JAMES TOSELAND’S INSIDER INSIGHTS: 24TH SEPTEMBER 2019

MOTORLAND ARAGON

I’ve just caught up with the action from last weekend in Aragon and I must say, while it was not as all-action as some races this season, there were some champion rides at the front of all 3 classes. 

Moto 3. 

One man dominated the whole weekend at the technical and demanding Aragon circuit. 
Unsurprisingly it was a young Spanish rider by the name of Aron Canet. 

Aron hit the ground running on Friday morning and never gave his opposition a chance all weekend long. 

I’m not sure if his blistering pace was because he was on home soil or if he was still aflame with frustration from last time out in Misano where his bike had technical issues which resulted in Aron scoring zero points. 

Whatever it was it worked and the victory brought him within 2 points of the championship lead. 

This advance towards the top of the leader board was helped massively as the championship leader, Lorenzo Dalla Porta struggled to match the pace at the front of the race and it was a case of damage limitation for the Spanish rider.

Lorenzo managed to claw his way to 11th as he crossed the finish line but lost a massive 20 points to his closest rival Aron Canet. 

Ai Ogura had his first podium of the season with a brilliant ride in 2nd place and Dennis Foggia also grabbed his first podium of the year with a fantastic 3rd place. 

Mr Consistent this year, John McPhee, was 4th across the line and that also promoted the young Scottish rider up to 4th in the championship! 

With only 5 races to go and now 29 points separating him and 3rd place, Tony Arbolino, there is a serious chance John can finish inside the top 3 of the Moto 3 World Championship!  

Come on John!! 

I can’t wait to see how this fascinating duel between Lorenzo and Aron pans out! 
It’s also Honda versus KTM too! 

Next stop, Thailand!

Moto 2. 

It was back to record-winning ways for the Triumph 765 engine at the weekend! 
It took its 12th lap record of the season at Aragon. That’s 12 out of the 14 races we’ve had so far! 

This incredible inaugural year for the Triumph-powered Moto2 championship has been such a success story. 

It’s also created some massive turning points for a few of the Moto 2 riders, the main one being, Alex Marquez. 

Alex was always the bridesmaid aboard the old Hondas to every team mate he had, but since he has jumped aboard his Triumph powered bike, it’s given him the feedback and confidence needed to step up, and what a season he’s put together so far. 

He could only manage 3rd at the weekend at his home track but it was enough to extend his lead in the championship to a comfortable 38 points. 

Another rider to benefit from the switch to Triumph this year is Jorge Navarro. He crossed the line in 2nd place and is now second in the championship too. 

Last year aboard the Honda, Jorge had a very average first year in Moto2 and it didn’t look like the young Spanish rider had what it took when he jumped up from Moto3. But like Alex Marquez, this Triumph is suiting his riding style brilliantly and it’s great to see how rejuvenated Jorge is this season. 

What a commanding victory it was from Brad Binder. That was Brad’s second victory of the season and it was a shame that the KTM got off to such a steady start this year. 

Brad could have definitely challenged for the championship this season if this speed had come a little earlier in the year. 

It was a brilliant ride though, from start to finish, and showed what fantastic focus he had to not make any mistakes throughout the whole race. 

Surprisingly though, Brad’s now only 15 points from 2nd place man Jorge Navarro in the championship so the guys above him better not make any more mistakes. 

It was another solid ride from Sam Lowes also. Two 5th places in the last two races is a great confidence booster for the Lincolnshire lad. I hope this form continues throughout the final 5 races of the year. 

A 38-point lead for Alex is comfortable but it’s certainly not decided by any means! 
Let’s see what happens in Thailand! 

MotoGP. 

As I said in the intro, it wasn’t the classic duel of Misano or Austria was it?! 

That’s not taking anything away from the outstanding performances from all 3 of the winners last Sunday, though.

Marc Marquez’s dominance from the lights going out was astonishing. There are 17 world champions on the MotoGP grid and Marc makes them look uncomfortably steady. 

That’s no disrespect to any of the riders in MotoGP because I know just how good those guys are. I just can’t believe how much better Marc is against the best riders in the world.

You can’t even say he has advantage because of the bike as there hasn’t been another Honda other than Marc’s inside the top 3 since Germany which was 5 races ago.

Out of the 14 races so far this season Marc has had 8 wins, five 2nds and only one DNF. To not finish lower than 2nd all year against that class of field is remarkable. 

He is 98 points in the lead of the championship now and both hands are almost around his 6th MotoGP title! 

Andrea Dovizioso had a great ride, carving his way through the field from 10th on the grid after a rare mistake in qualifying. Those Ducatis are so fast though! 

It looked almost unfair watching Maverick Vinales lose 5 or 6 bike lengths down the long back straight at Aragon.  

Jack Miller rode another fantastic race to take the last position on the podium but Maverick knew if he wasn’t in front before that straight then the podium was impossible and that’s how it turned out. Another gutsy ride from Maverick though. 

But while the championship looks decided already but 3rd place is wide open! 

There are only 33 points separating Alex Rins in 3rd to the fabulous rookie Fabio Quartararo in 7th place. 

Thailand was an amazing race last year and I’m sure it’s going to be a little closer than it was this time out in Aragon! Let’s hope so!

JT.