A 9.8 second victory for the untouchable Marc Marquez in Argentina as Jorge Lorenzo gains more points and crucial bike time.
Overnight rain in Termas de Rio Hondo didn’t deter the MotoGP field during morning Warm Up, both Repsol Honda Team riders running consistently in the top ten. Marc Marquez again finished on top, Jorge Lorenzo within a second and in 11th after the 20-minute session.
Forecasts were all proven wrong as the 25-lap Argentina Grand Prix ran without even a single drop of rain and instead the grid was met with ever-climbing track temperatures. A lightning start saw Marc Marquez convert his pole position into a one second lead after just a single lap, the reigning champion never once looking back. Lap after lap his advantage grew, Marquez over 12 seconds clear before the end of the race. Crossing the line 9.816 seconds ahead of second placed Valentino Rossi, Marquez claimed his first win of the season and his third win at the Termas de Rio Hondo circuit in untouchable style.
The victory was accompanied by Marquez’s biggest winning margin in a dry MotoGP race, his previous best coming at the 2016 Argentina GP (a gap of 7.679s) and is his 45th win in the premier class. Marquez leaves Argentina with 45 points and the championship lead.
Unfortunatley Jorge Lorenzo’s race got off to a difficult start as he dropped down to 21st from 12th after trouble getting off the line. However, consistent pace saw Lorenzo quickly return to points scoring positions and run at a pace similar to those fighting towards the front. Crossing the line in 12th, Lorenzo collects not only more points but also more race time on the Honda.
Honda now moves to the top of the Constructor’s Championship as a result of the victory.
The MotoGP World Championship prepares to travel to Austin, Texas for round three of the 2019 championship at the Red Bull Gran Prix of The Americas, April 12 -14. Marquez has won all six races at the circuit while Jorge Lorenzo has taken a pair of podiums previously.
Marc Marquez – 1st
“Today was a perfect day. I have been so concentrated since FP1 and everything worked well, just a tiny hiccup in FP4. But we kept pushing, pushing and in the
Jorge Lorenzo – 12th
“First of all I want to say congratulations to the Repsol Honda Team and Marc Marquez for winning this race. Marc has been fantastic all weekend. In Warm Up we made quite a big step and I was able to be faster and I felt good for the race. Unfortunately we had some very unlucky things happen, at the start I hit the pit limiter and the bike wouldn’t go. When I realised I was at the back so I had to fight through, I was able to move forward but we can’t be happy with this result.”
Argentina Grand Prix Race Results
DRY – Humidity: 75%, Track Temp: 41°C, Air Temp: 27°C
MotoGP 2019 Sunday, March 31st 2019
| Pos. | Rider | Num | Nation | Points | Team | Constructor | Time/Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | MARQUEZ Marc | 93 | SPA | 25 | Repsol Honda Team | Honda | 41’43.688 |
| 2 | ROSSI Valentino | 46 | ITA | 20 | Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP | Yamaha | 9.816 |
| 3 | DOVIZIOSO Andrea | 4 | ITA | 16 | Mission Winnow Ducati | Ducati | 10.530 |
| 4 | MILLER Jack | 43 | AUS | 13 | Pramac Racing | Ducati | 12.140 |
| 5 | RINS Alex | 42 | SPA | 11 | Team Suzuki Ecstar | Suzuki | 12.563 |
| 6 | PETRUCCI Danilo | 9 | ITA | 10 | Mission Winnow Ducati | Ducati | 13.750 |
| 7 | NAKAGAMI Takaaki | 30 | JPN | 9 | LCR Honda | Honda | 18.160 |
| 8 | QUARTARARO Fabio | 20 | FRA | 8 | Petronas Yamaha SRT | Yamaha | 20.403 |
| 9 | ESPARGARO Aleix | 41 | SPA | 7 | Aprilia Racing Team Gresini | Aprilia | 25.292 |
| 10 | ESPARGARO Pol | 44 | SPA | 6 | Red Bull KTM Factory Racing | KTM | 25.679 |
| 11 | OLIVEIRA Miguel | 88 | POR | 5 | Red Bull KTM Tech 3 | KTM | 25.855 |
| 12 | LORENZO Jorge | 99 | SPA | 4 | Repsol Honda Team | Honda | 27.497 |
| 13 | CRUTCHLOW Cal | 35 | GBR | 3 | LCR Honda | Honda | 31.398 |
| 14 | BAGNAIA Francesco | 63 | ITA | 2 | Pramac Racing | Ducati | 32.893 |
| 15 | ZARCO Johann | 5 | FRA | 1 | Red Bull KTM Factory Racing | KTM | 33.372 |
| 16 | SYAHRIN Hafizh | 55 | MAL | 0 | Red Bull KTM Tech 3 | KTM | 35.545 |
| 17 | IANNONE Andrea | 29 | ITA | 0 | Aprilia Racing Team Gresini | Aprilia | 38.238 |
| 18 | VINALES Maverick | 12 | SPA | 0 | Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP | Yamaha | DNF |
| 19 | MORBIDELLI Franco | 21 | ITA | 0 | Petronas Yamaha SRT | Yamaha | DNF |
| 20 | MIR Joan | 36 | SPA | 0 | Team Suzuki Ecstar | Suzuki | DNF |
| 21 | RABAT Tito | 53 | SPA | 0 | Reale Avintia Racing | Ducati | DNF |
| 22 | ABRAHAM Karel | 17 | CZE | 0 | Reale Avintia Racing | Ducati | DNF |
Rider Standings
| Pos. | Rider | Num | Nation | Points | Team | Constructor |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | MARQUEZ Marc | 93 | SPA | 45 | Repsol Honda Team | Honda |
| 2 | DOVIZIOSO Andrea | 4 | ITA | 41 | Mission Winnow Ducati | Ducati |
| 3 | ROSSI Valentino | 46 | ITA | 31 | Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP | Yamaha |
| 4 | RINS Alex | 42 | SPA | 24 | Team Suzuki Ecstar | Suzuki |
| 5 | PETRUCCI Danilo | 9 | ITA | 20 | Mission Winnow Ducati | Ducati |
| 6 | CRUTCHLOW Cal | 35 | GBR | 19 | LCR Honda | Honda |
| 7 | NAKAGAMI Takaaki | 30 | JPN | 16 | LCR Honda | Honda |
| 8 | MILLER Jack | 43 | AUS | 13 | Pramac Racing | Ducati |
| 9 | ESPARGARO Aleix | 41 | SPA | 13 | Aprilia Racing Team Gresini | Aprilia |
| 10 | ESPARGARO Pol | 44 | SPA | 10 | Red Bull KTM Factory Racing | KTM |
| 11 | VINALES Maverick | 12 | SPA | 9 | Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP | Yamaha |
| 12 | QUARTARARO Fabio | 20 | FRA | 8 | Petronas Yamaha SRT | Yamaha |
| 13 | MIR Joan | 36 | SPA | 8 | Team Suzuki Ecstar | Suzuki |
| 14 | LORENZO Jorge | 99 | SPA | 7 | Repsol Honda Team | Honda |
| 15 | OLIVEIRA Miguel | 88 | POR | 5 | Red Bull KTM Tech 3 | KTM |
| 16 | MORBIDELLI Franco | 21 | ITA | 5 | Petronas Yamaha SRT | Yamaha |
| 17 | BAGNAIA Francesco | 63 | ITA | 2 | Pramac Racing | Ducati |
| 18 | ZARCO Johann | 5 | FRA | 2 | Red Bull KTM Factory Racing | KTM |
| 19 | IANNONE Andrea | 29 | ITA | 2 | Aprilia Racing Team Gresini | Aprilia |
Words and Photos: Honda Racing Corporation
