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By Emanuele Venturoli| Posted March 18, 2018 | In MotoGP, MotoGP
2018 MotoGP: Marquez takes 2nd after Qatar thriller
Marquez at the Gp of Qatar
Marquez starts his 2018 campaign with a brilliant podium in Qatar, Pedrosa fights hard but has to settle for 7th
As night fell in Qatar, Marc Marquez climbed to the second step of the podium at the Losail International Circuit after fighting for victory all the way until the last corner.
Andrea Dovizioso just edged Marc out at the chequered flag by a mere 0.027” but the reigning World Champion will fly back to Europe tomorrow knowing that he’s shown great pace and scored a brilliant result at a track that is notoriously tough for him and the Repsol Honda Team.
Dani Pedrosa at the Gp of Qatar
A group of seven riders, split by just over one second, fought for a podium position for almost the entire race. Dani Pedrosa was among that group, although a poor feeling with the rear tyre forced him to settle for seventh.
Marc Marquez
2ND
“What a race! I’m really happy with our second place finish because this is one of the tracks on the calendar where we struggle most. After the pre-season test we knew what we could expect. With the hard front tyre I was struggling a bit in the left corners but with the medium I wouldn’t have finished the race. I tried to pass Dovi in the last corner but he beat me. Honestly, I was expecting that, but I had to try the move anyway, to see if there was any way we could make it happen. In the end, Dovi had something more than me and he deserves this win. Even if he was a bit behind at the start, I was waiting for him–I was waiting for the red! I knew his tactic was to push at the end and when he passed Zarco I said to myself, ‘let’s go!’ I followed him and almost went wide, but it was a great race and a great show. The thing I’m most happy about is that, this time, we were able to stay with him on the straight and this is very good.”
Dani Pedrosa
7TH
“In general, the bike worked well enough and I’m happy because we were able to improve our feeling over the weekend. The hard front tyre was actually a very good choice as I could brake hard into the corners and keep a decent pace. We focused a lot on the feeling from the front over the weekend and finally decided to go with what we’d worked toward. I had a good start and I’m happy with how I managed the first corners. Unfortunately, the feeling from the rear wasn’t as strong. The tyre was spinning a lot, which caused me to loose ground in turn 3 and some other corners in sector four. It’s a real shame because the first race is important and if I think that if didn’t have this issue I could’ve fought for the podium. In the end, that gives me confidence for the upcoming races.”
2018 Qatar MotoGP Results
| 1 | DOVIZIOSO Andrea | 4 | ITA | 25 | Ducati Team | 42’34.654 |
| 2 | MARQUEZ Marc | 93 | SPA | 20 | Repsol Honda Team | 0.027 |
| 3 | ROSSI Valentino | 46 | ITA | 16 | Movistar Yamaha MotoGP | 0.797 |
| 4 | CRUTCHLOW Cal | 35 | GBR | 13 | LCR Honda | 2.881 |
| 5 | PETRUCCI Danilo | 9 | ITA | 11 | Alma Pramac Racing | 3.821 |
| 6 | VINALES Maverick | 25 | SPA | 10 | Movistar Yamaha MotoGP | 3.888 |
| 7 | PEDROSA Dani | 26 | SPA | 9 | Repsol Honda Team | 4.621 |
| 8 | ZARCO Johann | 5 | FRA | 8 | Monster Yamaha Tech 3 | 7.112 |
| 9 | IANNONE Andrea | 29 | ITA | 7 | Team Suzuki Ecstar | 12.957 |
| 10 | MILLER Jack | 43 | AUS | 6 | Alma Pramac Racing | 14.594 |
| 11 | RABAT Tito | 53 | SPA | 5 | Reale Avintia Racing | 15.181 |
| 12 | MORBIDELLI Franco | 21 | ITA | 4 | EG 0,0 Marc VDS | 16.274 |
| 13 | BAUTISTA Alvaro | 19 | SPA | 3 | Angel Nieto Team | 19.788 |
| 14 | SYAHRIN Hafizh | 55 | MAL | 2 | Monster Yamaha Tech 3 | 20.299 |
| 15 | ABRAHAM Karel | 17 | CZE | 1 | Angel Nieto Team | 23.287 |
| 16 | LUTHI Tom | 12 | SWI | 0 | EG 0,0 Marc VDS | 24.189 |
| 17 | NAKAGAMI Takaaki | 30 | JPN | 0 | LCR Honda | 24.554 |
| 18 | SMITH Bradley | 38 | GBR | 0 | Red Bull KTM Factory Racing | 31.704 |
| 19 | ESPARGARO Aleix | 41 | SPA | 0 | Aprilia Racing Team Gresini | 34.712 |
| 20 | REDDING Scott | 45 | GBR | 0 | Aprilia Racing Team Gresini | 37.641 |
| 21 | SIMEON Xavier | 10 | BEL | 0 | Reale Avintia Racing | 46.706 |
| 22 | ESPARGARO Pol | 44 | SPA | 0 | Red Bull KTM Factory Racing | 7 laps |
| 23 | RINS Alex | 42 | SPA | 0 | Team Suzuki Ecstar | 10 laps |
| 24 | LORENZO Jorge | 99 | SPA | 0 | Ducati Team | 10 laps |
Emanuele Venturoli
A graduate in Public, Social and Political Communication from the University of Bologna, he has always been passionate about marketing, design and sport.
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Read MoreWhy choose RTR Sports Marketing
In an era where it is possible to get anywhere with a click, there is a strong temptation to approach teams and properties directly for sponsorship projects.
By doing so, we are convinced that we are shortening the value chain, saving time and money. However, these DYI methods are anything but risk-free and what initially appears to be a competitive advantage soon turns into a problem that is difficult to resolve. That’s why there are agencies. And this is why you should rely on us for your sponsorships.
Save time and money
When first approaching a sponsorship or sports marketing project, it is difficult to know immediately which stakeholders are correct, what the decision flow is, and what the right timelines are for each process. Sports is a very specialized field of action, and fitting effectively into its paths can take a lot of time and therefore money. We, on the other hand, know referents and spheres of action and know who to talk to, when and how. So you are also more effective.
The right information, the right choice
Sports is an immense passion, and for our heart colors we would be willing to do anything. But business is a different business, and it is important to make the best possible strategic decisions based on independent research, statistics and reliable data. A sports marketing and sports sponsorship agency like RTR has an objective, 360-degree picture of the scenario and can tell you what is really best for you: which sport, which athlete, which team. This is because we possess a great deal of data and information on ratings, segmentation and attitudes. Because the numbers don’t lie. Never.
Activations are the beating heart
Activations are the real heart of sports sponsorship. Without them, there remains only a blank sticker on a motorcycle, car or uniform and no contact with the public, no emotional connection, no impact on the bottom line. Then how do you do it? It certainly won’t be the teams or the athletes who will help you leverage sponsorship and enjoy the many marketing rights you have paid for. To bring out the best in a sports marketing project you need an agency that knows how to use sponsorship to engage the fanbase on the Web, to reach out to Shopping Centers, to organize hospitality, to develop B2B and B2C opportunities, and to get “your” athletes in front of millions of potential consumers.
Objective measurements for a certain return
Would you ever go to the dealer who sold you the car and ask if the competitor’s car is better? No, of course. So, how do you expect to get firm measurements of the effectiveness of your sponsorship if you do not rely on someone super partes? At RTR, we have always worked with independent third-party agencies that allow us to know the return on any exposure of your brand on TV and in the media. In addition, we believe in calculating ROI as the ultimate measure of your success-so we can tell you for every penny you spend how much you are making.
Sit back, relax, we’ll take care of it
We have been involved in sports sponsorship and sports marketing for more than 15 years. We are consultants in the sense that our goal is to maximize your investment, but we are also an agency that manages the project from start to finish. We have been doing this since 1995 with passion and professionalism, following three principles that have become cornerstones of our business: independence, verticality and transparency.
I would like to highlight the fact that one of the qualities of RTR is its great ability to approach the sponsorship scenario strategically, together with its passionate attitude, its amazing enthusiasm for solving problems, and its high level of professionalism.
Gianluca Degliesposti
Executive Director Server&Storage EMEA
Eurosport is truly delighted with its business relationship with Riccardo Tafà, who has become extremely popular, thanks to his detailed knowledge of the sports marketing sector and his highly diligent attitude to work.
Francois Ribeiro
Commercial Director
Passion and Expertise are the features that I have found in RTR since the very beginning. Serious and reliable professionals but also very helpful, nice and open-mind people, willing to listen and compare different ideas. All the values in which RTR believes make this agency a partner, not just a supplier, a partner with whom we have had the opportunity to achieve significant commercial results in term of success and image.
Luca Pacitto
Head of Communication
We have been working with RTR Sports Marketing for over 10 years. The objectives and the programmes of collaboration continue to be renewed and to grow with mutual satisfaction. I believe RTR is a team of great professionals led by Riccardo Tafà, who I consider a manager of exceptional skills and with a great passion for his work.
Lucio Cecchinello
Team Principal
I have known and worked with Riccardo Tafà since 1995 when we collaborated for the first time on a project for the Williams Formula 1 team. Several clients followed. After leaving Williams to work for Gerhard Berger then owner of the Toro Rosso F1 Team, I turned again to Riccardo to seek his help in finding a tool supplier for the team and Riccardo duly obliged with an introduction to USAG, a partnership with Toro Rosso which endured for five years. I recently started a new role as Group Commercial Director for the renowned Andretti Autosport organisation and I find myself working with Riccardo once again on a number of interesting projects. Why has this relationship with Riccardo endured ? He’s smart, knows the commercial side of sport inside out and back to front and he’s honest and trustworthy. Riccardo Tafà is a “doer” not a “talker”: in over 20 years I have never had a dispute either with him or with a company that he has introduced and each partnership introduced by Riccardo has delivered quantifiable ROI to rights holder and sponsor alike. I can think of no better testimonial of Riccardo’s diligence, knowledge, contact base and hard work than that.
Jim Wright
Group Commercial Director
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