MotoGP

OPINION: MotoGP will retire Valentino Rossi's famous #46 from competition in a ceremony on Saturday ahead of the Italian Grand Prix at Mugello, ...

But RCR brought the #3 back for Austin Dillon, the grandson of the team owner, to drive in 2014 and he took it to victory lane at the Daytona 500 in 2018. Cynically, one only has to look at the expected attendance figure for this weekend’s Italian GP released by the Prefecture of Florence of a meagre 20-30,000 for the entire event. Certainly, the association with a number can be cemented by the heroics of someone who carried it during their career. Famously, in basketball Lebron James used the #23 when he began playing in the NBA. The #23 was previously made famous by Michael Jordan, whom James idolised growing up, and he elected to sport that number in tribute to his hero. Perhaps the clearest comparison to this in motorsport is in NASCAR, where rookie Chase Elliott was handed the huge mantle of driving Hendrick Motorsports' #24 Chevrolet following Jeff Gordon's retirement at the end of 2015. But for the young riders that are coming, if we start to retire many numbers it will become a nightmare.” But would also make for a fantastic story if they actually managed to bring those legendary digits back to the top of the world – something that has not been done since 2009. Association with a number can be cemented by the heroics of someone who carried it during their career. “The number 46 can be retired for sure. MotoGP has previous form when it comes to benching notable riders’ numbers at the conclusion of their careers. For a long time, at least, Valentino Rossi’s achievements in MotoGP will continue to be hailed. Although his final season last year ended with more of a whimper than a bang, the Rossi legend is immortal.

RNF Yamaha MotoGP rider Darryn Binder is to serve a long-lap penalty in the Italian Grand Prix for crashing under yellows earlier during the Mugello weekend ...

“In the last stint I was disturbed by another rider and I had to go to the gravel,” he explained, “and when I was cleaning the tyres a little another rider arrived. I accept it and I move forward.” According to Martin’s account, he was forced wide because of a move from an unnamed rider and ended up in the gravel trap. “Wilco went for me [to race control]. They [the team] took the screenshot of the corner, of the data, to show that I was going like 20kph slower into the corner. “I’ve been given a long-lap [penalty] for crashing under the yellow flag, which I knew was going to happen, but it’s unfortunate though because I really wasn’t pushing. “I was coming back to the box slowly because I had ruined the lap.

Gresini rookie Fabio Di Giannantonio took a shock maiden MotoGP pole in a rain-hit Italian Grand Prix qualifying which was red-flagged after a fiery Marc ...

But it was Di Giannantonio who emerged on top, the Italian firing in a 1m46.156s on his GP21 to lead VR46 duo Bezzecchi on his GP21 and Marini on his GP22 – doing so just hours after Valentino Rossi had his famous #46 retired from MotoGP. With rain closing in on the circuit, there was a scramble out of pitlane at the start of Q2 as the riders looked to get a lap in just in case of worsening conditions. Marquez was quick to his feet and made it back to his garage, with the session getting back underway 10 minutes later. But a heavy highside for Marquez at Turn 2 led to a red flag with 13 minutes and 50 seconds on the clock as his Honda erupted into flames and left oil on track. It would be Di Giannantonio who would come out of the session fastest on a 1m47.219s, from Marquez – who shadowed Jack Miller in the closing stages to get his 1m47.294s. But there was still time out on circuit on slicks, with Binder getting shuffled back as lap times continued to tumble as the session wound down.

Reigning MotoGP world champion Fabio Quartararo has criticised the decision to allow Italian Grand Prix qualifying to go ahead when it did as “conditions ...

Nobody pushes you to make a 1m46s. So, it was a very difficult qualifying.” “It was really not a good decision to make what we did. It was very dangerous, Casanova/Savelli, Arrabiata 1, Arrabiata 2, very dangerous. We have no intermediate tyres, so it was – especially the first five minutes – very scary. But in this track, we cannot wait for something to happen to postpone or to wait.

Six-time MotoGP world champion Marc Marquez will have a fourth operation on his right arm following the Italian Grand Prix and is likely to miss the rest of ...

This is exactly what they are going to do, and that’s the situation.” “But we all believe it is the correct timing. “In the past it was not ready, it was soft and it was not recommended but not it is recommended.

Gresini rookie Fabio Di Giannantonio says achieving an “incredible” maiden MotoGP pole position on Saturday at the Italian Grand Prix was “one of my ...

But we have the warm-up session to better understand which is our place. “For tomorrow, it’s a question mark. “It was such a great end of the day for me, and one of the dreams of my life is to be on top of the grid in MotoGP.

Rookie snatches pole in shock result as six-time champ to undergo surgery: MotoGP Wrap.

It’s the right time to do it”. He was one of two rookies in the top two positions alongside VR46 Racing Team rider Bezzecchi, who took second in the grid on his Ducati for his first ever top line finish in MotoGP, just 0.088sec behind Di Giannantonio. Gresini rider Di Giannantonio took top spot on the grid for the first time in his career on his final lap at Mugello, posting a stunning time of one minute, 46.156sec to pip countryman Marco Bezzecchi by just 0.088sec.

Jack Miller has been left to lament being “the donkey” after qualifying 13th for the Italian MotoGP on a day which unravelled due to a technical issue.

“So, I waited, went out on one tyre, had a bit of time in between, and went out on the second tyre, but when you wake up and you’ve got to go and immediately throw a lap time at it, it’s not the most ideal situation. They give you a bad feeling; that’s it. “It ruined the strategy in terms of the tyre plan; the only option we had if we wanted to make more laps on the second bike, apart from the new tyres at the end, was to go with the pre-heated tyres that were already pre-heated before yesterday.

Honda MotoGP rider Marc Marquez will have to undergo yet another surgery as a consequence of his career-altering 2020 injury.

That all comes on top of an already weakened right arm, the result of needing an extensive rebuild to his shoulder in the winter prior to the Jerez crash. He was arguably denied a chance to win for the seventh time in nine attempts at the Circuit of the Americas in April when his Honda suffered a technical problem that sent him to the back of the pack on the opening lap before rallying back to sixth – but it remains the only time this year that there’s been any sign of the old dominant Marc Marquez of 2019. No timeline for Marquez’s return has been mentioned, but he will presumably cede his bike to test rider Stefan Bradl, who has been his frequent stand-in over the last couple of years.

Six-time MotoGP champion Marc Márquez has opted to undergo a fourth surgery on his right arm and will be off the track for an unspecified period of time.

Now he will go back for another operation just 18 months since his last surgery. He is 10th in the point standings. The Spanish-born racer previously won two more world titles in lower categories.

Should Mugello MotoGP Q2 have started at all? Champion Fabio Quartararo is among the riders angry at how the weather situation was handled.

To make 1m46s for me, the track was good.” “Nobody’s pushing you to make 1m46s. “For sure you can crash maybe easier – but it was safe. “Today was quite OK. How many crashes did we have today? I think here in this case maybe we’re not talking about safety.” But if somebody – because it can happen…

Rookie Fabio Di Giannantonio has qualified on pole position for the first time in MotoGP, becoming the sixth different polesitter since the opening race of the ...

“It’s a P20 start for Mugello. It just was not our day, we’re lacking pace but we are trying. Fellon was another of the riders to come from Q1, making the top four in that session thanks to a triple tow with the chequered flag out. Indonesian GP winner Somkiat Chantra (Idemitsu Honda Team Asia) starts even further back, in 24th, after missing out on passage to Q2 by more than half a second. Q2 Q2 Q2 Q2 Q2 Q2 Early, Q2 was red flagged barely more than a minute in as a result of a big crash for Marc Marquez at Turn 2, rider ok but RC213V decidedly not. I think we have the potential to fight for the Top 10.” We’ll see how it goes tomorrow: the conditions will be very different, with lower temperatures than these two days, but I feel I have a good chance of fighting for the win.”

A stunning qualifying for the Italian MotoGP at Mugello left us shocked by several riders for different reasons, but who are they?

The factory KTM rider was the first to show his incredible bravery as he elected for slicks when the track remained wet. With that said, Mugello has looked like a real turnaround in form for Marini who will need to prove that he can remain in the battle for the podium during Sunday’s race, something he failed to do in both his previous P3 starts. Not known for his qualifying prowess, Di Giannantonio has put himself in with a great chance of fighting for the podium, if not more as conditions look to be just as unpredictable for the Grand Prix. And just like Di Ginnantonio, Bezzecchi proved to be more than a match for riders who have a lot more experience with MotoGP machines in such conditions. Just as impressive, Bezzecchi, who leads the rookie of the year standings at present, was the only rider consistently able to challenge Di Giannantonio throughout Q2. A stunning qualifying for the Italian MotoGP at Mugello left us shocked by several riders for different reasons, but who are they?

Gresini rookie Fabio Di Giannantonio says achieving an “incredible” maiden MotoGP pole position on Saturday at the Italian Grand Prix was “one of my ...

But we have the warm-up session to better understand which is our place. “For tomorrow, it’s a question mark. “It was such a great end of the day for me, and one of the dreams of my life is to be on top of the grid in MotoGP.

Gresini rookie Fabio Di Giannantonio took a shock maiden MotoGP pole in a rain-hit Italian Grand Prix qualifying which was red-flagged after a fiery Marc ...

But it was Di Giannantonio who emerged on top, the Italian firing in a 1m46.156s on his GP21 to lead VR46 duo Bezzecchi on his GP21 and Marini on his GP22 – doing so just hours after Valentino Rossi had his famous #46 retired from MotoGP. With rain closing in on the circuit, there was a scramble out of pitlane at the start of Q2 as the riders looked to get a lap in just in case of worsening conditions. Marquez was quick to his feet and made it back to his garage, with the session getting back underway 10 minutes later. But a heavy highside for Marquez at Turn 2 led to a red flag with 13 minutes and 50 seconds on the clock as his Honda erupted into flames and left oil on track. It would be Di Giannantonio who would come out of the session fastest on a 1m47.219s, from Marquez – who shadowed Jack Miller in the closing stages to get his 1m47.294s. But there was still time out on circuit on slicks, with Binder getting shuffled back as lap times continued to tumble as the session wound down.

It was easy to forget shock Mugello polesitter Fabio Di Giannantonio was even in MotoGP in the first part of the 2022 season.

His performances have been so low key that his struggles have been gone largely unseen, but he’s been distinctly on the back foot compared to the other rookies. “Honestly for tomorrow it’s a question mark,” he admitted in the front row press conference on Saturday afternoon. “And then to take pole position is something else.

Gresini rookie Fabio Di Giannantonio says achieving an “incredible” maiden MotoGP pole position on Saturday at the Italian Grand Prix was “one of my ...

But we have the warm-up session to better understand which is our place. “But also following Jack and Marc during Q1 that are the fastest guys in these conditions usually. “Already knowing more or less the conditions of the track were helping me,” he added.

MotoGP: "Following Marc and Jack helped me a lot. It's great to be here with all the other riders I grew up with. We celebrated Roma's success in the ...

"It is clear that with the rain at these speeds the safety is less than in the dry, but I think that being among the best riders in the world it was more than manageable for us in the end. It will certainly be an important opportunity to grow as a rider, but if I manage to finish in the top 10 it would already be a good result ". "The start of the season was not easy, food poisoning made me miss the chance to run a few more kilometres to sort out the setup at the start of the championship. "At the beginning I wasn't sure if I would be able to take pole - Fabio confessed - I knew I knew the circuit well and had a good pace, this gave me a lot more motivation so I said to myself let's wait, let's give it our all and see what happens. I was very focused until the last lap and in the end here we are, my first pole in MotoGP. It is the result of the work of the whole team, I feel comfortable on the bike and tomorrow we will exploit this advantage". Fausto Gresini's legacy continues to bear fruit in MotoGP. While the start of this championship has accustomed us to the talent of Bastianini who with his three victories in his ongoing fight for the championship, the success and surprise pole position at Mugello by Fabio Di Giannantonio can only fill Italian fans and the Gresini team itself with pride.

Who's got the Mugello MotoGP race pace? Who'll actually be able to use it? Who'll be riding like it's "the end of the world"?

“I know how they will ride though, and it will be difficult. It’s going to be difficult with a lot of Ducatis in front, but I will try. “With a hard front I feel extremely good, but with a medium I feel like the bike is going to close – and I don’t think I can use the hard.” “The bike was ready, very good,” he said of qualifying. “I think it’s going to be a fun race. “I think we’re going to have a good race and you guys are going to enjoy it.”

2022 Italian MotoGP, Mugello Circuit - Warm-up Results ; Official Mugello MotoGP records: Best lap: ; Fabio Quartararo FRA Yamaha ; 1m 45.187s (2021) Fastest race ...

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The French world champion hopes Marc will return to top form. When one star needs another and makes it public. Submitted by GPone on Sun, 29/05/2022 - 09:59.

Ducati's Francesco Bagnaia topped a tense third practice for the MotoGP Italian Grand Prix despite a crash, as Marc Marquez was only 21st.

Neither Suzuki rider could hold onto a place in Q2, with Alex Rins 12th and Mir 16th, while Miller failed to get his factory team Ducati into the top 10 in a disappointing 15th. While this was happening, Bagnaia was lighting up the timing screens and produced a 1m45.393s with 11 minutes to go to move almost half a second clear of the field on the combined times. At the same time factory Ducati rider Jack Miller was forced to stop at Turn 8 with a technical issue, while team-mate Bagnaia crashed at Turn 12 not long after – the Italian’s GP22 smashing its way to land on top of the tyre barrier.

Reigning MotoGP world champion Fabio Quartararo has criticised the decision to allow Italian Grand Prix qualifying to go ahead when it did as “conditions ...

“We are the best riders in the world and you need to perform at our best, especially in these conditions because the other riders can do this. “It was really not a good decision to do what we did. And then in the second part of the qualifying, it was almost not raining anywhere, it was quite dry, that’s why the lap times were so fast. Nobody pushes you to make a 1m46s. “We have no intermediate tyres, so it was – especially the first five minutes – very scary. But the marshals insisted with the rain flags.

Francesco Bagnaia beat title rival Fabio Quartararo to claim a home MotoGP win for Ducati at the Italian Grand Prix, as Marc Marquez made his last start for ...

Di Giannantonio faded to 11th in the end ahead of Aprilia’s Maverick Vinales, who salvaged 12th having qualified 24th. Up to second and defending from a retaliation by Marini into Turn 1 at the start of lap five, Quartararo wouldn’t be able to put his Yamaha into the lead as Bagnaia powered past into Turn 1 on lap six. Bezzecchi then powered past his GP22-mounted teammate Marini on the main straight to take the lead at the start of lap two on his 2021-spec Ducati.

Francesco Bagnaia beat title rival Fabio Quartararo to claim a home MotoGP Italian Grand Prix win for Ducati, as Marc Marquez made his last start for the ...

Di Giannantonio faded to 11th in the end ahead of Aprilia’s Maverick Vinales, who salvaged 12th having qualified 24th. Up to second and defending from a retaliation by Marini into Turn 1 at the start of lap five, Quartararo wouldn’t be able to put his Yamaha into the lead as Bagnaia powered past into Turn 1 on lap six. Bezzecchi then powered past his GP22-mounted team-mate Marini on the main straight to take the lead at the start of lap two on his 2021-spec Ducati.

Can you name every Italian rider to take part in a MotoGP-era (2002 onwards) premier-class grand prix race as of 2022?

Yamaha's Fabio Quartararo says he had “nothing to lose” in Sunday's MotoGP Italian Grand Prix to take a “precious 20 points” in second to extend his ...

“So, I think it was the best race. Ducatis were overtaking me on the straight, I was overtaking back. “I was not feeling good, but we thought that such a small difference on the fairing was a not a problem [to then ditch it] and we decided to go back with our standard bike.

Crash.net journalist Robert Jones runs through the field's rider ratings following an action-packed Italian MotoGP at Mugello.

Rins was unable to show the type of pace we’ve often seen from him in 2022, a surprise given Suzuki were expected to be very strong at Mugello. A three-time race winner so far this season, Bastianini appeared set for a late podium charge after rapidly catching the group in front. (Qualified 9th, finished DNF) Dovizioso was not only last of the four M1 Yamaha riders, but over half a minute down on Quartararo. Regularly four tenths off team-mate Quartararo during practice, Morbidelli’s home round at Mugello was a continuation of his disappointing 2022 season. With Jorge Martin struggling for form, Zarco continues to deliver for the satellite Ducati team.

Francesco Bagnaia beat title rival Fabio Quartararo to claim a home MotoGP win for Ducati at the Italian Grand Prix, as Marc Marquez made his last start for ...

Di Giannantonio faded to 11th in the end ahead of Aprilia’s Maverick Vinales, who salvaged 12th having qualified 24th. Up to second and defending from a retaliation by Marini into Turn 1 at the start of lap five, Quartararo wouldn’t be able to put his Yamaha into the lead as Bagnaia powered past into Turn 1 on lap six. Bezzecchi then powered past his GP22-mounted teammate Marini on the main straight to take the lead at the start of lap two on his 2021-spec Ducati.

Marc Marquez admits he wouldn't have taken part in the MotoGP Italian Grand Prix had news of his fourth arm operation come earlier than it did.

It was a difficult race, I enjoyed six, seven laps in the beginning. “I decided to continue the weekend because I have raced until now. Honda allowed me to choose what was best for me.

Marc Marquez finished tenth in his final MotoGP race before withdrawing to undergo a fourth operation on his weak and painful right arm.

No. The target of the operation is to try to enjoy riding again and have a normal life again. Marquez said Honda fully supported his decision: “I feel a very big respect, from Honda to myself. “My daily life is affected a lot [at the moment],” Marquez added. “Of course you are always worried about a fourth operation in the same arm. But I was here, Honda allowed me to choose and I decide to continue the weekend. “Having the operation is the correct decision for my future, but it’s not like I’ll have the operation and [automatically] win again. But it’s the correct decision because riding like this, I cannot continue,” Marquez said. I enjoyed 6-7 laps in the beginning, I did a great start and I saw the front group. But then I had one warning and I gave up, because already I started to get arm pump, with a lot of pain and a lack of power. “It’s an operation and everything can happen. “Today it was important not to make crazy things. And I was able to ride more or less in the same pace.

Marc Marquez admits he wouldn't have taken part in the MotoGP Italian Grand Prix had news of his fourth arm operation come earlier than it did.

It was a difficult race, I enjoyed six, seven laps in the beginning. “I decided to continue the weekend because I have raced until now. Honda allowed me to choose what was best for me.

Marc Marquez admits his “nightmare” scenario of having to likely miss the rest of the 2022 MotoGP season to have a fourth operation on his arm is his only ...

He added: “[It] looks like a nightmare but I believe soon I will come back. “And at 12 o’clock he called me and said ‘[there’s] no doubt, come. “In October when I had the first injury in my vision, I said to them ‘why don’t we consider to make something in that arm,’ but the bone was not fixed completely and they said the risk was too big and the first thing was myself, so I keep calm.

If anyone had any doubt who's the best rider in MotoGP right now, Fabio Quartararo's Mugello ride should've resolved it.

But there’s also the other thing – Quartararo is not making big mistakes. He is pushing, but he is not crashing. Arguably, at Mugello he even scored some ‘unavailable’ points. He was powerless to resist Francesco Bagnaia, but managed to keep him from ever completely breaking away. Quartararo’s self-praise has been a rather familiar refrain for 2022, and it can get on your nerves if you’re so inclined. His championship lead is doubled, and he has 41 points in hand over today’s race winner Bagnaia.