The Honda Repsol driver has had a series of complicated weekends and still cannot see the end of the tunnel. He now has three Grands Prix left to reach the last podium of his career.
Dani Pedrosa doesn't get out of it. This is the conclusion of this weekend in Japan. Although he finished sixth in the combined times of the first three free practice sessions, he failed to improve like the others afterward.
Qualified in eleventh position, he had a difficult race and was only able to move up to eighth place. He thus finished 15 seconds behind his teammate. The Spanish driver continues to try to stay positive, but the motivation seems to be gone: “The race was very disappointing. I couldn't achieve the performance I expected. I didn't have the perfect feeling with the bike and I had a lot of difficulties. It's a shame, because it's a route and a place that I really like. Regardless, it is what it is and we need to try to manage this situation as best we can. »
A fine player, he congratulated Marc Márquez on his seventh title: “I want to congratulate Marc because what he has done is incredible. He has been strong everywhere this season and has only made a few small mistakes while scoring a lot of points. He is a driver who is constantly evolving. I think the team did a great job as well. »
There are now three Grands Prix left for Dani Pedrosa to reach the last podium of his MotoGP career…
Japanese Grand Prix, Motegi, MotoGP J.3: Ranking
1 93 Marc MARQUEZ Honda 42'36.438
2 35 Cal CRUTCHLOW Honda +1.573
3 42 Alex RINS Suzuki +1.720
4 46 Valentino ROSSI Yamaha +6.413
5 19 Alvaro BAUTISTA Ducati +6.919
6 5 Johann ZARCO Yamaha +8.024
7 25 Maverick VIÑALES Yamaha +13.330
8 26 Dani PEDROSA Honda +15.582
9 9 Danilo PETRUCCI Ducati +20.584
10 55 Hafizh SYAHRIN Yamaha +24.985
11 21 Franco MORBIDELLI Honda +25.931
12 38 Bradley SMITH KTM +26.875
13 44 Pol ESPARGARO KTM +27.069
14 89 Katsuyuki NAKASUGA Yamaha +32.550
15 30 Takaaki NAKAGAMI Honda +37.718
16 10 Xavier SIMEON Ducati +39.583
17 81 Jordi TORRES Ducati +39.839
18 4 Andrea DOVIZIOSO Ducati +42.698
19 45 Scott REDDING Aprilia +49.943
20 12 Thomas LUTHI Honda +52.707
21 50 Sylvain GUINTOLI Suzuki +1'01.848
Not Classified
29 Andrea IANNONE Suzuki 10 Laps
17 Karel ABRAHAM Ducati 12 Laps
43 Jack MILLER Ducati 14 Laps
41 Aleix ESPARGARO Aprilia 18 Laps
