I’ve been watching MotoGP for almost 20 years now. Admittedly, my memory of the first few years is a little bit sketchy given I was a child at the time, but I like to think I have a decent understanding of the important moments of the sport since the move away from 500cc engines in 2002. I remember watching Lorenzo, Rossi, Pedrosa and Stoner battle it out for multiple world titles. I remember Marc Marquez’s unbelievable rookie season, and the period in 2014 where he won ten races in a row. I remember wet races, the implementation of flag-to-flag races, and plenty of good memories in between. And I can safely say that Sunday’s Austrian grand prix was like nothing I have ever seen before.
Admittedly, the first 20 laps were not the most dramatic affair, though given the recent slew of red flagged races at the Austrian circuit that was something of a relief. Bagnaia, Quartararo, Marc Marquez and Martin emerged as the early leaders and there were plenty of early squabbles early on, at least partly in thanks to the light rain misting the circuit. The rain flags were present pretty much from the get-go, and teams had their second bikes set up in pit lane with wet weather tires in preparation for the eventuality that the track would become perilous under these conditions. However, the fickle mountain weather eased up and the flags were eventually removed, and we instead settled into something of a chess-like race.
The lead riders weren’t under much pressure from behind, as the field had become rather stretched out. Early winners included Binder and Mir, who were both able to push through the crowd and begin chasing down the lead group; Zarco ended up being the biggest loser, crashing out while still in touch with the lead pack as the pressure from Mir built up from behind. All told, this all seemed to be playing rather nicely into the hands of Quartararo as the championship leader. The Frenchman started the second half of the season with a healthy points buffer over his opponents, and with Miller and Bagnaia suffering last time out and Zarco falling short here, he simply needed to continue his damage control in order to emerge from the Styrian double-header with his lead still intact.
But things started to change in the last third of the race. The cloud cover overhead returned, and in several areas of the track there were reports of the same misty rain returning. This presented a rather dangerous situation to the riders still out on track, as they were all tearing around on dry tires with more than twenty laps’ worth of rubber taken out of them. Grip would be an issue towards the end of a race like this under normal circumstances, but here it became a serious safety concern. Riding a motorcycle on a wet surface while using slick tires is akin to riding on ice – the traction is atrocious, and it throws the rider’s braking markers out the window as they try desperately to compensate for the changing conditions. As the rain flags emerged once again, the question was posed to the riders: should they stay out and risk being knocked out by the weather, or pit in and change bikes?
Miller and Rins pitted first with about six laps to go. It makes sense that these two would be the first to bite the bullet, as both were miles off the pace of the leaders and both were in desperate need of a good result. Miller’s crash last weekend had more or less ruled out any championship aspirations he had left, but a crushing win here in mixed conditions would do wonders for his confidence. Rins still hadn’t had a top five finish since Doha, and had thrown away plenty of podium chances in the interim. For the other riders, they chose to remain out, and as the conditions grew increasingly treacherous and the rain began to properly tip down we saw the lead group of six bunch together: Bagnaia, Marquez, Martin, Mir, Quartararo and Binder.
With four laps to go, things were visibly deteriorating. Riders were tiptoeing around the slower corners, struggling to keep their bikes upright as they fought against the lack of grip. The group at the front were swapping and changing positions, but this was no ordinary fight, this was a race of survival. Even Marquez, who is known for being the master of tricky conditions such as these, was clearly struggling to maintain his position at the head of the pack, and as the commentators struggled to keep track of everything that was happening, the Honda man chose to dip into pit lane, despite there being just three laps of the race left to go. Two Ducatis, a Suzuki and a Yamaha followed him in, dropping their pace to the pit lane speed limit as they mentally prepared themselves for the uphill battle they were about to face. Binder stayed out, disappearing up the hill as he entered the lead of a MotoGP race for the first time since his famous win in Brno last year.
Unbelievable sights ensued. The chasing pack that had been previously duelling for a top ten position suddenly found themselves in a battle for the remaining two podium positions, as long as they could stay upright. When the pit lane riders emerged they had lost more than thirty seconds to Binder, and were outside the top ten placements. It seemed like a costly mistake on the part of the five riders who pitted, as with only three laps to go and a mountain of time to make up, they still had to get heat into their tires and adjust to the different conditions as the rain continued to fall. Aleix Espargaro found himself in a battle for second place with the likes of Lecuona, Marini and Rossi; further back, Marquez found his limit in the wet and slid out of the race, rejoining in 15th.
All the while, Binder was maintaining his lead at the front. The South African was clearly struggling, but he remained calm and held onto the ten-second lead he had over the remaining riders with dry setups and focused in on what looked set to be a historic win. Espargaro found himself in trouble on the final lap, and Lecuona and Marini squeezed past in the slower mid section of the track. It looked as though we were going to have one of the most unbelievable podiums this year, with Lecuona pushing to prove himself worthy of a seat next year and Marini still just a rookie. And then, as the cameras panned across the slow-moving train of riders with slicks, a fast-moving red object appeared in the back of the picture.
Incredibly, Bagnaia, Martin and Mir had recovered almost twenty second over the course of two laps thanks to the sheer amount of grip advantage they held over their opponents with the wet weather tires. While others were gently easing themselves through corners, the riders on wets tore around the circuit, catching the pack and overtaking them as though they were standing still. Lecuona was second with half a lap to go, and yet found himself entering the final corner in sixth, having conceded positions to Bagnaia, Martin, Mir and Marini. It was an incredible moment to be watching.
The more incredible part was Binder, however. The KTM rider held his nerve against the rain lashing against his visor and the track tearing away at his slick tires and hung on to take an incredible win at Red Bull’s own circuit. The last lap in particular was clearly a tremendous effort as he struggled to keep his bike on the track himself, evidenced by the three-second penalty he was handed at the conclusion of the race. The South African stayed upright, and was able to cross the line in first to take his second ever MotoGP win ahead of the charging Bagnaia and the gutsy Martin. If the race had been even a single lap longer, the guys on wets would have destroyed him – Bagnaia was 15 seconds faster on the final lap than the eventual winner.
The scenes in pit lane were extraordinary. Every single person that was interviewed praised and credited the gutsy ride from Binder, and photos taken after the race showed his slick tires chewed to bits by the unbelievable conditions he raced under. This wasn’t just any win, it was a victory under the conditions a rider fears most, with the weather changing multiple times over the course of the 28 lap race. Bagnaia and Martin were both complimentary during post race interviews, and while neither rider regretted pitting in, they clearly respected the balls that it took for Binder to stay out and fight the rain on his own out in front.
The bigger question after the race was in regards to Miller and Rins. The two riders who first changed to wet setups ended the race in 11th and 14th, far behind even the likes of Quartararo. How did they fall so far behind if they pitted first? The answer is likely due to two factors. Firstly, the track was not fully wet when they emerged on their second bikes, so the riders on slick tires would have had a couple of laps to keep pushing the gap back to Miller and Rins. The second reason ties into the first: since the track was still dry in some areas, it’s likely that the Aussie and the Spaniard simply chewed up their wet tires over the several laps it took for the rain to really start to tip down. It was the right call to make on their part, they were simply unlucky in that they made the decision one or two laps early.
What does this all mean for the championship? Incredibly, thanks to pushing his way up to seventh on the final lap thanks to his wet weather changeover, Quartararo leaves the dreaded Austrian double-header with his lead mostly intact. There are just three riders left with a realistic shot at dethroning the Frenchman, in the forms of Zarco, Mir and Bagnaia, and all three of them are still over 40 points adrift of the current leader. It would take a miracle for any of them to pull it off, especially when you consider the run of form Quartararo has had so far this year. The Yamaha rider has been on the podium seven times in eleven races, three more times than any other rider in the paddock, and if he can maintain that consistency it will be a tall order to usurp him.
The next race will also spell trouble for his foes. The Silverstone grand prix is notorious for being a happy hunting ground for Yamaha riders, and will be a welcome relief for Quartararo after the difficulties of battling hard-charging Ducatis at the Red Bull Ring these last two weeks. If he can manage to take a win on British soil, or even simply extend his lead over the three remaining challengers, then he will surely head into the final leg of the season full of confidence. And since confidence was one of the few things missing for Quartararo in 2020, that would be a daunting result for his competitors indeed.
Solomon Talks Bikes 