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Marquez makes it the triple crown for Honda, Quartararo and Miller follow him home

Marquez makes it the triple crown for Honda, Quartararo and Miller follow him home

Some familiar faces were on the podium in Valencia, with the final glory of the season decided

Marc Marquez claimed victory number 12 of the season at the Gran Premio Motul de la Comunitat Valenciana, making the Repsol Honda Team Team Champions to add to his rider title and the constructors' Championship - the triple crown. Teammate Jorge Lorenzo also scored points in his final MotoGP™ rider, with the five-time World Champion bidding an emotional farewell to the sport. Fabio Quartararo (Petronas Yamaha SRT), meanwhile, signed off with another impressive podium in second, and he pipped Jack Miller (Pramac Racing) to the title of top Independent Team rider as the Aussie followed him home in third.

Miller launched his Pramac Racing machine into the holeshot, with Marquez getting a sluggish getaway from the middle of the front row to drop down to P6, having run slightly wide at Turn 1. Polesitter Quartararo then grabbed the lead from Miller as the Australian ran wide at Turn 2, with the Frenchman quickly creating a small gap to his rivals. Heading into Turn 1 on Lap 2, Marquez was into P3 past the fast-starting duo of Alex Rins (Team Suzuki Ecstar) and Andrea Dovizioso (Ducati Team), however, and it wouldn’t take the 2019 Champion long to pick off Miller as he locked his radar onto Quartararo.

The Rookie of the Year’s lead was 0.7 over Marquez, with the latter racing to an eight-tenths advantage over Miller. Marquez was creeping up to the back of the leading M1 slowly but surely, and on Lap 8 a surprise, late but super fine move at Turn 11 saw the number 93 lead. Suddenly third place Miller – with Dovizioso and Rins in tow – had closed the gap to less than half a second, the top five covered by 1.7. However, Marquez was in the groove and the eight-time Champion had pulled to over half a second clear of Quartararo, with the gap hovering between 0.6 and 0.8 for a number of laps after. Miller wasn’t letting Quartararo have P2 all his own way either, that margin was remaining at a second – enough to keep the number 20 on his toes.

Everyone held firm before a tenth here and a tenth there saw Marquez stretch his advantage to one and a half seconds with six laps remaining, with Miller cutting the gap to Quartararo down by four tenths. It was 0.6, but was there a late twist for P2 inbound? Not quite, Miller didn’t have enough speed to catch the back of the M1 by the time the chequered flag was waved, with Marquez taking another 25-point haul to land Repsol Honda Team the 2019 triple crown, Quartararo taking another podium and beating Miller to top Independent Team rider.

Dovizioso and Ducati’s aims of picking up the Teams title didn’t materialise in Valencia, but P4 was a solid result for the Italian who was comfortably best of the rest in 2019. Rins capped off a fine season by claiming P5 at his home Grand Prix, however it wasn’t enough to grab P3 in the Championship from sixth place finisher Maverick Viñales (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) – the Malaysian GP winner having a quiet final round of the season before jumping onto the 2020 Yamaha on Tuesday.

Joan Mir (Team Suzuki Ecstar) in seventh was a great way to round off a very solid rookie MotoGP™ campaign, the Spaniard ending 2019 with five consecutive top 10s after an impressive comeback from his testing crash at Brno. Valentino Rossi’s (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) P8 sees the nine-time World Champion end the season P7 in the overall standings, with Aleix coming out on top in the battle of the Espargaro brothers – P9 for Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia Racing Team Gresini), P10 for Pol Espargaro (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing). That makes it all factories in the top ten.

Danilo Petrucci (Ducati Team), Johann Zarco (LCR Honda Idemitsu) and Iker Lecuona (Red Bull KTM Tech 3) all crashed at Turn 6, on Lap 14, in separate incidents, although Lecuona was close behind Zarco and the Frenchman got flipped by the KTM. Cal Crutchlow (LCR Honda Castrol), Franco Morbidelli (Petronas Yamaha SRT) and Andrea Iannone (Aprilia Racing Team Gresini) also crashed – all riders ok.

On his final ever MotoGP™ ride, five-time World Champion and future MotoGP™ Legend Jorge Lorenzo finished P13. It was an emotional day for the Spaniard who arrived back into pitlane to rapturous applause, with the Valencia fans paying their full respects to one of the sport’s greatest ever riders on his cool-down lap. #ThankYouJorge!

So, 2019 draws to a close. But don’t worry, 2020 is just around the corner! Testing begins in Valencia on Tuesday 19 and Wednesday 20 November – so stay tuned! Rookies, new bikes, old rivalries and another season of awesome competition is just around the corner.
 
Marc Marquez: "The perfect season. So difficult to improve this season because the way we rode all season, the consistency and everything, has been amazing. Finishing the season with a victory, riding with a gold helmet – which is always extra pressure because if you ride with a gold helmet you need to be smart and clever – is special too but also for all the Repsol Honda Team it was important too. The Teams Championship. We achieved it, the triple crown. An amazing, amazing season and all the team deserve it."
 
Race results:
1 - Marc Marquez (SPA - Honda) 41'21.469
2 - Fabio Quartararo* (FRA - Yamaha) +1.026
3 - Jack Miller* (AUS - Ducati) +2.409


*Independent Team riders
 
Marquez makes it the triple crown for Honda, Quartararo and Miller follow him home
A sign of things to come?
Marquez makes it the triple crown for Honda, Quartararo and Miller follow him home
One bike or two?
Marquez makes it the triple crown for Honda, Quartararo and Miller follow him home
Miller celebrated signing off the season in Miller style
Marquez makes it the triple crown for Honda, Quartararo and Miller follow him home
We rounded out the season with another Marquez vs Quartararo duel
Marquez makes it the triple crown for Honda, Quartararo and Miller follow him home
Podium L-R: Quartararo, Marquez and Miller
 
Binder makes it a hat-trick to sign off from Moto2™ in style
South African takes his fifth win of the season to finish second overall by just three points, with Lüthi and Navarro on the chase
Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Ajo) leaves the intermediate class on a high after taking his fifth win of the year - and third in a row - in the Gran Premio Motul de la Comunitat Valenciana. The South African played his cards to perfection to out-duel his main rival for second overall, Tom Lüthi (Dynavolt Intact GP), with the Swiss rider forced to settle for second on the day and third in the standings. Jorge Navarro (MB Conveyors Speed Up) completed the podium on true home turf, the Valencian taking his eighth podium of the year.

Jorge Martin (Red Bull KTM Ajo) took the holeshot from second on the grid, with Lüthi up into second and Binder making a storming getaway to soon attack Navarro for third. Stefano Manzi (MV Agusta Temporary Forward) was one big loser off the front row as he got shuffled down to sixth, but the field remained tightly packed for the first lap and for many it stayed that way to the end – including the battle at the front.

Two men soon emerged in the early stages, however: Binder and Lüthi. The duo, fighting over second overall in the standings, didn’t take long to take their duel to the front, with Navarro the man on the chase. A couple of laps later the gaps between the front three were pretty equal though, with Martin left heading the fight for fourth ahead of Manzi.

Lüthi, however, was turning the screw, and the Swiss rider was able to start pulling out another gap. But Binder was able to respond, and not too long after Navarro and Manzi, who had dispatched Martin, had closed in too. It was a concertina between two duels and a four-way fight, but Binder had a plan.

Leaving it late, the South African pounced to perfection with a couple of laps to go, then pulling the pin and blasting away to give himself a gap. Uncatchable, Binder crossed the line seven tenths clear for his fifth win of the season.

He also, therefore, beat Lüthi both on the day and in the standings overall as the Swiss rider was forced to settle for second, able to stay clear of the clutches of Navarro and Manzi. That duel got even closer at the final corner as the Italian looked to be sizing up a move and then tried to out-drag the Speed Up to the line, but it wasn’t to be and Navarro took yet another podium to end his season on a high on home turf.

Martin was fifth as he managed to fend off an Augusto Fernandez (Flexbox HP 40) on the charge, with Xavi Vierge (EG 0,0 Marc VDS) not too far off the two ahead of him either and taking P7. Luca Marini (Sky Racing Team VR46) finished off his season in eighth, just pipping Fabio Di Giannantonio (MB Conveyors Speed Up). But the number 21 wrapped up Rookie of the Year with ninth place, with closest rival Enea Bastianini (Italtrans Racing Team) in P13.

Sam Lowes (Federal Oil Gresini Moto2) completed the top ten, with a bit of breathing space back to Mattia Pasini (Tasca Racing Scuderia Moto2). Dominique Aegerter (MV Agusta Temporary Forward) was 13th and made it two MVs in the points, ahead of Bastianini.

Jake Dixon took fourteenth and rounded out his time with the Inde Angel Nieto Team with his best weekend of the season, with Remy Gardner (ONEXOX TKKR SAG Team) completing the points.

Newly-crowned Champion Alex Marquez (EG 0,0 Marc VDS), meanwhile, made a great start to move up into fifth by the latter stages of the race, but disaster struck for the number 73 at Turn 11 as he slid out of contention.

That’s it from 2019 and an incredible season of racing in the intermediate class. You could say it was a triumph, and it certainly was for the top three: Marquez’ points advantage was just three after the final race, with Binder’s brilliant win securing him second overall. Lüthi’s podium assured him third, with Navarro’s doing the same for fourth. Now it’s time to rest, test and repeat – so make sure to join us again for 2020.
 
Brad Binder: "I don't know where to start, I need to say a big thank you to my team, things got really tough at one stage and we managed to keep fighting and stay focused. We didn't get the job done in the end but to be three points from the winner is incredible . I just need to say a huge thank you to all my guys, to KTM...I'm so happy to have finished off on a high for them and I can't wait to get started on Tuesday!"
 
Race results:
1 - Brad Binder (RSA - KTM) 25'30.766
2 - Tom Lüthi (SWI - Kalex) +0.735
3 - Jorge Navarro (SPA - Speed Up) +1.045
Marquez makes it the triple crown for Honda, Quartararo and Miller follow him home
Podium L-R: Lüthi, Binder and Navarro
 
Garcia grabs maiden win with a last corner lunge
0.005 splits the top two, with Artigas making a stunning debut in third
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