The Frenchman of Yamaha, leader of the World Championship by 10 points over Bagnaia, is surrounded by the bikes of Borgo Panigale, but already at Motegi he will be able to redeem himself to defend his leadership
Massimo Falcioni
September 20
– Milan
More than from the abrasions on his torso resulting from the accident he had with Marquez on the first lap of Aragon, Fabio Quartararo suffers from the continuation of the triumphal wave of Ducati. Race after race, the Borgo Panigale riders have eroded the great advantage in the standings of Yamaha’s number one: reduced margin, five races to go, 10 points over Bagnaia, 17 over Aleix Espargaro and 49 points over Bastianini.
no holds barred
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In Aragon the forced exit of Quartararo conditioned the race depriving it of a sure protagonist: with the Frenchman immediately out, Bagnaia and Bastianini felt free. The first to win with an overtaking to be framed, the second not to attempt the answer, avoiding excessive risks and being satisfied with the 20 points of the second place. The fact remains that 25 points are better than 20 and that if in the end, for the title, the very ones left on the field in Aragon are missing, open up heaven! With Quartararo on the track, the two Italian Ducati riders would hardly have done the same race, which, in quite different conditions, could have been suicidal. The post-race embrace between Bastianini and Bagnaia is as real as their rivalry and the will of both to win this MotoGP World Championship: there is the awareness that the fight-show will continue in the next rounds and already from the Japanese GP on 25 September, with no holds barred and therefore with the consequent risks. Quartararo’s expectations are also based on this rivalry and these risks today, who also hopes, as well as on his own merits and on a Yamaha with less handicaps, that the wheel of bad luck will turn, perhaps to the detriment of his main opponents. In racing, luck has always played an important role and must not scandalize anyone that the drivers, all of them, hope not to be targeted. No rider has ever wished and hopes that bad luck will hit their opponents, but those who believe that the drivers on the track are friends are wrong. Friends out, yes, but on the track the ‘hard fight without fear’ reigns.
who favors motegi
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In essence, five races from the end and beyond the numbers of the standings, this championship starts from scratch, open to any conclusion. The stakes are high: for Yamaha (with Quartararo) it is a question of making an encore of 2021 by winning the world championship against 8 Ducatis on the track, as well as Aprilia, Ktm and Honda; for Ducati (with Bagnaia at the forefront) it is a question of regaining the coveted title that has escaped since 2007 (Stoner). For Aprilia (with Alex Espargaro) it would be the leap to heaven. The championship situation is evolving with Quartararo and Yamaha far from doomed. In particular, the House of the three diapsons lands in Motegi with warlike intentions. The circuit is owned by Honda but Yamaha is also at home there: it is a 4,800 meter long track with 14 mostly slow corners and a straight of just under 800 meters, plus other shorter connecting lines. So it is a fairly tortuous circuit, with rapid accelerations and sharp braking where you need a stable bike with the search for the best engine brake set-up. Here we use low and short gears and a hard adjustment of the front forks, with the front end high and the possibility of chattering in front. It also serves the perfection of the gearbox, with first short and sixth long. Here the (rear) tires have a particular wear that concerns the central part and even the front ones struggle for the repeated and hard braking performed with discs of larger dimensions than other circuits. It is a circuit that, in theory, should bring Ducati and Yamaha back on a level of substantial parity, even if at Aragon, in addition to the great difference in top speed in favor of the Italian bikes, the Ducatis have shown great agility and stability, especially in ‘they’. Therefore, at present, it seems that the Desmosedici do not have particular critical points on any type of track, legitimately considering it as the most competitive bike in MotoGP.
thrilling fight
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Among the riders on the field, Quartararo, today the only MotoGP world champion fighting for the title, is the one on which Yamaha has focused and concentrates all its attention and strength, on a technical level and beyond. In dry race conditions, of the five remaining circuits, those of Japan and Australia are the least favorable for the bike of the three tuning forks, with Quartararo and Yamaha having their winning card in cornering. Up to Misano, the world champion duo and still at the head of the world championship defended itself very well on the most difficult circuits due to the characteristics of Iwata’s in-line V4. Only the bad luck with the defeat of Aragon shook the ranking, negative for the Yamaha rider and positive for his direct rivals. The struggle continues, with sparks and new twists on the horizon. Who benefits from this situation? The championship, the MotoGP, motorcycling everything. Go on like this.
September 20, 2022 – 2:57 pm
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