2018 MotoGP Le Mans – Zarco zips and slips, Dovi dances in the gravel and Marquez… Have a guess.
Crutchlow soldiers on and Zarco zooms to pole
As the 2018 MotoGP Le Mans gets underway, the French fans are praying for a French victory. With Johann Zarco sat on pole position, this dream may very well become reality. However, with Marquez and Petrucci to his right, the Frenchman is going to have to work for this victory. Kudos to Cal Crutchlow for making it onto the grid for this race. Cal suffered a massive high-side during the qualifying stages yesterday, resulting in Cal being taken to hospital in LeMans for scans. A heroic effort for the British rider.
The roar of the bikes is matched equally by the roars of the crowd. Jorge Lorenzo upsets the fans by once again charging to the front of pack, elbows out to keep Marc Marquez at bay. While Zarco didn’t quite have the start he wanted, he soons barges through on Marquez to take 2nd position. He won’t be letting this race go without a fight, that’s for sure! One rider who won’t be continuing his string of podium finishes is Suzuki rider Andrea Iannone. Before the first lap is even over, Iannone leans hard into La Chappelle corner and slides the bike into the gravel. The race is over before it’s even begun for Andrea Iannone.
As the riders settle into their current place, Lorenzo leads the pack once again, followed by Zarco, Dovi, Petrucci, Marquez and Rossi. The Movistar Yamaha’s are known to be good around this French circuit; the last three victories here have been from Maverick Vinales and twice from Jorge Lorenzo, all on Movistar Yamaha’s. However, with last years winner Maverick Vinales floundering in 11th position, it’s unlikely we’ll see him on the top step at the 2018 MotoGP Le Mans.
Disaster for Dovi and Zarco
A mistake from Zarco sees the French favourite run wide, letting Dovi squeeze through to make this a Ducati 1 and 2. Dovi seems set to prove himself after re-signing with Ducati for another two years. A Ducati 1 and 2 here would be brilliant considering the Ducati disaster in Jerez which resulted in both riders, along with Dani Pedrosa, on the floor. With 23 laps to go, Dovi makes a clean pass on Lorenzo, carving his way through on his teammate and making his charge into the lead. Moments later at the La Chapelle corner, Dovi tucks the front and slides away into the gravel, the same location as Iannone minutes before. As he sits gravel looking confused and bewildered, Dovi is dismayed. A real contender for the 2018 championship sits in the sand once again. This time though, the only person he can point a finger at is himself.
Marquez is the only rider here at the 2018 MotoGP Le Mans running a hard rear tyre, and it appears to be working well for the Spanish rider as the track temperature continues to rise. He bides his time and waits for his opportunity to pass Zarco. A clean pass realises this, shooting Marc into 2nd position, upsetting the French fans as he does so. Zarco smashes back, grabbing 2nd from Marquez but loses the bike seconds later at turn 8. I think the tyre choices on this hot track may have had something to do with this. I am disappointed for Zarco but nowhere near as disappointed as the French fans at the 2018 MotoGP Le Mans. Zarco does remount his Tech-3 Yamaha but only to ride back to the pits.
Marquez marches into first
Fed up being the runner up, Marquez finally pulls the trigger and passes Lorenzo, sitting Jorge up out of his line. Lorenzo almost loses second position to Petrucci as he tries to get back to the line. Marc’s pass, while aggressive, was still legal but hardly sporting behavior. We all know Marquez is aggressive on track, but with the race pace he has shown here coupled with posting the fastest speed on track at 303 km/h, there are many places he could have passed Lorenzo in a cleaner fashion. Bullying someone out of a line like Marquez does here is, in my eyes, a dirty move.
Petrucci passes Lorenzo and into 2nd position, and immediately begins hunting down Marquez. Rossi pulls a beautiful pass on Lorenzo, giving the crowds something to cheer for after Zarco’s disappointing performance. Lorenzo seems to be able to get the ideal start but once riders start passing him, he doesn’t seem to be able to answer back. This is evident as Jack Miller sails past into 4th place, another great ride from the Australian. With 13 laps to go, Rossi posts the fastest lap of the race, proving that the old Gods can still run with the young guns. But can he capitalise on this pace here at the 2018 MotoGP Le Mans?
The race presses on, the riders trying to keep each other at bay. Petrucci seems to be sticking onto Marquez, giving Marc something to worry about, rather than letting him carve out a massive race lead as we’ve seen so many times before. With 6 laps to go, the gap between them is one solitary second, with a further second between Petrucci and Rossi, who seems comfortable in third place. This would be a great weekend for the Doctor, after suffering mechanical and electrical gremlins since the start of the season.
Lorenzo loses pace
Lorenzo has slipped back another place behind Dani Pedrosa, a great ride from the Repsol Honda rider despite another high-side crash last time in Jerez after becoming embroiled in the Ducati disaster. Just three laps are left in this race and Cal Crutchlow goes into monster mode despite his crash yesterday. He dips past Alex Rins into 9th place and begins hunting down Aleix Espargaro for the 8th place spot. Meanwhile at the front of the pack, Marc Marquez keeps cruising away from Petrucci. A 2nd place for Petrucci would certainly look impressive to the factory teams, something Petrucci is looking to jump to next year. Vinales seems to have finally mustered up some gusto but it comes all too late for the Spaniard.
As the checkered flag is waved at the 2018 MotoGP Le Mans, Marc Marquez stands atop the podium again followed by Danilo Petrucci and Valentino Rossi. Surprising podium finishes from the two Italians, but well deserved nonetheless. Disappointing performances from Iannone, Dovizioso and Zarco have allowed for other riders to make their way up the standings. Crutchlow’s sudden activation of hero mode gets him into 8th place, a heroic performance from Cal. Will Zarco regain some glory next time around? Can Dovi challenge for the championship title? Will Marquez be stood on the top step yet again? Find out next time as the MotoGP heads to Mugello! All eyes on the Italians who will inevitably display some hometown hunger! I can’t wait!
Top Ten
1) Marquez
2) Petrucci
3) Rossi
4) Miller
5) Pedrosa
6) Lorenzo
7) Vinales
8) Crutchlow
9) A. Espargaro
10) Rins
All images courtesy of motogp.com
