MotoGP Japan: PH2

Could a wet race be just what The Doctor ordered?

Everyone has long suspected that Rossi has a direct line to the man above, so it wasn't much of a surprise that having been beaten by Lorenzo in dry qualifying, race day brought with it the rain. Rossi loves the wet, Lorenzo is less of a fan, all of which meant the Japanese round of MotoGP promised to be a cracker.

From the off it was Lorenzo in the lead with Rossi behind and Pedrosa once again looking to spoil the Yamaha party. Fair play to Lorenzo, you can never write him off and even in the wet he looked like he was about to do his usual check out at the front routine while behind him Rossi was just ahead of Dovi. Could Rossi close the gap once the race settled down?

A clear track and Lorenzo's focus means it doesn't matter if it is wet or dry and by mid-race he had a three-second lead and looked like he hadn't a care in the world. But then Rossi started to up the pace a bit, could he force the Spaniard into a mistake? And, more importantly, what was going on with Dani, who was going like a rocket! With 11 laps to go, Dani looked like he could catch Rossi and possibly even Lorenzo by the end of the race.

Nine laps left and Dani was past Rossi and hunting down Lorenzo as it looked like the Yamaha riders had front tyre issues with their wets. Could Rossi hang onto his coat tails and bridge the gap to Jorge? When it comes to managing knackered tyres, Rossi is the man while Lorenzo needs a lot of confidence in the front.

With Dani long gone, Lorenzo ran wide with five laps to go and Rossi slipped past with a massive grin on his face. Advantage Rossi? You had to imagine he wasn't going to surrender his new lead. Worse still for Lorenzo, Dovi and Marc weren't that far behind and his front tyre was only going to get worse.

In the end Dani took a fantastic win, Rossi a crowd-pleasing second and Lorenzo a welcome (and relieved) third. Rossi now has a 18-point advantage in the championship, something that you can tell by looking at Lorenzo's face on the podium! If it rains in Malaysia or Phillip Island, Rossi might just take this title. However Dani is looking like the most likely party pooper...

Moto2 and with Rabat out of the race, Japan saw Johann Zarco crowned Moto2 world champion with dominant win at Motegi. Sam Lowes finished a decent eighth place. Moto3 and a wet race wasn't exactly the ideal situation for Danny Kent, whose title nerves are already threatening to get the better of him this year when he should have cruised to the championship. Down in 14th, the opening few laps were a case of settling down and keeping it upright, which is exactly what he did. A solid race saw Kent finish in sixth, overtaking title rival Bastianini on the last lap and firming up his title chances. Nice work.

Results

MotoGP
1st: Pedrosa (Repsol Honda Team)
2nd: Rossi (Movistar Yamaha MotoGP)
3rd: Lorenzo (Movistar Yamaha MotoGP)

Moto2:
1st: Zarco (Ajo Motorsport)
2nd: Folger (AGR Team)
3rd: Cortese (Dynavolt Intact GP)

Moto3:
1st: Antonelli (Ongetta-Rivacold)
2nd: Oliveira (Red Bull KTM Ajo)
3rd: Navarro (Estrella Galicia 0,0)

Brit watch:
Cal Crutchlow (MotoGP) - 6
Bradley Smith (MotoGP) - 7
Scott Redding (MotoGP) - 10
Eugene Laverty (MotoGP) - 17
Sam Lowes (Moto2) - 8
John McPhee (Moto3) - 9
Danny Kent (Moto3) - 6

Previous rounds:
MotoGP USA
MotoGP Qatar
MotoGP Argentina
MotoGP Jerez
MotoGP France
MotoGP Italy
MotoGP Spain
MotoGP Assen
MotoGP Germany
MotoGP Indianapolis
MotoGP Czech Republic
MotoGP Silverstone
MotoGP Misano
MotoGP Aragon