2022 Phillip Island - Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix

Great race. Kudos to Rins, I doubt that bike has had much development over the season.

Looks like MM is pretty fully back, I don’t like anyone else’s chances if the Honda is even half way decent next season. He has literally chances his arm sufficiently however, he should stop after 1 or 2 more seasons imo.

Barbedwirebikerr said:

Now, that is a race. Wish we had more of these kind of natural circuits.

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Absolutely.

These type of circuits now are a rarity amongst the manufactured for show type of many today or, as we find in Oz (as you would well know) there are lots of opposition to circuit development so perhaps some is circumstance.

but again, the Island delivers

michaelm said:

Great race. Kudos to Rins, I doubt that bike has had much development over the season.

Looks like MM is pretty fully back, I don’t like anyone else’s chances if the Honda is even half way decent next season. He has literally chances his arm sufficiently however, he should stop after 1 or 2 more seasons imo.

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Rins and Marquez were superb, absolutely brilliant and agree that this could be an MM omen, although it is also a different type of circuit to so many time will tell how teh arm goes on a less flowing circuit.

Big kudos as well to Bagnaia's smarts. On being advisedt hat Quartaro was out and he knew Aleix was behind, he rode a very smart race to try to set the pace, break the chasers and then realised when Rins and MM came throuogh that he was not going to be past so was safe there at worst and to not push stupidly

Gaz said:

Rins and Marquez were superb, absolutely brilliant and agree that this could be an MM omen, although it is also a different type of circuit to so many time will tell how teh arm goes on a less flowing circuit.

Big kudos as well to Bagnaia's smarts. On being advisedt hat Quartaro was out and he knew Aleix was behind, he rode a very smart race to try to set the pace, break the chasers and then realised when Rins and MM came throuogh that he was not going to be past so was safe there at worst and to not push stupidly

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It was more the impossible front end save in practice, just like the old days, which prompted me.

I believe what he himself says, that the mechanics of his arm weren’t right before the most recent operation. It should just be a question of regaining muscle strength now, which he would seem well on the way to doing and which shouldn’t be a problem by next season.

This was the circuit where he had the best chance of winning this year no doubt, but notwithstanding same that bike I am sure remained horrible with him sitting on it, he is just capable of riding around almost anything.

Agree it was great to watch and happy to see Rins win it.
Couldn't work out Marquez going soft on the rear tyre but he seemed to make it last.

Pecco should take the title from here. He deserves to, given the number of wins and the way he has come back from so many points down.

Incredible race. PI always delivers. More than delighted for Marc, he really seems to be back. Quartararo has disappointed me greatly with his mental form, shades of 2020. And Rins, take a bow. Interested to see how he does on Honda.

MichaelBolton said:

Incredible race. PI always delivers. More than delighted for Marc, he really seems to be back. Quartararo has disappointed me greatly with his mental form, shades of 2020. And Rins, take a bow. Interested to see how he does on Honda.

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Yes, I agree Fabio has notched down on the mental front over the last couple of months when he has been on the back foot. Shades of 2020 indeed. 2021 he notched up and he started this year pretty strong but dealing with his bike has taken its’ toll this year. Somebody has got to tell him to stfu when talking with a camera on.

Speaking of which, Marquez did exactly what I thought he was going to do in the pre podium televised segment: stfu.
I just watched him listen to the other two, filing away info in his brain to help him beat those guys next time. That’s what Fabio should do as well. But the younger guys seem to be all rainbow friendly with that chatter.

Should be a cracking end to the season with probably a few surprises in store.

I’ll be really curious to see what kind of bike Fabs gets next year. Meanwhile nobody else will be standing still. Honda will no doubt be trying to improve their ..... bike, along with every other manufacturer.

That was a great performance from Rins and a beautiful day at the island!

Bern1 said:

Yes, I agree Fabio has notched down on the mental front over the last couple of months when he has been on the back foot. Shades of 2020 indeed. 2021 he notched up and he started this year pretty strong but dealing with his bike has taken its’ toll this year. Somebody has got to tell him to stfu when talking with a camera on.

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Last season when Bagnaia started to win it was too late to choke. This season Bagnaia started to dominate earlier and Fabio seemed to have checked out mentally, already admitting defeat before most races. Not a good attitude to have with how self-fulfilling it seems.

Bern1 said:

Speaking of which, Marquez did exactly what I thought he was going to do in the pre podium televised segment: stfu.
I just watched him listen to the other two, filing away info in his brain to help him beat those guys next time. That’s what Fabio should do as well. But the younger guys seem to be all rainbow friendly with that chatter.

Should be a cracking end to the season with probably a few surprises in store.

I’ll be really curious to see what kind of bike Fabs gets next year. Meanwhile nobody else will be standing still. Honda will no doubt be trying to improve their ..... bike, along with every other manufacturer.

That was a great performance from Rins and a beautiful day at the island!

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The racers needs to get back to this mind set > SBK, Fogarty: “Kocinski, Edwards, and Slight, we hated each other … it was fun”

Stars of this round is definitely Marc & Rins. If Honda gets the bike sorted for 2023, Marc will school these boys. Ducati will need 8 more bikes on the grind.

Definitely can't complain about that race! Phillip Island delivers more often than not. If it weren't for Mugello, Phillip Island would be my favorite track on the calendar. Awesome ride by Rins. I was definitely pulling for him to win, even though it makes Suzuki's departure more puzzling and disappointing. Marquez rode well, considering how poorly Honda is doing this season, and Bagnaia rode a very sober race, after receiving the pitboard message that Quartararo was out.

Gutted for Miller, he deserved better, though the commentators were keen (?) to remind everyone that he took out Crutchlow during the British Grand Prix. Maybe not the best time to mention it, but whatever. Not sure if Alex Marquez missed his braking point, or if he just a bike somewhere on the way in. I muted it when the shouting started, and never got around to hearing the actual breakdown of the accident.

The constructor's championship was actually fun to follow at Phillip Island. Honda are on the verge of finishing last. Marquez piloted the RC to 2nd place, but Rins put his RR on the top step! Never saw that coming. Honda is 19 points down with 2 races remaining. Honda is last place is crazy to contemplate, regardless of the Marquez situation.

Keshav said:

Sorry - but I don’t buy into the Fabio becoming mentally week theme. Had he not been taken out in that earlier race, he would still be ahead in the points, DESPITE being a dog of an M1. He’s hardly ever had an unforced crash in all his premiere class races, as compared to Pecco who’s running a far superior bike, and had multiple unforced errors.

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The Yamaha has proven to be much worse than it initially appeared, which does exonerate Quartararo somewhat. However, this season is quite similar to last year, with Yamaha getting off to a great start, but failing to adapt as Ducati got their whizbang whirlygig dialed-in. The difference in 2022 is Quartararo's non-score in 3 of the last 4 rounds. Bagnaia was actually more consistent last year, but he has a better chance at taking the title this year due to Yam/Fabio's missteps.

For me the deal breaker was Aragon where he publicly proclaimed he was going to race aggressively and make contact if necessary. I didn't even blink when he went down in a ball of sparks, which was better than him knocking someone off after saying he was going to knock someone off, particularly in light of the somewhat unjust penalty he received at Assen. Anyway, we'll see what happens in 2023. If he bounces back, it's a good sign for mental strength.

Seem crashing riders off the track runs in Marquez family. Why is Alex even in GP, he has done nothing in this class except to crash and crash often. Miller lucky not to be injured. I would give him race ban, long lap penalty is not enough.

the doctor is ready

paparazzo said:

Seem crashing riders off the track runs in Marquez family. Why is Alex even in GP, he has done nothing in this class except to crash and crash often. Miller lucky not to be injured. I would give him race ban, long lap penalty is not enough.

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Crawl back under your rock.

Awesome, thanks duc!

Keshav said:

One of my fave tracks. I can still see Stoner drifting around those beautiful sweepers. I also remember one race where blinding torrential rains, and brutal gusts of wind made a .... mess of the weekend. After that one, I totally got why Barry Machine, wouldn't want to risk driving down there for the day. LOL. Hopefully the gods of racing aren't cruel enough to follow the last race with another rain debacle. That Ducatis will rule here, is a given.

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That aged well

Mir seems strong at the start too, but faded. I'm guessing he isn't back to full fitness yet.

Bern1 said:

Yes, I agree Fabio has notched down on the mental front over the last couple of months when he has been on the back foot. Shades of 2020 indeed. 2021 he notched up and he started this year pretty strong but dealing with his bike has taken its’ toll this year. Somebody has got to tell him to stfu when talking with a camera on.

Speaking of which, Marquez did exactly what I thought he was going to do in the pre podium televised segment: stfu.
I just watched him listen to the other two, filing away info in his brain to help him beat those guys next time. That’s what Fabio should do as well. But the younger guys seem to be all rainbow friendly with that chatter.

Should be a cracking end to the season with probably a few surprises in store.

I’ll be really curious to see what kind of bike Fabs gets next year. Meanwhile nobody else will be standing still. Honda will no doubt be trying to improve their ..... bike, along with every other manufacturer.

That was a great performance from Rins and a beautiful day at the island!

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I noticed that too, he was the same after Silverstone 2019 and I figured he was (rightly) pissed to be beaten by Rins on the line, but I guess he just hates everyone else and is there to win!

Great race. Always here, Assen & Mugello are the 3 best events of the yr, gee I wonder why? 3 Tracks F1 don't race at (yes I know F1 went to Mugello during COVID, but it is primarily a bike track).

Top 3 all rode great, Fabio is on the back foot and showing it sadly. But then look at where he is on the Yam vs the other 3. I don't see Franco getting any better next yr so it's going to be a long 2023 for Fabio with no other rider development input.