VOL. 55 ISSUE 16 APRIL 24, 2018 P57
tedly, Ecstar Suzuki rider Andrea
Iannone—both rider and bike ap-
parently transformed—did nose
ahead briefly on lap two. But
it was only for a few yards into
the far hairpin. Marquez took it
back on the way out, and simply
motored away.
"I was able to lead the first
lap, and when I got the gap to
about seven seconds, I man-
aged it," Marquez said. He'd
had his first crash of the season
the day before in qualifying, but,
"I didn't have any moments in
the race."
BY MICHAEL SCOTT
PHOTOGRAPHY BY GOLD & GOOSE
N
othing could stop Mar-
quez in Texas. Not
lingering controversy from
Argentina. Not another penalty
denying him pole position. Not
his dislike of leading from the
first lap. Not a series of bumps
that some riders called "danger-
ous," not the booing of an unap-
preciative podium crowd.
And especially not any of his
MotoGP rivals.
The Repsol Honda rider was
simply imperious over 20 laps
of the equally majestic COTA
circuit.
The statistics say it all.
This was Marc's sixth win in a
row at the circuit outside Austin.
His 10th MotoGP win in a row in
the USA.
And, counting Moto2, his 12th
in a row at the three American
tracks he has raced at.
Unbeatable.
It made for a somewhat pro-
cessional race, after he seized
the lead on the first lap from the
second row of the grid. Admit-
King Marc VI
MARC MARQUEZ PROVED HE IS ABSOLUTELY
UNBEATABLE IN THE U.S. AS HE ROMPED AWAY
TO ANOTHER COMMANDING WIN UNDER
THE TEXAS SUN
