MotoGP

Miguel Oliveira stormed to victory in a shortened and rain-delayed MotoGP Indonesian Grand Prix from reigning world champion Fabio Quartararo as Marc ...

Quartararo capitalised on a battling Zarco and Miller to get ahead of the Pramac rider at Turn 1 on lap 16. Miller overhauled Quartararo on the run over the line to start lap two as the Yamaha rider seemingly made a mistake exiting the final corner – something he’d do on the following tour, which dropped him out of the podium places to fifth. Poleman Fabio Quartararo nailed his launch off the line to grab the holeshot on his factory Yamaha, with Oliveira slotting into second ahead of Ducati’s Jack Miller and a fast-starting Alex Rins on the Suzuki.

Portugal's Miguel Oliveira has put on a wet-weather masterclass and held off reigning world champion Fabio Quartararo in...

Wise Aussie saves rookie, Miller makes his mark and rain shaman to the rescue: MotoGP Talking Pts.

Some of it was nostalgic, classic Marc, like his first crash in Q1. He was scrambling to his feet almost before he stopped sliding through the gravel to run back to his garage for his spare bike for a trademark last-lap dash. It brought Johann Zarco — who admitted after the race there was no way to keep up with Miller in the variable weather at the start — and Fabio Quartararo back into play, and having played a strong defensive game in the middle of the race, he faded to fourth as his tyres wore and the track dried. It was a meaningful result after a preseason and first race of deep frustration, and his victory-like celebrations with his team afterwards illustrated how important it was to bring home healthy points from this race. Lo and behold, what seemed like a certain washout became a memorable race. He’s now closed his gap to the championship lead to 17 points. He defended ably against Enea Bastianini and Aleix Espargaró, even going three abreast into turn 12 on the penultimate lap. He was confident of smoother running in Mandalika, but ninth on the grid, three spots behind teammate Francesco Bagnaia, after a scrappy qualifying session was a little deflating. Rain is a great leveller in motorsport, smoothing over the differences between bikes and creating more space for the rider to make a difference. Of course some this became academic when the wet race rolled around. His bike was totalled, and though he was able to get up and walk away from the scene of the smash, he was subsequently taken to hospital, where he was deemed unfit to race. Miguel Oliveira’s second season with the factory KTM team was bizarre. Miller’s reputation in mixed conditions needs no introduction.

“It was the first time riding a MotoGP bike in the rain, so it is never ideal going into a race when you have never tried the wet before,” he said. “If I am honest, I expected more of the race today. “I had some visibility issues today with the rain ...

“Apart from this, he managed to finish the race, which is good, and he also learnt a lot about his tyres and his bike in rainy conditions. “When he came back to the box, he was unhappy with his helmet which was full of water and considerably reduced his visibility. “I had some visibility issues today with the rain and it did not improve much as I was behind the others, but at least I took a lot of experience and managed to do the 20 laps.