MotoGP

Honda's Marc Marquez admits it would have been “impossible” to qualify second for the MotoGP Australian Grand Prix without getting a tow from Ducati's ...

Prior to the summer break, the 2022 MotoGP title looked like it was Fabio Quartararo’s to lose. OPINION: Honda is in the midst of a second winless season in the space of three years. OPINION: Marc Marquez has completed the first three races of his MotoGP comeback from a fourth major operation on his right arm and has already achieved more points than Honda scored in his absence.

MotoGP: "When you have a track in an iconic place like this, you will always have an issue with wildlife. There are a lot of animals and not a lot of people ...

"At the end of the day when you have a track in such an iconic location like this, you're always going to have an issue with wildlife. The start from the third row does not mean that we won’t have a good race, which here is always long and tiring - admitted Miller - in the warm up we will sort some things out on the bike in terms of balance and corner entry. I'm sure there's nothing waltzing in over the fences now, because the fences are six-deep with people. I wouldn’t underestimate Vinales either, here he goes really well and in 2019 both of them were fighting for the win. The Australian therefore hopes to follow up on the positive trend of the last few races, with the aim of giving a show in front of an enthusiastic home crowd and, if possible, repeating the performance of 2019 when he got onto the third step of the podium. We will have to try to put to good use our experience in terms of race strategy and tyre management, different from the previous rounds.

Marc Marquez has played down talk of him being the favourite to win the Australian MotoGP, while also calling the slipstream from Francesco Bagnaia.

We are becoming closer and closer to the top guys and this is important." It’s not the best one but it’s not bad. You need to give everything to follow the top guys." We thought that [without] the slipstream with the package we have at Honda now, it would be impossible to make that lap time. If I can be there but need to use the rear tyre then I will use it. "If you have a fast bike on the straight it is easier to manage the tyre.

Phillip Island should be Yamaha's strongest track in the 2022 MotoGP championship run-in. But Ducati can now match it anywhere.

It’s one of the worst tracks for it all year. It’s going to be a great challenge. On the flip side, Ducati has clearly stepped up its game since the championship’s last visit to Phillip Island in 2019. Gresini Ducati’s Fabio Di Giannantonio took a first pole at Mugello before Bagnaia won the race. Conversely, the track should punish the Ducati of Quartararo’s title rival Pecco Bagnaia. On paper, Phillip Island should suit Yamaha better than any other circuit on the calendar, with its long and flowing beds where corner speed is key: something that the inline four Yamaha should in theory be able to do better than any other machine on the grid (with the possible exception of Suzuki’s GSX-RR), and has in fact been able to do in recent years.

Jorge Martin smashed the nine-year-old Phillip Island lap record Saturday to grab pole position for the Australian MotoGP, with world champion Fabio ...

"It's an unreal part of the track, and so many historical moments have happened here. "I thought I could be competitive, but not this competitive. Hopefully we can fight till the end tomorrow," he added. "It's always very important to be in the front row," said Bagnaia as he eyes a maiden world crown. "The most important thing is the feeling is coming with the bike, so step by step I am feeling better. But finally today I had good pace.

The Honda Repsol rider's second place on the grid at the Australian MotoGP came thanks to Francesco Bagnaia, as the #93 RC213V was tucked neatly behind the ...

“I know that here is a very special circuit but, physical side, I feel better, which is the key point for me.” “Of course, it’s not the best way to do the lap time but we are here for competing and we are here to try and do our best but the most important is that the feeling is coming with the bike.” “I knew when I saw in the practice that the Ducati was really fast on the straight, they can use a lot of torque on the single laps and that was the only chance to be on the front row; I play my cards.

Pramac Ducati rider Jorge Martin admits he was “lost” on Friday at the Australian Grand Prix before rebounding on Saturday to claim MotoGP pole at Phillip ...

Prior to the summer break, the 2022 MotoGP title looked like it was Fabio Quartararo’s to lose. OPINION: Honda is in the midst of a second winless season in the space of three years. OPINION: Marc Marquez has completed the first three races of his MotoGP comeback from a fourth major operation on his right arm and has already achieved more points than Honda scored in his absence.

Jorge Martin smashed the nine-year-old Phillip Island lap record Saturday to grab pole position for the Australian MotoGP, with world champion Fabio ...

"It's an unreal part of the track, and so many historical moments have happened here. "I thought I could be competitive, but not this competitive. Hopefully we can fight till the end tomorrow," he added. "The most important thing is the feeling is coming with the bike, so step by step I am feeling better. But finally today I had good pace. "Yesterday I struggled a bit because I was a bit lost, it is my first time here and I had to take the measurement (of the track).

Prima Pramac's Jorge Martin flipped from being 'lost' on his first visit to Phillip Island on MotoGP machinery to claiming pole position with a new circuit ...

I was on the limit, risking a lot but finally a good reward, so happy with the lap and for sure hope to be also fighting tomorrow. But I think the experience I took yesterday, the reference I think is so important, to understand where is the time to go into the corner. “Yesterday, I was a bit lost because this track is so fast – it’s my first time here so I had to take the measurements – but finally today, I had good pace.

Phillip Island plays host to the 18th round of the 2022 MotoGP season. Here's how and when you can watch the Australian Grand Prix on Sunday, October 16.

Prior to the summer break, the 2022 MotoGP title looked like it was Fabio Quartararo’s to lose. OPINION: Honda is in the midst of a second winless season in the space of three years. OPINION: Marc Marquez has completed the first three races of his MotoGP comeback from a fourth major operation on his right arm and has already achieved more points than Honda scored in his absence.

MotoGP: The aerodynamics of the prototypes of the world championship are increasingly sophisticated and from spoilers we have now passed (for some time) to ...

But is this efficiency improvement effect generated only in the lean or also in the straight? Of course, to be sure of its efficiency, even before handing it over to test riders like Michele Pirro, the bike must have been tested even in extreme conditions of use, that is, when leaning at 65°. The hot blowing exhaust air is also being used to increase the speed of the outgoing air.

Phillip Island plays host to the 18th round of the 2022 MotoGP season. Here's how and when you can watch the Australian Grand Prix on Sunday, October 16.

Prior to the summer break, the 2022 MotoGP title looked like it was Fabio Quartararo’s to lose. OPINION: Honda is in the midst of a second winless season in the space of three years. OPINION: Marc Marquez has completed the first three races of his MotoGP comeback from a fourth major operation on his right arm and has already achieved more points than Honda scored in his absence.

Honda's Marc Marquez admits it would have been “impossible” to qualify second for the MotoGP Australian Grand Prix without getting a tow from Ducati's ...

Prior to the summer break, the 2022 MotoGP title looked like it was Fabio Quartararo’s to lose. OPINION: Honda is in the midst of a second winless season in the space of three years. OPINION: Marc Marquez has completed the first three races of his MotoGP comeback from a fourth major operation on his right arm and has already achieved more points than Honda scored in his absence.

Race results from the 2022 Australian Moto3 Grand Prix at Phillip Island.

(Honda) (KTM) (CFMOTO) (Husqvarna) (GASGAS) Red Bull KTM Tech3

Alex Rins has seized victory in an Animoca Brands Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix which will go down as one of the all-time great MotoGP™ races.

Marini was therefore sixth, ahead of Martin and Johann Zarco (Prima Pramac Racing), while Aleix Espargaro faded to ninth and Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) rounded out the top 10. Then Bagnaia hit the front when he passed Rins at Doohan Corner on Lap 15, and Marquez was into second with a move on the Suzuki at Miller Corner. Marquez passed Rins for second at Southern Loop on the penultimate lap but the Suzuki rider hit back straight away at Stoner Corner, and that was how they commenced Lap 27 of 27. However, Rins was all the way back to fourth on Lap 21 when Bagnaia and Bezzecchi got him at Southern Loop, and Marquez at Miller Corner. Meanwhile, after a battle over fourth with Martin, Marquez was back into third by overtaking Bezzecchi at Miller Corner on Lap 25, and was still within striking distance of Bagnaia too. Miller overtook Quartararo for fifth and Espargaro for fourth on Lap 3, then saw off the latter when he tried to reclaim that position at Southern Loop (Turn 2) on Lap 4. Quartararo had not long got himself back into the points-paying positions when disaster struck, the Frenchman tucking the front of his YZR-M1 at Southern Loop and crashing out of the contest on Lap 11. Jorge Martin (Prima Pramac Racing) got the holeshot from pole position and Marquez took up second from the same position on the middle of the front row. On the other factory Ducati, Bagnaia made an unsuccessful attempt to re-pass Rins at Doohan Corner on Lap 10, by which time they had caught Martin and Marc Marquez. Meanwhile, Rins, who qualified 10th, was also on the rise and moved into the top five when he went under Espargaro at Southern Loop on Lap 6. Bagnaia, who had also qualified on the front row, did not make a good start but was back up to third after he followed Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia Racing) past Quartararo and then himself passed Espargaro. Still, it could have been even worse for the Frenchman considering Bagnaia led a topsy-turvy encounter at the start of the final lap only to be passed by both Rins and Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team), the latter of whom scored a 100th MotoGP™ podium by finishing second at Phillip Island.

105 points – that's the turnaround which Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo team) has pulled off relative to Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP™) ...

Intriguingly, however, that means Quartararo’s hopes are not in his own hands – even if he wins in Malaysia and Valencia, he may not win the Championship given that the difference between first and second place in either Grand Prix is five points. With just two points separating Quartararo and Bagnaia when they touched down in Australia, there was always a chance that the Ducati rider would overtake the Yamaha pilot in the title race. Four riders remain a mathematical chance of lifting the trophy three weeks from now at Valencia, so read on for the full Championship picture.