It was expected before the Malaysian MotoGP race that rear tyre choice would be an important factor in deciding the result, since the soft-compound rear tyre could face a large drop in performance in the last part of the race, while the medium-compound option was much slower but more consistent.<\/p>\n
In the end, everyone on the MotoGP<\/a> grid went with the soft rear, but on the front there were some different choices, as some riders chose the medium-compound instead of the more popular soft.<\/p>\n One of these riders was Luca Marini<\/a>, who finished eighth and said afterwards that his race was ruined from the first lap when a mistake at turn four cost him track position.<\/p>\n \u201cI did a very good start,\u201d Marini told MotoGP.com after the race in Sepang, \u201cbut then in turn four I didn\u2019t put second gear, I stayed in third gear, so Joan [Mir] and Johann [Zarco] overtook me again.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThen I was stuck behind Zarco, and he did a fantastic race because he closed everything, didn\u2019t let me pass anywhere.<\/p>\n Article continues below ADVERTISEMENT<\/p>\n Article continues below ADVERTISEMENT<\/p>\n \u201cHe was clever to let the guys in front go away to have fresh air in front so he could control the pressure of the front tyre like this, and also the temperature of the engine.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cFor myself, I was trying to pass him every lap and I was stuck behind him, but after six or seven laps the temperature of everything raised up a lot. It was a really difficult race.\u201d<\/p>\n Marini added that his alternative choice of front tyre was a possible factor in the difficulties he faced in Sepang.<\/p>\n \u201cMaybe I did a wrong choice on the front tyre because, especially with this hot temperature on the track, the medium [compound front tyre] was not working, it was just lacking a lot of grip on the edge and there was no turning,\u201d the Honda HRC<\/a> rider explained.<\/p>\n \u201cSo, every corner I was going in and I was understeering every time.\u00a0<\/p>\n Article continues below ADVERTISEMENT<\/p>\n Article continues below ADVERTISEMENT<\/p>\n \u201cIt was really difficult to ride, I was not comfortable. So, just this compromised a little bit my result at the end of the race.\u201d<\/p>\n Bezzecchi \u201cnot able to overtake\u201d<\/p>\n Marini\u2019s choice of the medium-compound front tyre was taken also by two some other riders on the grid, most notably Francesco Bagnaia<\/a> and Marco Bezzecchi<\/a>, although Alex Rins, Augusto Fernandez, Lorenzo Savadori, Michele Pirro and Raul Fernandez also made the same choice.<\/p>\n