THE Malaysian MotoGP race in Sepang, the penultimate race of the MotoGP calendar, is usually where championships are decided.
This year, however, the MotoGP and Moto3 championships were already done and dusted, the former by Marc Marquez and the latter by Brad Binder. Still, there was a final championship to be wrapped up, for the Moto2 category.
Johann Zarco, the favourite, could still relinquish the crown to either Thomas Luthi or Alex Rins and with the unpredictable Sepang weather anything could happen. Either way, Zarco was in dominant form in the wet, qualifying a clear 2.134 seconds ahead on pole. And by the time the Moto2 bikes assembled on the grid, the rain poured. Still, a determined Franco Morbidelli grabbed the holeshot and led the way with Zarco hot on the heels of the leading pack. Luthi was barely in the top ten while Rins struggled in the changeable conditions. It only took 14 laps for Zarco to power into the lead and win by 3.256 seconds. Morbidelli finished second while Jonas Folger was third. The back to back championships are the first since Moto2 was introduced and the French double World Champion will graduate to MotoGP next year on the Tech3 Yamaha squad. Malaysian Moto2 hero, Hafidz ‘Pescao’ Syahrin and wildcard Mohd Ramdan Mohd Rosli were both on the Petronas Raceline entries, finishing 6th and 14th respectively.
While Brad Binder had sewn up the Moto3 championship, the Sepang trophy was still up for grabs. Binder had also secured pole position and was almost destined for victory in Sepang. Khairul Idham Pawi and Adam Noruddin had poor qualifying slots but were hopeful for a good result with the support of the Malaysian fans.
In the end, the Sepang track dealt out varying hands to almost all the Moto3 grid. In typical dramatic fashion, 17 riders threw their bikes down the track and only two rejoined the race, one of them was the poleman Brad Binder. Adam Noruddin was also involved in one of the many off-track excursions but fate smiled upon his teammate Jakub Kornfeld. The Drive M7 SIC Racing Team rookie garnered his first podium with a sterling ride to second place, ahead of another rookie Bo Bendsneyder of KTM Red Bull Ajo. At the front, a country mile away, was Francesco Bagnaia, who bagged his second win of the year for Pull&Bear Aspar Mahindra.
The premier class MotoGP also produced more drama. As the grid roared off the startline, it was Jorge Lorenzo leading the field. He was quickly dispatched back down to sixth by Andrea Iannone, Valentino Rossi, Marc Marquez, Andrea Dovizioso and Aleix Espargaro. But as the rain petered out, it was apparent that the two Ducatis were very adaptable to the varying conditions. Iannone easily holding off the attentions of Rossi and Dovizioso likewise with Marquez. Aleix Espargaro slid off early in the fight at Turn 1 and rejoined further down the order. The 2016 World Champion was next to taste the Sepang gravel, falling at Turn 11 while trying to overcome acceleration issues. Then Crutchlow and Iannone both overcame their Michelins’ ability to grip in succession, The British rider at Turn 2 and the Italian at turn 9. This left two Italian protagonists at the front, the polesitter Dovizioso and the 9 time World Champion Rossi. However, the early duels with Iannone had left Rossi’s front tyre worse for wear and wily Dovizioso had ampreserves, having kept station behind the duo battling in front. Predictably, Rossi ran wide at Turn 1 with 5 laps to go, leaving the door open for Dovozioso to calmly open up a four second gap to Rossi. At the chequered flag, DesmoDovi still had 3.115 seconds in hand for his first MotoGP victory in seven years. He will be the ninth different race winner of the MotoGP season, a high watermark for the category. Lorenzo crossed the finish line a lonely third place.
While the racing is the focus of the event, there is no denying that MotoGP in Sepang is very much more than that.
The myriad stalls selling merchandise increased in number this year to 80 with all major motorcycle manufacturers showcasing their best and latest.
Yamaha, Honda, Kawasaki, Suzuki, BMW, Triumph, Benelli and KTM all competed for the attentions of the race fans. Shell Advance had the Sepang Welcome Centre forecourt with various games to play and competitions to win.
Accessories were as diverse as the nationalities that attended the race, from gloves and boots to GoPro’s latest Hero5 and Tissot watches to VR46 Merchandise. On race day, it was difficult to walk between the stalls due to the human traffic jam. Little wonder that Sepang International Circuit (SIC) broke the attendance record this year; a total of 161,553 spectators came despite the rain. Umbrella and raincoat sales increased.
“The increase in spectator numbers augured well for the growth of MotoGP in Malaysia. We have just signed a new contract to host the Malaysian MotoGP until 2021 and are looking forward to doing much more to grow interest in two-wheel motorsports in Malaysia, as well as develop local talent, which is one of the key factors in fan engagement. We’ve also received positive feedback on new activities introduced this year such as the “Watch the Race from the Sky’ and the ‘Rockaway Malaysia MotoGP Weekend”, thus we are exploring more options for the coming years. On behalf of SIC, I would like to thank the fans for their continuous support. We hope to see you all again next year,” said Datuk Razlan Razali, chief executive officer of SIC.
“Watch the Race from the Sky” is a dinner table suspended 150 feet in the air where the diners would watch the race while being served by celebrity chef Sherson Lian.
“Rockaway” saw race fans entertained by bands like The Scorpions, The Darkness, Wolfmother, Wings and Muzza’s Mayhem the night before the race.
