Top Gun’ Maverick Vinales Wins The Gran Premio dell’Emilia Romagna e della Riviera di Rimini.
Author: Myanna Wedes
The favourite for the race weekend was Francesco Bagnaia and he almost won his first ever MotoGP race though succumbed to a crash which enabled Yamaha superstar Maverick Vinales to come in, swoop for victory and take home the bragging rights and some serious World Championship points. The win has certainly put a spring in his step and actually re-enforced that he is more than capable of being a top rider in the premier class especially when his mindset is in check. Vinales is an emotional rider and when his emotions get the better of him, mistakes are made, confidence is low and results dismal. It was really nice to see him back to his normal self and the type of racer that Yamaha has wanted to invest in for many years since Jorge Lorenzo departed from the team and was led by Valentino Rossi.
Maverick Vinales: “We did an amazing job this weekend, and we prepared really well for this race. Pecco was very fast, and I was pushing a lot throughout and trying to save a bit of tyre for the last ten laps. Then I started to push at the end, and I thought I was catching up with Pecco. But after he made a mistake, I just focused on keeping the bike with both wheels on the ground, trying to not crash and take the maximum amount of points. It’s fantastic! I’m very happy, because my mentality is exactly the same as it was last weekend and during the last races, but we just found a set-up that’s a bit better for when we ride with 20 litres at the beginning of the race. I actually made a mistake in Turn 4. I was pushing a lot in the beginning, trying to open the gap. But when we were with only two riders, it was good. I want to say ‘Thank you’ to all the people who are supporting me at home. They know we’ve had some tough times in our team, but it seems like we’ve passed it, right now we have some good luck, and that’s what counts. I’m very happy and appreciate all the work from the team, and we need to continue like that, pushing very hard, because we have a lot more potential.”
In this type of sport, you can be fast and then one mistake rendering a dent in the title bid plus overall performance levels. It was a real surprise to see Bagnaia and Rossi crash both in totally different circumstances. The Pramac MotoGP rider had the race in the bag, with a crash that will continue to haunt him for a while until a race win is achieved. Whereas, Rossi is still puzzled at his crash after two laps. It was very uncharacteristic for the Italian Doctor to make such a mistake and end up in the gravel trap. Do you think Rossi was too ambitious early in to the race?
Valentino Rossi: “For sure, it's a shame that I made a mistake on the second lap. There was a bit of confusion in that moment, because all riders were close together. Unfortunately, I lost the front in Turn 4. It's a pity because we lose some points. After the mistake I continued. I did some other laps to try to understand the rhythm, because we changed the setting of the bike a bit this weekend. It's a shame, but this is the way it is. On the bright side, we have another race next week in Barcelona. That is a very good track, I like it a lot. The asphalt and grip level will be very different there. We hope that we will be competitive again. The championship is still long, so anything can happen.”
In contrast, our hearts were breaking for Bagnaia. He was the fastest rider all weekend, putting in the perfect lap times, working hard and showcasing his dominance as the lead Ducati rider with teammate Jack Miller strong though struggling with tyres and race pace. Pecco’s day will come. However, Australian rider Miller is going to have to recoup some points along the way with top five finishes because consistency is proving to be a vital asset especially if you look at Joan Mir with what he has been able to achieve in a short time span with the Suzuki machine. He is now fourth in the title with four riders and four points setting them apart. Talk about a close 2020 World Championship!
It was a hard loss for Miller to stomach with his race over early from some overheating problems. Turns out, Fabio Quartararo’s tear off got stuck in his air box causing his bike to fail considerably and unfortunately end in a DNF. No doubt, Bagnaia is also blaming something like a tear off or something else on his crash with his bike apparently touching a particular item and crashing quite rapidly. A weekend to forget for the Pramac Ducati team with Miller excited to make his way to Barcelona because the Misano circuit tarmac has caused him some serious emotional and mental grief with challenging conditions not making his racing weekends smooth.
Pecco Bagnaia: “It’s a pity , we were very fast, I had a good gap from Maverick, I wasn’t at my limit, I felt that all was perfect with my bike. I managed the tires for the last laps because I know that Maverick is very fast in the last part of the race. At the corner six I crashed and I didn’t know the why. We studied the data and we saw that I didn’t do anything wrong, the lines were the same and the inclination too. We think that I touched something strange like in that corner, we don’t know what it was, but there was something that dropped me. I was very sure while I rode, I managed the race lap by lap and I didn’t need to be aggressive with the tires. I’m looking forward to be in Barcelona in one week because we want to bounce back.”
Jack Miller: “I am very sad because I had started well and we could have had a good race, we had all the right conditions to make it. Unfortunately it was nobody’s fault, it was a very unlucky day because a tear-off entered the air box. I am also sorry for the team that had worked very hard and well. We will come back to Barcelona even stronger.”
If there was any kind of controversy for the weekend, it was the fact that Quartararo was stripped of his podium finish which promoted Pol Espargaro to third place. During the race, the French rider was pushing hard and within reason to do so. According to race control, he was exceeding track limits and a warning was issued, however, Quartararo is 100% certain he was never notified on the dashboard which would make sense as he never took the long lap penalty that was handed to him. Was it harsh? We feel it was an abrupt decision and one that could be a determining factor in the long run for the title. The French rider was supreme in charging forward with conviction and it is a shame that race control put the penalty forward after such a good battle.
Do you feel his race actions were worthy of a penalty?
Fabio Quartararo:“I’m really happy about my race, because it is important to finish in third position after all the weekends that we struggled. I received the long lap penalty, but I didn’t receive any messages about track limit warnings on my dashboard so I was a bit surprised by it. I know I had three times where I went over track limits, but the last two ones I didn’t know where they happened at the time. It is disappointing and frustrating to have this penalty, but I am looking forward to Barcelona. Overall I’m happy with my race because I had a good pace and, although it was difficult for us to overtake, I was fighting until the end to be on the podium. Also the start was much better and I feel like we have improved it a lot. Let’s see what we can do in Barcelona next weekend.”
When you analyse the manufacturers at the front, Honda are really outnumbered. By missing Marc Marquez, they are suffering a great deal and this also includes missing Cal Crutchlow who is certainly the second in line in terms of Honda quality riders. Quite surprisingly, it was the best result achieved for Alex Marquez who is looking forward to a Spanish race next. The young rookie is definitely staying on board which is the first step to conquering the bikes negative points and working to a limit where his confidence allows him to ride the Honda with the ability to finish consistently in the top ten. Marquez cannot rely on others to make mistakes. Two riders who know this well are Mir and P Espargaro.
Joan Mir: “It feels so nice to be here on the podium again! I know I need to improve my qualifying results, and that’s something we’ve been trying to work on, but I’m so glad that I was able to fight through for the podium despite starting 11th. I just kept trying to close the gap and stay focused, and it paid off. I’m so happy and I really hope I can enjoy another good result next weekend in Barcelona!”
In our eyes, Mir is totally a dark horse! He is letting his riding skills and results do the talking. Without a doubt, his consistency, speed and flare will be driving Alex Rins nuts! To have a dominant force within the Suzuki outfit and then end up facing unknown challenges, Rins is going to have to push harder in order to stay with his teammate otherwise the 1-2 roles could be reversed. The Japanese manufacturer can potentially win a World Championship and this reality will start to put some serious conversations into play. Mir has always been a quality rider, last year with the injury he experienced, it was a tough season. With that said, this year he has been the quiet achiever and popping up out of nowhere which will be on the minds of his competitors.
Whilst Mir celebrated, it was a relief for P Espargaro who was quite emotional after dedicating the podium to his late grandfather. The gamble with his rear tyre paid off. He does have the attitude of not giving up though he can be very moody with poor pace. Regardless of the drop in performance, the KTM rider loves the bike, team outfit and no doubt will be thinking about 2021 in the back of his mind as he moves to a Honda bike which for the first time is not the ideal bike to be on.
Funnily enough, #unemployedovi is still leading the title even after finishing in eight position. The Ducati rider knew it was going to be a tough event this weekend with the red outfit not performing at its optimal level. In addition to this, his poor qualifying did put him at risk of being caught up in the middle of the field. With some confusion, he had to brake which enabled various other riders to pass him. Though not satisfied with his result, Dovi was aware that when his rhythm kicked into gear it was far too late to chase the front runners down and some points are far better than none.
Next up is Catalunya Grand Prix. It could be a totally different script and we are very much looking forward to how it all unfolds. Misano may have just been the page turner Vinales needs to become a World Champion and we know how much he wants to succeed. It is up to him now to show Yamaha why they are investing in him as the future leader with so much at stake especially with Rossi biting at his heels along with another eleven riders.
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