In a Grand Prix in which the scrapyard did good business, the only man happy to pay the bill was Marquez. Marc danced with his Honda well before the line, even wheelieing across the gravel at 200 km/h just to keep the crowd entertained. It couldn't have gone any better for the Spaniard.
Dovizioso's Sunday was rather different, who can at least put the incident behind him by focusing on his Ducati. On a contract not yet, but that's another story, one which Borgo Panigale top brass should soon put an end to. In Yamaha things were worse, except for those with a French passport.
Things are on the up in Suzuki, with Iannone putting his best foot forward. In the other classes, Bezzecchi, Baldassarri and Bagnaia are three 3 Bs who deserve an A.
THE GOOD – It's nice to see some young Italians running at the front, two of them leading the way in Moto3 and Moto2. Bezzecchi is a pleasant surprise, Bagnaia almost had to be there, and is passing the test. Then there is a reborn Baldassarri too. Bastianini and Arbolino were fighting for the podium until Canet threw an impromptu bowling match through the corner, Fenati was enjoying his best race so far this season when he lost out in the fight against Pasini. Others deserve a slap on the wrist but we'll turn a blind eye this time.
THE UGLY – Just think, the prettiest girl in school accepts your invite to dinner instead of going out with the football captain. You are dressed up to the nines, smelling good and are about to ring her doorbell when… a meteorite falls on your head. More or less what Dovizioso must have been feeling, considering he was enjoying his best ever race at Jerez. Things didn't work out with the Spainsh girl, but he has a French girl's number in his pocket.
THE BAD– Canet's penalty, the decision not to intervene in the in the case of the MotoGP pile up: we were about to write words of praise for a Race Direction that is finally showing sense. But Race Director Mike Webb's rebellious nature stops us. Dani Pedrosa went to see him to ask for an explanation (not a penalty) after the race, and the door was closed in his face. Form is required, in addition to content, or perhaps just some old-fashioned good manners.
THE DISAPPOINTMENT – Not even Jerez was able to change the fortune of the M1. Neither Valentino nor Vinales are particularly happy with their new role as subs, while their rivals continue to ride the wave. The Japanese have been warned, they need to turn things around. It will happen but in the meantime, the races are going by and the disappointment continues.
THE CONFIRMATION – A team that will move at the end of the year, a rider who has confirmed he will follow the same path, and yet it is Tech3 and Zarco who are responsible for giving Yamaha its only positive results right now. Johann is not messing around on board the Yamaha. He's been saying he wants to win a race for a while now and although he hasn't yet managed it, the result won't be long in coming.
THE MISTAKE – The difficulty coefficient was high because it takes a good aim and a little (bad) luck to knock out three riders at once. Compared to Aron Canet, his MotoGP colleagues made a rookie mistake. A pity that these are not knock-out races.
THE SURPRISES – Sometimes you just have to be in the right place at the right time and this was true for Andrea Iannone at Jerez. He made his life complicated with the wrong tyre, and then battled it out with Petrucci for a podium that he received like a gift. The Suzuki was understandably pleased, and hopes for more to come.
THE PASS– The smartest, considering how things went, was Marquez's move on Lorenzo. Marc waved goodbye to his rivals and stayed out of trouble. Recently, the guy able to do that is the guy who wins.
THE INTERESTING FACT – On lap 15, Valentino Rossi reached a milestone, having covered exactly 40,075 km during races, a figure equating to that of the earth's circumference. The Doctor may have completed a round the world trip, but recently he might have hoped to do so a little more quickly.
I TOLD YOU SO – “I've learned from my mistakes” repeated Cal Crutchlow, before putting himself on the market despite having a signed contract for 2019.