For most of Saturday’s Australian MotoGP, Jorge Martin’s soft tyre gamble looked like a smart move that was set to slash Francesco Bagnaia’s title lead.
When Johann Zarco crashed out of the Indonesian MotoGP a few laps after his race leading team-mate, at the same corner, it looked like the Frenchman had also simply been caught out by the slippery conditions.
Franco Morbidelli began the 2023 season with his MotoGP future unclear but will finish it knowing he is to swap the struggling Yamaha for a title-winning Desmosedici.
Johann Zarco charged from 20th place after Turn 1 contact at the Japanese MotoGP, crashed just moments before the red flags but thought he had done enough to be classified in sixth place.
Johann Zarco built on his top time in FP1 to come out on top of the final flurry of fast laps in FP2 to end day one on top ahead of the Australian MotoGP round, with Fabio Quartararo the best placed title hopeful at Phillip Island.
While other GP22 riders seem to have stepped back from Ducati’s front ride-height device, Johann Zarco has confirmed he is ‘always using’ the system in MotoGP.