Repsol Honda riders claim victory and second place at Grand Prix of the Americas –just as they did at last season’s inaugural race in Texas.
Living up to expectations in style, Marc Marquez and Dani Pedrosa took the top two places on the podium at the second race of the 2014 season –held at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas. It was a repeat of the result from last season for the Repsol Honda riders. Marc Marquez put on a masterclass in the race, and his victory extends his World Championship lead. He also becomes the first rider since Mick Doohan in 1995 to win the opening two races of the season from pole position.
The race began in unorthodox fashion, with Jorge Lorenzo jumping the start and leading the opening lap ahead of Marquez and Pedrosa. Upon the conclusion of Lap 1 the Yamaha rider rode down pit lane to take his ride-through penalty, leaving the two Repsol Honda men out in front with a gap to the rest of the field. Marquez imposed an unmatchable pace, leaving Pedrosa to take the chequered flag 4 seconds behind his teammate. Marquez leads the World Championship with 50 points, whilst Pedrosa moves up to second with 36.
The next challenge for the Repsol Honda Team comes in two weeks’ time, as MotoGP returns to Argentina to debut at the Termas de Rio Hondo circuit.
Marc Márquez >> Audio>>
1st, 43:33.430
“I’m very happy! I got a really good start, but when I saw Jorge overtake me off the line at first I was a little worried, but then I saw that he had jumped the start. It was a different race to previous ones because I led from start to finish; although it might seem easier that way, it is tough because you have to maintain concentration. It was a perfect weekend and gives us plenty of confidence, although we are aware that the coming races will be different. I know that the race was a little boring for the fans, but sometimes these types of races are good for a rider. Let’s hope that the next one is more exciting!”
Dani Pedrosa >> Audio>>
2nd, +4.124 sec
“It was a tough race as Marc was that little faster than me and although I tried to improve with every corner, it was too difficult to gain ground on him and the distance between us increased with every lap. In the end, he was too far away from me. I didn’t have anyone behind me either, so I just kept up my pace as best I could. I learnt a few things in this race and we will try to apply them and make the maximum improvement possible, in order to be able to put up more of a fight next time.”
