2017 Czech MotoGP: Marquez Triumphs With Clever Strategy

MotoGP returned after a month of hiatus as riders and team went on a summer break to relax and rejuvenate for the second half of the 2017 season. Brno sprang a surprise to riders with varying weather conditions which meant riders struggled to find the correct set-up. It was championship leader Marc Marquez who rode on the limit in the closing stages of qualifying to grab pole position by a whisker from Valentino Rossi followed by Dani Pedrosa. Race day lived up to the hype as Moto2 race was a wet outing making the track conditions difficult for the riders. All the riders switched to wet set-up bikes whereas the dry set-up machines awaited them in the pits as it was declared a flag to flag race. 

Marc Marquez was off from the line in a brilliant manner as he lead the race coming into the first corner while Rossi made a terrible start that pushed him down to fourth. Jorge Lorenzo who has received lot of flack for his poor performance also made a blistering start that saw him catapult from sixth place to second. Marquez held on to the lead as Lorenzo closed down on him and within few corners the Ducati rider was leading the Czech Grand Prix. Marquez was struggling on the wet tyres and as we could see from the aerial footage, the track was drying up fast. 

Lorenzo was riding fast and by end of first lap, he had almost a second lead on Marquez while Rossi was up in third. Marquez gambled by heading into the pits and switching to dry set-up bike while the leading pack of riders stayed put on the track. This strategy proved to be a master stroke for the youngest MotoGP champion as with the track drying up other riders were struggling for grip. While most of the other riders switched bikes, Rossi and Andrea Dovizioso stuck around and by then it was clear that both the Italian riders had goofed up their strategy. 

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Marquez’s brilliant strategy saw him rejoin the race with over 30 second lead on his team-mate Dani Pedrosa in second spot whereas Aleix Espargaro was running in third. Rossi was pushed down to 13th place and he was closely followed by Dovizioso. With almost 17 laps remaining in the race it was clear that Marquez was going to walk away with an easy win which he eventually did while Pedrosa finished second. Rossi was trying his best to limit the damage of his mistake and rode valiantly to finish a commendable fourth place just ahead of Cal Crutchlow. Maverick Vinales also paid the price of pitting a lap later than Marquez and Pedrosa as he finished third but the Spanish rider will be happy as his race pace wasn’t as good as his championship contenders. 

The win at Brno could be the turning point for Marquez as he now leads the championship standings by 14 points on Vinales with Dovizioso being a further 21 points behind and Rossi trails him by 22 points. The top four riders were separated by only 10 points prior to the Czech GP and undoubtedly the reigning MotoGP champion will be feeling on top of the moon and confident to register his fourth premiere class title. But this is motorcycle racing and Marquez also knows it too well that he can’t get too confident as standing can overturn in a matter of a single weekend with eight more races remaining the fight for the championship isn’t over yet. Also there was no champagne celebrations out of respect for MotoGP legend Angel Nieto who passed away few days back. 

Race Results:

1, Marc Marquez Honda 22 44'15.974

2, Dani Pedrosa Honda 22 12.438

3, Maverick Viñales Yamaha 22 18.135

4, Valentino Rossi Yamaha 22 20.466

5, Cal Crutchlow Honda 22 20.892

6, Andrea Dovizioso Ducati 22 23.259

7, Danilo Petrucci Ducati 22 24.079

8, Aleix Espargaro Aprilia 22 30.559

9, Pol Espargaro KTM 22 30.754

10, Jonas Folger Yamaha 22 33.236