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MotoGP, Marquez and Dovi's dream, Yamaha's nightmare

THE ANALYSIS - The standings under the microscope: Marc a rock-breaker from Barcelona onwards, Andrea takes the long-distance approach, Rossi and Vinales dropping back

MotoGP: Marquez and Dovi's dream, Yamaha's nightmare

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This year's MotoGP is a sport for the well-trained and strong of heart. Seven races from the end, eleven already run, and nothing is clear as yet. The tyres, electronics, weather or whether Saturn is in conjunction with Pluto may all well play a part, but there are just 35 points between leader Marquez and Pedrosa in 5th, with 175 still to be awarded.

The balanced standings are striking but something seems to have changed over recent races, with certain manufacturers and riders trying to break away. With this graph you can see the 'power curve' for the 5 riders leading the championship, or rather Marquez, Dovizioso, Vinales, Rossi and Pedrosa, in order as things stand right now.

MARQUEZ' SPRINT - Looking at the lines, it's immediately clear that Marquez' is the steepest. At Mugello, the current world champion was 37 points behind then leader Vinales. 5 races later and he's 24 points ahead, which means he's scored 71 more than his fellow countryman.

Look at the standings: from Barcelona onwards, Marquez is the only rider to have reached the podium each time, with the double win at in Germany and the Czech Republic the icing on the cake.

Has Marquez suddenly woken up? He's definitely made less mistakes and, at the same time, Honda has taken a step forward. For confirmation, look at Pedrosa's results, he too has been on the podium each time with the exception of the Dutch crash.

To sum up, in the first six races Marquez did his bit, but with a less than perfect bike he was forced to take risks, with the zeros of Argentina and France demonstrating this. He can now go back on the attack as, as he himself stated in Austria after attempting that move on Dovi at the last corner, he can now feel “the bike's limit and this allows me to try certain manouevres”.

THE YAMAHA CRISIS - As one Japanese bike rises, another drops, the M1 in this case. The Iwata bike seemed perfect at the first three races, two wins with Vinales and three podiums with Rossi. The problems started in Europe. Tyre issues at Jerez and Barcelona and an entire project called into question. Though in France they could have done the double (or the triple with Zarco) if Valentino hadn't crashed.

The new frame arrived during testing after the Catalunya GP, built according to the Doctor's indications. The Dutch win appeared to confirm the validity of the change, but that flash was followed by a return into darkness.

In the last 3 GPs, the Maverick- Valentino pairing has collected just one podium. While Marquez has scored 106 points, Dovizioso 79 and Pedrosa 71 during the last 5 races, Vinales has had to settle for 45 points, Rossi 66.

In Yamaha, right now, confusion seems to reign, especially with regard to Maverick, who often shakes his head without understanding what's going on. Rossi hasn't stopped pointing fingers at the Japanese technicians, guilty of having gone down a path other than that he himself had indicated.

However you put it, the M1 is having a hard time of it, as are its riders. The priority now is to regain the balance.

DOVIZIOSO, LONG-DISTANCE ATTACK - We haven't forgotten about Dovizioso, the most consistent rider. Andrea, together with Valentino, is the only one to have scored just one DNF (when he was knocked down by Aleix Espargarò in Argentina), while his direct rivals have suffered two.

Dovi has also scored 3 wins, the same number as Marquez and Vinales. This number says a lot about both his current form and the Desmosedici's progress. He himself states he is a “championship rider”, or rather one who always races with the standings in mind. This year, though, he has proved that he can also give in to his irrational side when he needs to, watch the Red Bull Ring for confirmation of this.

Dovizioso seems to be the perfect rider in a championship where you need to know how to attack when needed and defend when you're in trouble. If there are roses, they will bloom… and Andrea has many buds on his stem.

Translated by Heather Watson
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