Andrea Dovizioso Master class at Sepang with Marquez pushing to the extreme
The Malaysian GP marks the semi final of the 2017 MotoGP World Title and there are 2 riders in the running for the crown. Andrea Dovizioso topped the sessions on Friday with class, patience and a calm attitude. He did not expect to be so fast and actually achieve the number one position on the time sheets. His humility and strong mindset are very crucial assets to have in this sport and Dovi is proving the value of them at such an intense period of the season. During FP4, Marc Marquez was pushing his bike to the limit whereby he had to save himself from tumbling down at turn one. Marquez literally saved the bike with his knee and it was quite incredible that he did not end up in the gravel trap. Pushing hard is his middle name. In the box, his mechanics were laughing as he worked the Michelin tyres to his advantage. The same philosophy existed in Dovi’s pit box with him charging with high energy and a calculated plan of attack. His lap times were coming even when he was not pushing that hard. His Ducati mixed with his natural ability is a true love affair. DesmoDovi: “it is tough especially with Marquez.” As with every rider’s bike there are positive and negative points. In the wet at Sepang, DesmoDovi showcased how quick they can be and when the bike is working well. They are really happy about confirming goods things from last year and even better so in 2017. Dovi explored all options at Sepang in order to stay in the hunt for the title.
In the approach to qualifying, Marquez had a look of determination on his face and at the same time a sense of wanting to be left alone to do his job. Marquez has said in the past that he does not care what happens to anyone else, he is focused on his job, the team in the box and riding his bike to perfection. With that said, he still managed to find ways of looking for Dovizioso on track whether it be looking behind him, watching the television screens arounds the circuit, the Ducati pit boards or a quick debrief in the Repsol Honda box with his engineers and mechanics. Marquez is a very intellectual rider alike Dovizioso.
During qualifying we witnessed a real battle for the top spot. Marquez pushed his Repsol Honda too hard and ended up crashing at the hairpin during qualifying. It was the look on his mechanics faces that sent out a serious message of shock and a slight edge of anger. The crash was slow though not what the title leader would have wanted to experience after such a strong performance in practice all weekend long. There were chops and changes for pole position lap after lap. The pressure on Marquez’s shoulders was incredibly high and his bike sliding all over the place. As he said on Friday to the media, he was going to push even if the feeling was not 100%. This is what the Spanish rider does and he openly admitted that if he had to fight he would this weekend.
On the second bike during qualifying, Marquez was strong regardless of the error made and regained momentum even when he could have crashed in to turn two. Marquez wants to put two hands on the title! Meanwhile, on the other side of the garages, Dovizioso waited right until the last few minutes where he turned up the heat to beyond boiling point and challenged the rest of the grid who were lighting up the tyres to bag pole position and then be knocked back to third on the grid after a last minute surge by Dani Pedrosa and Johann Zarco. Marquez qualified seventh and knew that his crash was a costly mistake upon remounting his Honda machine. Dovi: “Pole position is always nice, I was so happy to see a 59’2. I did a perfect lap. We did it. So happy about that, we work very well and dry and wet we are competitive.” In terms of Marquez performance, he was quite upbeat and happy regardless of the crash and seventh place position. He had a smile on his face even with the Championship on his mind. “Some weekends you can attack like Australia and other weekends you feel like you need to defend.”
As race day approached, the weather had an agenda of its own with lightning, thunder and rain after Moto3 and Moto2 raced in seriously hot conditions. The rain poured down and the smile on many riders’ faces increased as their chances of winning the Malaysian Grand Prix went through the roof. It was Andrea Dovizioso’s chance and brought him a victory followed by Jorge Lorenzo and Johann Zarco. The race start was superb with Lorenzo charging, Marquez trying his best to stay with the pack and Dovi working through the grid to bridge the gap to Championship leader Marquez. “I am very happy.” The smile on Dovi’s face was clear and also Lorenzo who finished second and almost had his first victory with Ducati! No doubt there are people out there who think that Lorenzo moved over for Dovi in order to keep the title chase alive and others who respected the fact that he almost crashed and kept pushing to stay with his Italian teammate. Dovi admitted that Lorenzo is the best teammate he has had because he is completely focused and Dovi has never had to stir up the garage rather focusing on himself and respecting the job that is required to be completed: to race hard, win and bag podium positions as often as possible.
The Ducati red is in party mode tonight as they continue to charge for Valencia at all costs even if the odds are against them! The pressure now turns to Marquez who is looking to win in Valencia. “The Malaysian race was the most difficult one we could have had for the Championship because we had rain conditions and the track was extremely slippery. I thought about trying to get Zarco but the risk was too big just to have an advantage of 24 points instead of 21. This wasn’t the race to win the Title but rather one to get closer to it”. If you look at the competition within the MotoGP filed, it is clear that this sport dominates for entertainment, fan enjoyment and rider satisfaction. Sepang will be remembered as a race where Dovi won, Lorenzo almost won and possibly read a message on his dashboard to help his Ducati team, how Marquez struggled more than usual and the weather that disallowed Zarco a chance of winning. The ride of the day went to Danilo Petrucci who went from last to fifth. We can only imagine what could have been if Petrucci was closer on the start!
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