Dre’s MotoGP 2015 Grand Prix of The Americas Review

“Only three things in life are certain. Death, Taxes, and Marc Marquez winning in America.”

Hey folks, Dre here again, and its time to complete yet another double header as I take on the 2015 MotoGP Grand Prix of the Americas. In this round, Marc Marquez proved he really is unstoppable around COTA, Dovizioso continued to show that Ducati’s pace is real, and Suzuki’s impressive double Top 10. Also, in Moto2, we look at Sam Lowes breaking the glass ceiling and capturing his maiden GP win, and the race changing crash between Xavier Simeon and Johann Zarco. And we also take a look at Moto3, with Danny Kent providing one of the great Moto3 performances of this era, with Fabio Quartararo continuing to make history. All that  and more as I look at MotoGP’s, Grand Prix of the Americas.

[fusion_builder_container hundred_percent=”yes” overflow=”visible”][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_size=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”no” center_content=”no” min_height=”none”][fusion_imageframe lightbox=”no” style=”bottomshadow” bordercolor=”” bordersize=”0px” stylecolor=”
” align=”left” animation_type=”fade” animation_direction=”right” animation_speed=”1″][/fusion_imageframe] Marquez’s stunning weekend

Now, I don’t normally talk about qualifying, but you HAVE to see Marc Marquez’s qualifying lap, it’s one of the great sporting highlights of the year. With three minutes to go in the session, his bike breaks down on the home straight. He runs over the barrier and to his garage, and on the back-up bike, on his one flying lap, with the wrong front tyre on, sets a 2:02.1, breaking his own lap record by 0.6 seconds. Absolutely stunning.

And in the race, Marquez was unstoppable again, like he has been all three times he’s gone to Texas. Kept Dovi honest at the start, broke out when it mattered and just didn’t look back. It wasn’t his most dominant victory, but when the field was this close, it didn’t need to be. With this [/fusion_builder_column][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_size=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”no” center_content=”no” min_height=”none”][fusion_tooltip title=”In just 38 races…An astonishing 53% win-rate.” placement=”top” trigger=”hover” class=”” id=””]20th MotoGP win[/fusion_tooltip], Marquez extends his record of American wins to eight straight since 2011, and with this being his 46th victory in all classes, he breaks clear of Casey Stoner and Jim Redman for 9th all-time on the wins list. Next stop, Dani Pedrosa…

Here’s that amazing qualifying lap again if you didn’t see it. You’re welcome. In all the years I’ve been watching Marquez doing some incredible things on a motorcycle, this might top the lot.

Marc Márquez Pole Position Record Lap – MotoGP… by MaazAhmedSiddiqee

[fusion_imageframe lightbox=”no” style=”bottomshadow” bordercolor=”” bordersize=”0px” stylecolor=”
” align=”left” animation_type=”fade” animation_direction=”right” animation_speed=”1″][/fusion_imageframe]Ducati – The Hype REALLY is real.

Another outstanding performance from Andrea Dovizioso in 2nd, back-to-back from Qatar. There was always going to question marks on Ducati and their concessions they could be returning, but even on 22 liters, he still pushed and broke Valentino Rossi over the course of the race.

Valentino Rossi admitting he destroyed his front tyre again in a desperate attempt to keep up, giving up the ghost towards.

Andrea Iannone had a solid 5th place as well, but you have to wonder if he needs to work on his stamina, as he faded towards the end, from challenging his teammate in the middle portion of the race, to falling back behind Jorge Lorenzo by the end, in very similar circumstances to what happened in Qatar.

Other MotoGP Notes

Another really solid day at the office for Bradley Smith as top Brit in 6th place, especially considering that the Yamaha’s were struggling all weekend. He fell back behind Lorenzo in the 2nd half of the race, but a really good effort nonetheless, and with Pol Espargaro collected by Scott Redding on Lap 1, a healthy 10 points on his teammate too, and 2-0 head-to-head.

An excellent job from both Suzuki’s to get both their bikes in the Top 10. Aleix Espargaro always punches above his weight, and he did a good job at keeping Cal Crutchlow honest on a far superior Factory Honda bike. Seriously, has Cal looked any better/worse than Stefan Bradl did last year?

[fusion_imageframe lightbox=”no” style=”bottomshadow” bordercolor=”” bordersize=”0px” stylecolor=”
” align=”left” animation_type=”fade” animation_direction=”right” animation_speed=”1″][/fusion_imageframe]Sam Lowes Maiden Win

Back-to-back Moto2 rounds with new winners! A truly brilliant performance from Sam Lowes to finally break the glass ceiling and get that first win he so desperately craved, especially given how great the Speed Up partnership has been for him since the off-season. The talent has always been there, he just needed to put it all together.

Sam won in a very similar fashion to Maverick Vinales here last year, where he was biding his time behind Johann Zarco until the final 6 laps, before breaking off into the distance when Zarco and Xavier Simeon collided through Turn 3, causing Simeon to drop and his bike to slide 200ft down the road. Apparently they’re still brawling in a parking lot as you read this. After that, Sam then set three consecutive track records en route to victory. Insane.

Johann Zarco scored his best Moto2 finish to date in 2nd after his Simeon contact was considered a racing incident, and Alex Rins kept chasing all race long and took his first podium in 3rd. Amazingly, Rins leads the Championship with 29 points after the first two rounds. Who had money on that after COTA?

Also, is it just me, or has the curse of the #1 plate struck Tito Rabat? He was unlucky to be knocked down in Qatar, but he was just straight-up uncompetitive in 4th, a long way back from the leading three, and I was surprised it took him so long to deal with Franco Morbidelli in 5th. Hmmm… has Zarco become top Kalex?

[fusion_imageframe lightbox=”no” style=”bottomshadow” bordercolor=”” bordersize=”0px” stylecolor=”
” align=”left” animation_type=”fade” animation_direction=”right” animation_speed=”1″][/fusion_imageframe]Dominant Danny Kent

One does not just dominate a Moto3 race, Danny Kent! Probably the best moment of his career and one of the great Moto3 performances, with Kent beating the field by 8.5 seconds. He had an awful start, but came through the field quickly, and then put the hammer down once he broke free from Miguel Oliveira holeshot, and the imminent 5 bike scrap for the major points.

One of those guys to score well was Fabio Quartararo, the 15 year old youngster, proving that if you’re good enough, you’re old enough, and he proved it with an excellent ride to 2nd, the kid showing improvement by the race. Will call it from now, he will win races this season. Multiple ones.
Was also really impressed with some of the comeback rides, such as Efren Vazquez scoring his 2nd consecutive podium for Leopard Racing in 3rd from 16th, John McPhee in 6th from 17th, and Romano Fenati in 8th from 19th. And at this point, I still have no idea who the title contenders really are. And that’s awesome.

Race Ratings: MotoGP – 7/10, Moto2 – 8/10, Moto3 – 8/10[/fusion_builder_column][/fusion_builder_row][/fusion_builder_container]