2018 Motegi MotoGP Sunday Results
MotoGP Race – 24 laps, 115.224 km
Marc Marquez sealed his seventh World Championship, his fifth in the premier class, with an assured victory. It came at the expense of long-time leader Andrea Dovizioso (Ducati), under the noses of top Honda management, at the circuit that Honda built.
2018 Motegi MotoGP Sunday Results
The Repsol Honda rider has twice before celebrated overall victory at Motegi, north-east of Tokyo. This third time came after yet another magnificent season, the 25-year-old Spaniard adding maturity to his arsenal without abandoning his high-risk flat-out riding style.
It was his eighth win of the season, hard fought until there were less than two laps of the 4.801-km circuit left.
Two laps before he had taken the lead from Dovizioso, who had started from pole. Dovi hoped at least to put off Marquez’s celebration by one more race, and he led for 20 of the 24 laps, apart from one corner at half-distance when Marquez nosed ahead only to run off into the dirt.
After Marquez did get by, the Italian was poised on his back wheel for a last-lap scrap. Instead, the Ducati rider ran a little wide into the Turn 10 hairpin, and slid off. He remounted, to finish out of the points in 18th.
“I imagined this would be my year, but it’s good when you have your first chance, and you do it,” said a jubilant Marquez, adding: “The big boss will be pleased.”
Honda Motor Company president Takehiro Hachigo was in pit lane to share the celebrations, which were boosted by a Honda one-two.
Independent LCR Honda Castrol rider Cal Crutchlow was second, still just 1.5 seconds away after shadowing the leaders throughout, fending off Alex Rins’s Suzuki by less than two tenths.
Valentino Rossi was top Yamaha in fourth, with Movistar team-mate Maverick Vinales again suffering from a slow start, finally coming through to seventh.
Ahead of him, Alvaro Bautista (Angel Nieto Ducati) had a strong ride through from 11th on lap one to fifth, less than a second behind Rossi, having consigned Johann Zarco (Monster Yamaha) to sixth.
Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda) and a distant and lonely Danilo Petrucci (Alma Pramac Ducati) completed the top ten.
Front-row starter Jack Miller (Alma Pramac Ducati) crashed out in the early stages; and Suzuki’s Andrea Iannone also a little later. Ducati’s Jorge Lorenzo had already withdrawn from the race, due to injuries sustained a fortnight ago at the Thai GP.
With three races left and a maximum score of 75 available, Marquez’s lead of 102 points makes him invulnerable. He has 296, Dovizioso 194; while Rossi’s recent stronger form puts him with nine of his compatriot, on 185. Vinales (155) is likewise under threat from Crutchlow (148).
MOTUL GRAND PRIX OF JAPAN
MotoGP Race Classification 2018
Motegi, Sunday, October 21, 2018
| 1 | 25 | 93 | Marc MARQUEZ | SPA | Repsol Honda Team | Honda | 162.2 | 42’36.438 |
| 2 | 20 | 35 | Cal CRUTCHLOW | GBR | LCR Honda CASTROL | Honda | 162.1 | +1.573 |
| 3 | 16 | 42 | Alex RINS | SPA | Team SUZUKI ECSTAR | Suzuki | 162.1 | +1.720 |
| 4 | 13 | 46 | Valentino ROSSI | ITA | Movistar Yamaha MotoGP | Yamaha | 161.8 | +6.413 |
| 5 | 11 | 19 | Alvaro BAUTISTA | SPA | Angel Nieto Team | Ducati | 161.8 | +6.919 |
| 6 | 10 | 5 | Johann ZARCO | FRA | Monster Yamaha Tech 3 | Yamaha | 161.7 | +8.024 |
| 7 | 9 | 25 | Maverick VIÑALES | SPA | Movistar Yamaha MotoGP | Yamaha | 161.4 | +13.330 |
| 8 | 8 | 26 | Dani PEDROSA | SPA | Repsol Honda Team | Honda | 161.2 | +15.582 |
| 9 | 7 | 9 | Danilo PETRUCCI | ITA | Alma Pramac Racing | Ducati | 160.9 | +20.584 |
| 10 | 6 | 55 | Hafizh SYAHRIN | MAL | Monster Yamaha Tech 3 | Yamaha | 160.6 | +24.985 |
| 11 | 5 | 21 | Franco MORBIDELLI | ITA | EG 0,0 Marc VDS | Honda | 160.6 | +25.931 |
| 12 | 4 | 38 | Bradley SMITH | GBR | Red Bull KTM Factory Racing | KTM | 160.5 | +26.875 |
| 13 | 3 | 44 | Pol ESPARGARO | SPA | Red Bull KTM Factory Racing | KTM | 160.5 | +27.069 |
| 14 | 2 | 89 | Katsuyuki NAKASUGA | JPN | Yamalube Yamaha Factory Racing | Yamaha | 160.2 | +32.550 |
| 15 | 1 | 30 | Takaaki NAKAGAMI | JPN | LCR Honda IDEMITSU | Honda | 159.9 | +37.718 |
| 16 | 10 | Xavier SIMEON | BEL | Reale Avintia Racing | Ducati | 159.7 | +39.583 | |
| 17 | 81 | Jordi TORRES | SPA | Reale Avintia Racing | Ducati | 159.7 | +39.839 | |
| 18 | 4 | Andrea DOVIZIOSO | ITA | Ducati Team | Ducati | 159.5 | +42.698 | |
| 19 | 45 | Scott REDDING | GBR | Aprilia Racing Team Gresini | Aprilia | 159.1 | +49.943 | |
| 20 | 12 | Thomas LUTHI | SWI | EG 0,0 Marc VDS | Honda | 158.9 | +52.707 | |
| 21 | 50 | Sylvain GUINTOLI | FRA | Team SUZUKI ECSTAR | Suzuki | 158.4 | +1’01.848 | |
| Not Classified | ||||||||
| 29 | Andrea IANNONE | ITA | Team SUZUKI ECSTAR | Suzuki | 161.7 | 10 Laps | ||
| 17 | Karel ABRAHAM | CZE | Angel Nieto Team | Ducati | 152.6 | 12 Laps | ||
| 43 | Jack MILLER | AUS | Alma Pramac Racing | Ducati | 161.0 | 14 Laps | ||
| 41 | Aleix ESPARGARO | SPA | Aprilia Racing Team Gresini | Aprilia | 157.1 | 18 Laps | ||
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