Marc Marquez waves to his fans Sunday after winning the 2015 Red Bull Indianapolis Grand Prix at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. With him on the podium was second-place finisher Jorge Lorenzo.(Photo: Matt Detrich / The Star)
This much is clear: If MotoGP returns to race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in 2016, Marc Marquez will be favored to win it.
Marquez posted his third straight series victory here Sunday to remain unbeaten in seven career MotoGP races in the U.S.
However, the Red Bull Indianapolis Grand Prix remains in limbo despite a contract calling for two more events. Mark Miles, CEO of the track's parent company, told The Indianapolis Star a decision on a return of the Red Bull Indianapolis Grand Prix is likely a month away.
Continuation likely hinges on Dorna Sports deciding how to distribute its 18 MotoGP events. This country is one of three with multiple races, but it isn't producing enough big numbers.
Miles seemed happy with what he saw Sunday, citing a larger year-over-year crowd. The sanctioning body reported 67,648.
"Definitely had a better year this year," Miles said.
Marquez wants as many races in this country as possible. Counting Moto2, a support series, he has won nine U.S. races in succession, and no one has beaten him at IMS since 2010 in the lightweight class (125cc).
It seems only Turn 10 can make Marquez stumble. He had just posted the quickest lap of the morning practice when the Repsol Honda slid out from under him. Marquez didn't take much of a tumble and wasn't injured, but the motorcycle skidded enough to create significant sparks. Quick work by the team allowed him to race with it.
"Was last lap and then I try to brake later to see where was the limit, and it was there," he said, laughing.
Jorge Lorenzo, who led the first 24 laps before finishing second, told Marquez he "should do the same in the race."
Laughed Marquez: "You were in front. There was a difference."
Lorenzo had a similar crash just four hours before the race. In Turn 1, the Movistar Yamaha bucked twice, forcing the Spaniard into a long rear-first slide. He switched to a backup bike for the race.
"I had a defective tire, in my opinion," Lorenzo said. "It was not grippy enough. Suddenly the bike pulled me away.
"It was a little difficult to fight that out of my mind to recover the confidence and start the race full of confidence, but I did it."
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Last SlideNext SlideLorenzo got the jump on pole-winning Marquez heading to the first corner, then set a torrid pace. But Marquez stayed in step, never more than four-tenths of a second behind as they crossed the yard of bricks.
Crossing the line with three laps left, Marquez pulled alongside and carried more speed into Turn 1, a hallmark of his aggressive driving style. That wasn't necessarily the end of the fight, but Marquez held back every counter Lorenzo offered.
Marquez's margin at the finish was 0.688 seconds.
Lorenzo said he could do no more.
"Even going much better than practice was not enough this time to pull away, so my lack of energy at the end of the race was the key," he said. "When he passed me, I made some mistakes."
The victory was Marquez's second in succession as he mounts a comeback from a difficult early season. He trimmed another nine points off Valentino Rossi's lead — Rossi finished third — to draw within 56 points with eight races left. Marquez has won the past two titles; Rossi is bidding for a record-tying eighth.
Rossi lost four points to Lorenzo, who now only trails by nine points. Rossi considered that a good result given IMS is "my weak point" in the season.
"We know that here in Indianapolis we have to suffer, but we hope to suffer less," he said.
Marquez won for the 22nd time in MotoGP in his young career. At age 22, this is only his third season, which equates to 46 starts. That's a winning rate of 47.8 percent.
Rossi continued his consistent season; he's been on the podium in all 10 races, a streak of 14 races over two seasons.
Sunday's race might have been the last in MotoGP in this country for 2006 series champion Nicky Hayden. The Owensboro, Ky., rider does not appear to have a MotoGP offer for next season.
If this was it for Hayden, he delivered an admirable performance. He started 20th and finished 16th, one spot from receiving points.
If this was it for MotoGP at IMS, it's been a good ride, especially for Marquez.
Etc.
The Marquez-Lorenzo-Rossi podium was the same as in last year's race. ... Lorenzo has finished in the top four of all eight MotoGP races at IMS, and he became the event's career lap leader with 56 (passing Dani Pedrosa). ... The Moto2 and Moto3 races were won by first-timers. At least Alex Rins of Spain had experienced a podium finish in the former (two seconds, a pair of thirds). Livio Loi of Belgium had only one top-10 finish in 34 career Moto3 starts. Loi used a risky strategy of a dry tire in damp conditions to post a 39-second victory.
Follow Star reporter Curt Cavin on Facebook and on Twitter: @curtcavin.
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