Formula 1 was at a soggy Suzuka last weekend for the Grand Prix of Japan. Once again a season championship was decided on the circuit's famous last chicane. Race coverage is below.

MotoGP races at Phillip Island this weekend for the Animoca Brands Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix. Read on for a preview.

Editorial note: We've been partnering with Steve Aspland, providing content for his Moto-focused newsletter. The plan is to expand that going forward, using various platforms to reach a wider audience. As the say on the tube; stay tuned.

For more on your favorite series, visit the homepage of SARNIMOTORSPORTS.

Jay Geils Memorial TV Links:

Sunday, October 16th: MotoGP - Australia (SD) 12:30 PM ET NBC

MOTOGP - Two points. That's the difference between first and second in the 2022 MotoGP World Championship. Current World Champion; Monster Energy Yamaha's Fabio Quartararo, has had a string of inconsistent races, which has alloed Lenovo Ducati Team's Francesco Bagnaia to slide by Aprilia's Aleix Espargaro into second place, right up behind Quartararo. Espargaro now sits P3, 20 points off the top.

There are a mere three GPs remaining and the riders are in place downunder ready to do battle at one of the greatest circuits on the calendar - Phillip Island.

Phillip Island hosted its first motorcycle race in 1931. In 1956 a permanently constructed circuit continued to host motorcycle Grand Prix events until it fell into disrepair during the late 70s and early 80s. After renovation, the circuit made an intermediate comeback in MotoGP from 1989 until 1990, to become a regular fixture once more from 1997 onwards. Thanks to its location, right next to the ocean, and its flowing 2.73 mile layout, featuring seven left and five right corners, and a nearly 3,000 foot straight, the Phillip Island track is loved by fans and MotoGP riders alike.

The three title protagonists gathered on Thursday to discuss the championship heading into the weekend. Fabio Quartararo has always been a momentum type of rider; he builds on his success. But with little of that recently, his confidence is clearly under question. In 2021 he overcame those traits, showed poise and pace and rose to the top. Can he do it again?

Fabio Quartararo: "I think we have to think about the Championship. But actually, I want to take it race-by-race, because in the end, it’s almost like the beginning of the Championship right now. We are almost equal points with Pecco but I don’t only see Pecco. Of course, Aleix is here, Jack, Enea… So, we are five in not a lot of points. Okay, top three’s a little bit closer, but I think we have to think race-by-race, and I think this one can be a good one for us. Having the title from last year, it brings me a lot of confidence and much more experience, so of course the experience of the last two years helps me a lot to be calm a lot in this situation."

Francesco Bagnaia: "I’m really looking forward to riding here, it’s one of my favorite tracks. I think for everyone it’s the same because it’s wonderful to ride here. In 2019 it was my best race in the calendar and I enjoy racing here, I think now our potential is so much higher with the new fairing, the engine of the bike in circumstances like this track can help a lot. Let’s see what we can do. Like Fabio said, it’s like we’re starting the Championship. We’re five riders who have the possibility to win the title. For sure me and Fabio have more possibility because we are more in front, but Aleix is not so far and we already know that this year everything can change, so Enea and Jack have a possibility. So let’s see. I think our potential is very high, we are in a good moment so let’s use it."

Aleix Espargaro: "I can’t wait to try the '22 Aprilia here at Phillip Island because in the fast tracks this year, the bike has been very competitive – in Assen, Argentina… Many tracks where you don’t use the brakes, the bike was very competitive. So, in this track, I think the bike will work very good, and I can’t wait to try it because it’s a place where you normally enjoy riding, so I can’t wait. To attack and make no mistakes is not easy, but yes, it’s time to deliver, it’s time to attack, we have to recover some points. Twenty points is not so much but, in three races, it’s not going to be easy, I know for sure, but I will try my best. For me now, it’s not more about being constant but to attack, to try to race more than ever in the season, and I will try from this weekend."

The MotoGP World Championship had a week off. In that time local favorite Jack Miller got married. Talk about a busy schedule! Miller is P5 in the Riders' Championship and with his knowledge of Phillip Island, he can surely put a dent in that 40 point deficit. He discussed his mood, including what it feels like to be racing back in his home country.

Jack Miller: "I’m buzzing, it’s great to be back on this side of the world as I’ve been saying in the lead up to this in Japan and Thailand. Feels so good to be riding bikes on this side of the world and eventually coming home. It felt so good to be crossing that bridge yesterday with all the Aussie fans, such a massive country and those guys ride from far and wide to make it here. Australia is a very Motorsport hungry country I guess you could say and they’re dedicated fans that’s for certain, to be able to do that in the pouring rain in Phillip Island was something special. Feels awesome to be heading back here. Heading back across the bridge and getting to do a quick lap with those guys, there’s no circuit like this on the calendar or in the world. You know coming down the Gardner Straight and you’re looking out over the ocean, this place needs no introduction. I think myself and everyone is looking forward to heading out in FP1.

"I feel as Aleix said, 20 points back with three races left isn’t ideal, so 40 points is less than ideal. But we’ll just keep doing what we’re doing, I’m enjoying riding the bike at the minute and I’m having a ball with it, so if we can continue to have fun, pull some decent results, we’ll see where we end up in the end. I’ll try not to do anything silly in there but it’s every rider’s dream to win their home Grand Prix, it feels awesome to be back here on a factory bike and yeah if we can try to challenge for that on Sunday there’s no doubt I’ll be going for it."

This is the first MotoGP appearance in Australia since 2019. There is no other country where Motorsport is such an integral part of the fabric of the populace. It certainly is on a par with Italy, Spain and Great Britain. Adding to this weekend's excitement is the circuit itself, which more than one rider claims as their favorite on the calendar. Suzuki's Joan Mir, pending a final fitness test, will make his return to action in Australia after a long injury lay off.

As we saw in Thailand, in the MotoGP World Championship, riders not only have to battle their rivals, the elements are also something that they must contend with and conquer. Race day looks cool, with a temperature of 59°F. There is a 60% chance of showers. The ever-present wind whipping off the Pacific ocean is also a factor at the circuit.

The Animoca Brands Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix on October 16th. The race broadcast is on NBC Sunday afternoon at 12:30 PM Eastern.

WORLDSBK - Race 1 of the Pirelli Portuguese Round at the Autodromo Internacional do Algarve was a shortened affair. The top three in the Championship standings battled at various points over the podium places. In the end, it was Pata Yamaha's Toprak Razgatlioglu who claimed victory ahead of Aruba Ducati's Alvaro Bautista in a 14-lap battle.

Race 1 in Portimão was delayed due to a serious crash in the WorldSSP300 Race 1. Kawasaki's Victor Steeman had to be airlifted from the circuit and the WorldSBK race couldn't begin until the medical helicopter returned to the track. Sadly, on Tuesday the news of his passing was announced.

Bautista had to fight from fourth on the grid, and lost time at the start of the race, but was able to move up to second place by the end of the race as he passed Lowes at Turn 1 on Lap 3. Third place for Rea continues his winless drought.

Jake Gagne, riding an Attack Performance Yamaha in Portimão, finished P19 in Race 1, just behind Scott Redding. Fellow American Yamaha rider Garrett Gerloff finished tenth in Race 1.

Toprak Razgatlioglu continued winning in Sunday's Tissot Superpole Race. Toprak came out on top of

a fierce battle with Alvaro Bautista, which lasted all ten laps. Razgatlioglu won by just 0.123s ahead of Bautista at the end of the race.

Jonathan Rea had initially been in the fight for victory but dropped back as the race progressed, finishing in third place and more than a second back from Bautista.

Alvaro Bautista prevented a Toprak weekend hat trick, by claiming victory in Sunday's Race 2 at Portimão. The Ducati rider won Race 2 ahead of Razgatlioglu and Rea extending his lead in the 2022 WorldSBK Championship.

Bautista finished 2.256s ahead of Razgatlioglu to take his 28th WorldSBK victory. He now leads Razgatlioglu by 56 points heading to the Motul Argentinean Round in South America.

Jonathan Rea completed the Race 2 podium. He finished 4.758s behind Bautista and 2.502s behind Razgatlioglu. He remains third in the Championship standings, with 366 points.

Bautista started Race 2 from second place, but it was Rea who took the lead of the race into Turn 1 while Bautista dropped to third and Razgatlioglu dropping to second. On Lap 7, Razgatlioglu made a move on Rea at Turn 1 to move into the lead while, two laps later at the same corner, Rea moved back into the lead as Razgatlioglu dropped to third behind Bautista. As the halfway distance approached, Bautista made a move at Turn 10 to take the lead, while Razgatlioglu followed him into second place after passing Rea.

As the final third approached, Razgatlioglu set about closing in on Bautista and made a move on the Championship leader at Turn 13 on Lap 14, but, at the start of the next lap, Bautista was able to pass the reigning Champion down the pit straight to re-take the lead. From there, Bautista was able to build a gap, winning by over two seconds.

Alvaro Bautista: “For sure, it has been three amazing races with a lot of fighting at the front. Yesterday, I needed the last six laps of the race to get to Toprak and fight for victory. In the Superpole Race, I knew it was maybe difficult to beat Jonathan and Toprak because they were very fast. I think they were a bit better than us at this track with these conditions. This morning, I was very determined, and my plan was to stay with them because I can finish with them, that means I have the chance in the afternoon to fight for the victory. In the end, I was quite fast in the morning as well. I could be with them, especially with Toprak. He had a really incredible pace in the morning. In the afternoon, I had a better position on the grid. I made a normal start and I lost position to Jonathan, but I was there. When Jonathan was in front, Toprak was behind him just saving the tire life. I think Jonathan was struggling a little bit more than Toprak to push. I decided to take the lead and increase the pace, make the others force their tire. I’m happy because the last laps, even if Toprak tried to overtake me a couple of times, he was struggling more so in the last few laps he stayed away.”

Both American riders moved up the order in Race 2. Garrett Gerloff moved up one position, with a P9 result, while Jake Gange improved from Saturday's P19 to finish Race 2 in 15th.

The WorldSBK Championship finishes up the 2022 calendar with three flyaway rounds. Next weekend's Argentinian Round is followed by Indonesia and the finale downunder at Phillip Island on the 18th - 20th of November.

MOTOAMERICA - Today MotoAmerica announced changes to the MotoAmerica Medallia Superbike rules package. The biggest change in the premier class pertains to transmissions. Beginning with the 2023 season, only one set of gearbox ratios will be allowed for the entire season. The gear ratios can be chosen by the team/individual, but that ratio must remain in place for the entire season. The ratios chosen by the team for the season are separate for each entry but must be decided upon prior to the start of the season (this includes single-event and wild-card entries).

 

Another big change is the allowance of an “external neutral selection mechanism” (or neutral lockout switch) that allows riders to manually rid their Superbikes of neutral in the transmission shifting order, ala World Superbike rules, to thus eliminate the “false” neutrals that often cause crashes.

To see a pdf of the 2023 Provisional technical Regulations, visit AMA.

Last weekend we saw two American riders competing in the WorldSBK Portuguese Round. MotoAmerica veterans Jake Gagne and Garrett Gerloff flew the Stars & Stripes on the World Stage. Even though neither took podium finishes, they certainly were not backmarkers.

Now this weekend, more MotoAmerica riders will compete in the British Superbike Championship at Brands Hatch. Brandon Paasch is part of an American contingent at this weekend’s British Superbike series’ season finale at Brands Hatch.

Paasch will compete in National Superstock aboard a BuildBase Suzuki GSX-R1000, joining Gus Rodio and Anthony Mazziotto as wildcard entries at the final round of the 2022 BSB season.

The two-time Daytona 200 champion finished fourth in the 2022 MotoAmerica Yuasa Stock 1000 Championship aboard an Altus Motorsports Suzuki GSX-R1000, Paasch is confident that he will get comfortable quickly on the BuildBase Suzuki.

Brandon Paasch: “For sure, I’m stoked to get back to the series where I won my Moto3 Championship. I have a lot of friends in the paddock, and I always had good results at Brands Hatch. This was a bit of a learning year for me on the 1000 in MotoAmerica, but I was able to grow and figure out how to put the Suzuki back on the box. I’m going to take that and put it to use right away on the BuildBase bike, and I’m thankful to Steve at Hawk Racing for this chance to compete against the top British racers in the series.

“I’ll still be working with Gus (Rodio) and Anthony (Mazziotto) to help them learn the track and some of its tricks. It’s great to have a couple other Jersey Boys there. We’re all good friends, and I think we have something to prove coming over from MotoAmerica. We’ll see. I think it’s going to be a great weekend of racing, and I know the three of us are pumped up to show what we’ve got.” 

Alboreto: Gasoline in the Veins - The story about the man who grew up to realize his childhood dream of driving a Formula 1 car for Enzo Ferrari is now available once more in the United States.

Listen to that interview HERE. 

There is also a Facebook page for the book HERE.

FORMULA 1 - It was inevitable. Max Verstappen was going to win the 2022 World Driver's Championship, whether in Japan, Austin, Brazil or the remaining three rounds in Mexico, Brazil or Abu Dhabai. He was just too good, in conditions that favored him and also those that did not. He rose to the top regardless. He had no equal really. Not from an unorganized Scuderia Ferrari and Charles Leclerc, who frankly, isn't as good as a driver.

Who knows what would have happened between he and Lewis Hamilton or George Russell, if Mercedes had overcome their failure to react to the 2022 rules?

In the end it was another title decided at Suzuka, in the famous chicane no less.The race became a timed affair, after a lengthy Red Flag, made worse by the inexplicable presence of an extraction vehicle on the circuit while cars were present.

On the last lap Charles Leclerc was struggling to hold off Sergio Perez and went through the last turn chicane, picking up a penalty and second place became third because of the last lap gaffe.

Max Verstappen (and most everybody else in attendance) had thought that the title chase had moved on to Austin. But during the winner interview news of the penalty meant that he had clinched his second straight World Championship.

The race began on time, but due to intense spray and a series of incidents – which included the crash by Carlos Sainz on Lap 2, the call was made to bring the cars to pitlane. The race was put into a lengthy hold, with the overall three-hour race limit ticking down, and the two-hour window coming into force an hour after the initial start, as Race Control waited for a let up in the persistent rain.

The planned schedule for next season currently features 18 races between January and July 2023 on street circuits in 13 world cities, beating the previous record of 16 races in 10 different cities this season; Formula E's biggest campaign yet as the electric race series launches into a new era.

The Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez track will be the site of the Gen3 debut - the fastest, lightest, most powerful and efficient electric race car ever. The Mexico City E-Prix is set for Saturday, January 14th 2023.

SUN SPECIALTIES - Sun Specialties is the official promotional products supplier of Sarni Motorsports. Sun Specialties has over 35 years of experience, providing quality and service on wearables and all imprinted products. Whether you are looking for Team Gear, Corporate Awards, or Specialty Advertising Products, we want to share our longstanding relationship with this great company with you. We encourage you to take advantage of special savings.

Call Sharon Walsh for a quote on your next order. 978-851-5110 x14.

Or email at sharon@sunspecialties.com

WEC - The FIA World Endurance Championship wraps up the 2022 calendar at the 8 Hours of Bahrain in just under a month.

Toyota Gazoo Racing’s Sebastien Buemi heads to Bahrain with particular local knowledge as a former resident of the Kingdom, and can look back on two WEC wins in 2022, including the jewel-in-the-crown 24 Hours of Le Mans as well as the 6 Hours of Fuji last time out. 

Buemi, Brendon Hartley and Ryo Hirakawa enjoyed a flawless performance last time out to win the 6 Hours of Fuji and currently lead the title race. 

Sebastien Buemi: "We’re level on points with Alpine in the drivers’ championship so it’s all to play for in Bahrain. I don’t think it particularly changes things for us as a team because we would anyway go there with the target of winning the race. Obviously, for car 8 we only have to finish ahead of the Alpine to secure the championship, so we will manage the race and try to achieve that without taking any risks. Our focus will clearly be to win both championships."

The 2022 FIA WEC season concludes wit the 8 Hours of Bahrain on November 12th.

Ferrari have been busy testing their Ferrari LMH for entry into the 1000 Miles of Sebring on March 17, 2023.

Alessandro Pier Guidi, James Calado, Antonio Fuoco, Miguel Molina and Davide Rigon took turns at the wheel of the LMH during three days of testing at the Portimão circuit in Portugal recently. Changeable weather over the three days meant sessions on dry asphalt alternated with others on a wet track.

This new car marks Ferrari’s return to the World Championship’s premier class half a century after its last appearance, when the 312 PB lined up on the grid of the most famous endurance races, including the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

The LMH’s historic first public appearance is set for the afternoon of Sunday, October 30th at the Ferrari Finali Mondiali at the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari at Imola.

WHAT ARE YOU LOOKING FORWARD TO IN THE NEXT PHASE OF TESTING?

“Each track that we go to, for me it’s getting up to speed at that circuit. I’ve got experience at all theses tracks but nevertheless I’m lapping 10-15 seconds faster than the GT cars that I’ve driven before. There is some adjustment needed. Now that we’re getting past the fundamental things in the development of the car we’re looking to fine-tune, understand setups at different circuits, understand how we can push the performance envelope a bit more, ask a bit more from the car and get the balance tuned in through more of the corners. With all those steps hopefully extract more lap time and get closer and closer to what we can hopefully have at Daytona.”  

HOW MUCH WILL YOU BE ABLE TO FINE-TUNE BRAKING MAPS?

“It’s something that we haven’t worked out the answer to because it’s not as simple as coming up with your theoretical braking bias on each corner and then running it because different drivers like different sensations from the car. Some like to feel the rear axle locking up a bit more, some the front. At the start of the stint with 100-plus kilos of fuel it’s going to need different brake bias toward the end. Trying to achieve a good baseline that works in most conditions is our first priority and then work out how much we want to try to optimize for different states because that brings complications as well. It's all doable, but with my experience with Formula E where you’re the only driver in the car, looking at one-lap qualifying, it’s a small state that you’re working in so it’s straightforward to optimize things for that one-lap format. Endurance racing is a whole different kettle of fish entirely.”

WHAT DID YOU HAVE TO DO TO TAKE THE STEP UP TO PROTOTYPES?

“Neck strength is a big one. The cars that I’ve driven for the last five or six years haven’t required too much neck training. I keep myself in good physical condition, but specifically the neck is the big difference. The speed the corners come up to you at, the length of time you actually have on each straight feels daunting to start with. The corners come up fast and you’re not processing things in your brain quickly enough. But Road Atlanta was actually the first time I felt calm. I was changing settings multiple times per lap and didn’t feel under pressure. I was changing settings to see how they affected performance in different corners and it was starting to come a bit easier. It was nice to feel a bit more on top of things. They’re really quick cars. It will not be that straightforward, especially when you bring traffic into the mix.”

ARE THESE CARS MORE PHYSICALLY DEMANDING TO DRIVE THAN THE DPIS?

“I don’t have a huge amount of experience with the DPi to compare. I was surprised how close it did feel to the DPi. We are aware of the physics of the car being a bit heavier, but I was surprised. Turn 1 at Atlanta is a good example. It’s a fast approach with short braking, you have to commit a lot of speed to it, but it held really well. The high-speed performance seems to be pretty good if you were to compare it with DPi. I don’t have enough experience to know about top speeds and accelerations. From what the others are saying, the car feels more powerful than the DPi. I don’t feel a huge difference in my driving compared to what I’ve done in GT, GTLM.”

The 2023 season get underway in 113 days at the Rolex 24 at Daytona. The race is on January 28th and 29th. For tickets, visit DAYTONA.