Fabio reigns in Doha chaos

“I rode like an amateur. I did the reverse in the second race!” –Fabio Q

THE FAST, THIRD-GEAR curves and one-kilometre long front straight of the Losail International Circuit have long been known to host vintage premier class contests. But the stars aligned for the second round of 2021 to bring about MotoGP’s tightest-ever contest. The formula was simple: give everyone eight days of track time – preseason testing and race one was held here – prior to the event. Add in a headwind to blunt the fastest bikes’ top speed. In an already tight class, the margins became finer.

Maverick Viñales summed it up: “Five weeks here in Qatar and after lot of laps – a lot – everyone can go fast.”

So it