A restarted race in Sepang saw Luca Marini battle through the intense heat and recover to 15th, closing the championship gap to his teammate, Joan Mir, who fell early in the race.
Race day at the Malaysian Grand Prix was a hot affair, hardly a cloud in the sky to block the intense sun which made for an even more demanding 20-lap contest. Action would be halted almost immediately as a multiple rider crash in the opening corners brought out the red flag. Fortunately all involved avoided serious injury.
Running through the quick restart procedure, Luca Marini launched his Repsol Honda Team RC213V off the line for a second time – again gaining positions from the rivals around him. A consistent race followed for the #10 who managed his tyres well and was able to pass the likes of Nakagami and Raul Fernandez as he worked his way up the field into the points. The final laps of the race saw Marini defending against Marc Marquez and Franco Morbidelli, crossing the line in 15th and adding another point to his 2024 tally. But, Marini is hungry for more to be able to properly show his and his team’s efforts from throughout the year.
Joan Mir had made a lightning-fast start to the initially running of the Malaysian GP before the red flag and tried his hardest to emulate it on the second attempt. Able to match the pace of his teammate early on, Mir would ultimately fall victim to a crash at Turn 9. Unharmed, it leaves a disappointed taste in the mouth of the #36 who will once again pick himself up and prepare for the next race.
Now the MotoGP paddock will have a week to rest and recover after the most intense period of the season. One final race awaits for the Repsol Honda Team in what has been a complicated 2024 World Championship season before testing begins almost immediately after.
Luca Marini
15th
“The race was a little bit hot. From the physical side I am happy with my performance. The grip was quite low with the heat so we struggled for some traction during the race. With the quick start procedure everything also got hotter which complicated some things for the second start. During the race, our tyre management was quite good and I was able to make up ground later, especially under braking. We started far back so it’s difficult to catch up. I am not happy with P15, the position doesn’t show all the work that we have done nor the race that I did today. Points are good, but we want more because everyone is working very hard inside Honda.”
Joan Mir
DNF
“I made a really good start with the first go of the race and I was running with the top ten! Unfortunately, I made some contact with Miller, so I was quite worried, it was a relief to see the images of him in pit lane and then I went to his box after and he was typical Jack. This is the most important. During the race I wasn’t able to ride in a good way and I fell, unharmed, but our race was over. It hasn’t happened again, so we need to check and be sure. Like the last few races, I was able to overtake many of the riders but starting in the back complicates things. One more chance to do some more.”
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