A dominant display at COTA!
It was as if the clock had been turned back a few years, because Marquez put on a performance reminiscent of when he was at the peak of his powers, which no one could match.
It has been clear all weekend, that Marc was one of the fastest riders out there, but I don’t think anyone expected him to be this far clear of the rest. Not only was his best lap unbeatable, but he was also so consistent. Undoubtedly, he has some tricks around this place, which has allowed him to dominate so well in the past, and they came in very handy now. Having tested an all new 2022 bike in the last few weeks, if Marquez can be fully fit for next year, the rest better watch out as he could be back to dominating ways if they aren’t careful.
Quartararo did everything he needed to do today, I am even wondering if he may have had the pace to be nearer to Marquez, he just didn’t want to risk anything. In the early stages of the race, he did have to hold off Martin, however, the Yamaha had much better consistency over the stint. Unless we have some awful circumstances, this probably means that Fabio is set for the title, which you feel he does deserve.
Bagnaia lost out massively at the start, dropping back from pole to 6th. If things had turned out differently there, he could have at least held on to Fabio possibly. We will never know though, and at the end of the day, his title charge was always coming a little too late. He can still be pleased with a podium, as he ends the season very well, aiming to be even better in 2022. It will be a similar story for Rins, who was the better Suzuki all day. His start was amazing, as he got up to 4th, yet that bike still does not have the race pace we are used to seeing from it, so he pretty much stayed there all race.
Martin might be disappointed to miss out on a podium in the dying laps of the race, however, given he is a rookie, he must be pleased with how it went. He also did all he could to help Pecco, by pressuring Fabio. Another rookie who is excelling is Bastiannini, who despite a terrible qualifying, was able to get up to where he should be, and beyond it! Anytime you can beat a factory Ducati, on a two year old bike, is something special indeed.
Miller was that factory Ducati, who looked very good in the early part of the race, until he fell off a cliff in terms of performance. He probably would have been ahead of Enea, had it not been for the move by Mir on the final lap. This really has been another weekend of what could have been for Jack. Rather similarly to Rins, Mir just didn’t really go anywhere once the Suzuki’s made a good start. I am sure that the power deficit doesn’t help, but they aren’t the only underpowered bikes out there. The last lap move by Mir was a mistake, probably out of desperation to get a better result out of a poor day. The penalty was fair, given he nerfed Miller off the track.
When I saw that Binder was sat in 8th in the mid part of the race, I honestly thought that he would do his usual charge at the end and finish 4th or 5th. Yet, for whatever reason, just like the Suzuki’s he just sat there, and ended up being passed by Bastiannini. Pol will not be happy with how everything turned out, especially when your teammate dominates the race. I don’t think the start helped him, but the pace wasn’t there either. I just hope that the 2022 Honda suits all the rider more, not just Marquez.
Olivera was able to climb up from his lowly grid position, and get his best result in a while. Can he at least end the year on a high, despite all the issues he has had? Alex Marquez, like Pol, couldn’t match Marc’s pace, and settled for a few points. Dovizioso is really doing brilliantly at adapting to his new machinery, and given it is a 2 year old bike, you have to think he is a good choice to stay on at the team.
The brothers of Marini and Rossi round out the points, which can be seen as a good result for The Doctor, but slightly disappointing for Marini, who not only lost places, but was well off his teammates pace! It was unfortunate that Nakagami crashed, as his pace before and after it, was rather good, he could have got at least a top 5! Aleix’s bad weekend ended just that way, with him not scoring for only the 2nd time this year! Zarco was the other non-finisher, who was hoping to get over his barren patch in form!
It was a hectic, controversial, and difficult weekend for the riders, on the bumpy track at COTA, and they will be pleased to return to the relative comfort of Misano, where the championship could very well be wrapped up!
-M
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