’s say, a ‘Ducati track’ because you only have to look at the records, only one win here and very few other podiums, and there’s always going to be tracks that suit one bike or another. This isn’t usually one that suits for us so it’s more how you can adapt your bike to the track over the weekend. Here’s you’re not changing directions all that much because it’s basically all one way, going left the whole time. But this year we’ve already shown we can keep progressing and turn a couple more of these tracks that aren’t considered to be Ducati tracks into ones that aren’t too bad, like we did in Jerez with me and Pecco (Bagnaia) going 1-2.

“Anyway, that’s three races in four weeks and we’re not done yet, because we’re back at Assen for the first time in two years next Sunday. It’s a very, very different track to here, lots of high-speed changes of direction, and of course there’s some good memories for me every time I go back to that place because of 2016. We’ll focus on Assen and see what we can do there. And then it’ll be time for a well-earned break, I reckon!”

Jack Miller, Aleix Espargaro, Fabio Quartararo
Aleix Espargaro – P7

“I am pleased with the level we have reached but I am also angry because I expected to be able to achieve something more today. The reality of the situation is that we are undoubtedly in the leading group, both in qualifying and in the race, on tracks that are vastly different from one another, but we need to keep working to find that final step. I was extremely strong at the start today and then I was able to maintain the pace rather well behind Marc. In the stage of the race when a few drops of rain fell, he managed to pull away. He began building his victory at that moment. Compared to the others, I had some limitations mid corner, a question of a few tenths per lap, but that’s all it takes in this MotoGP championship.”

Aleix Espargaro took the lead early on
Johann Zarco – P8

“It was a very difficult race and I gave it my all, but the eighth place will do, we took home important points. I didn’t push more than I did because I wasn’t feeling secure; I preferred to not risk and not make any mistakes.”

Zarco in the battles early on
Joan Mir – P9

“It was a difficult race weekend, I felt a bit better with the bike today and I recovered a lot of positions despite the fact that it’s so hard to overtake here. I got behind the lead group but it was really tough to make more places. I was pushing but I had nothing left. Today they were faster than us, and it’s like this sometimes. We’ll take good info from today and try to learn from it. Riding was quite a struggle this weekend, but I gave my best as always and the team tried to make things easier for me. The important thing is I brought home a 9th place and some points which means I hold onto 5th in the Championship. I’m going to work hard to improve myself as a rider, and the team are also working hard to improve the bike. I’m looking forward to next weekend.”

Joan Mir chasing Pol Espargaro
Pol Espargaro – P10

“Honestly, today was not good. I did not get a good start and we struggled a lot, I got overtaken a lot and here is not the easiest place to pass. Then when the rain came, I was stuck behind too many people and I couldn’t get past them fast enough. If you can’t overtake quickly at the Sachsenring this is what happens. My race isn’t what I wanted, it’s not what I expected. But we have seen what Marc has done, I am really happy for him and the whole Repsol Honda Team. It shows that the bike is working well here but also highlights that we could have done more since I have been close to Marc all weekend. It’s a boost to improve, to work harder and better.”

Alex Rins – P11

“It was a bit hard today because my arm still isn’t 100%, but this track has more left-handed corners than right-handed, and I think that helped me quite a lot, it meant the pain was manageable. But I didn’t feel very comfortable when the rain arrived, I lost my feeling. After the rain went away I felt better but then I was losing grip on the rear, it dropped off more than I thought compared to the practices. But I kept trying and I was able to make some overtakings at the end of the race and I’m happy about that. It won’t be easy to ride again in just a few days, but I will rest and focus on Assen.”

Alex Rins on the grid
Jorge Martín – P12

“I am satisfied, I had a good race and I was able to remain in the top ten for almost all of the 30 laps. Naturally, still not being completely fit meant that towards the end I struggled a lot. I now can see the improvements being made day after day, and I feel confident for Assen.”

Jorge Martín
Takaaki Nakagami – P13

“It was a tough race for me, starting from P9 on the third row, I didn’t have a good start. But at the beginning of the race I had good pace, felt good on the bike and tried to overtake some riders and catch up with the top group. But after 8 or 9 laps I felt a drop off in the rear grip and then lap by lap it was really difficult to manage the bike. Towards the end of the race, the last ten laps, it was so difficult to keep the lap time. I finished P13 and I’m not happy about the result, but let’s stay positive and focus on the next race at Assen.”

Valentino Rossi – P14

“I had a good feeling this morning and Warm Up was good. I was riding well, enjoying it, and I had a good lap time right up until the end of the session. The problem is that everything in the race is more difficult. I needed a good start but I didn’t have one and so I was stuck in traffic. It was not easy. When I had clear air ahead, I was able to do some good lap times. In fact my pace was not too bad, but it was not enough. I also had to slow down in the final laps because I started to suffer with lack of rear grip. We took some points but we did expect better today.”

Valentino Rossi
Luca Marini – P15

“I am satisfied with the weekend, we had a good race where I was fast and consistent. I had a good feeling, the result of the work done here and in the Barcelona test. I can show my potential better, but we still need to work on how to manage the start and the first laps.”

Luca Marini chasing Enea Bastianini
Enea Bastianini – P16

“I am not happy with my race because unfortunately I had some problems that made me lose a lot of time and we will try to understand why. At some points of the circuit, I was fast and I was able to make a little bit of a difference, but it wasn’t enough. Overall, it was a difficult weekend. We leave here with experience because we did a lot of laps with left-hand turns, and I think it will help for the future. I’m sure we’ll do better at Assen.”

Iker Lecuona – P17

“I was inside the points scoring positions but in the middle of the race, I felt sick. I don’t know if I maybe ate something bad yesterday but I definitely had problems with my stomach. It was difficult to keep the pace and I didn’t have any power anymore. I was pushing a lot with the knees and elbows but I still tried to finish the race in a decent position. Honestly, it was very hard. I want to say sorry to my team because I know that we could have been fighting for the points. But we will come back stronger in Assen.”

Iker Lecuona
Franco Morbidelli – P18

“We already knew yesterday that starting so far behind, on such a narrow track and with a lack of speed, that it was going to be a difficult race today. We tried something with our setup to try to make the bike more stable in braking, to see if we could outbrake somebody on track in the race. Unfortunately we were reaching the corners with too much of a gap to the rider in front to be able to do this. The turning was not as good either so our speed was a little less than in FP4. I’m feeling more confident about Assen though, as it is a flowing track and I’m looking forward to it.”

Maverick Vinales – P19

“I don‘t really know what happened with the bike at the beginning. I had a highside going into the corner. I looked to see if the tyre was flat or not, because I didn‘t understand what happened. But then I did two or three good laps, 22-highs and 23-lows on my dashboard. After that I got stuck behind the Ducatis, and it was impossible to pass them. I didn‘t know what more I could do, and that was it, my race was over. I had a good rhythm but couldn‘t do more than this.”

Lorenzo Savadori – DNF

“I am obviously not satisfied with the way the weekend ended. I started rather well and I was in the group that would have made a play for the points zone, with a good pace. Unfortunately, I crashed. We still need to figure out what happened, but the end result is a lost opportunity to do well. On a positive note, despite the incredible level of this championship, I continue to improve and get closer to some rather respectable adversaries.”

Álex Márquez – DNF

“Today we started from P12 and in the warm-up we did a really good job with the used tyres and I was feeling really prepared for the race. I made a bad start and did not have a good first two laps. I was in the middle of a group, tried to overtake and had a contact with another guy and I crashed. I’m sorry for the team because today, and all weekend, I enjoyed being on the bike and in the warm-up we were really, really good. It’s a shame because today I was thinking that the top eight was a real possibility, so I feel sorry for that. But we have shown that our bike can be good in some places and at some tracks, so we need to keep focused and keep improving.”

Álex Márquez and Danilo Petrucci
Danilo Petrucci – DNF

“I’m really sorry because we were strong all the weekend. We made a good start and in this race it was all about managing the rear tyre. Unfortunately, Iker started to pass me and be very aggressive. He was braking very hard in one corner and Marquez followed his example and crashed and I crashed with Marquez. I have no words, we don’t have any points for the team. I’m very angry, but moreover very sorry.”

Álex Márquez and Danilo Petrucci

MotoGP Team Managers

Mike Leitner – Red Bull KTM Race Manager

“An incredible feeling to see some of the results today and it shows the potential of this project and the skill and hard work of everyone that has been working on it since 2015. It’s fantastic to get three podiums in a row and Miguel’s performance was amazing as well as Brad’s today, especially around a track that is so difficult for overtaking. Miguel’s race was conditioned a bit by that one lap where the rain showed up and he was stuck in some traffic. He was equal on lap-times to Marc. We are super-happy to be able to battle with someone like him here and with his special record at this circuit. I want to say a big thanks to the race team who have pushed and pushed since the start of the season. The group is very strong and to bring these two riders to this level has been a big and great effort.”

Massimo Meregalli – Monster Yamaha Team Director

We knew that this race would be tricky. Honestly, the team did all they could to prepare for a tough race that would be really hard on the tyres. We were happy with the cloud cover cooling the track, that would help us a bit with trying to conserve the tyres as much as possible, but we couldn‘t have predicted the spots of rain. Fabio did a great job not letting it distract him. He pushed 100% and got the best possible result he could achieve today. Scoring third place at the track he struggles at the most underlines just how competitive he is this season. Maverick had the difficult task to try to make up places at a circuit that‘s incredibly narrow. He lost a bit of time in the opening stages, but then started moving up the order. However, a small mistake undid all his previous work. It was a weekend to forget for him. But we know our riders both really enjoy the Assen circuit, so we can‘t wait to get the Dutch GP started on Friday.

Razlan Razali – Petronas SRT Team Principal

“We can’t help but feel disappointed with the results this race weekend, across all three categories. However, we will take everything that we have learned from this weekend, absorb it, reflect on it and then look to come back stronger in the next round at Assen. Certainly, we have seen good pace and also improvement when we look across our squad but we will know we can all achieve better results and that is the target before we go into the summer break.”

Shinichi Sahara – Suzuki Project Leader and Team Director

“It was a difficult weekend for us, especially during qualifying. It was all quite messy yesterday with yellow flags and slow traffic and it forced us further down the grid. At a circuit like this it’s tough to start lower on the grid because it’s hard to overtake, but despite this both Alex Rins and Joan Mir gave 100% effort and worked very hard to recover positions. They did a really good job, and they both felt better with their bikes and also with the tyre management. Obviously we would like to do better next weekend in Assen. It’s a pretty good circuit for us and we’re feeling happy to go there.”

Ken Kawauchi – Suzuki Technical Manager

“Today we were able to improve compared to yesterday, but not enough. The grid positions weren’t very good and that made it harder for the riders. The only positive point was that both riders finished their race and picked up useful points. We’re turning our focus towards Assen now and let’s see how we can perform there.”

Hervé Poncharal – Red Bull KTM Team Manager

“It was a really tough weekend for the Tech3 KTM Factory Racing team here in Germany. We started really well on Friday with Danilo showing a big improvement and taking full advantage of the new chassis. Qualifying was difficult as we were not able to do the lap time we wanted to do and unfortunately, we were again very far on the grid.

“Danilo had a good start and we were targeting a top 10 result here. I think it was a possibility, when you see what both, Miguel and Brad did. But unfortunately, our two guys, Danilo and Iker have been fighting together and passing each other almost each corner, losing time and ground. In the end, there was a very unfortunate incident, once again with Alex Marquez and his race was over before it even really started.

“So, all the focus of the team was then on Iker, who was doing a quite good race, which means being in the points. But unfortunately, for some reasons, he was not feeling really well physically. He was exhausted and he couldn’t help everybody to pass him, which is a shame. I think here we clearly had the technical package from KTM to fight for a strong position and we were waiting for Sachsenring with high ambitions, but come out of here with zero points.

“Honestly, I’m not particularly happy. It’s just frustrating for the whole team and also disappointing not to give back to KTM what they deserve, supporting us the way they support us and showing the great pace they show in front with the two Factory guys. So, let’s hope Assen will be the turn of the first part of the season.”


2021 Sachsenring MotoGP Race Results

Pos Rider Bike Time/Gap
1 Marc MARQUEZ Honda 41m07.243
2 Miguel OLIVEIRA KTM +1.61
3 Fabio QUARTARARO Yamaha +6.772
4 Brad BINDER KTM +7.922
5 Francesco BAGNAIA Ducati +8.591
6 Jack MILLER Ducati +9.086
7 Aleix ESPARGARO Aprilia +9.371
8 Johann ZARCO Ducati +11.439
9 Joan MIR Suzuki +11.625
10 Pol ESPARGARO Honda +14.769
11 Alex RINS Suzuki +16.803
12 Jorge MARTIN Ducati +16.915
13 Takaaki NAKAGAMI Honda +19.217
14 Valentino ROSSI Yamaha +22.3
15 Luca MARINI Ducati +23.615
16 Enea BASTIANINI Ducati +23.738
17 Iker LECUONA KTM +23.946
18 Franco MORBIDELLI Yamaha +24.414
19 Maverick VIÑALES Yamaha +24.715
Not Classified
DNF Lorenzo SAVADORI Aprilia 25 Laps
DNF Danilo PETRUCCI KTM 26 Laps
DNF Alex MARQUEZ Honda 26 Laps

2021 MotoGP Standings

Pos Rider Bike Points
1 Fabio QUARTARARO Yamaha 131
2 Johann ZARCO Ducati 109
3 Jack MILLER Ducati 100
4 Francesco BAGNAIA Ducati 99
5 Joan MIR Suzuki 85
6 Maverick VIÑALES Yamaha 75
7 Miguel OLIVEIRA KTM 74
8 Brad BINDER KTM 56
9 Aleix ESPARGARO Aprilia 53
10 Marc MARQUEZ Honda 41
11 Franco MORBIDELLI Yamaha 40
12 Pol ESPARGARO Honda 35
13 Takaaki NAKAGAMI Honda 34
14 Alex RINS Suzuki 28
15 Enea BASTIANINI Ducati 26
16 Alex MARQUEZ Honda 25
17 Jorge MARTIN Ducati 23
18 Danilo PETRUCCI KTM 23
19 Valentino ROSSI Yamaha 17
20 Luca MARINI Ducati 14
21 Iker LECUONA KTM 13
22 Stefan BRADL Honda 11
23 Lorenzo SAVADORI Aprilia 4
24 Michele PIRRO Ducati 3
25 Tito RABAT Ducati 1

2021 FIM MotoGP World Championship calendar

Round Date Location
Round 1 Mar-28 Qatar, Losail (night race)
Round 2 Apr-04 Doha, Losail (night race)
Round 3 Apr-18 Portugal, Portimao
Round 4 May-02 Spain, Jerez
Round 5 May-16 France, Le Mans
Round 6 May-30 Italy- Mugello
Round 7 Jun-06 Catalunya, Barcelona
Round 8 Jun-20 Germany, Sachsenring
Round 9 Jun-27 Netherlands, Assen
Round 10 Jul-11 Finland, KymiRing (subject to homologation)
Round 11 Aug-15 Austria, Red Bull Ring
Round 12 Aug-29 Great Britain, Silverstone
Round 13 Sep-12 Aragon, Motorland Aragon
Round 14 Sep-19 Sam Marino, Misano
Round 15 Oct-03 Japan, Motegi
Round 16 Oct-10 Thailand, Chang International Circuit
Round 17 Oct-24 Australia, Phillip Island
Round 18 Oct-31 Malaysia, Sepang
Round 19 Nov-14 Valencia, Circuit Ricardo Tormo
Round 20 TBA Argentina, Termas de Rio Hondo
Round 21 TBA Americas, COTA

Source: MCNews.com.au