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Category: Moto2
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#GoldenAi: Ogura crowned 2024 Moto2 World Champion
Ai came, Ai saw, Ai conquered: a podium in Thailand sees the Japanese rider secure the crown
Buriram (Thailand), 27 October 2024: Ai Ogura (MT Helmets – MSI) is crowned the 2024 Moto2 World Champion at the Chang circuit here on Sunday! The Japanese star took second place at the PT Grand Prix of Thailand to seal the crown, becoming the first former Idemitsu Asia Talent Cup rider to become a World Champion and the first rider from Japan to win a world title since Hiroshi Aoyama’s 250cc triumph in 2009.
The #79’s journey to Moto2 World Champion status began in the ATC back in 2015, and it didn’t take long for a first win to arrive. Three podiums – including that win – were achieved in his first ATC season and in 2016, three more wins were pocketed on his way to a P2 overall finish. 2016 also saw Ogura race in the Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup and in just his third race, the Japanese rider notched up a P3 finish.
2017 brought more success as Ogura claimed two wins in the Rookies Cup and a debut win in the JuniorGP World Championship. In 2018, Ogura continued in the JuniorGP class and racked up a further five podiums, one of which was a victory, which helped Ogura finish fifth overall.
2018 also saw Ogura make his World Championship debut in Jerez – and it was an impressive one too. A first Moto3 point was earned and after making three more appearances on the world stage that year, a full-time World Championship ride beckoned for the 2019 campaign with Honda Team Asia.
In his first full season as a Grand Prix rider, Ogura collected nine top 10 results, including a second place finish in Aragon, on his way to P10 in the standings. That signalled a strong start to life as a World Championship rider, and in 2020, Ogura was a title contender. Despite not winning a race, consistency was key for the Japanese star. Seven podiums saw Ogura finish third in the Championship, as a move up to Moto2 awaited.
Promoted through the Idemitsu Honda Team Asia ranks, Ogura didn’t take long to gel with a Moto2 bike. After pocketing six top seven finishes in his first 10 intermediate class races, Ogura’s maiden Moto2 rostrum was bagged at the Austrian GP with a P2 and having secured a P8 Championship finish in his first season, Ogura went into 2022 as a serious title contender.
And that’s exactly how it played out. Ogura’s first Moto2 win came in Jerez, with two more following in Austria and Japan. Unfortunately, a disappointing final three races – including a crash out of P2 on the last lap in Malaysia – saw Ogura narrowly miss out on the title to Augusto Fernandez.
Ogura’s 2023 campaign was curtailed before a wheel had been turned in anger when a pre-season training crash resulted in a broken wrist. That caused Ogura to miss the opening two rounds of the season, and it was an injury that plagued him for a number of months. Three podiums were still enjoyed by the Japanese rider, but another title charge was out of the equation and ahead of going again in 2024, a new challenge was on the horizon.
A switch from Idemitsu Honda Team Asia and Kalex machinery to an MT Helmets – MSI and Boscoscuro combination was a big change. However, now fully fit and firing on all cylinders, Ogura’s season started well with a P4, P5, P7, P6 run up to the French GP. In Le Mans, he was back on the podium in second and at the following race in Barcelona, Ogura’s first win with his new outfit arrived. Two more wins in Assen and at the San Marino GP cemented Ogura’s name as one of the main title candidates, and back-to-back P2s in Indonesia and on home turf in Japan, while his main Championship rivals slipped up, put Ogura in a commanding position – 60 points clear to be exact – ahead of a date with Phillip Island.
There, he took another solid P4 as he kept cool under pressure, not converting his first match point but setting himself up for glory at the Thai GP. After fighting his way up to second place, the changing weather then brought the race to an early end – and with full points awarded. Those 20 more ensure the #79 is the 2024 Moto2 World Champion – from the ATC to the top of the world!
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Aldeguer unbeatable as Acosta clinches the title at Sepang: Moto2
Sepang, 12 Nov 2023: Pedro Acosta (Red Bull KTM Ajo) is the 2023 Moto2™ World Champion thanks to a P2 finish at the PETRONAS Grand Prix of Malaysia. The Spaniard becomes the youngest Moto2™ title winner – taking that accolade off Marc Marquez – as Fermin Aldeguer (Beta Tools Speed Up) strode to a commanding third win of the campaign. Marcos Ramirez (OnlyFans American Racing) kept his composure to secure a hard-earned debut Moto2™ rostrum in P3.
There was drama from the off as polesitter Aldeguer and Manuel Gonzalez (Correos Prepago Yamaha VR46 Team) made contact on the exit of Turn 1 which saw the latter crash out. Thankfully everyone managed to avoid the Spaniard but one rider who had to take evading action was Arbolino. The Italian lost ground and was down to P7, with Acosta capitalising on Gonzalez’s misfortunes to climb up to P2.
On Lap 2, desperate to pick off the riders ahead of him, Arbolino’s slim title hopes then all but vanished. The #14 made small contact with Ai Ogura’s (Idemitsu Honda Team Asia) rear wheel at Turn 9, then made more contact with Aron Canet (Pons Wegow Los40), as Arbolino ran onto the grass. That dropped him outside the top 20.
Back at the front, Aldeguer was operating on another level. By Lap 4, the Spaniard was over two seconds clear of Acosta, who in turn was over a second up the road from third place Ramirez. Alonso Lopez (Beta Tools Speed Up) was P4 and had Ogura and Jake Dixon (Inde GASGAS Aspar Team) for company, with Sam Lowes (Elf Marc VDS Racing Team) and Somkiat Chantra (Idemitsu Honda Team Asia) just slightly adrift of the fight for P4.
Aldeguer’s lead kept growing and with seven laps left, six seconds split him and Acosta. Ramirez was holding Lopez, Ogura and Dixon a second behind him, with Ogura beginning to climb all over the back of Lopez’s rear wheel. With six to go, Ogura was through and then set about chasing Ramirez for the final spot on the podium.
With three to go, Ramirez was coming under increasing pressure. Ogura was taking two or three tenths a second a lap out of the Spaniard’s advantage but up the road, there were no issues whatsoever for Aldeguer and the Champion elect Acosta.
Aldeguer took the chequered flag a sensational 7.1s clear of anyone to claim a dominant victory, but it was all eyes on the rider in P2 as Acosta crossed the line to become the 2023 Moto2™ World Champion and a two-time Grand Prix Champion after his 2021 Moto3™ success. Take a bow Pedro, what a season!
Just behind, Ramirez did manage to fend off Ogura to claim a first Moto2™ podium, with the latter coming from P13 on the grid to challenge for a podium, as Dixon rounded out the top five. Chantra and Lowes take home P6 and P7, with Joe Roberts (Italtrans Racing Team), Albert Arenas (Red Bull KTM Ajo) and the recovering Arbolino rounding out the top 10. A disappointing day for the #14 sees his title hopes disappear for 2023, but he’ll be back stronger in 2024
Barry Baltus (Fieten Olie Racing GP), Jeremy Alcoba (QJMOTOR Gresini Moto2™), Alex Escrig (Forward Team), Filip Salac (QJMOTOR Gresini Moto2™) and Dennis Foggia (Italtrans Racing Team) were the final points scorers in Malaysia. With the title wrapped up, Acosta will head to Qatar with only one thing in mind: winning. So will the likes of Aldeguer as we get set for what could be a spell-binding end to the 2023 Moto2™ World Championship!
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Last-minute preparations at BIC to host MotoGP Bharat, get a boost from Dorna visit
New Delhi, May 26, 2023: The entry of MotoGP is all set materialise with preparations in full swing at the iconic Buddh International Circuit which hosted the Formula One Championship for three years from 2011. It is said that the visiting Dorna team was fairly satisfied with the progress being made towards fine-tuning the last minute preparations for the Motorcycle World Championships, MotoGP, Moto2 and Moto3.
The highly-anticipated Motorcylce World Championship race in India is titled as ‘MotoGP Bharat’ and is scheduled for September 22 to 24.
On Friday, Fairstreet announced that a 12-member team from the global MotoGP commercial rights holder, Dorna Sports, led by Events Director, Norma Luna, conducted a visit to check and identify facilities that needs to be fine tuned. The team also comprised officials of MotoGP marketing and sponsorship teams and one of the important factors that Dorna supervised in detail included the Broadcasting and Media facilities that are central to any World- Class event.
The recently-concluded visit is an reconnaissance trip to India to assess whether race preparations are meeting the given deadlines as per the MotoGP Promoter Dorna’s agreed regulations. Fairstreet Sports is the Indian Promoter but the facility, the BIC is owned by a different party, the JP group which is legal battles and one need to see, if the return of an international event, to the top-class motorsports facility designed by German Hermann Tilke, an engineer, race driver and designer, who designed many circuits across the world.
Luna was accompanied by Daniel Trujillo (Technical Director), Enrique Aguilar (Live Coverage Director) among others. The team meticulously surveyed the circuit to evaluate various technical aspects. They inspected the broadcast setup facilities and assessed various other essential requirements for delivering a world-class event. However, the event passed off without any media presence and there is no announcement from Dorna.
FairStreet Sports COO, Pushkar Nath Srivastava, is confident in the venue’s ability to put up country’s biggest annual sporting spectacle . He said: “With less than 124 days for the mega event, we had some important operational discussions as well as detailed marketing, branding, sponsorship and conversations related to the broadcast of the race. It is heartening to see how important MotoGP Bharat is from the global perspective as well as for us, the Indian stakeholders alongside the government.”
A big part of hosting MotoGP is also to showcase their tourism potential and during their visit, the Dorna team also had the opportunity to explore one of the world’s most iconic landmarks and the Pride of Uttar Pradesh, the Taj Mahal. Located at just a two-hour drive from the racetrack, the team was captivated by the Taj’s grandeur and left in awe.
MotoGP Bharat will not only encourage diverse range of fans to come and witness the onsite marvels but also explore the unique milieu of rich culture, heritage and history.
Srivastava further added, “We anticipate a significant boost to the tourism industry, and this event is poised to unlock tremendous investment opportunities for the state of Uttar Pradesh.”
Scheduled as 13th race on the calendar, India will see 42 teams and 84 riders in action across MotoGP, Moto2 and Moto3 categories. It will include names like Francesco Bagnaia of Ducati, Marc Marquez of Repsol Honda Team, Marco Bezzecchi of Mooney, Brad Binder and Jack Miller of Redbull, Jorge Martin of Prima, all set to hit the Indian soil soon.
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Augusto Fernandez is the 2022 Moto2 World Champion!
The Spaniard wraps up the crown on home turf in Valencia
Valencia, 6 November 2022: Augusto Fernandez (Red Bull KTM Ajo) is the 2022 Moto2 World Champion! After a dramatic finale at the Gran Premio Motul de la Comunitat Valenciana that saw sole remaining rival Ai Ogura (Idemitsu Honda Team Asia) crash out, the Spaniard was already Champion before the flag – and came through to take second and secure the crown in style with a podium.
Watch Fernandez winning moments here courtesy MotoGP.
Fernandez won the European Junior Cup in 2014 and competed in Superstock 600 thereafter, where he achieved a victory in 2015. He was fifth in the Moto2™ European Championship the following year as he moved onto new machinery, and he started the next season with a podium. That year, 2017, also saw Fernandez called up to make his Grand Prix debut at the 2017 Italian GP with Speed Up.
Despite scoring points, he initially didn’t get a ride in the Grand Prix paddock for 2018 and returned to European level but not long after, everything changed. Looking for a rider mid-season, the Pons Moto2™ squad picked Fernandez to return to the World Championship and he didn’t disappoint, starting to bank top eight and top ten performances.
2019 was a huge turning point. Despite some injury struggles early in the year with a broken wrist, Fernandez was back with a bang as he returned at Jerez and took his first Grand Prix podium. Another followed at Le Mans before a first Grand Prix victory at the classic TT Circuit Assen, backed up by two more at Silverstone and Misano. His title challenge faded towards the end of the season and 2020 proved a more difficult year with no podiums, but Fernandez worked his way back towards the front in 2021, returning to the rostrum by Assen and ending the year fifth overall to sign off from Elf Marc VDS Racing Team.
Augusto Fernandez (Red Bull KTM Ajo) crowned the 2022 Moto2 World Champion! In new colours with Red Bull KTM Ajo, 2022 didn’t get off to the perfect start as Fernandez didn’t visit the podium until Le Mans, but that was a win and the eventual Champion was back in the groove. A second podium at Catalunya then prefaced three wins in a row as Fernandez began his title assault in earnest, and his form remained consistent to the end of the season barring one mistake at Phillip Island. At the time potentially pivotal, a fourth place next time out at Sepang as rival Ogura crashed out saw the number 37 regain the lead and arrive into the season finale as the rider ahead – by 9.5 points.
In a tense final showdown, both Fernandez and Ogura were fighting it out in the front positions before the Japanese rider slid out – guaranteeing Fernandez the Championship. Pressure off, the number 37 then chased teammate and Rookie of the Year Pedro Acosta home, within six tenths at the start of the final lap and taking a ninth podium of the season to celebrate the crown in style.
Congratulations, Augusto. We’ll see you on Tuesday… in MotoGP!
#FastAF IN STATS
Augusto Fernandez has nine podiums this season (more than any other rider) and 20 overall in Moto2™. He sits in 10th place on the list of riders with most podiums in the class, with one less than Franco Morbidelli and Miguel Oliveira.
With seven wins in Moto2™, Fernandez is tied in 13th place on the list of riders with the most wins in the class with Toni Elias.
He is the sixth Spanish rider to win the Moto2™ title after along with Toni Elias, Marc and Alex Marquez, Pol Espargaro and Tito Rabat, and is the ninth Spanish rider to clinch the title in the intermediate category. Fernandez’ title is also 12th in the class for Spain and the 57th in Grand Prix racing.
Fernandez is one of 12 riders who has won at least three Moto2™ races in a row.
AUGUSTO FERNANDEZ
“It’s been an amazing year. I really enjoyed the race after the first laps. Honestly today I felt the pressure out there on the first laps, and a bit of frustration because I knew I had more speed but I was being too careful. I saw the fight between Alonso and Pedro and knew they were fighting for Rookie of the Year, they were fighting hard. It was hard to pass them. I knew it was enough, but risky. But I knew I had more pace than everyone except maybe Pedro.
“I’m sorry for Ai and his crash, he was pushing hard, but after that I forgot about everything, I did my race and pace. Just tried to finished the season with a win and I went for it. Pedro was super fast in practice, like me, but with a bit extra. I’m happy with the race because I pushed to the end and I tried to push him to the last corner. It was an awesome race and I’m super happy for him also to get the Rookie, and for the team to win the teams’.
“In Australia we were so close to having a good chance for the rest of the races, the season, and for me it was also tough in Malaysia. On Sunday, during the race, it was my hardest because in Australia ok it’s my fault but I still have chances, nothing lost and only a few points with two races to fight again. But in Malaysia where he was fighting for the win and I was struggling to get into the top five, I think that was my longest and toughest race of the year.
“I’m proud of how we, as a family, got to here. My ‘strange’ career, my way to the World Championship and then to securing my place here. Every step. And the bad years, after 2019 when we’d been super competitive before two bad years. But I’m the rider I am today because of those bad years too, there’s nothing to regret. I’m just proud of my family, myself and everything.”
Biography
First Grand Prix: Italy 2017, Moto2™
First pole position: Catalunya 2019, Moto2™
First podium: Spain 2019, Moto2™
First victory: Assen 2019, Moto2™
Grands Prix: 94
Victories: 7
Podiums: 20
Pole positions: 3
Fastest laps: 11
World Championships: Moto2™ (2022)World Championship career:
2017: Moto2™ World Championship – 31st, Speed Up, 13 races, 6 points
2018: Moto2™ World Championship – 18th, Kalex, 12 races, 45 points
2019: Moto2™ World Championship – 5th, Kalex, 17 races, 207 points
2020: Moto2™ World Championship – 13th, Kalex, 14 races, 71 points
2021: Moto2™ World Championship – 5th, Kalex, 18 races, 174 points
2022: Moto2™ World Championship – 1st, Kalex, 20 races, 271.5 points -
Fernandez takes first win since 2019 in France: Moto2
Le Mans, 15 May 2022: Red Bull KTM Ajo’s Augusto Fernandez has broken a drought of almost three years with victory at the SHARK Grand Prix de France, with he and teammate Pedro Acosta pulling clear in the early laps before the rookie crashed out the lead on Lap 11. Aron Canet (Flexbox HP40) finished second for another impressive podium, fending off Somkiat Chantra (Idemitsu Honda Team Asia) and Cameron Beaubier (American Racing). World Championship leader Celestino Vietti (Mooney VR46 Racing Team) limited the damage to his title hopes, finishing eighth despite starting 18th on the grid.
Acosta converted his first Moto2™ pole position into the early race lead while Fernandez slotted into second, one up on where he had qualified. Albert Arenas (Inde GASGAS Aspar Team) was third initially before being passed by Alonso Lopez (MB Conveyors Speed Up) on Lap 2, then Canet was into the podium places when he got by Lopez on Lap 5 at Turn 3.
By then, the top two had a margin over the rest of three seconds and growing. Still, Fernandez was keeping in touch with Acosta, thanks in part to a big wobble for the latter exiting Raccordement on Lap 5. A lap later, Lopez and Arenas were down in the gravel together, however, as the Aspar rider tried to go through a diminishing gap at Musee.
Meanwhile at the front, the pole-sitter had just started to put the hammer down when he lost the front through La Chapelle, rider ok but his hopes of a breakthrough Moto2™ victory dashed. That elevated Fernandez to the lead and Canet to second, but the man with the bowtie was coming under pressure from Beaubier and Chantra.
When Beaubier ran just a little wide at Musee on Lap 14, Chantra pinched third, then put a move on Canet a lap later. In doing so, he made room for the American to also go past Canet and reclaim third, but Canet turned the tables on Lap 18, passing Beaubier from a long way back at the Turn 3/Turn 4 chicane and making it stick.
As Fernandez continued to enjoy a margin of six to seven seconds over the rest, second-placed then Chantra outbraked himself at Garage Vert on Lap 18 and had to let his bike run wide. Not only did he cede position to Canet and Beaubier, the Thai rider had cost himself a full second of time, handing a free kick to his rivals in the battle for the podium.
Next it was Beaubier who invited some pressure when he ran wide at La Chapelle on the third-last lap, and Chantra made the pass a lap later as they ran through Turn 13. Meanwhile, Vietti was finally into the top 10, despite running through the gravel at Garage Vert earlier in the race.
Up ahead, Fernandez eased off in the closing laps and cruised to victory by an official margin of 3.746 seconds. The win is his first since the 2019 San Marino Grand Prix, and his first altogether for Red Bull KTM Ajo. A further 0.882 seconds behind Canet, who gained a little breathing space in second, was Chantra in third, with Beaubier a career-best fourth despite losing out on that first podium.
Ai Ogura (Idemitsu Honda Team Asia) prevailed in a late battle with Marcel Schrötter (Liqui Moly Intact GP) as they finished fifth and sixth respectively, ahead of Joe Roberts (Italtrans Racing Team), Vietti, Jorge Navarro (Flexbox HP40), and stand in Stefano Manzi (Yamaha VR46 Master Camp Team).
Arenas managed to remount after his incident with Lopez but could only get back to 19th, missing out on the points. His Inde GASGAS Aspar team-mate Jake Dixon, who did not get away well from the middle of the front row, also pressed on after an early crash from eighth position, but finished even further back in 21st spot. Among those who did not make the chequered flag at all were Lopez and title contender Tony Arbolino (Elf Marc VDS Racing Team).
Arbolino and Fermin Aldeguer (MB Conveyors Speed Up) went down in synchronised fashion at La Chapelle on Lap 2, although without contact, and that capped off a difficult day for the Elf Marc VDS Racing Team. Before the race had started, it was down to one bike due as Sam Lowes was declared unfit after reporting neck pain and the onset of dizziness after Warm Up. He’d had a nasty highside in Q2.
In the World Championship, Vietti has moved to 108 points, second-placed Ogura is a slightly closer 16 points behind, and Fernandez has climbed to fifth. That’s it for another intriguing weekend of Moto2™. Join us next time when Round 8, the Gran Premio d’Italia Oakley, unfolds at the Autodromo Internazionale del Mugello in two weeks!
Moto2 Podium:
1 Augusto Fernandez (Red Bull KTM Ajo) – Kalex – 40’31.726
2 Aron Canet (Flexbox HP 40) – Kalex – +3.746
3 Somkiat Chantra (Idemitsu Honda Team Asia) – Kalex – +4.628Augusto Fernandez: “It feels very good to be back here. It’s been a long two-and-a-half years, waiting for this moment again. Already at the beginning of the season, I was feeling good, so we just had to let the moment come. In the end, this weekend I felt very good from Friday, so we kept the momentum all weekend and we finally did it. The pace at the beginning was so, so, so high. Pedro did an awesome first part of the race, he was pushing a lot, but his moment will come. So, congrats to him for the first half of the race, it was amazing. Then, it was a hard race to manage the distance. When you are alone there, to manage the lap times and the distances, it’s even harder than fighting in a group, so I’m very happy. I want to thank all my family, my dad, my mum, and my brother, and, well, all my friends, everyone… my team… everyone!” -
Arbolino takes maiden Moto2 victory in Austin; Vietti and Canet crash out
Austin, 10 April 2022: Amidst a series of crashes, drama hits the early season title contenders, and a thrilling race saw the emergence of Tony Arbolino as the triumphant leader as he won the Red Bull Grand Prix of the Americas, the Round 4 of the Moto2 World Championship here on Sunday. Ogura won back-to, Red Bull Grand Prix of the Americas-back podiums and Dixon finally got that rostrum finish which is his first in Grand Prix racing.
Tony Arbolino of Elf Marc VDS Racing Team, kept his calm under severe pressure but the Italian pulled clear to take his first Moto2 win in style. Ai Ogura of Idemitsu Honda Team Asia, charged through to second for his first back-to-back Moto2 podiums, with another first in third too. Jake Dixon of Shimoko GASGAS Aspar Team got his first rostrum finish in Grand Prix racing, battling Ogura and eventually taking P3.
Tony Arbolino: “I want to show my eyes to prove the words are real. I worked a lot man, I worked a lot. Since Moto3 I was already feeling I could do the first year the Championship in the Moto2 class. Honestly, I worked so hard. I didn’t sleep during the night because I was thinking of this moment, this is what brought me here. I swear on my life, this is an incredible feeling. I want to keep going, keep having fun. I have an amazing team, amazing crew, amazing people that work during the night for me so it’s incredible. This is a win man!”
Championship leader Celestino Vietti (Mooney VR46 Racing Team), who retains that moniker, crashed out early, and then his closest rival at the time, Aron Canet (Flexbox HP 40) also crashed out in a dramatic Americas GP.
Polemen Cameron Beaubier (American Racing) got off the line well but was denied the holeshot by a Vietti divebomb, and Canet and Arbolino then pushed the hometown hero back to P4 as the podium battle began to take shape. There was drama elsewhere early on too, first with a multi-rider crash involving, amongst others, Somkiat Chantra (Idemitsu Honda Team Asia) as he made contact with Sam Lowes (Elf Marc VDS Racing Team), before Fermin Aldeguer (MB Conveyors Speed Up) also headed into Turn 12 too hot. Gabriel Rodrigo (Pertamina Mandalika SAG Team) and Zonta van den Goorbergh (RW Racing GP) were both caught up, riders all ok. Chantra was given a Long Lap for Portugal for the incident.
The drama continued through to Lap 2, with Canet losing and then taking P2 back from Arbolino, before the Spaniard began to set his sights on the lead. The deficit between first and second had narrowed to just a couple tenths and the lead soon changed hands at Turn 9, with Canet taking charge of the race and Vietti slipping to second. Then, just a couple of corners later at 11, a Beaubier error allowed a host of riders through as he dropped to eighth.
The American wasn’t the only rider struggling to keep himself upright at COTA, with Simone Corsi (MV Augusta Forward Racing) the next rider to crash out at Turn 14, before Pedro Acosta’s (Red Bull KTM Ajo excellent race start, P10 to P5, was in vain, as he slid out of the race and the top five at Turn 6 – riders OK.
Turn 6 then claimed another victim, this time in the form of Championship leader and race contender Vietti. It meant Arbolino and Dixon moved into the top three, and handed a comfortable advantage to new race leader Canet, but it didn’t last long. The Flexbox HP40 rider seemed to be cruising to a win before disaster struck on the eighth lap, losing the front end of his Kalex at Turn 7 to throw another twist in the tale of a fascinating Moto2™ race in Texas. As a result, three riders were thrust into victory contention, Arbolino leading Dixon and Ogura, but a classy performance from a cool and composed Tiger Tony ensured he opened up an unassailable lead over the next few laps.
Lap 12 then saw the order of the podium decided, with Ogura taking over from Dixon at Turn 12. Luckily for the Briton, he had built up enough of an advantage over Marcel Schrötter (Liqui Moly Intact GP) and Beaubier that he just had to keep it steady to claim his first-ever Grand Prix podium.
Arblolino crossed the line in some clear air for an impressive first Moto2™ win, extending the advantage lap by lap to taste Prosecco in the intermediate class for the first time. Ogura kept second despite a late nibble from Dixon on the penultimate lap, with the number 96 choosing calm and that first ever Grand Prix finish.
For poleman Beaubier, what started out as a dream home race then sadly turned into a nightmare, as he cost himself a P4 finish and 13 valuable Championship points on the final lap, sliding out and handing Schrötter a first top four finish since the Valencia GP in 2020.
Jorge Navarro recovered from a Long Lap Penalty to take a top five finish while Jeremy Alcoba made it two Liqui Moly intact riders inside the top six for his best rookie results so far. Bo Bendsneyder (Pertamina Mandalika SAG Team) and Joe Roberts (Italtrans Racing Team) were next up, Augusto Fernandez (Red Bull KTM Ajo) going from P18 to P9.
A fine ride from Barry Baltus (RW Racing GP) saw him round out the top 10 ahead of Albert Arenas (Shimoko GASGAS Aspar Team) and Marcos Ramirez (MV Augusta Forward Racing). Manuel Gonzalez (Yamaha VR46 Master Camp Team), Filip Salač (Gresini Racing Moto2™) and Romano Fenati (MB Conveyors Speed Up) complete the points finishers.
The Red Bull Grand Prix of The Americas certainly delivered Moto2 drama by the bucketload in Austin, and next up for the intermediate class is a date at the Autodromo do Algarve in two weeks’ time. Join us then for more.
Moto2 Podium:
1 Tony Arbolino (Elf Marc VDS Racing Team) – Kalex – 39’06.552
2 Ai Ogura (Idemitsu Honda Team Asia) – Kalex – +3.439
3 Jake Dixon (Shimoko GASGAS Aspar Team) – Kalex – +4.787
