Japanese MotoGP 2019: Marc Marquez wins 2019 season

MotoGP world champion Marc Marquez won the Japanese Grand Prix with a pole-to-flag ride as Honda secured the constructor’s title at their home Motegi Circuit. The 26-year-old Spaniard had already made sure of his sixth MotoGP championship, and fourth in a row, a race earlier in Thailand on Oct 6.

The constructors' title was Honda's 25th, coming as the company celebrates 60 years in motorcycle racing. French rider Fabio Quartararo finished second for the non-works Petronas Yamaha team, 0.870 behind, to be sure of the MotoGP 'rookie of the year' accolade, with Italian Andrea Dovizioso third for Ducati.

The podium was Quartararo's sixth top-three finish of the season, but the 20-year-old is still awaiting a first win in the top category. His first lap attempt to get ahead of Marquez lasted only three corners. Marquez then led every lap as he made sure of his 54th victory in the top class, pulling him level in the all-time record books with retired Australian Mick Doohan.

Quartararo came under pressure at the finish on fading tyres, with Dovizioso closing the gap but running out of time to make a move. The Italian could still celebrate his 100th podium finish. Marquez has an unbeatable 350 points to Dovizioso's 231, with three races remaining in Australia, Malaysia and on home soil in Valencia. Honda have 356 points to Ducati's 270.

Yamaha's Maverick Vinales was fourth with Britain's Cal Cruchlow seizing fifth at the line for LCR Honda from Quartararo's team mate Franco Morbidelli. Yamaha's Italian great Valentino Rossi crashed four laps from the end while in 11th place, and Marquez's triple world champion team mate Jorge Lorenzo finished only 17th and 40 seconds behind the winner.

Bengal Warriors won Pro Kabaddi Title 2019

Bengal Warriors became the champions to vivo Pro Kabaddi season 7 after a 39-34 victory over Dabang Delhi K.C at the EKA Arena in Ahmedabad. Strong individual displays from stand-in skipper Nabibakhsh, Sukesh Hegde, and Jeeva Kumar in what was a solid all-round performance from Bengal Warriors, led them to their maiden Vivo Pro Kabaddi Trophy.

Dabang Delhi K.C. made a spectacular start courtesy of good work in offence as well as defence. They quickly moved into a 6-point lead before Bengal Warriors picked up their first point of the night. That did little to halt Dabang Delhi K.C.’s momentum though as they continued to go about their business with the minimum of fuss and inflicted an All Out to move into an 11-3 lead in the eighth minute.

Bengal Warriors came back strongly thanks to some clinical raids by Ravindra Ramesh Kumawat and Nabibakhsh. The Iranian, in particular, was devastating in attack and helped enforce an All Out on Dabang Delhi K.C. with a stunning two-point raid that reduced the deficit to a single point. Bengal Warriors proceeded to gain the lead shortly after, but a bonus point from Chandran Ranjit and a successful raid by Naveen Kumar ensured that the score was level-pegging at 17-17 during halftime.

The first point of the second period went to Bengal Warriors thanks to a Nabibakhsh tackle. However, neither side managed to stamp their authority on the mat and establish a big lead in the opening five minutes of the half. A successful Do-or-Die raid by Kumawat, followed by a successful Jeeva Kumar tackle, eventually gave Bengal Warriors a slight edge and BC Ramesh’s men capitalised on their momentum by inflicting a second All Out on Dabang Delhi K.C. to take a 25-21 lead.

Dabang Delhi K.C. looked to fight their way back into the contest through Naveen, but Bengal Warriors seemed to just grow in confidence after the reset. Hegde and Nabibakhsh continued to score points in attack for Bengal Warriors, while their defence also started to find success from multiple sources as Dabang Delhi K.C. succumbed to another All Out with seven minutes left to play.

Bengal Warriors then adopted an intelligent approach in the final minutes of the game. They chose their moments to pounce wisely and ran down the clock with tactical raids with Dabang Delhi K.C. trying to force their way back into the game. Swift raids by Naveen meant that Dabang Delhi K.C. got to within five points of Bengal Warriors. However, it did little to prevent what was a comfortable win for Bengal Warriors en-route to their maiden vivo Pro Kabaddi title.

F1 2019: Valtteri Bottas wins Japanese Grand Prix

Valtteri Bottas became the first driver to win a Grand Prix at Suzuka from the second row of the grid, and the ecstatic Finn said it couldn’t have gone any better as Mercedes also secured their sixth consecutive constructor championship.

Formula One has had periods of team dominance but the achievement of Mercedes is unprecedented. The sixth team title matches that of Ferrari between 1999 and 2004 but – with Hamilton and Bottas extending their lead such that only they can win the drivers’ championship – a record‑breaking sixth double belongs to Mercedes.

Bottas has just kept his championship hopes alive but Hamilton remains on course to take a sixth of his own. His frustration with the team’s strategy swiftly turned to celebration and honour as he dedicated the title to Niki Lauda, Mercedes non-executive director who died in May this year.

The British driver leads Bottas by 64 points: 104 remain and he will take the championship if he is 78 in front after the Mexican Grand Prix. Bottas’s win was a controlled and impressive drive but it is Hamilton, with nine victories, who has done the damage this season and the vast majority of the previous five. He has taken four titles since 2014, when Mercedes emerged as pre-eminent in a formula defined by its engine as the turbo-hybrid era.

Ferrari showed exceptional pace over the single lap. Sebastian Vettel and Charles Leclerc locked out the front row, with Bottas third and Hamilton fourth. Indeed had both the Ferrari drivers not once more made mistakes, Mercedes would surely have been denied their celebrations for now at least.