The MAG Vietnam Vol 5 Jan 2015 | Page 12

Sport
Photo by : Zane Quinn , 2014 Sepang , Malaysia . Moto3 No . 55 Andrea Locatelli takes a slide as No . 43 Luca Marini manages to keep it together
Photo by : Zane Quinn , 2014 Sepang , Malaysia . Valentino Rossi No . 46 MotoGP 1000cc
12 The MAG Vung Tau and limited testing . Then there are the remaining manufacturers : Suzuki , Aprilia , and KTM who will be allowed more testing , engine development and more engines per rider for the season , in an attempt to , close the performance gap and keep these manufacturers in the sport . As can be seen by the improved performance of Ducati and Suzuki this year the plan seems to have paid off . And we reap the benefits – more teams equal more riders equals more excitement . Maybe a lesson the Scaltectrix crowd in F1 could learn from . The end of the 2016 MotoGP season saw Marq Marquez crowned as World Champion for the third time in his MotoGP career , followed by Valentino Rossi , and after relatively lacklustre end to the season Jorge Lorenzo . It was definitely an exciting and different season in the sense that at least nine different race winners crossed the line , starting with Australian Jack Miller who managed the poor conditions in the wet at the Dutch TT with skill , and became the first independent rider in almost ten years to win a MotoGP race . While this win was initially attributed to the torrential conditions , it quickly became clear that the switch by Organisers from Bridgestone to Michelin tyres had played a significant part , as tyre choices in more than one race saw winners such as Cal Crutchlow emerge . There were of course problems with the switch in tyre manufacturer , but maybe that ’ s what makes MotoGP so much more exciting – having riders who need to make split second decisions about tyre choice when track conditions change from wet to dry in a matter of a few laps .