Can Marquez Beat Ducati at Austria MotoGP? (Preview)

2019 Austrian GP at Red Bull Ring Preview

Except for his crash at Circuit of the Americas – a result that ended his streak of six-straight wins in Texas from pole – Marc Marquez has finished second or better at every round so far in 2019 MotoGP.

This tally includes six wins, including last week’s domination at the Czech Republic Grand Prix in Brno. After 10 of 19 rounds, the Repsol Honda RC213V pilot has garnered 210 points – the second highest accumulated in the opening 10 races behind the record that he set of 250 points in 2014.

He leads Mission Winnow Ducati’s Andrea Dovizioso by 63 points. But if history proves itself again at Austria MotoGP, Marquez has a chance of losing some of that edge.

As the 2019 MotoGP Championship heads this weekend to the Red Bull Ring for the Austrian Grand Prix for another back-to-back round, only one manufacturer has won there since the track returned to the series in 2016 – Ducati.

Former Ducati rider Andrea Iannone won from pole in 2016. Dovizioso won in 2017, and former Ducati rider Jorge Lorenzo – sidelined in Austria due to recovering from his back-breaking crash in Assen – won last season.

Marquez has finished runner-up in the past two MotoGPs in Spielberg and has secured two pole positions there. He is on the hunt for his first win at the Red Bull Ring – the only track on the 2019 schedule where Marquez has never scored a victory.

“It has certainly been a busy return after the summer,” Marc Marquez said. “Of course we are very happy about the result in Brno but now we must focus again and prepare for Austria. The Red Bull Ring is a very unique circuit that demands a lot from the brakes and from the power of the bike. In the past we have had some very exciting races there so this year I think it will again be very interesting!”

Marquez’s other Ducati threat will arrive from Dovizioso’s teammate Danilo Petrucci, who is third in the point standings, 81 points behind. Petrucci won the Italian Grand Prix this year, but has struggled over the past three rounds, and finished eighth last week at Brno.

Pramac Racing Ducati’s Jack Miller can also challenge at Austria MotoGP – especially since he’s running high on energy after finishing third last week in Brno.

The Suzuki, Yamaha, KTM and Aprilia riders will have loads of work to complete considering Ducati and Honda are the dominate prototypes in Austria. But the beauty of GP motorcycle racing is things can change – from crashes to weather conditions – and fast.

The Austrian GP begins with free practice Friday, followed by qualifying Saturday and Sunday’s 28-lap MotoGP.

For local screening time of Austria MotoGP, visit 2019 MotoGP US TV Schedule.

2019 MotoGP Point Standings (after 10 of 19 rounds)

Pos.	Rider	Manufacturer	Nationality	Points
1	Marc Marquez	Honda	ESP	210
2	Andrea Dovizioso	Ducati	ITA	147
3	Danilo Petrucci	Ducati	ITA	129
4	Alex Rins	Suzuki	ESP	114
5	Maverick Viñales	Yamaha	ESP	91
6	Valentino Rossi	Yamaha	ITA	90
7	Jack Miller	Ducati	AUS	86
8	Cal Crutchlow	Honda	GBR	78
9	Fabio Quartararo	Yamaha	FRA	76
10	Pol Espargaro	KTM	ESP	61
11	Takaaki Nakagami	Honda	JPN	57
12	Franco Morbidelli	Yamaha	ITA	52
13	Joan Mir	Suzuki	ESP	39
14	Aleix Espargaro	Aprilia	ESP	31
15	Andrea Iannone	Aprilia	ITA	21
16	Jorge Lorenzo	Honda	ESP	19
17	Johann Zarco	KTM	FRA	18
18	Miguel Oliveira	KTM	PRT	18
19	Francesco Bagnaia	Ducati	ITA	15
20	Tito Rabat	Ducati	ESP	14
21	Stefan Bradl	Honda	DEU	13
22	Michele Pirro	Ducati	ITA	9
23	Hafizh Syahrin	KTM	MYS	3
24	Karel Abraham	Ducati	CZE	3
25	Sylvain Guintoli	Kawasaki	FRA	3
26	Bradley Smith	KTM	GBR	0