Although as Kevin Lee would say so eloquently; He'd
better get on his Giddy Up! If he wants to overtake the fast disappearing
Marquez...
Ran across this very enjoyable interview with
Maverick "top Gun" vinales recently when perusing the London
Telegraph's Cars section, with the story being buried inside the article about
MotoGP costs.
As the 22yr old Spaniard rider was leading
the points table at the time of the
interview, whilst his mercurial Countryman and triple MotoGP world champion
Marc Marquez had slipped 37 markers adrift.
But that was Wayback in June, with Marquez
subsequently having gone on a tear, leapfrogging Vinales for the top of the
points table by 14 markers heading into Round 11 of 18 at 'Ol Deeter Majestik's
Red Bull Ring in Spielberg, Ja-Ja!
As Marquez started from Pole with Vinales
directly behind on Row-2, whilst third place title protagonist Andrea Dovizioso, simply known here in
Nofendersville as DOVY', was in-between, with the Italian atop
his factory Duc' (Ducati) just 21-points adrift of Marquez.
Yet for some reason, the wheels seem to be
coming off the Yamahoppers', as Maverick slipped back during the race to finish
a dejected sixth, whilst his lauded team leader Rossi finished P7.
As Dovizioso won his third time this year, ahead of
his lauded team leader Jorge Lorenzo,
with Marquez being the Bologna in thou Ducati Duos Sandwich! Before the
Repsol Honda pair of Marquez and Dani Pedrosa pushed him back to fourth place at
the finish.
Thus Marquez now leads Dovizioso by 16-points,
with 176 vs. Dovy's 160. Vinales slides to third overall with 150 and his
Movistar team-mate "the Doctor," nee Valentino Rossi languishes in
fourth with 141 points, with six rounds remaining.
Meanwhile, although I'd never heard of him, unless
I mentioned him in some long, lost Scooter Pilotes' prose? Sadly, the man responsible for putting Motorcycle racing on
Spain's radar, along with being friends with King Juan Carlos, has just
perished at age 70.
As Angel Nieto who won five 50cc and seven
125cc championships, apparently a tad superstitious, never referred to his
accomplishments as the number 13, but instead 12+1...