LCR’s missed appearance: Johann Zarco’s special design never makes it to the start of the race

The MotoGP race at Phillip Island was set to be a special occasion for Johann Zarco, not least in terms of its visual appeal. LCR-Honda had fitted its RC213V with a special livery for the fuel brand bp Ultimate. A matching leather suit completed the Frenchman’s look. However, rather than being used in the Grand Prix, the special design was only seen during the lap of honour behind the safety car.

Due to restricted visibility, which hampered the rescue helicopter’s operations, Sunday’s race was cancelled. As a result, LCR not only lost the opportunity to showcase the special design under race conditions. Zarco would also have started the race from the front row – a position he had worked his way up to after a initially unremarkable Friday.

Zarco shone on a wet track on Saturday

In FP1, the Frenchman finished 12th. In the subsequent qualifying session, he improved to 11th, but missed direct entry into Q2 by just 0.026 seconds. This meant Zarco initially had to take the detour via Q1 on Saturday.

On a wet track, he managed to make his way up the order. In the first qualifying session, he finished second, just one thousandth of a second behind local hero Jack Miller (Pramac-Yamaha). In Q2, Zarco confirmed his strength in the changed conditions and secured third place on the grid.

Johann Zarco im bp-Spezialdesign

Foto: LCR

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Although he was 1.503 seconds off pole-setter Marc Marquez, he was separated from second-placed Alex Marquez by just 0.009 seconds. Zarco thus lined up on the front row alongside the two Ducati riders, securing a promising starting position for both races.

No luck in the sprint

However, the sprint race brought the first disappointment. After the start, Zarco initially held on to third place before a technical fault brought his race to a premature end. Instead of points, all that remained was the hope of getting another chance on Sunday.

It was not to be. On the very track where Zarco had celebrated his first MotoGP victory in 2023, the weekend ended without a Grand Prix. Spectators only got to see the specially prepared motorbike and the custom leathers during the riders’ lap of honour.

Willkommen auf Phillip Island

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Marc Márquez

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Fans

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Aprilia

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Brad Binder

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Diogo Moreira

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Jorge Martin

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Fabio Di Giannantonio

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Ai Ogura

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Pecco Bagnaia

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Pedro Acosta

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Fans

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Brad Binder

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Jorge Martin

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Johann Zarco

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Marco Bezzecchi

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Start des Sprint-Rennens

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Alex Márquez

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Jack Miller

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Sprint-Rennen

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Marco Bezzecchi

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Jorge Martin und Marc Márquez

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Marc Márquez

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Alex Márquez, Marc Márquez, Fabio Di Giannantonio

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Sprint-Sieger Marc Márquez

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Alex Márquez

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Willkommen auf Phillip Island

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