MOTOGP
FIM MOTOGP WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP
ROUND 17 / NOVEMBER 2-4, 2018
SEPANG INTERNATIONAL CIRCUIT / KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA
P52
BY MICHAEL SCOTT
PHOTOGRAPHY BY GOLD & GOOSE
T
he last time Valentino Rossi and Marc
Marquez clashed at Sepang was in
2015, and one of them fell off. It was
Marquez, and there is still controversy over
whether Valentino had caused it by kicking
him.
The same thing happened in 2018, but the
other way around. This time Marquez didn't
need to be close enough to kick. He just had
to apply pressure on the long-time leader,
grabbing back a few tenths of a second every
lap, so by lap 16 of 20 of the fine Malaysian
circuit, he had halved what had four laps ear-
lier been a lead of 1.2 seconds.
As the much-decorated veteran Movistar
Yamaha rider wheeled into the first corner, a
tight right-hander, he demonstrated just how
much both riders were the on the limit—by
going a little bit over it. The front tucked, the
rear let go, and he slid to earth as the Repsol
Honda cut through inside him.
It was the 2018 champion's ninth win of
the year, and a valuable one for his employ-
ers. With Andrea Dovizioso just sixth of the
best of the Ducatis, it secured Honda's 25th
Constructors Championship. And with the
second factory Honda rider Dani Pedrosa
at last being able to enjoy hot conditions
that helped the ultra-lightweight make the
Michelins work, equaling his season's-best
fifth, their combined score lifted the Repsol
PRESSURE
COOKER
IT LOOKED LIKE A SUPREME RETURN TO VICTORY
LANE WAS ON THE CARDS FOR VALENTINO
ROSSI, BUT THE VETERAN CHAMPION WAS
UNABLE TO WITHSTAND THE RELENTLESS
PRESSURE OF THE MAN LOOKING TO SURPASS
ALL HIS RECORDS—MARC MARQUEZ
