MotoGP: Michelin masters Phillip Island as Fernandez celebrates big day in Australia
The Liqui Moly Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix saw Raul Fernandez score the first victory of his MotoGPTM career. The Track House MotoGP Team rider was joined on the podium of the 2025 championship's 19th clash at infamous Phillip Island by Fabio Di Giannantonio (Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team) and Marco Bezzecchi (Aprilia Racing). Michelin rose to the occasion to showcase the performance and consistency of its MotoGPTM range at one of the calendar's most demanding venues, contributing to the establishment of yet another new track record this season. Read on for more about what happened at the Australian GP.
After qualifying in second place, Fernandez was visibly in his element at the Australian circuit where he took advantage of the double-long-lap penalty observed by Bezzecchi to take the lead on the fifth of the afternoon's 27 laps.
Once in front, the Spaniard delivered a consistently fast run on a front/rear combination of hard and medium Michelin Power Slicks and quickly pulled out a comfortable gap over his pursuers.
He went on to claim his maiden victory – and first podium – at this level by a margin of 1.4 seconds, becoming the sport's 64th premier-class victor on Michelin rubber. He was also the fifth different winner in as many races this season.
Aided by the grip and consistency provided by the same tire pairing as that chosen by Fernandez, Di Giannantonio produced an impressive fightback from 10th on the grid which was rewarded with second place at the flag.
After leading early on, the weekend's sprint-winner Bezzecchi fell to sixth after observing the double-long-lap penalty he inherited from the recent round in Indonesia. Equally at ease at Phillip Island as fellow Aprilia runner Fernandez, the make's factory rider delivered a solid run to clinch third at the finish.
The day's top-five was rounded out by Alex Marquez (Gresini Racing) and Pedro Acosta (Red Bull KTM Factory Team).
Michelin's tires performed strongly all weekend at what is unanimously viewed as one of the hardest tracks of the championship. The package available in Australia proved ideally suited to the challenge and no fewer than 11 riders succeeded in bettering the previous track record during Friday afternoon's free practice session. Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) ended up clocking the circuit's new benchmark – an improvement of 0.78 seconds - on his way to securing pole-position in qualifying.
The conditions were cool for both Saturday's sprint and Sunday's grand prix, but Michelin's slicks provided the necessary grip and consistency to ensure two entertaining races marked by plenty of overtaking.
In the championship standings, Alex Marquez is still second behind his brother and 2025 champion Marc (Ducati Lenovo Team). Bezzecchi trails the BK8 Gresini Racing MotoGP rider by 97 points.
Next round: Petronas Grand Prix of Malaysia, Sepang (October 24-26).