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In Texas they go mad for BBQs and Marc Marquez honoured this local traditional by cooking all his rivals. The cowboy took no prisoners, demonstrating once and for all that he's the only sheriff in town.
Lorenzo realised how it would play out and limited the damage as best he could, while Rossi proved fallible. Iannone boosted morale with a podium, while Dovizioso once again saw his dreams go up in smoke through no fault of his own.
THE GOOD – He hadn't forgotten how to win and we hope he remembers this lesson given to his rivals. Finally Romano Fenati bucked the trend after so many failures. He has set out to win the world title and this is step one, but he can't afford any mistakes from now on.
THE BAD – In theory the law is the same for everyone, but no-one believes this in MotoGP. After crashing at the first corner in free practice, Marc Marquez got back on his bike and returned to the pits, cutting the track. You can't do this, and he at least deserved a telling-off but Race Direction was, once again, nowhere to be seen. And anyway, the Spaniard certainly doesn't need this kind of help, with eyes closed at the right moment.
THE UGLY – it isn't nice to talk about bad luck, but it is necessary. The #4 Ducati is a moving target and taking out Dovizioso is an Olympic event awaiting homologation. Without these events, Andrea would be second in the championship with a record number of podiums but the classification doesn't take parallel universes into account unfortunately.
A footnote: Pedrosa showed his correctness, apologising – twice – to Dovi. This should be the norm, but Dani should be seen as an example.
THE DISAPPOINTMENT – The eyes are crazy, but so are his first three GPs. Cal Crutchlow returns to Europe with a zero, not in votes but in the standings. The Brit is fast but hasn't yet finished a race. 15 more to go.
THE CONFIRMATION – If he were a film, we'd be bored after ten minutes, but he is Marc Marquez and we can't blame him. We could have awarded him the Austin GP even in absentia, such is his superiority. He makes no mistakes, takes no risks, and brings home the goods, as well as top marks.
THE ERROR – One mistake in every 24 races can be forgiven. Even Valentino Rossi had to succumb to the laws of physics as written by Michelin. A minor sin, like Lorenzo's in Argentina, but a problem shared is not a problem halved.
THE SURPRISE – The new Aprilia was born late, but thanks also to some crazy races it's proving its worth. The RS-GP still has to develop, but Bautista and Bradl are already able to bring home points and some decent results.
THE PASS – Niccolò Antonelli had a to make many, to move up from 30th to 7th, before a crash put paid to his efforts. The Italian once again showed what's he made of, and there's still time for him to redeem himself.
THE INTERESTING FACT – The Stars and Stripes was lowered at Austin. For the first time in many years there was not one American on the grid in any of the three classes.
I TOLD YOU SO – Marc Marquez on Saturday: “I won't start the race thinking that my fourth win at Austin is a cert”. Him no, everybody else yes.
