Misano was always going to be a very special race, with many home favourites to cheer, local teams to celebrate, some beautiful liveries to admire and one very special retirement. It ended up all the more special for Pecco Bagnaia, who, at the end of 27 incredibly tense laps, became the first rider to score four consecutive victories for Ducati. Enea Bastianini gave him another little preview at next year’s friendly fire, the Gresini rider pushing his future teammate until the chequered flag, where they were separated by only three hundredths of a second. Meanwhile, Maverick Viñales returned to the podium with a strong performance in Misano but couldn’t quite match the pace of the Ducatis in the closing stages and had to postpone his dreams of that first Aprilia victory.
Another Ducati held the headlines at the start of proceedings, with poleman Jack Miller leading the way off the line but the dream start quickly unravelled when the Australian crashed out at turn four on the second lap. Bastianini inherited the lead but was close to taking himself out of contention as well, allowing Bagnaia to take advantage and take control at the front on lap three. Behind the two Ducatis, the Aprilias were being challenged by the Mooney VR46 teammates, but Marco Bezzecchi soon abandoned that fight at turn 10 and allowed Viñales to reel in and attack Bastianini. Luca Marini kept close behind the three leaders, followed by Aleix Espargaro and Fabio Quartararo, the championship leader making a sluggish start but aided by the early tumbles. A fast starting Jorge Martin soon joined the top 10, together with Alex Rins and Alex Marquez – the Honda man climbing from 16th on the grid to lead the chasing group, two seconds down the road by lap five. A notable absence was Johann Zarco, the Frenchman making a poor start that got him caught in a race incident at turn one, which also took Pol Espargaro and Michele Pirro out of the race.
After the initial attacks, the hierarchy in the leading eight-man group settled a bit for the next few laps, only Quartararo benefitting from a mistake from Espargaro at turn 13 to steal fifth away on the sixth lap. However, the Frenchman was pushing hard not to lose track with the four leaders, with Espargaro soon dropping out of striking distance. Another second back, Rins was attacking Martin for seventh position, while the KTMs were challenging Marquez for the remaining top 10 places.
Back at the front, Viñales chose lap 11 to make a brief move on Bagnaia but the Italian promptly resumed control of proceedings, with Bastianini and Marini keeping close behind and Quartararo still seven tenths off the leaders. Although Espargaro was one of the quickest men on track, he wasn’t making any progress in reducing the one and a half second gap to his main title rival. Some three seconds back, Rins and Martin were about to have trouble from Miguel Oliveira and Brad Binder.
Other than a festival of track limit warnings, there wasn’t much action at the front for the next few laps, but pressure was firmly on Bagnaia, from Viñales, Bastianini and Marini, while Quartararo yoyo-ed in between six and nine tenths behind. A mistake from Bastianini cost him and Marini half a second on the two men ahead, coupled with Bagnaia and Viñales posting the fastest laps at that stage – the duo almost inseparable on the timesheets with 11 laps remaining. The Beast was quick to make up for the mistake, dropping Marini in the process, while Quartararo seemed to have waved the white flag and settled for fifth for the rest of the race.
Bagnaia carried on untroubled at the front, but some more mistakes from Viñales invited Bastianini to pick up the pursuit with eight laps remaining. The Gresini rider had six tenths of find if he wanted to show off his special livery at the front of the field and was right on the tail of his future teammate with six laps left. It soon started to look like an all-Ducati victory battle, with Viñales dropping one second behind, his third place no longer under threat from Marini.
Despite the relentless pressure from Bastianini, Bagnaia held onto lead until the final lap and did not allow Bastianini a sniff at top spot. Things got a bit too close for comfort at turn four, causing the youngster to run wide, but he quickly closed the gap and went on to post the fastest lap of the race on that final lap. However, Bastianini ran out of time and opportunities to attack and the two Ducati men crossed the finish line separated by three hundredths of a second. Viñales took third four seconds later, while Marini resisted a late attack from Quartararo to keep fourth place. Espargaro settled for sixth and there were significant gaps amongst the rest of the top 10, made up of Rins, Binder, Martin and Marquez, the Honda rider helped by a late long lap penalty for Oliveira. Meanwhile, Andrea Dovizioso said a fond arrivederci from 12th place in his final race on home soil.
Despite the tricky race, Quartararo limited the damage in the world championship to 30 points, with Bagnaia returning as his man rival and Espargaro dropping to third, 33 points behind the leader.
Results:
Pos | No. | Rider | Bike | Time/Diff |
1 | 63 | Francesco Bagnaia | Ducati | 41:43.1990 |
2 | 23 | Enea Bastianini | Ducati | 0.034 |
3 | 12 | Maverick Viñales | Aprilia | 4.212 |
4 | 10 | Luca Marini | Ducati | 5.283 |
5 | 20 | Fabio Quartararo | Yamaha | 5.771 |
6 | 41 | Aleix Espargaro | Aprilia | 10.230 |
7 | 42 | Alex Rins | Suzuki | 12.496 |
8 | 33 | Brad Binder | KTM | 14.661 |
9 | 89 | Jorge Martin | Ducati | 17.732 |
10 | 73 | Alex Marquez | Honda | 21.986 |
11 | 88 | Miguel Oliveira | KTM | 23.685 |
12 | 4 | Andrea Dovizioso | Yamaha | 29.276 |
13 | 25 | Raul Fernandez | KTM | 30.433 |
14 | 6 | Stefan Bradl | Honda | 31.768 |
15 | 30 | Takaaki Nakagami | Honda | 32.547 |
16 | 40 | Darryn Binder | Yamaha | 41.857 |
17 | 72 | Marco Bezzecchi | Ducati | 50.559 |
18 | 43 | Jack Miller | Ducati | 53.371 |
19 | 87 | Remy Gardner | KTM | 56.613 |
20 | 49 | Fabio Di Giannantonio | Ducati | 57.304 |
21 | Kazuki Watanabe | 0.000 | ||
Not Classified | ||||
21 | Franco Morbidelli | Yamaha | 03:15.9560 | |
44 | Pol Espargaro | Honda | ||
5 | Johann Zarco | Ducati | ||
51 | Michele Pirro | Ducati |
Comments
Damage to 14, no?
Damage to 14, no?
In reply to Damage to 14, no? by mtiberio
44 point lead before, lost 14
44 point lead before, lost 14 points, currently at 30 points.
Avoiding a disaster at Aragon I think that's about to shrink again by a similar amount.
Yamaha ….HP
Yamaha should feel like a turd for coming with absolutely no HP improvement since 20….FQ trying to qualify against 8 Ducatis is insane ….I sure hope for their sake they have a 23 machine with more HP at the test ….
In reply to Yamaha ….HP by Rudeboy
Lot of good it did Suzuki
Lot of good it did Suzuki
Holy Cow!!!
MotoGP is becoming quickly the new F1 with no, or very little passing. Keep it up and even less fans will show up for the race weekends.
In reply to Holy Cow!!! by Dieterly
I remember without mistakes,
I remember without mistakes, Mav taking Enea, Enea taking Mav, Marini taking Enea, Enea taking Marini. I'm sure there was more further back. Such are races when the tyres are good to go a full race distance with ease. Enea for man of the match.
In reply to Holy Cow!!! by Dieterly
Really???
I watched both F1 and MotoGP today.
Glad I watched MotoGP second cause this was a thrilling race, tension galore.
No such thing during the F1 race where only several safety cars could bring the field closer just a tiny bit and try to ‘avoid’ the expected result in the end.
And as was mentioned above, we actually did see overtakes…
In reply to Really??? by Matonge
Not many I thought but it was
Not many I thought but it was a cracking end to the race and the top three were on it the whole way. Overtaking looked difficult. A good race but not a classic.
Instead of F1 may I recommend.....
https://thumbs.gfycat.com/EvenPeskyIsabellineshrike-size_restricted.gif
In reply to Holy Cow!!! by Dieterly
GT3
It’s amazing that some fans can be so enthralled by watching people ride or drive around in extremely close proximity without the faintest opportunity to get by. These must be the people keeping GT3 competition on TV.
In reply to GT3 by phoenix1
Yes
The term “slot bikes” comes to mind. Perfect electronically controlled lap after perfect electronically controlled lap.
It is a far cry from the 1990 500cc WC (Rainey’s first WC) I had playing in the shed today: full of human error and human exception.
No nostalgic tears here, time and technology wait for no man….but it is way past a joke that aero development continues unabated while engines are locked in once/year: the aero budget far surpasses any engine spending, with gains apportioned per cubic dollar spent.
It is hard to love your passion when you hate so much about it.
In reply to Yes by Seven4nineR
From lap 5 to lap 18 Peco was
From lap 5 to lap 18 Peco was like a metronome but from there he was up and down by a quarter of a second. Bastianini was worse throughout but with better potential. End result very even. I don't think we can call Bastianini's ride computer like. More like a joyous fool for racing. Things are tight though.
Decent race
Misano was a decent race that was hampered by technology and the dearth of overtaking. Neither Enea or Maverick could get by Pecco though they were faster at various points in the race. Commentators said Bastianini set the fastest lap on the final lap while making a mistake.
It’s hard to believe MotoGP is spending more money and introducing more new technologies to make the racing worse. The solution they claim is to make us watch more mediocre racing to keep track of the championship. The participants simply cannot get out of their own way. They want MotoGP to die, and they’ve been working at it since the 4-strokes were introduced.
Anyway, Fabio looks to be in a tough spot. He will probably be badly down on power and pace at Sepang and Aragon. Unless the team can nail the setup, he will probably lose double digits at both circuits. Things will get interesting from here. Ducati must like their odds.
Brad Binder punted Zarco, who got a terrible start. No one seems to care, which is an interesting change of pace. Earlier in the year, every love-tap was an international political scandal. I guess overstimulation leads to the pendulum swinging in the other direction.
Great race!
Great race! Start was nuts. I don't think Binder did anything wrong. Zarco was way off weird and looked at fault. I am puzzled by Zarco's start - rewatching this eve in detail (only one go through today at a Cafe, and it started when I was getting coffee and a seat so barely saw the start).
Rewatched the start about 25 times. Zarco very definitely at fault, and loosely a race incident. Natural consequences mean stewards needn't act. Pol and Pirro got hosed though, eh? Pol hurt his right wrist. Pirro stayed down and looks to have been hurt too. Any news? Zarco has been a "luck changer" for those around him...it has been a while, but he did it again. Not forgetting.
:(
GREAT start for Pecco and Maverick. T3 Vinales had his rear step out a good bit, but no worries.
Pecco didn't put a foot wrong. Lovely tidy riding style. Bastianini did well! I expected a bit more fight and earlier, but Pecco left little opportunity. Man Ennea pushes the bike away from himself via upper body after apex! More than anyone. He leaves his inside shoulder and helmet behind and Pedrosas up effectively. He throws the bike in a bit more roughly, very confident. Not a VR46 kid. Looser.
Maverick was FAST. As was the Aprilia. Good for him! I think he's back. He made a few minor mistakes, barely noteworthy. But Pecco made NONE. And the Aprilia just doesn't quite have the moves on the Duc of late. A bit less motor, and importantly burning through tires just a bit more quickly. The 2022 Ducati is a nimble handling bike! The script has been refreshed. Everything we knew four yrs ago is out at the curb for recycling.
Quartararo has to ride the shit out of this Yamaha to compete with the Ducs. I thought w open track that he would reel in and pass Luca, but nope. Just not enough motor to best the Red Italian kids.
In his own words...(NOT happy, looks dark from here)
“I saw that Aleix was struggling also on the grip, and I could overtake him. But with the others, I could not even try. So that's something that I'm quite frustrated about, because I cannot try anything and I'm not enjoying as normal. One time I went straight on at Turn 10, then I could come back to Marini, but I had a knife on the neck. And to try and overtake was not possible.”
GORGEOUS one off livery for VR46 today! Stunners. My favorite in a long time. Wish it were permanent. Anyone know the narrative re the three purty liveries today?
Martin pooped himself, confirming the Red choice. Not impressed. Same for Zarco. Bad Pramac day.
I bought a Bastianini shirt yesterday. Looking fwd to wearing it proudly. But can we all agree that Pernat is a bit of a twit? I dislike him. Rant over.
Mir to Honda, starting to think better of it. Watanabe blue flag, saw that coming, his only accomplishment being getting on tv. Crap tWatwanabee replacement Suzuki. Lousy yr. Rins looked good though.
30 points, 6 races. At which Pecco thrives. Yamaha may have an F1 motor specialist on staff and big Euro Test Team on hand but methinks Bagnaia and Ducati are taking the 2022 Cup. I like it.
What are we thinking about Cal being back? I like it. And are we about to see a big Blue motor Tues? Crystal ball says yes.
The Marc back is a welcome sight. He's about to win again. And crash, but stay healthy. He's amazing, we're lucky to have him.
Crystal ball says Honda is on the rebound. And quick. Like before the end of the season quick.
Not Orange though. They are screwed. I feel for Brad. He deserves better. Herve too.
^ Hey, quit talking about cars or I will...do a burnout on your virtual lawn. I can hear Indy cars right now at Portland Intl Raceway, the old stomping grounds. Yawn. Blech. Cars are transportation people. Bikes! We're here about bikes!
:)
Surprised by Marini. Good race kid. Bezz, he is in a slump. He showed promise before break.
Also surprised Oliveira was our only track limits long lapped, LOTS of warnings and early. Got concerned it was going to affect the race outcome mud way through. Nope.
Not sweating Miller's crash. He's fine. More of that on tap for 2023. I don't give a single fart about Jack - am I the only one outside of Australia that isn't a fan? He just isn't a big deal. I will call him and tell him myself.
There wasn't a lot of passing, true. But that was still a GREAT race. Congrats Pecco and Duc. Nice Tardozzi joy-spasms (he is a strange man). History was made. Momentum is here. One hand on the title? (Was that a lot of post race celebration, or is that just me? And they are lacking imagination. I LOVE these good guys, but do miss the old Rossi shenanigans).
Liking the pink hats! Sure is a lot of yellow out there for a guy driving CARS. (No, don't talk more cars!).
NBC high quality 10 mins highlights video
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=rkexaZSL7lc
Is "Gryfyn" the new Bitc!h? Are Bitcoin wallets really a thing of substance? Looks like shady nutty business to me, but I still have Hotmail and can't figure out wifi or my phone basics. Luddite for sure.
Cheers
In reply to Great race! by Motoshrink
The car driver owns a MotoGP
The car driver owns a MotoGP team. And an academy.
In reply to The car driver owns a MotoGP by NZOscar
...and isn't present! Hiya
...and isn't present!
Hiya Oscar the Kiwi! Pecco is a good torch VR46 torch bearer, don't you think? Enjoy the race? Do you hop over to Phillip Isl?
In reply to ...and isn't present! Hiya by Motoshrink
Phillip Isl
It was a pity about Jack, but I did enjoy the race.
Phillip Island - I went most years, pre-COVID, and I am going this year. My first was in 1989, when I was crew chief for my friend Mike Webb.
In reply to Phillip Isl by NZOscar
Tough race that one.
Tough race that one.
In reply to Tough race that one. by D999
Damo and Co, Oscar the Kiwi
Damo and Co, Oscar the Kiwi is the real deal!
Wow.
We have a high caliber readership here. Damn! I never podiumed in club racing Supertwins. Humbled. Again.
Share more thoughts in here Oscar, we could use you mate!
In reply to Great race! by Motoshrink
I think Zarco made a bad
I think Zarco made a bad start. He was being passed on both sides. He had DiGi (I think) on the outside tipping into the turn. Zarco also tipping in attempting to blend back in so as to not get his front wheel chopped. Difficult position. Brad was coming and I think caught out by Zarco slowing up more than he expected. He put the bike in a position where there was only one outcome. Zarco tipped in, the bikes around Zarco tipped in, Zarco cannot stand it up. Brad was never ahead or fully alongside until Zarco was on the floor. Just bunching up and these things happen but if you had to assign blame, it's Brad, he misjudged the pack ahead.
Maybe they forgot the mirrors and levitation device on Zarco's bike ? Or maybe once a bad start was made he should raise his hand and wait for all riders to pass before making his own way to turn 1 ?
Last time they visited Japan, Thailand, Australia and Malaysia was 2019. Peco's and Fabio's rookie season. Peco did score a 4th at PI but that was the race Petrucci body slammed Fabio's Yamaha and Mav threw it at the weeds in an all or nothing on the last lap. Fabio, pole in Thailand and Malaysia, two 2nd places in Thailand and Japan. Japan I think will be split. Thailand screams Ducati but so did Spielberg. I think PI is the big test for Ducati, can't see them winning. Mav always goes well there. Sepang not sure. However, I never thought I would see the day Ducati locked out the podium at a track like Valencia.
That was Jack
The most Jack thing that Jack could have done was to take pole and then fall after about 1.2 laps. That's Jack folks.
In reply to That was Jack by tony g
Harsh maybe
OK, maybe fair, but harsh. Bez also fell and Bastiwhatsisname all-but fell as well, with a Marquez-like save of the front. The hard front took a while to come in, Jack was first to find that out.
I thought the race was a good
I thought the race was a good watch today. Not everyday can be Toprak and Rae.
Enjoyed the different liveries, too.
Surprised
About those who didn't like the race. Thought it was terrific. Loved the special livery on both the VR46 and Gresini bikes. As motoshrink says, they should be permanent. Wish there had been more video of the racers farther back down the field, and LESS OF THE CRAP SHOTS OF PEOPLE WATCHING VIDS IN THE PITS, but still, good watch.
In reply to Surprised by larryt4114
Corse
I found some exclusive footage of Tardozzi in the Ducati pit post-race
https://streamable.com/zmfetd
In reply to Corse by D999
^ That is SO Russian! Funny.
^ That is SO Russian! Funny. Pretty close...
Here he actually is. Glad no one got a punch to the head!
https://m.youtube.com/shorts/VxL5Kdk-FTk
Bonesaw is Back. :(
Ah crap. "HRH" Prince Khalid Bin Sultan Al Abdullah Al-Faisal, "Chairman of the Saudi Automobile and Motorcycle Federation" bonesawed his way into snuggling up with Carmelo.
In reply to Bonesaw is Back. :( by Motoshrink
Terrible time to be an addict
Terrible time to be an addict.
In reply to Bonesaw is Back. :( by Motoshrink
Fabio's time to shine with
Fabio's time to shine with the custom helmet.
In reply to Fabio's time to shine with by D999
Time to shine
is marketing speak for “time to merchandise”….plus 10% for the “Limited Edition”.
Domenicali (Duc CEO)
Domenicali (Duc CEO) complained about Bastiannini. I disagree, the race was fine, but understand him having mild concern. How comfortable are you w EB23's racing w Pecco yesterday?
"Enea did well, but on the last lap, maybe it was better not to do it, he risked too much, we don't like it.”
“I know it is part of the nature of the drivers, but there are 150 people working behind them, there is a company, you have to try to work for the team, otherwise we are criticised for not winning the Drivers' World Championship: better, but without doing stupid things.”
Eh, shaddap. That was a nice race. No contact. You're riders looked great (Zarco's start aside). Ennea is doing his job and really well. Are you really going to put 8 bikes on the MotoGP grid, then expect them not to race each other?! After leaving Miller, Martin and Bastiannini to Duke it out over the Red seat too - a bit rich?
I thought that was clean as a whistle. Bagnaia looked hugely pleased. Is Domenicali known for such perspective?
In reply to Domenicali (Duc CEO) by Motoshrink
He's quite right except for
He's quite right except for one thing....WE do like it.
In reply to He's quite right except for by WaveyD1974
^ Amen. Loved it! :)
^ Amen. Loved it!
:)
In reply to ^ Amen. Loved it! :) by Motoshrink
Very 'appy it worked out. I
Very 'appy it worked out. I was screwing my face up and looking from behind hands....do not wipe him out ! Bastianini has a really assured, natural, 'in control' of being 'out of control' look on the bike...well...when he is actually on the bike and not his ass. Exactly as I remember last year in Misano. It's why I put him number 2 in our fantasy league. I really like Peco but I have this nagging feeling he will have his hands full keeping up with Bastianini next year. I hope the are very even. If...IF (and there's nothing to say next year will be anything like this year) Ducati dominate then two evenly matched riders within the factory is needed. Looking good so far, both fast, both winning, both falling off lots.
Question re roles of two
Question re roles of two sponsors at Aprilia.
Dellorto, and Paul Bird. What are they doing?
40 to 50 yrs ago Dellorto made nice dual carburetors for smaller engines like high performance air cooled VWs. What are they providing Aprilia?
PBR too, what is their role?
Grazi!
In reply to Question re roles of two by Motoshrink
Pretty sure
Dellorto supply the control ECU for Moto3?
The company probably does lots of stuff not noticed by the mainstream, and most likely are a long-time supplier and 'technicl partner' to Aprilia. But I do agree it looks a bit funny and I noticed the sponsorship a while back (since I'm into old Italian bikes) and also wondered WTF.
Sometimes it's as simple as 'we give you money, you give us exposure and pit passes for our corporate stooges'. Racing relies heavily on it, we need it!
In reply to Question re roles of two by Motoshrink
Paul Bird?
Paul Bird motorsports, is the business.
Pbr, are an Italian sprocket transmission group.
In reply to Question re roles of two by Motoshrink
Google is your friend
“At the end of the 1980s, under the supervision of Luigi Dell'Orto (son of Gaetano), the company's first injection systems were released. In 2006, the company expanded on the Indian market, opening Dell'Orto India. In September 2009, Dell’Orto India Private Limited, founded in 2006 with the cooperation of a local partner, becomes 100% Italian and fully owned by the Dell’Orto family. In 2011, Dellorto decided to establish a new technical and commercial site in China, named Dell’Orto Shanghai Trading Company. In 2018, Dellorto signed a strategic joint venture with VARROC to develop fuel injection systems for the Indian market and worldwide.
After three generations, the company is still fully owned by the Dell'Orto family, with Giuseppe Dell'Orto as President of the company and Andrea Dell'Orto as Executive Vice President and Chairman of Dellorto India Private Ltd.
Dellorto works with Grand Prix Motorcycle Racing, with Gilera, Aprilia, BMW, Kawasaki and many others. Dellorto produces mechanical throttle bodies, electronic throttle bodies, variable intake systems, compressor by-pass valves, exhaust management parts, electronic control units, carburetors, fuel systems, sensors/ actuators and after market products.
Today, the company is one of the worldwide leaders in its field and is present in the Road Racing World Championship.“
They’ve done well penetrating what are basically the biggest markets in the world.
They made some of the best carburettors in the world back in the day, I doubt they will have had any problem at all digitising their carburettor strategies and applying it to fuel injection.
In reply to Google is your friend by Seven4nineR
Grazi middleweight Duc man!
Grazi middleweight Duc man!
In reply to Question re roles of two by Motoshrink
PBR and Aprilia - Shrink
^
It seems the PBR on Aprilia MotoGP bikes is the name of an Italian manufacturer of titanium sprockets. Paul Bird’s racing interests - I’m sure he’d be flattered you thought it was him - are encompassed by the PBM brand.
In reply to PBR and Aprilia - Shrink by Cloverleaf
Better That Than...
The Other PBR.