VOLUME 62 ISSUE 13 APRIL 1, 2025 P87
the procedure would have to be
reviewed and improved for fu-
ture races. And it mattered little
to
Marquez. Having just dem-
onstrated he could make his
closest rivals
dance to his tune,
he was keen to rub their noses
in it from the very start.
There were none of the first-
lap dramas that engulfed him in
the opening to Saturday's Sprint
when a hair-raising rear slide
had briefly allowed Bagnaia and
Alex Marquez (Gresini Ducati)
into play. A day on, and Marquez
senior eased clear of an early
group that included his brother,
Bagnaia, Di Giannantonio, Pedro
Acosta (Red Bull KTM) and
Franco Morbidelli (VR46 Ducati).
attempt to cover up the tactics
after the event. "When eight
minutes remained, I realized
that we did a mistake with the
rain [tires]," he said. "But I under
-
stood most of the riders were
[the
same]. I knew that if more
than 10 riders follow me, start
delayed, and everybody'd start
on the grid."
That just rubbed salt into the
wound for those four riders—Ai
Ogura (Trackhouse Aprilia), Brad
Binder (Red Bull KTM), Enea
Bastianini (Tech3 KTM) and
Luca Marini (Honda Castrol)—
who had correctly chosen slicks
before the original start. Track
-
house Team Manager Davide
Brivio
was apoplectic. "That's
not the way to manage a start,"
he said. "We took a gamble, the
right decision. The riders that
left the grid didn't. Our chance is
gone. I'm very upset."
Race Direction acknowledged
10 LUCA MARINI
8TH / 8TH MOTOGP
Luca Marini enjoyed his best result
so far on the Honda. "We confirm that
our package is improving with each
GP, and I think we were able to make
a good step with the setting. The bike
is working better, and I am enjoying
riding it, especially in the entry phase.
But there were some mistakes from
my side, which limited our perfor-
mance. I went with the wrong tire; I
put soft-soft, and it was not a mis-
take I have ever made before in this
situation. The track was able to dry
very quickly, unlike on Friday, when it
took a long time to dry. Even with the
wrong tire, we made a good race."
MYOWNRACE
