The Japan Grand Prix, round 16 of the MotoGP World Championship 2022 saw plenty of action from Friday until Sunday afternoon. Following only one dry practice session and a rainy Saturday that was cut short, riders and teams had to go into the race today in sunny and warm conditions, which saw some surprises.

Cal Crutchlow, who is doing just his second race weekend this year with the WithU Yamaha RNF MotoGP Team showed a strong performance. The Englishman started from P23 on the grid and made up two positions in the first lap of the race. He moved up several more spots in the first half of the race, but was really on the gas when the second half started, where he was nearly in podium pace and therewith climbed up further in the standings to eventually cross the line in P15, collecting one World Championship point.

#35 Cal Crutchlow – P15 –

“Honestly, the mistake made is I forgot to press the launch control devices so I started really badly. As you know with the Yamaha, the straight line speed is not amazing with the acceleration, so I was just being patient with the whole race. I came from a long way back to the position that I am in. I’m happy with the race that I did, I couldn’t have done anymore. My pace in the middle of the race was really good and I’m pleased with that. I think I would have been in the top 10 today easily with the pace that I had if i started in a good way and also if I qualified in a good way. So, I’m disappointed with that, but I can be proud with the way I rode today.”

Source: motogp.com, rnfracing.com