Spain saw a thriller of a Moto GP finale at Valencia. We were at the circuit to capture the passion and the electric atmosphere as Marc Marquez posted a record-breaking 13th victory in a single season.
After endless cups of coffee over a seven-hour layover at Dubai airport, plus a total flying time of over 10 hours, and another four-and-half-hour bus ride from Barcelona to Valencia, we finally reached this beautiful Mediterranean city to watch the MotoGP finale. As we wearily dragged ourselves into the hotel, we felt a rush of adrenaline as we were welcomed by a MotoGP Ducati replica motorcycle. “Wow,” was the only word that popped up into my mind. All those hours in the air and on the road were worth it.
The next day was perfect for qualifying, as clear blue skies and a warm sun bathed the city. And even though I cribbed as my phone charger went on the blink, I forced myself to focus on the big picture – the MotoGP race. The atmosphere at the Circuito de la Comunitat Valenciana was like a huge carnival, and it was heart warming to see people of different age groups proudly wearing their team’s colours.
With Honda rider Marc Marquez already crowned the world champion, the buzz was whether his younger brother Alex could win the Moto3 championship. As always, another legend – seven-time MotoGP champion – Valentino Rossi’s name was doing rounds, and some emotional fans were hoping the Yamaha rider would finish the season with a win. But up against the might of Marquez and a beast of a Honda bike, it was quite an uphill task for the Doctor to achieve.
After eaves dropping on predictions for the qualifiers and race results, we decided to head to the media centre, which overlooked the pit lane. As luck would have it, the Yamaha garage was right below us, and another former world champion Jorge Lorenzo’s engineers were tinkering with his motorcycle. The bike, on idle, sounded a bit like the rotating rotor blades of a helicopter. A little later, Lorenzo sat on his steed and went off to earn his keep on the track. It was obvious that the Lorenzo fans hadn’t entered the arena as yet, as the crowd hardly reacted. It was different story when Marquez entered the pit lane. The grand stand instantly erupted with adulation.
As expected, the current world champion dominated the proceedings without any trouble – but the surprise package was Ducati rider Andrea Iannone, who was forced to sit out of the previous race in Sepang due to an injury. According to his team, he was only 80 percent fit for this race. Even then, he nearly matched Marquez’s pace before the champion slipped on a corner and retired from qualifying. Iannone must have felt that pole position was within his grasp, but it was not to be as Rossi crashed the party and claimed his 50th pole position.
As the stands burst into celebrations, the only person who appeared slightly unhappy was Rossi’s teammate Lorenzo – as his chances of finishing second in the championship looked rather bleak. Of course, Marquez was furious for making an error and later apologised to his team for the mistake. Still, it wasn’t the end of the road for the 21-year-old Spaniard as he took fifth on the grid.
It was interesting to hear the honest reactions of Rossi, Iannone and Marquez. Rossi’s surprised response clearly showed that he didn’t expect to start the race from pole. Iannone, on the other hand, had no regrets about starting behind Rossi. And Marquez, very disarmingly, said Rossi had a good chance of wining the race. Mind games before race day? Not likely, it was probably just respect for Rossi. The race was certainly poised for a thriller. Marquez’s teammate Dani Pedrosa, and former champion Lorenzo, also had the potential to spoil the party.
On race day, all of Valencia seemed to be heading for the track and it took us almost three hours to reach the circuit – the day before it was just 45 minutes. Unfortunately, we missed the crowning of Alex Marquez as the Moto3 champion. Thankfully, we had enough time to see the elder brother’s skills.
Marc Marquez, for a change, had a strong start and was quickly behind Rossi and Iannone. After tailgating his old Moto2 rival, Iannone, for a couple of turns, Marc overtook him and was gunning for the numero uno spot. Rossi tried to keep the Honda rider at bay, but the inevitable happened as Marquez finally zipped passed him. The two-time world champion took control of the race with such ease that it made us wonder whether he was just taking it easy before he finally decided it was time to win the race? I guess we’ll never know.
Records came tumbling down, after Marquez took the chequered flag as he broke Australian Mick Doohan’s record of 12 victories in a season – set in 1997. It was also the first time that two brothers were crowned champions in their respective categories. Judging by the reaction of Honda and Marquez, it was quite evident they wanted this win pretty badly – even though they had already bagged the world championship title. Rossi ended the race and the championship in second place.
As the season finally came to an end, fresh speculations began to surface – whether the Marquez brothers will race together on the same stage, can Rossi upset Marquez’s dominance or whether it’s time for him to ride into the sunset, and will Yamaha step up to the challenge. But, for now, we’re happy to savour Honda’s all conquering moment.
Still no Indian MotoGP
Carmelo Ezpeleta, CEO of Dorna Sports, the exclusive holder of all commercial and television rights relating to the MotoGP World Championship, didn’t mince his words when he announced why there isn’t a MotoGP race in India. He said, “Our wish is to come to India, as it’s the biggest motorcycle market in the world and the Buddh International Circuit is world class. Unfortunately, the promoter is not ready to hold the race because of financial reasons.” Sadly, in the current scenario without any government support, it appears financially unviable to hold an international motor racing event like MotoGP in India.
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