Australian Grand Prix

[René]

Will it be another thriller at Philip Island between Marc Márquez and Andrea Dovizioso?

[charleselan]

That would be the ideal, but Marquez is always very good at Philip Island and it is not a circuit that has suited the Ducati's in the past save for when it was ridden by the greatest rider I have seen in decades; Casey Stoner..........

The big surprise in Practice 2 this morning was Aleix Espargaro on the Aprilia who topped the times for the first time for that manufacturer, an amazing performance. Wouldn't it be fantastic if he won the race!

[chrisb]

having just watched qualifying Marquez looks so good, he does actually remind me of Stoner, so would probably get that Ducati to dominate, what I like about Dovi this year is how he is thinking, I have voted for Maverick, simply as he is my favourite rider! but so long as Marquez stays on board in reality and unless Zarco rattles him I can't see anyone getting close, but how exciting it was, the pelasure of MotoGP on-line is a section they have called 'no-spoliler' so one does not have to get up at silly hours to watch

[Jamie]

That was one of the best races I've seen in a while and there have been plenty of good ones lately! Kudos to Marquez especially but all the top riders were unbelievable, the race was breathtaking.

A Zarco win would have been fantastic, he is one hell of a rider. Great to see Rossi still in there fighting as hard as the young'uns as well, at 38 he is still ultra competitive which is some feat when the competition is so strong.

Strong last lap and result for Scott as well Charles 👍

[chrisb]

that was one incredible race, lots of biffing and barging, which I don't recollect hearing any moans or groans about the 'robust' tactics, how refreshing the whole weekend was, great circuit, with swoops and sweeps and more excitement in 40 odd minutes than a season elsewhere, really brilliant, anyone from 6 riders had the chance to win, really competitive and so exciting.

are Yamaha lining up Zarco to replace Rossi at the end on 18? but all credit to Valle, and to Miller, both busted up but no fears, an exceptional race that you have to take your hat off to all -

shame about wee McPhee but really pleased for Smithy and Scott,

[René]

I just watched the race on Eurosport replay and it was exciting indeed. Amazing how much contact there was and that moment between Zarko and Márquez at the beginning of the race could so easily have ended in tears! Márquez was clearly the best today and the battle for second was amazing. What can you say about Rossi? What a unique racer he is.
With Dovizioso off the pace we could at least see more of Scott . He drove a strong race!

[charleselan]

 Not long having viewed the full re-run of all three races from Philip Island and it was all massively impressive. I think all three races had something special to raise the blood pressure. The weather conditions during the Moto3 race made things very difficult but the racing was outstanding.

Wonderful to see KTM win their first Moto2 event, and Oliveira gaining his first win in that category, and great to see Brad Binder come home 2nd on the other factory KTM.

The MotoGP race was incredible and just goes to prove how vastly superior it is to F! in all respects. So many amazing rides. Marquez made a good move towards the end, but I have the feeling that Rossi screwed up any chance Johan Zarco had of challenging for the win by either not using his supposed intelligence and indulging in pace destroying battling, or was it deliberate in that he knew he could not beat Marquez and did not want the independent Yamaha finishing ahead of him!

Zarco is one of the most impressive debutants I have seen, a monster on the bike but a real gent and modest off the machine; the commentary team on BTSport said he looks more like an accountant than a bike racer when in the paddock. Jack Miller was impressive early on and during the tussle but he is way too inconsistent, injuries aside. The Suzuki's finally looked effective again but are missing Maverick.

Scott rode a very good race to come home top Ducati, I am certain there was a certain amount of "pay back" towards Ducati in the way he overcame Dovi. I only hope that he can carry this kind of form through and then on to the Aprilia next year.