Japan Track Report: What was the strategy for the Motegi race?

Marc Marquez

Marc showed a really good pace during all the weekend, so the strategy was to push from the beginning of the race to stay in the leading group to fight for the win! He did a great job but unfortunately a small mistake in the last lap allowed Dovi to get close on him again and win, despite Marc’s last-corner attack. Th situation was more difficult with Dani, because he struggled all weekend to properly warm up the rear tire. His strategy was to try to push enough to get the right temperature into the tire, but unfortunately it wasn’t possible and with three laps to go, when he was out of the points, he entered into the garage, as it was very difficult to continue.

Positive points and negative points after the race?

The positive was to see another great race this season, with an awesome battle between Marc and Dovi, plus the fact that one again Marc was consistently fast at this circuit, which in the past wasn’t easy for him. Except of course last year! Today’s battle was not only for the race but also for the world title, which made everything even more exciting! The negative was Dani’s retirement.

The view from the pit wall during the race?

We knew that Danilo Petrucci was on extra-soft rear tire, so in the first laps we were not surprised to see him leading the race, knowing also that he is very fast in the wet. When Marc took the lead, we knew that Dovi could go with him, as he showed really good pace in practice. Then when Dovi overtook Marc we thought that the race was not finished! In fact Marc overtook again and fought all the way to the checkered flag! It was a pity to see Dani struggling. We know that he can be very fast in the wet, but he needs to find the right tires, because he is lighter than the other riders, so it is very difficult for him to warm up the rain tires in cold conditions like today.

There are only three races left this season, with two riders separated by only 11 points! What do you expect from the last races?

I think it will be a super-exciting end to the championship! Marc and Dovi are super-fast and consistent in all conditions, so it is very difficult to predict what will happen. The important thing is that they are making a great show at almost every race, which is very good for our sport!

The inside story apart from your official comments?

We arrived in Japan on Tuesday, to visit Honda Motor Headquarter and to film two different promo movies, one for Dorna and one for Red Bull. If you’ve missed them, please visit the HRC Facebook page and you will see two beautiful stories!

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