MOTOGP
FIM MOTOGP WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP
ROUND 15 / OCTOBER 13-15, 2017
TWIN RING MOTEGI / MOTEGI, JAPAN
P74
speed in cold conditions, in
spite of being one of just six to
choose the extra-soft rear tire,
and eventually retiring "rather
than crashing," on a rogue rear
tire that just didn't work.
By contrast, Danilo Petrucci
(Octo Ducati) also chose the
extra-soft (so did Abraham,
Bautista and both KTM riders
Smith and Espargaro), and was
able to use it to lead 11 of the 24
laps, before he had to give way
touring around to a distant and
lonely ninth.
Out of the race: Valentino
Rossi, who managed to escape
without exacerbating his broken
leg from a second crash on the
weekend.
Out of luck: Jorge Lorenzo,
who again led early on, only to
struggle and lose momentum
before recovering to sixth.
And out of the picture: Dani
Pedrosa, never quite up to
The first of three flyaway races
on the trot, the Japanese GP
served to cut the championship
battle to just two contenders,
but at the same time to heighten
the tension, as Dovizioso closed
back up again on Marquez,
whose lead shrank back to 11
with three races remaining.
Out of the hunt: Maverick Vi-
nales, stricken with increasingly
familiar rear-grip problems with
his factory Movistar Yamaha, and
The spray going into turn one was like riding through a car wash.
