Last year Martin he took everything: pole, sprint and GP. But in the first season in which Buriram hosted the world championship, guess who won in MotoGP? Marc Marquez (and Valentino Rossi, 4th). It was 2018: Pecco Bagnaia he was still racing in Moto2. And he won. In short, the Thai circuit, designed by Hermann Tilke, is very much liked by all 3 of our heroes, who – you can bet – will be protagonists again like a few days ago in Australia. The pressure continues to increase: there are 3 events to go (in a week, Malaysia; in mid-November, Valencia), the Pramac team’s challenger has a 20-point lead over the reigning champion, the Catalan (at -79) has become a referee and duel variable. Even the details become fundamental. Whoever makes a mistake pays.
The “happy” Buriram is a challenge between Ducatisti
In the local language, Buriram means: the city of happiness. Still talking about the first appointment, 6 years ago: Marquez in MotoGP, Pecco in Moto2. AND By Giannantonio won in Moto3. Curiously, they are the 3 Ducatisti who will ride a GP25 next season. On this track, Marquez crossed the finish line ahead of everyone in 2019 too. Then, 2 seasons off due to Covid. In 2022 the success went to the Portuguese Oliveira: Bagnaia finished 3rd, clearly ahead of Marc’s Honda (5th) and Martin. The last time, that of Jorge’s victory, was one of the most spectacular races of the year: a combination of overtaking between him, Pecco and Binder, within 2 and a half tenths at the finish. The South African finished second but was penalized for cutting a bend. So, who is better off along the 4 and a half kilometers (12 curves) of the track? “I really like. Not like Phillip Island”, cuts Pecco shortly. Doomed to recover – now! – the disadvantage from the rival.
The sprint on Saturday at 10am, the GP on Sunday at 9am
Pay attention to the time zone (-5, compared to Thailand) and therefore to the clock. The weekend will be broadcast live by Sky Sport (and streaming on Now), TV8 will broadcast the qualifying and sprint race. It starts at 4 Italian on Friday morning with the first free practice session of Moto3, at 4.45 that of Moto2 and at 5.40 the MotoGP; the lightest category returns to the track at 8.10, followed at 9 by Moto2, while MotoGP pre-qualifying is scheduled at 10. Saturday, third Moto3 session at 3.35, then Moto2 (4.20) and MotoGP (5.05) followed immediately from qualifications. Moto3 qualifying is at 7.45am, Moto2 qualifying at 8.40am. Finally, the sprint race: starting at 10am, again on Saturday. Sunday opens with a short warm-up of the MotoGP at 4.35am, then the GPs: green light for the Moto3 at 6am, for the Moto2 at 7.17am, for the MotoGP at 9am.
How many braking sections, the hardest at turn 3
According to Brembo technicians, who work closely with all the MotoGP riders, the Chang International Circuit falls into the category of tracks that are highly demanding on the brakes. On a scale of 1 to 6 it has a difficulty index of 6, thanks to the presence of 4 really hard “braking sections”, each with at least 175 meters of braking distance. The drivers use the brakes 7 times per lap for a total of 26 seconds, equivalent to 29% of the race. The hardest corner on the Chang International Circuit for the braking system is the third: the MotoGP bikes lose almost 250 km/h, going from 321 to 74 in 5.8 seconds, covering 278 metres. The Thai public is always large and enthusiastic: in the last two years the average has been 180,000 spectators per weekend.
#MotoGP #Thailand #times
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