dictable. The longest lap of the
year and 18 corners of great vari-
ety are a heady mix. And the last
eight British GPs there have had
a different winner every time.
This year it was Bagnaia's and
Ducati's turn. Slightly unexpect-
edly. Fabio Quartararo was
invincible there last year, and
although he did have a long-lap
penalty to deal with, this is less
severe at Silverstone than at (for
example) Misano—1.5 seconds
loss versus something closer
to five (how can any of the FIM
Stewards think that these penal-
ties—so widely different from one
track to the next—can be consid-
ered fair?)
Anyway, Fabio was expected
to be able to make that up. He
won by 2.6 seconds last year
and hardly broke a sweat.
But the penalty, taken per-
force early in the race with the
pack still close, cost him four
positions. That, in turn, put him
in the Yamaha's bad place—be-
hind other bikes. When that hap-
pens, especially in hot weather
L
ong summer break was
good. Going grand prix
racing again, better.
Especially when it is at Silver-
stone—not the world's best track
for spectators (atmospheric for
sure, but the action is too far, too
fast), but one of the very best for
racing. Right up there with Phil-
lip Island, Aragon and the late,
lamented Brno.
Not least because its subtle-
ties and speed make it unpre-
P132
CN
III IN THE PADDOCK
BY MICHAEL SCOTT
EXPLAINING THE
INEXPLICABLE
A long-lap penalty and overly
heated tires was a double
whammy for Fabio Quartararo at
Silverstone.
PHOTO: GOLD & GOOSE
