If the best rider in the world had had the best bike, would he have crushed the Championship?
It is sometimes interesting to ask yourself questions to which you will never know the answers. Already, it can allow a pleasant discussion between friends. We tested and the results were impressive, because everyone has a different point of view.
When we talk about total domination for Johnny Rea, it's 16 wins and 7 second places in 26 races last year. So 23 times in the first 2. And yet before moving to Kawasaki (replacing Loris Baz), Rea had only won 10 races in 6 seasons at Honda, including 5 at Assen, Ten Kate's local circuit. Many saw him as the best driver in WSBK several times, but without the possibility of winning with his CBR. He then moved to Kawa in 2015, where he accumulated world titles and victories (13 in 2015 and 9 in 2016, but 23 podiums). On the manufacturer side, the domination of Kawasaki, which has chosen to invest its entire speed competition budget in Superbikes, is impressive.
The best pilot
In MotoGP, many think that the best rider is Marc Marquez, with 4 titles in the last 5 years, but a fan of Valentino Rossi or a fan of Jorge Lorenzo. Maverick Vinales also had many supporters after his victories at the inaugural Grands Prix in Qatar and Argentina. And besides, wasn't Andrea Dovizioso the best driver in the world in 2017? He's currently receiving a ton of votes in the Driver of the Year elections. It was thus ranked first by the readers of Bikesportnews.com, MCN (motorcyclenews.com), Worldnews, not to mention of course the Italian media.
Marquez has often been the fastest. But not necessarily the most stable, with two crashes during the race in Argentina and at Le Mans. Nor the luckiest with a broken engine at Silverstone.
Dovizioso fell in Argentina, then sort of “threw in the towel” during the last race in Valencia. In terms of consistency, Marc was on the podium 12 times and Dovi 8. The two had a total of 6 victories. The Spaniard achieved 8 pole positions and the Italian none.
The best motorcycle
Was the Ducati the most efficient? Despite its difficulty passing corners, it was excellent in almost all other areas. How many times has the Desmosedici impressed its opponents with its engine, its stability, its tire management, etc.? The Honda seemed much more restive at times in comparison, especially with “Marquez-style” rodeo-style driving. Moreover, Dani Pedrosa only won twice and Cal Crutchlow not at all, even though he had won two Grands Prix on his RC213V the previous year.
In the final standings of the Manufacturers' World Championship, Honda dominated with 357 points. But we must not forget that Ducati lost second place in this Championship during the last race in Valencia, when Pirro's 9th place (highest ranked Ducati rider) only allowed him to bring his total to 310 points, while Johann Zarco's second place took Yamaha into second position with 321 points.
Voting time
Would Marquez have won easily with the Ducati? It's possible, but not certain. Would his driving style have matched the Desmosedici? Would the GP 17 have survived 27 falls, including several on only 7 engines?
And would Andrea Dovizioso have won the title on the Honda against Marquez on the Ducati?
Photo © Ducati
