Johann Zarco wins Australian GP after Martin loses podium on final lap
Pramac Racing’s Johann Zarco won the Australian Grand Prix on Saturday for his first ever .MotoGP race victory as his teammate and championship contender Jorge Martin lost the lead on the final lap. The race was held on Saturday after MotoGP organisers swapped it with the sprint due to bad weather forecast at Phillip Island on Sunday, the first time the race was moved since the Dutch Grand Prix in 2015.
Martin had taken pole by smashing the lap record and no rider on the grid was a match for the Spaniard’s searing pace, but he lost grip in the final laps and missed out on a podium as Ducati’s Francesco Bagnaia stormed his way to second place.
Fabio Di Giannantonio, who does not have a seat next year with Gresini Racing, was third while Martin finished fifth behind Brad Binder to drop 27 points behind Bagnaia in the riders championship.
Result.
1. Johann Zarco (FRA/Ducati-Pramac) 40min 39.446sec,
2. Francesco Bagnaia (ITA/Ducati) 0.201,
3. Fabio Di Giannantonio (ITA/Ducati) 0.477,
4. Brad Binder (RSA/KTM) 0.816,
5. Jorge Martin (ESP/Ducati-Pramac) 1.008,
6. Marco Bezzecchi (ITA/Ducati-VR46) 8.827,
7. Jack Miller (AUS/KTM) 9.283,
8. Aleix Espargaro (ESP/Aprilia) 9.387,
9. Alex Marquez (ESP/Ducati-Gresini) 9.696,
10. Enea Bastianini (ITA/Ducati) 12.523
WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS:
1. Francesco Bagnaia (ITA/Ducati) 366pts,
2. Jorge Martin (ESP/Ducati-Pramac) 339,
3. Marco Bezzecchi (ITA/Ducati-VR46) 293,
4. Brad Binder (RSA/KTM) 224,
5. Johann Zarco (FRA/Ducati-Pramac) 187,
6. Aleix Espargaro (ESP/Aprilia) 185,
7. Maverick Vinales (ESP/Aprilia) 170,
8. Luca Marini (ITA/Ducati-VR46) 148,
9. Jack Miller (AUS/KTM) 144,
10. Fabio Quartararo (FRA/Yamaha) 134
Selected
16. Marc Marquez (ESP/Honda) 65
Forecasted extreme weather, including wind gusts of up to 65 kph (40 mph), will see the Australian MotoGP raced a day early, swapping places with the sprint, organisers said on Friday. The unusual decision was made after the second practice session at the waterfront Phillip Island circuit, where KTM rider Brad Binder topped the timesheets.
“This decision has been taken proactively in order to guarantee the best and safest possible show for all competitors and fans attending Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit this weekend,” MotoGP officials said.
The 27-lap grand prix will now take place at 3:10 pm (0410 GMT) on Saturday with the 13-lap sprint pushed back a day to Sunday, if it is safe to race. The Moto2 and Moto3 schedule remains unchanged but it too is at the whim of the weather, with temperatures set to plummet and rain and high winds on the way.
ShareKTM rider Brad Binder produced a scorching late lap to stamp his mark on the Australian MotoGP with the fastest time in second practice on Friday, as championship leader Francesco Bagnaia finished outside the top 10.
On a fine day ahead of a forecast wet and windy weekend, the South African blitzed the picturesque Phillip Island circuit with a best lap of one minute and 27.943 seconds. That was just shy of the 1:27.767 record Spain’s Jorge Martin set last year on his way to pole.
World title contender Martin was fourth fastest on his Pramac Ducati, 0.279 behind, with Binder’s fellow factory KTM rider Jack Miller second and Aprilia’s Maverick Vinales third.
But it was a miserable day for Bagnaia, who struggled for pace and could only finish 11th, 0.699 adrift, meaning he will need to fight his way through Q1 on Saturday.
The top 10 times from Friday’s second practice automatically qualified for Q2 and will be joined by the fastest two riders from Q1 to determine the first five rows of the grid both for Saturday’s sprint race and Sunday’s main event.
Among others relegated to Q1 were former world champion Marc Marquez, who crashed on turn 10, and last year’s winner Alex Rins. Reigning world champion Bagnaia is currently 18 points ahead of Martin in the title race with five legs of the 20-stop season left after winning last week’s Indonesian Grand Prix when his key rival crashed out. Binder was quick all afternoon in Australia, owning the fastest lap of 1:29.365 for almost 40 minutes before Gresini Racing’s Fabio Di Giannantonio went a fraction quicker.
That signalled a switch to soft rear tyres and a slew of fast laps with the lead repeatedly changing hands before Martin clocked 1:28.299 to seemingly take control. But Binder, Miller and Vinales had other ideas and all responded, with the Spaniard having to settle for fourth.
In a change of format since the mid-season break, the first practice on Friday had no bearing on Saturday’s qualifying order, leaving riders and teams to try out different bike and tyre set-ups without consequence. In that session, Martin topped the timesheets ahead of Augusto Fernandez and Vinales, with Bagnaia 11th.
Spain’s Jorge Martin is determined to cut out any errors as a tense title race shifts to Phillip Island this week after a blunder in Indonesia cost him his lead in the MotoGP standings. The Pramac ace won the sprint at the Mandalika track in Lombok last weekend to build a seven-point championship advantage over Italy’s Francesco Bagnaia.
But he blew the hard work in Sunday’s grand prix, crashing at a gravel trap while three seconds clear and seemingly on track for his fourth victory of the year. It was his first non-score in a grand prix since round three at Austin in April.
With just five stops of the 20-leg season left, he cannot afford any more slip ups in Australia with Bagnaia on his Ducati now 18 points ahead and fellow Italian Marco Bezzecchi still in the hunt, 45 points behind.
Martin blamed a dirty track for his mishap, and insisted it was a one-off. It’s been 14 races without a mistake. It’s just statistics. It was coming sooner or later,” he said. “So, the races still remaining I feel confident to fight for victory.
Reigning world champion Bagnaia accepted Martin’s gift, powering to a sixth MotoGP win of 2023 and his first since Austria in August.
That Austria triumph put Bagnaia 66 points ahead of Martin, but injury and errors, including a failure to finish at Catalunya and India, saw the lead eroded by his rival.
The Italian said being back in the winners circle had revived his confidence heading into a challenging Australian weekend. To have that performance again was very, very important,” he said, adding that it gave him “a lot of motivation”. Not only for me, but also for my team. They are trying always to give the maximum possible.”
During last year’s grand prix, the waterfront Phillip Island circuit was marred by persistent rain, and more is forecast this week. Despite the elements, the 2023 race was a thriller with Spain’s Alex Rins crossing first ahead of Spanish great Marc Marquez and Bagnaia in one of the closest top three finishes the sport has known.
Martin smashed the nine-year lap record to grab pole position, only to finish seventh. Along with Rins, Honda’s Marquez and Aprilla’s Maverick Vinales are both former Australian winners. Local hero Jack Miller, who is ninth on the world championship ladder, will be another to watch on his home circuit, confident his KTM machine is well-suited to the Phillip Island conditions.
“I think the KTM can work really, really well around the island,” he said. The bike is nice and agile at high speed which you need around the island, and there’s always some decent grip there as well. Fingers crossed we can put on a pretty good show for the home fans.
Source: Supersport
