Can Ducati translate their qualifying form into race pace and stop Marc Marquez in his Repsol Honda? Find out as we live blog the start of the Moto GP season from Qatar at 5:00am AEDT.
In Sunday morning’s qualifying session for the race, Ducati maintained their pre-season form, with Andrea Dovizioso winning their first pole position since the 2014 Motegi Grand Prix.
It was Dovizioso’s third pole position of his career and just the third pole for Ducati since 2010.
In good signs for the team, the other Ducati’s were also strong, with Andrea Iannone 4th, Yonny Hernandez 5th for Pramac Racing and Danilo Petrucci in 9th.
They will be looking to replicate that qualifying pace to race form and take victory for the first time since Casey Stoner at the Australian Grand Prix in 2010.
Looking to stop them will be Repsol Honda and Yamaha, who also performed well last night. Back to Back Championship winner, Marc Marquez, will started his 2015 campaign in third position.
The Spaniard, who has won 53% of the races in Moto GP over the last two years, will look to continue his hot form since entering the championship.
Once again he is the favourite for the championship and will be hard to beat if his first two years in the class are anything to go by.
His team-mate, Dani Pedrosa, will be looking to stop him this year and win his first championship in the Premier Class.
He qualified second for this morning’s race and will be looking for his first win at the Qatar circuit.
For Yamaha, with Jorge Lorenzo and Valentino Rossi, they will be looking to fight back from 6th and 8th respectively in the race this morning.
They would have liked to be higher in qualifying this morning but both know how to race and get to the top.
Rossi in particular, who hasn’t qualified well in recent years in the Moto GP, knows how to come back from poor qualifying positions.
Watch out for both riders this morning.
All focus for Australia will be on Jack Miller, who makes his debut in Moto GP this morning, with the LCR Honda team in the Open class.
To be honest, don’t expect him to immediately get to the top, and mix it with the top guys. His experience in the class, and strength of his bike, will make it almost impossible for him to mix it with the top riders.
He’s gone into the absolute deep end of motorcycle riding by going from Moto 3 to Moto GP. Unfortunately he showed a little bit of that inexperience this morning by crashing in qualifying and finishing in 22nd position.
A top 15 effort would be fantastic for Miller this morning. He’ll get better as the season goes on but don’t expect similar results to Stoner in his first full season of Moto GP.
He just doesn’t have the bike or experience for top five results.
It promises to be a good battle between the Ducati’s and the Honda’s for the race win.
The question for Ducati is their race pace. Can they keep the pace for the duration of the race?
I’m not so sure and the Honda has always been a good bike to race in.
Based on that I can’t see Ducati winning and it should be a battle between Marquez and Pedrosa for the race win.
With Marquez in freakish form over the last two years it is hard to go against him. He should win but this could be the most competitive year of Moto GP in a few years. Bring it on.
Prediction: Marc Marquez.
Shane Jones
Roar Guru
Full comments to come later.
Shane Jones
Roar Guru
CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS - Rossi 25 Dovizioso 20 Iannone 16 Lorenzo 13 Marquez 11 Pedrosa 10 Crutchlow 9 Smith 8 P. Espargaro 7 Hernandez 6 Miller 0*
Shane Jones
Roar Guru
Top 10 - Rossi, Dovizioso, Iannone, Lorenzo, Marquez, Pedrosa, Crutchlow, Smith, P. Espargaro, Hernandez. Miller did not finish his first race. He crashed on the final lap.
Shane Jones
Roar Guru
The hard tyre worked absolute wonders in that race. Rossi is also 36 years old.... Riders that age just don't do what he just did. Insane.
Shane Jones
Roar Guru
22/22 VALENTINO ROSSI WINS IN QATAR!! His 83rd Premier Class win in Moto GP. What a win by the Italian. He continues to show why he is one of the best. That was a cracking race.
Shane Jones
Roar Guru
22/22 Dovizioso is closer to him than the last lap. This is going to be close.
Shane Jones
Roar Guru
22/22 FINAL LAP Rossi holds on into turn 1. The gap was enough. He needs to do this again to win the race. Dovizioso has him if he can get right behind him into the final corner.
Shane Jones
Roar Guru
21/22 Rossi is pushing hard this lap to gain a gap over Dovizioso.
Shane Jones
Roar Guru
21/22 Dovizioso moves back into the lead into turn 1. Rossi moves back past the Italian into turn 4. He leads.
Shane Jones
Roar Guru
20/22 Rossi make a move at turn 10. They then change positions for the next three corners. This is fantastic racing.
Shane Jones
Roar Guru
20/22 Iannone moves past Lorenzo for 3rd.
Shane Jones
Roar Guru
20/22 3 laps to go. Can Dovizioso hold on.
Shane Jones
Roar Guru
19/22 Rossi takes the lead into turn 12 but Dovizioso responds immediately. He leads again.
Shane Jones
Roar Guru
19/22 Top two have got a gap to 3rd and 4th.
Shane Jones
Roar Guru
19/22 Rossi moves past Lorenzo for 2nd. Here we go.
Shane Jones
Roar Guru
19/22 Dovizioso takes the lead back into turn 1 and holds position this time.
Shane Jones
Roar Guru
18/22 This is a cracking battle for the race win.
Shane Jones
Roar Guru
18/22 Dovizioso takes the lead into turn 1 but out brakes himself. Lorenzo leads again.
Shane Jones
Roar Guru
17/22 Iannone has been dropped from the top 3. Marquez will now hunt him down for 4th.
Shane Jones
Roar Guru
17/22 6 laps to go. Lorenzo still leads ahead of Dovizioso, Rossi and Iannone.