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2017 Japanese motorcycle Grand Prix

The 2017 Japanese motorcycle Grand Prix was the fifteenth round of the 2017 MotoGP season. It was held at the Twin Ring Motegi in Motegi on October 15, 2017. Andrea Dovizioso won his fifth race of the season after a last lap battle with championship leader Marc Márquez, shrinking his lead to 11 points with three rounds left to race.[4] Danilo Petrucci finished in third place over 10 seconds behind the leaders, while Team Suzuki teammates Andrea Iannone and Álex Rins finished fourth and fifth respectively.

Japan  2017 Japanese Grand Prix
Race details
Race 15 of 18 races in the
2017 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season
DateOctober 15, 2017
Official nameMotul Grand Prix of Japan[1][2][3]
LocationTwin Ring Motegi
Course
  • Permanent racing facility
  • 4.801 km (2.983 mi)
MotoGP
Pole position
Rider France Johann Zarco Yamaha
Time 1:53.469
Fastest lap
Rider Italy Andrea Dovizioso Ducati
Time 1:56.568 on lap 18
Podium
First Italy Andrea Dovizioso Ducati
Second Spain Marc Márquez Honda
Third Italy Danilo Petrucci Ducati
Moto2
Pole position
Rider Japan Takaaki Nakagami Kalex
Time 1:53.776
Fastest lap
Rider Spain Álex Márquez Kalex
Time 2:07.057 on lap 14
Podium
First Spain Álex Márquez Kalex
Second Spain Xavi Vierge Tech 3
Third Malaysia Hafizh Syahrin Kalex
Moto3
Pole position
Rider Italy Nicolò Bulega KTM
Time 2:09.320
Fastest lap
Rider Italy Romano Fenati Honda
Time 2:13.906 on lap 9
Podium
First Italy Romano Fenati Honda
Second Italy Niccolò Antonelli KTM
Third Italy Marco Bezzecchi Mahindra

Report

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Background

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During the previous round in Aragon, Marc Márquez won the race which extended his championship lead over Andrea Dovizioso to 16 points.[5]

Jack Miller missed the weekend due to an injury sustained to his right tibia during a test two weeks before the race, former 250cc world champion and Honda test rider Hiroshi Aoyama replacing him throughout the weekend.[6] Jonas Folger would also miss the race weekend due to a recurring battle with Epstein-Barr virus and would fly back to his home in Germany to recover, he was replaced by his team with Japanese rider Kohta Nozane.[6]

Practice and Qualifying

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During both practice sessions on Friday, rain dominated the race track.[5] On the first practice session, Marquez finished with the fastest time.[5]

With rain still occurring throughout the second practice, Dovizioso would run the fastest time of the weekend with Márquez finishing 0.2 seconds behind despite nearly falling off his Honda when setting his laps.[5] Surprisingly, Aleix Espargaró would set the third quickest time of the session, producing it on the last lap of the session, while Dovizioso's Ducati teammate Jorge Lorenzo finished fourth and Johann Zarco would finish fifth.[5]

Both KTM's would qualify to Q2, with Pol Espargaro ending the session in first place and Bradley Smith in second.[7]

At the beginning of Q2, Rossi grabbed attention by choosing to set his first laps on slick tyres with rain still falling on the track.[7] With five minutes to go in the session, Rossi's decision to start on slick tyres didn't work, while Marquez made the decision to complete his second qualifying run on slick tyres.[7] Zarco's pole would surprise everyone, despite the domination of Marquez and Dovizioso throughout the practice sessions. Marquez would qualify in third place, while Dovizioso qualified in ninth.[7]

Race

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The race was conducted in pouring rain which was to remain throughout the entirety of the race, with concerns over water flooding the track and poor visibility for the riders, leaving doubts as to whether the race would be safe enough to run full distance.[4][8] Márquez led the field into turn one, with Lorenzo leading the field after the first lap after an incredible start on his Ducati, while Zarco dropped to the middle of the field after a terrible start at pole position.[4][8] Petrucci took the lead from Lorenzo during the second lap and would be joined by Marquez and Dovizioso on the same lap, with Lorenzo dropping to fourth by the third lap.[8] Petrucci continued to extend his lead through most of the opening half of the race, leading the championship contenders by over a second.[4][8] Rossi became the first casualty of the race, while catching up and passing teammate Vinales in eighth place he would lose control of his bike, sliding into a nearby gravel trap and was unable to get his bike restarted.[8]

As riders continued to battle throughout the entire field, the race conditions gradually became worse with tyre spray impacting rider visibility due to the close proximity and battles with fellow riders.[8] With eleven laps to go, both Márquez and Dovizioso overtook Petrucci who would remain in third for the rest of the race with a "cat and mouse battle" happening between first and second.[4] During lap 19, Dovizioso made his first overtake on Marquez for the lead, setting the fastest lap of the race in the previous lap and began opening up a slight 0.8 second lead.[4][8] Three laps to go, Márquez took the lead back from Dovizioso and prepared to generate a slight lead throughout, which allowed Dovizioso to rethink a new strategy, to attack on the final lap.[4] On the final lap, Márquez and Dovizioso had a slight 0.2 second gap between them, with Marquez the first to make a mistake by running wide and nearly high-siding off the bike at turn 8, which allowed Dovizioso room to pass him and take the lead.[4][8] In a last ditch attempt to win, Marquez tried to overtake Dovizioso on the last corner, being able to get on the inside of the corner taking the lead back although would run ride when exiting the corner onto home straight, giving Dovizioso enough space to retake the lead and win the race.[4]

Post-Race

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The race is said to have cemented Dovizioso's ability to be able to fight for a championship, which was highly debated throughout the season as he continued his surprise charge at the championship.[8] Marquez remarked on the Ducati's incredible speed throughout the back straight as a weak point of his during the race, "I knew the Ducati was faster on the back straight, even in the braking point," when speaking about Dovizioso's victory Marquez stated he knew Dovizioso would be strong at Motegi as the track works to the Ducati's strengths, despite it being Honda's home track.[9]

 
Andrea Dovizioso and Marc Márquez, battling in the pouring rain for the lead at the MotoGP race. Dovizioso won the race, with Márquez finishing a close second

Classification

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MotoGP

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Pos. No. Rider Team Manufacturer Laps Time/Retired Grid Points
1 4   Andrea Dovizioso Ducati Team Ducati 24 47:14.236 9 25
2 93   Marc Márquez Repsol Honda Team Honda 24 +0.249 3 20
3 9   Danilo Petrucci Octo Pramac Racing Ducati 24 +10.557 2 16
4 29   Andrea Iannone Team Suzuki Ecstar Suzuki 24 +18.845 11 13
5 42   Álex Rins Team Suzuki Ecstar Suzuki 24 +22.982 10 11
6 99   Jorge Lorenzo Ducati Team Ducati 24 +24.464 5 10
7 41   Aleix Espargaró Aprilia Racing Team Gresini Aprilia 24 +28.010 4 9
8 5   Johann Zarco Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Yamaha 24 +29.475 1 8
9 25   Maverick Viñales Movistar Yamaha MotoGP Yamaha 24 +36.575 14 7
10 76   Loris Baz Reale Avintia Racing Ducati 24 +48.506 13 6
11 44   Pol Espargaró Red Bull KTM Factory Racing KTM 24 +56.357 8 5
12 21   Katsuyuki Nakasuga Yamalube Yamaha Factory Racing Yamaha 24 +1:00.181 23 4
13 22   Sam Lowes Aprilia Racing Team Gresini Aprilia 24 +1:00.980 18 3
14 8   Héctor Barberá Reale Avintia Racing Ducati 24 +1:03.118 17 2
15 53   Tito Rabat EG 0,0 Marc VDS Honda 24 +1:03.514 19 1
16 45   Scott Redding Octo Pramac Racing Ducati 24 +1:04.162 22
17 38   Bradley Smith Red Bull KTM Factory Racing KTM 24 +1:06.271 7
18 7   Hiroshi Aoyama EG 0,0 Marc VDS Honda 24 +1:13.250 21
Ret 19   Álvaro Bautista Pull&Bear Aspar Team Ducati 21 Accident 16
Ret 26   Dani Pedrosa Repsol Honda Team Honda 20 Rear Tyre 6
Ret 17   Karel Abraham Pull&Bear Aspar Team Ducati 19 Handling 20
Ret 35   Cal Crutchlow LCR Honda Honda 14 Accident 15
Ret 46   Valentino Rossi Movistar Yamaha MotoGP Yamaha 5 Accident 12
Ret 31   Kohta Nozane Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Yamaha 3 Accident Damage 24
Sources: [10][11][12]

Moto2

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Pos. No. Rider Manufacturer Laps Time/Retired Grid Points
1 73   Álex Márquez Kalex 15 32:08.901 2 25
2 97   Xavi Vierge Tech 3 15 +1.465 3 20
3 55   Hafizh Syahrin Kalex 15 +3.134 6 16
4 42   Francesco Bagnaia Kalex 15 +5.415 12 13
5 54   Mattia Pasini Kalex 15 +5.618 4 11
6 30   Takaaki Nakagami Kalex 15 +6.163 1 10
7 44   Miguel Oliveira KTM 15 +7.597 5 9
8 21   Franco Morbidelli Kalex 15 +11.400 15 8
9 77   Dominique Aegerter Suter 15 +11.572 11 7
10 7   Lorenzo Baldassarri Kalex 15 +14.310 30 6
11 12   Thomas Lüthi Kalex 15 +26.571 13 5
12 87   Remy Gardner Tech 3 15 +30.183 19 4
13 23   Marcel Schrötter Suter 15 +30.597 8 3
14 33   Ikuhiro Enokido Kalex 15 +32.037 25 2
15 6   Tarran Mackenzie Suter 15 +35.252 31 1
16 37   Augusto Fernández Speed Up 15 +38.385 10
17 27   Iker Lecuona Kalex 15 +40.934 18
18 49   Axel Pons Kalex 15 +41.470 16
19 40   Fabio Quartararo Kalex 15 +42.757 17
20 45   Tetsuta Nagashima Kalex 15 +43.147 29
21 24   Simone Corsi Speed Up 15 +45.410 28
22 34   Ryo Mizuno Kalex 15 +46.813 23
23 89   Khairul Idham Pawi Kalex 15 +50.531 33
24 32   Isaac Viñales Kalex 15 +51.898 22
25 2   Jesko Raffin Kalex 15 +53.699 27
26 62   Stefano Manzi Kalex 15 +1:01.051 20
27 57   Edgar Pons Kalex 15 +1:04.776 32
28 9   Jorge Navarro Kalex 15 +1:07.423 26
Ret 41   Brad Binder KTM 7 Accident 24
Ret 5   Andrea Locatelli Kalex 6 Accident Damage 14
Ret 11   Sandro Cortese Suter 6 Accident Damage 7
Ret 19   Xavier Siméon Kalex 5 Accident 9
Ret 10   Luca Marini Kalex 1 Accident 21
OFFICIAL MOTO2 REPORT

Moto3

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Pos. No. Rider Manufacturer Laps Time/Retired Grid Points
1 5   Romano Fenati Honda 13 29:22.278 6 25
2 23   Niccolò Antonelli KTM 13 +4.146 2 20
3 12   Marco Bezzecchi Mahindra 13 +5.013 4 16
4 24   Tatsuki Suzuki Honda 13 +8.767 14 13
5 44   Arón Canet Honda 13 +12.827 3 11
6 65   Philipp Öttl KTM 13 +14.865 21 10
7 21   Fabio Di Giannantonio Honda 13 +15.482 16 9
8 84   Jakub Kornfeil Peugeot 13 +15.625 19 8
9 64   Bo Bendsneyder KTM 13 +15.947 11 7
10 17   John McPhee Honda 13 +16.216 17 6
11 41   Nakarin Atiratphuvapat Honda 13 +16.414 12 5
12 8   Nicolò Bulega KTM 13 +18.783 1 4
13 16   Andrea Migno KTM 13 +19.057 10 3
14 42   Marcos Ramírez KTM 13 +19.536 22 2
15 88   Jorge Martín Honda 13 +21.208 7 1
16 33   Enea Bastianini Honda 13 +22.731 5
17 36   Joan Mir Honda 13 +23.879 20[N 1]
18 95   Jules Danilo Honda 13 +23.935 23
19 11   Livio Loi Honda 13 +33.663 15
20 40   Darryn Binder KTM 13 +34.695 25
21 27   Kaito Toba Honda 13 +39.533 27
22 4   Patrik Pulkkinen Peugeot 13 +48.473 28
23 14   Tony Arbolino Honda 13 +1:30.837 29
24 70   Tom Toparis KTM 13 +2:18.580 30
Ret 58   Juan Francisco Guevara KTM 11 Accident 18
Ret 19   Gabriel Rodrigo KTM 9 Collision 8
Ret 71   Ayumu Sasaki Honda 9 Collision 24
Ret 7   Adam Norrodin Honda 6 Accident 13
Ret 96   Manuel Pagliani Mahindra 1 Accident 9
Ret 48   Lorenzo Dalla Porta Mahindra 0 Engine 26
DNS 75   Albert Arenas Mahindra Did not start
OFFICIAL MOTO3 REPORT
  • Albert Arenas suffered a broken right hand in a crash during qualifying and withdrew from the event.

Championship standings after the race

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MotoGP

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Below are the standings for the top five riders and constructors after round fifteen has concluded.[13]

  • Note: Only the top five positions are included for both sets of standings.

Moto2

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Pos. Rider Points
1   Franco Morbidelli 256
2   Thomas Lüthi 237
3   Álex Márquez 180
4   Miguel Oliveira 166
5   Francesco Bagnaia 146
6   Mattia Pasini 135
7   Takaaki Nakagami 128
8   Simone Corsi 96
9   Hafizh Syahrin 86
10   Xavi Vierge 79

Moto3

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Pos. Rider Points
1   Joan Mir 271
2   Romano Fenati 216
3   Arón Canet 184
4   Fabio Di Giannantonio 146
5   Jorge Martín 135
6   John McPhee 112
7   Marcos Ramírez 107
8   Andrea Migno 106
9   Enea Bastianini 103
10   Philipp Öttl 101

Notes

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  1. ^ 6-place grid penalty.

References

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  1. ^ "2017 Japanese MotoGP". Motorsportmagazine.com. 16 October 2017.
  2. ^ Mitchell, Malcolm. "2017 MotoGP Class (FIM Grand Prix World Championship) Programmes - The Motor Racing Programme Covers Project". Progcovers.com. Retrieved 13 November 2018.
  3. ^ Mitchell, Malcolm. "Twin Ring Motegi - The Motor Racing Programme Covers Project". Progcovers.com.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i Marsden, Rory. "MotoGP Grand Prix of Japan 2017 Results: Winner, Standings and Reaction". Bleacher Report. Retrieved 2020-05-24.
  5. ^ a b c d e "MotoGP Japan 2017: Results, Practice 2 at Motegi". Fox Sports. 2017-10-13. Retrieved 2020-05-24.
  6. ^ a b McLaren, Peter (2017-10-16). "Japanese MotoGP - Race Results". Crash. Retrieved 2020-05-24.
  7. ^ a b c d "MotoGP Japan 2017: Qualifying live results, video stream, updates at Motegi". Fox Sports. 2017-10-14. Retrieved 2020-05-24.
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h i Lewis, Mike. "2017 Motegi MotoGP Race Result: The Fifth Time Is Charmed | MotoMatters.com | Kropotkin Thinks". motomatters.com. Retrieved 2020-05-24.
  9. ^ "Dovizioso wins to cut Marquez's lead". BBC Sport. Retrieved 2020-05-24.
  10. ^ "2017 Japanese MotoGP - Motor Sport Magazine Database". Motorpsortmagazine.com. 16 October 2017. Retrieved 13 November 2018.
  11. ^ "MOTUL GRAND PRIX OF JAPAN · MotoGP Race Classification 2017". Motogp.com. Archived from the original on 13 November 2018. Retrieved 13 November 2018.
  12. ^ "MOTUL GRAND PRIX OF JAPAN · MotoGP Race Classification 2017" (PDF). Resources.motogp.com. Retrieved 13 November 2018.
  13. ^ "Standings" (PDF). resources.motogp.com. 2017. Retrieved 2019-08-27.


Previous race:
2017 Aragon Grand Prix 		FIM Grand Prix World Championship
2017 season 		Next race:
2017 Australian Grand Prix
Previous race:
2016 Japanese Grand Prix 		Japanese motorcycle Grand Prix Next race:
2018 Japanese Grand Prix
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=2017_Japanese_motorcycle_Grand_Prix&oldid=1164023645"
  NODES
Note 4
Project 2