Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/671116
MOTOGP MOTOGP WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP ROUND 4 / APRIL 24, 2016 JEREZ CIRCUIT / JEREZ, SPAIN P76 had a dreadful weekend, quali- fying 11th and finishing lap one 14th. But he picked up the pace as the race wore on, and by lap 17 had made his way through a close four-bike battle and then caught and passed Pol Es- pargaro's Monster Yamaha for seventh. An excellent ninth followed a strong race for Eugene Laverty, on an Aspar Ducati GP14.2. The older Desmosedici showed up if Andrea Dovizioso's bad luck hadn't persisted. The Ducati rider had qualified fourth, and finished lap one behind Espar- garo. But trouble would soon see him drop behind Vinales af- ter several moments, then soon afterwards tour back to the pits complaining that the bike was handling dangerously. A leaking water-pump was spraying the back tire with coolant. Teammate Andrea Iannone keeping a persistent Aleix Espar- garo (Ecstar Suzuki) at bay. By the end, though, he gained pace to close to within three seconds, fourth was his first time off the Jerez MotoGP rostrum since his debut second place in 2006. Espargaro's fifth was his second in a row, managing to stay clear of teammate Vinales, who was never able to make up ground lost in the early laps. It might have been different MOTO2 The seemingly ever-cheerful Sam Lowes gave himself plenty to smile about at Jerez. Riding in his usual "Sideways Sam" style, the former World Supersport Champion claimed pole at the last gasp, and turned it into a clear first win of the season to extend his title lead. The race up front was rather austere, especially after three riders crashed out of the top six in the first four laps. By then, in fact, on only lap two, Lowes had seized the lead from second qualifier Jonas Folger (Dynavolt Kalex), and he stayed there to the end. Folger's pressure was constant until lap 18, when the gap opened to more than a second for the first time. He settled for second, a willing Lowes settled for first, almost 2.5 seconds clear as he wheelied over the line. "It was a long race, no doubt," said Lowes. "Track conditions have changed all weekend, and today they changed again. But the bike worked well. I wanted to win this one." With Simone Corsi (Speed Up) tumbling out of third on only the second lap, there was only one other overtaking move up front, when home favorite Alex Rins (Paginas Amarillas Kalex) slipped past Franco Morbidelli (EG-VDS Kalex) for third, on the same lap. The first four positions were settled. Rins got clear of the Italian, but while he pushed hard to close to within less than 1.5 seconds of Folger before half distance, thereafter the gap began to stretch again, to more than five seconds at the flag. Morbidelli gradually fell out of touch, and by around lap 20 he was coming under pressure from Lorenzo Baldassarri (Forward Kalex). This intensified until the last lap, when his attacker slipped off, remounting to finish out of the points. A strong start saw class rookie Miguel Oliveira (Leopard Kalex) not far behind in fourth, but by half distance, a high-class gang was closing the gap. This was led by Thomas Luthi (Garage Plus Kalex) from compatriot Dominique Aegerter (CarXpert Kalex), with defending champion Johann Zarco (Ajo Kalex), Takaaki Nakagami (Idemitsu Kalex) and for a time also Luis Salom (SAG Kalex). Well off form, Zarco had qualified way down in 15th, but he gained strength in the later laps, as Oliveira slipped off under attack from Luthi. Zarco then con- signed Luthi to sixth, in a potentially important piece of damage limitation as he strives to become the first to win back-to-back Moto2 titles. Luthi had his hands full fending off a resurgent Naka- gami on the last lap, with Aegerter out of touch in eighth, and Salom likewise in ninth. Xavier Simeon (QMMF Speed Up) had a lonely ride to tenth. Moto3 champion Danny Kent was another among several to crash, as was Rossi's half-brother Luca Marini, who remounted to finish 16th. The first win of the year stretched Lowes's advantage over Rins, 72 to 62. Zarco is next on 62, then Luthi (53) and Folger (47). Lowes was dominant at Jerez and extended his championship lead.