was 6.7 mph slower compared to
practice, while Bagnaia was 3.8
mph down on average. Vinales and
Joan Mir, by contrast were only
2.8 mph and 2.7 mph respectively
slower on race day. So why were
the Ducatis blunted? Yamaha's
traction in the lower gears was one
thing: "Maverick had this strong
advantage in second, third," said
Zarco. "Almost a bit in four, but
second and third, all the meters he
was gaining." Bagnaia put it down
to the severe headwind. "So, I think
the biggest thing was for the wind."
As this track is critical on fuel con-
sumption, could it also have been
the Ducatis had to conserve fuel for
most of the race?
KTM UPSET AT
MICHELIN
Testing times here were indicative
of what was to come for KTM. The
Austrian manufacturer faced a real-
ity check with factory riders Miguel
Oliveira and Brad Binder finishing
race one 13th and 14th—a far cry
from where they finished 2020.
Oliveira went one step further, criti-
cizing Michelin's front tire allocation,
and how the options didn't suit their
machine. The soft front—used by
everyone in the race—was too soft
for KTM's riders. But the medium,
in Oliveira's eyes "is just wrong." A
lack of response from the French
firm after he pointed this out in pre-
season testing was "disappointing."
"To be honest it is really disappoint-
Briefly...
with his holeshot device that
saw him plummet back through
the field. His fastest lap was a
1:55.815 compared to race win-
ner Vinales' best of a 1:54.624.
In the championship stand-
ings, they are as the race order
finished: Vinales on top (25)
from Zarco (20) and Bagnaia
(16).
Round two of the 2021 Mo-
toGP World Championship is
this weekend, again at the Losail
International Circuit.
MOTOGP
FIM MOTOGP WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP
ROUND 1 / MARCH 26-28, 2021
LOSAIL INTERNATIONAL CIRCUIT / DOHA, QATAR
P58
Pol Espargaro's pace shown
in preseason testing wasn't on
display at round one, although
he did salvage eighth place, half
a 10th of a second behind his
brother, Aleix. He'll be hoping for
more at round two.
