MotoGP Stats update heading to Misano

MotoGP Stats Update
Misano 2018

Marc Marquez is leading the Championship with 59 points ahead of Valentino Rossi; this is the highest margin after the opening eleven races of the season in the premier class since 2014 and the 77-point margin between Marc Marquez and Dani Pedrosa after the Czech GP.

Marc Marquez’ second place finish in Austria was his fifth podium finish in a row. The last time he had five successive podium finishes was last year. At Misano, he will be aiming to finish on the podium at six successive races for the first time since 2014.

Andrea Dovizioso stood on the podium for the 87th time in his Grand Prix career at the Austrian GP, which is just two less than three-time World Champion Luigi Taveri and two-time World Champion Casey Stoner.

Yamaha riders have not won since Assen last season with Valentino Rossi (21 successive races), which is the first time Yamaha have had a winless streak of at least 21 races in the MotoGP class since 2002. The last time Yamaha had a winless streak of more than 21 races was the 22-race sequence including the 15 races of 1997 and the opening 7 races of 1998.

Ducati riders have won the last two races. At Misano they will be aiming to take their third successive victory for the first time since 2008.

A seventh place at Spielberg made it 11 successive races without a podium finish for Dani Pedrosa, which is his longest sequence without a podium since the 11-race streak between his Grand Prix debut in 2001 and his first podium at Valencia that year.

Following the Austrian GP, Suzuki have scored 118 points in the Constructor’s World Championship classification, which is the highest point score accumulated by Suzuki after the opening 11 races since 2007, when they had 151 points at this stage of the season.

Following the Austrian GP, Ducati have scored 208 points in the Constructor’s World Championship, which is their highest point score accumulated after the opening 11 races since 2007 when they had 233 points at this stage of the season on their way to clinching their only title so far.

Since his first win of the season at the Italian GP, Jorge Lorenzo has scored 114 points, Marc Márquez 106 points and Andrea Dovizioso 83 points. But over the opening five races, Lorenzo only scored 16 points compared to 95 for Márquez and 46 for Dovizioso.

Hafizh Syahrin is leading the Rookie of the Year classification with 24 points, followed by Morbidelli (22) and Takaaki Nakagami (11), who scored one point in Austria for the first time since Le Mans earlier this year. Hafizh Syahrin took second place last year at Misano in the Moto2 race, which is his best Grand Prix result so far.

The only one of the five rookies in the MotoGP class this year to have previously won at Misano in any of the smaller classes is Tom Lüthi, who the Moto2 race last year.

Along with Tom Lüthi (2010 and 2017) and Hafizh Syahrin (2017), Takaaki Nakagami (2013, 2015 and 2016) is the only other of the five rookies who has stood on the podium at Misano. It’s Nakagami’s most successful track, along with Silverstone, as the Japanese rider has three Moto2 podiums at each.

Tom Lüthi, who scored his best qualifying result at the British GP with 15th on the grid, will be celebrating his 32nd birthday on Thursday before the opening day of the San Marino GP.

Grand Prix racing at Misano

This is the 22nd time that Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli has hosted a Grand Prix event.

The first Grand Prix event to take place at Misano was in 1980; the 500cc race was over 40 laps of the circuit that measured 3.448 km and ran in an anti-clockwise direction. It was won by Kenny Roberts.

Misano hosted a GP event for a total of 10 occasions between the years of 1980 and 1993.

Misano did not have a Grand Prix event for 13 years following the accident that ended the career of Wayne Rainey in 1993. When Grand Prix racing returned to the track in 2007, it was on a much revised 4.18 km circuit running in the opposite direction to the earlier layout.

There have been 20 previous San Marino Grand Prix events. The first San Marino Grand Prix was held at Imola in 1981. Three different circuits have hosted the San Marino Grand Prix–Imola twice (1981 & 1983), Mugello four times (1982, 84, 91 and 93) and Misano on 14 occasions (1985, 86, 87 and from 2007 onwards).

A total of 45 races for solo motorcycles have been held at Misano for the San Marino Grand Prix since 1985, as follows: MotoGP –11, 500cc–3, Moto2 –8, 250cc–6, Moto3 –6, 125cc–8, 80cc–3.

Since Grand Prix racing returned to Misano in 2007, Yamaha is the most successful manufacturer with six wins: 3 with both Valentino Rossi (2008, 2009 and 2014) and Jorge Lorenzo (2011, 2012 and 2013).

Honda have had four wins in the MotoGP class at Misano, including the last three years with Marc Márquez (2015 and 2017) and Dani Pedrosa (2016).

The win for Marc Márquez in 2015 was the first for Honda at Misano since 2010 and followed by four successive wins for Yamaha at this circuit.

Ducati’s single victory at Misano was in 2007 with Casey Stoner. Since Stoner’s win in 2007, Ducati have had four more podium finishes at this circuit with Toni Elias 3rd in 2008, Valentino Rossi 2nd in 2012, and Danilo Petrucci and Andrea Dovizioso taking second and third last season.

Three Italian riders finished in the top five at Misano last year, all riding Ducatis, which was the first time that three Italian riders on Italian bikes had finished in the top five in the premier class since Imola 1972, when Giacomo Agostini on an MV Agusta won from teammate Alberto Pagani, and Ducati rider Bruno Spaggiaricompleted the podium.

Suzuki have had two podium finishes in the MotoGP era at Misano circuit, both of which came in 2007 when Chris Vermeulen finished 2nd and John Hopkins 3rd.

Vinales’ 5th place finish in 2016 was the best result for a Suzuki rider at Misano since Loris Capirossi also finished 5th in 2009.

The most successful rider at Misano since Grand Prix racing returned to the circuit in 2007 is Marc Márquez with 5 wins: 1 x 125cc, 2 x Moto2, 2 x MotoGP. Jorge Lorenzo is his closest rival with 4: 1 x 250cc, 3 x MotoGP.

Since 2007, only three riders have won the MotoGP race after qualifying on pole position: Casey Stoner (2007), Valentino Rossi (2009) and Dani Pedrosa (2010).

The eight Moto2 races that have taken place at Misano have been won by seven different riders: Toni Elías (2010), Marc Márquez (2011 and 2012), Pol Espargaró (2013), Tito Rabat (2014), Johann Zarco (2015), Lorenzo Baldassarri (2016), Tom Lüthi (2017). Four of them have won from pole: Toni Elías (2010), Marc Márquez (2012), Pol Espargaró (2013) and Johann Zarco (2015).

The six Moto3 races that have taken place at Misano have been won by 5 different riders: Sandro Cortese (2012), Álex Rins (2011 and 2012), Enea Bastianini (2015), Brad Binder (2016), Romano Fenati (2017). Only Sandro Cortese, Enea Bastianini and Brad Binder have won from pole position at the track.