VOL. 55 ISSUE 42 OCTOBER 23, 2018 P71
Bezzecchi (Redox Pruestel
KTM) was brought down in the
last corner for zero points. In
Japan, it was points leader Jorge
Martin who fell, while Bezzecchi
snatched his third win on the final
run to the line.
The title gap closed again—to
just one point.
Martin fell at the tricky 90-de-
gree Turn 11 at the end of the
downhill straight, put off line while
fighting to regain positions in a
tight 10-strong leading pack. He'd
been looking good for a top three
when, a couple of laps earlier at
the same place, he collided with
Bezzecchi and dropped to the
back of the gang.
His Del Conca Gresini Honda
teammate Fabio Di Giannantonio,
whose Thailand win brought him
close to Bezzecchi in the cham-
pionship, had fallen earlier; a
big high-side at the next corner.
Helicoptered to hospital, he was
passed free from serious injury.
Top Honda was Leopard rider
Lorenzo Dalla Porta, his third
podium in four races. He claimed
second by the narrowest of
margins, 0.001 of a second, in a
photo finish with podium first-
timer Darren Binder.
The South African younger
brother of Brad had bounced
back after a dire season on the
Red Bull KTM, a settings break-
through allowing him to claim the
lead on the last lap. A missed
gear on the final run let both
Bezzecchi and (by inches) Dalla
Porta past. The top three were
covered by 0.042 of a second.
That finally let Oliveira through,
and he stayed ahead of the rest
to the end.
Alex Marquez (EG-VDS Kalex)
had dropped back to ninth by lap
eight, but by the end had gained
speed to reverse his fortunes,
regaining one place after another.
He battled back ahead of second
Red Bull KTM rider Brad Binder
for an eventual fourth. Second
Pons HP40 rider Augusto Fernan-
dez was close behind the pair.
Vierge was now a little back,
holding off first-time front-row
starter Iker Lecuona (SII KTM),
with SKY VR46 Kalex rider Luca
Marini still close. Marcel Schrot-
ter (Dynavolt Kalex) was never
in touch with the gang, but was
promoted to tenth.
The next trio also gained
one place, with Joan Mir (EG
VDS Kalex), Tetsuta Nagashima
(Idemitsu Kalex) and Dominique
Aegerter (Kiefer KTM) all close,
Mattia Pasini (Italtrans Kalex)
some three seconds adrift; and
Remy Gardner (Tech 3), fending
off Andrea Locatelli's Italtrans
Kalex, moved up into the points.
American Joe Roberts was
18th, holding off his NTS team-
mate Steven Odendaal and
European champion Jesko Raffin
(SAG Kalex).
Bagnaia has 284 points, Oliveira
247, then Binder (168), Baldassarri
(152) and Marquez (139).
Moto3
What goes around comes
around. Two weeks ago, in
Thailand, title challenger Marco
onds away, with a similar margin
of safety behind him.
There was some shuffling in
the big chase group, though it
was mainly through small errors
in the heat of battle, for the pres-
sure was intense.
Xavi Vierge (Dynavolt Kalex)
led the group until lap 14, then
ran wide into the crucial Turn 11.
