Misano GP Preview: Can Rossi extend his lead or will Lorenzo rain on his parade? and what about the Hondas?

Will Jorge Lorenzo convert his pole finish into a win on Sunday?

The latest round on the MotoGP calendar had its edge of the seat thrills and spills. As my last article suggested there was definitely a surprise on the cards but it was from the least expected person Danilo Petrucci on board the Pramac Ducati in second place and Dovizioso in the factory Ducati completing the all-Italian podium with the Yamaha of Valentino Rossi taking the win.

Now as we move to the next round in Misano, San Marino the plot thickens. Valentino Rossi will be the favorite to win the race in front of his adoring fans. But Jorge Lorenzo is not far behind in his quest to break Marc Marquez’s Championship streak and Marquez himself will be looking for his 3rd title, and who can forget those pesky Ducatis of Dovizioso, Iannone and now Danilo Petrucci.

The action is not limited to the premier class, but the junior classes, Moto2 and Moto3 provide the same amount of entertainment. The Marco Simoncelli World Circuit is a tricky track to master, with a series of right-hand corners, which are taken almost flat out before going hard on the anchors for a tight right-handed hairpin. A couple of years ago that same set of right-handers claimed a victim in the Moto2 category by the name of Shoya Tomizawa.

Moto3

Danny Kent took the top honors in his home in Silverstone and was joined on the podium by Jakub Kornfeil and Niccolo Antonelli in 2nd and 3rd respectively. Silverstone was a chaotic race with riders slipping and falling everywhere, but Kent kept his bike upright and closed out an absolutely dominant win. He now leads the championship by a hefty margin over Enea Bastianini, Miguel Oliveira and Efren Vazquez who are his closest rivals. As of Practice 1 and 2 Bastianini and topped the timesheets respectively. Fenati and Binder were 2nd and 3rd behind Enea in FP1.

Antonelli and Oliveira settled behind the pace setter Kent in FP2. FP3 saw Kent back on top with Binder and Antonelli behind him. In terms of the championship, Danny Kent is the runaway leader but it is still mathematically possible for Bastianini, Oliveira, Vazquez and Fenati to catch him but time is running out and the Briton is in the form of his life. Heading into qualifying and race anything can happen.

Unfortunately French teenage sensation Fabio Quartararo was ruled out of the race with a nasty leg injury sustained in FP2 and Jorge Navarro was injured in a heavy shunt in FP1 thus dealing a blow to the Estrella Galicia Team. Qualifying was a close affair with Bastianini edging out Binder and Kent. Meanwhile Fenati, Oliveira and Vazquez kept themselves in the hunt in 5th, 6th and 7th respectively. India Watch: Highest placed Mahindra was Bagnaia in 12th.

Moto2

Silverstone was claimed by a magnificent ride by Zarco with Rins and Rabat in 2nd and 3rd. Johann Zarco has now firmly inserted himself in the driving seat for the championship battle. Rabat, Rins and others are trying to crank up the heat in their chase. Rabat rocketed into the lead in the practice sessions, but Johann wasn’t far behind. Rins too made his presence felt by also mixing it up with the top riders. Simone Corsi was the real surprise by topping in FP1 with Zarco and Folger behind him. FP2 saw Rabat, Aegerter and Baldassarri in that order and FP3 resulted with the usual suspects Rabat, Zarco and Rins in the top three. Qualifying resulted in pole position for Johann Zarco by 0.002 seconds from Rins in 2nd and Tito Rabat in 3rd.

MotoGP

Yamaha and Honda move to this next round locking horns for the constructors title. Ducati are waiting in the wings to pick up the pieces. FP1 went to Marquez with Lorenzo 2nd and Ducati test rider Michele Pirro 3rd. FP2, FP3 and FP4 saw Lorenzo’s reply in his usual spectacular fashion by topping the timesheets all the way. FP2 ended with Marc and Dani in 2nd and 3rd. FP3 saw no change in the top 3 other than Rossi who was 5th in the previous session exchanging places with Pedrosa. FP4 saw Dani and Valentino exchange places yet again but no change in the top two. Qualifying spoils went to Jorge with Marquez and Rossi in 2nd and 3rd and Pedrosa making it a Honda vs. Yamaha slugfest in 4th. The only Ducati who was within reach of the 2 Asian giants was Michele Pirro in 5th outpacing Iannone and Dovizioso.

As always we will be treated to a cracking race come Sunday so sit back and enjoy the race