Category: Moto2

Rain between MotoGP qualifying and Moto2 qualifying meant the track was once more wet for the intermediate class sessions in Brno for round ten of the 2019 World Championship.

In Q1, it was Remy Gardner (ONEXOX TKKR SAG Team) who took the top spot, moving through to Q2 along with Bo Bendsneyder (NTS RW Racing GP), Jake Dixon (Sama Qatar Angel Nieto Team) and Marco Bezzecchi (Red Bull KTM Tech 3).

Having just seen his brother annihilate the MotoGP field with slick tyres on a drying track, Alex Marquez (EG 0,0 Marc VDS) replicated that performance as he took pole position at the end of Moto2 Q2 with slicks on a drying track. It was a stunning lap from Marquez, who had over two seconds to his nearest rival, Sam Lowes (Federal Oil Gresini Moto2), who will line up second tomorrow having not run wet tyres in the first part of Q2. Joining Marquez and Lowes on the front row is Lorenzo Baldassarri (Flexbox HP 40) who will be hoping for a return to form in the first race after the summer break.

Nicolo Bulega (SKY Racing Team VR46) has looked strong all weekend, and was able to translate his practice promise into a strong qualifying performance as he went fourth-fastest, ahead of Fabio Di Giannantonio (Beta Tools Speed Up) and an impressive Marco Bezzecchi (Red Bull KTM Tech 3) who, like Bulega, took his best qualifying in Moto2.

Marcel Schrotter (Dynavolt Intact GP) qualified seventh ahead of Bo Bendsneyder (NTS RW Racing GP) and Jake Dixon who, too, took his best qualifying position in the Moto2 World Championship.

Augusto Fernandez (Flexbox HP 40) completes the top ten of the grid and heads up row four, ahead of Jorge Navarro (Beta Tools Speed Up) and Tom Luthi (Dynavolt Intact GP), who will be up against it tomorrow to take it to championship leader and pole sitter Marquez from twelfth.

Luca Marini (SKY Racing Team VR46) was fast on the wet tyre, but switched to slicks too late to be able to set a lap time, he will start from the front of the fifth row ahead of Xavi Vierge (EG 0,0 Marc VDS) and Remy Gardner (ONEXOX TKKR SAG Team).

Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Ajo) could only put the brand new KTM chassis in sixteenth, and will start from the sixth row alongside Tetsuta Nagashima (ONEXOX TKKR SAG Team) and Enea Bastianini (Italtrans Racing Team).

The fastest rider to not make Q2 was Jorge Martin (Red Bull KTM Ajo), who will head up row seven from a bitterly disappointed Joe Roberts (American Racing), a crash costing the American a Q2 appearance. Andrea Locatelli (Italtrans Racing Team) completes row seven.

Row eight sees Somkiet Chantra (IDEMITSU Honda Team Asia) ahead of Iker Lecuona (American Racing) and Mattia Pasini (Tasca Racing Scuderia Moto2); whilst Steven Odendaal (NTS RW Racing GP) heads up row nine from Lukas Tulovic (Kiefer Racing) and Stefano Manzi (MV Agusta Idealavoro Forward).

Xavi Cardelus (Sama Qatar Angel Nieto Team) goes tomorrow from the front of row ten in twenty-eighth, ahead of Jonas Folger (Petronas Sprinta Racing) and Dominique Aegerter (MV Agusta Idealavoro Forward); whilst Philipp Oettl (Red Bull KTM Tech 3) will be alone one the last row.

Dimas Ekky (IDEMITSU Honda Team Asia) did not take part in qualifying, having been declared unfit after FP1, still suffering the after-effects of his collision with Stefano Manzi in Assen.

Featured Image courtesy of Gareth Harford/MarcVDS

This weekend the Moto2 World Championship returns from its summer break in the Czech Republic, as Brno hosts the tenth round of the 2019 season.

Alex Marquez (EG 0,0 Marc VDS) returns from his holidays leading the championship by eight points from Tom Luthi (Dynavolt Intact GP). Sachsenring was another masterclass from Marquez, who has clearly been the rider who has made the best adaptation to this year’s regulation changes with the Triumph engines as increased electronics in Grand Prix racing’s intermediate class. In Germany, Marquez won by over one second, as he did in Barcelona, Mugello and Le Mans, and dominated the field to reclaim the championship lead as his closest rival Luthi finished only fifth to relinquish the championship lead. Marquez has a decent record in Brno, finishing fourth in his first Moto2 Czech Grand Prix in 2015, fifth in 2016 and second in 2017, so will be hoping to extend his advantage again this weekend.

Tom Luthi won his last Moto2 race in Brno back in 2017 in the rain, although his previous Czech podium to that was third in 2013, following a second in 2012. Luthi’s last win before his 2017 triumph was back in 2005, his 125cc championship-winning year. The Swiss needs to add a third Czech win this weekend if he wants to keep the pressure on Marquez, who currently looks nailed on for the title based on his pace advantage in the latter part of the race.

Another disappointing race for Lorenzo Baldassarri (Flexbox HP 40) in Sachsenring, where he finished seventh, six seconds off the win, saw him fall out of championship contention despite dominating the early part of the season. Finishing behind his Pons teammate, Augusto Fernandez (Flexbox HP 40), also saw the Spaniard extend his points lead over Baldassarri in their battle for third in the championship.

Also involved in that third-place points battle are Jorge Navarro (Speed Up) and Marcel Schrotter (Dynavolt Intact GP) who are both joint on ninety-seven points with Baldassarri, as well as Luca Marini (SKY Racing Team VR46) just seven points further back and Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Ajo) just six points back of Marini.

Navarro’s season has been up-and-down, but more up than down. The Spaniard was near the back at turn one in Germany, but his comeback was strong and he finished eighth, a performance which backed up his podiums from earlier in the year. All that is missing from Navarro’s season is a win, and the Speed Up’s prowess in the mid-corner could prove pivotal for him in the flowing corners of Brno.

Marcel Schrotter’s season has been similar to Navarro’s, in that he is just missing a win. He was back on the pace in Germany, but fell back just after the start and that compromised his podium challenge.

Luca Marini suffered with his shoulder in Germany, but last year fought with Miguel Oliveira for the win in Brno so should be expected to fight at the front again this year, as will Brad Binder who has been second in the last two races for KTM on a bike which arguably should not be in the top three, and now has a MotoGP contract in place for 2020 at Red Bull KTM Tech 3.

Featured Image courtesy of David Goldman/MarcVDS

One week on from the Dutch TT, the Moto2 World Championship is in Sachsenring for the German Grand Prix, round nine of the 2019 season.

Augusto Fernandez (Flexbox HP 40) arrives in Germany straight off the back of his first win in Grand Prix racing. The Spaniard finished fifteenth at Sachsenring last season, his first visit to the German track, which is a unique one on the calendar and therefore difficult to learn. With three podiums to his name so far in 2019, including that debut win last time out, Fernandez will be keen to fight in the top five once again this weekend.

Tom Luthi (Dynavolt Intact GP) has done what Tom Luthi does this year, and that is to be consistent. The Swiss has not finished outside the top six this season, with his worst result coming in Argentina when he clipped the back wheel of Brad Binder’s Red Bull KTM Ajo machine and crashed out of the race. However, if Luthi is to truly fight for the championship he needs to increase the frequency of his wins, as with one to his name so far this year he has two less than his closest rival Alex Marquez (EG 0,0 Marc VDS).

Marquez was on for another podium, and possibly win, in Assen last time out before he was the unfortunate victim of Lorenzo Baldassarri’s crash when the Flexbox HP 40 rider tried to pass him. There was no malice in the move from Baldassarri, who went to apologise to his rival after the race, but it dented both of their respective title challenges with Luthi claiming the lead thanks to his fourth place. Despite his brother’s unparalleled success in Germany – Marc having won nine times in the last nine years at Sachsenring – Alex Marquez has never stepped upon the podium at Sachsenring – the closest he has come so far to doing so was in 2014 when he finished fourth on his way to the Moto3 world title. Marquez’ best finish in Moto2 in Germany is a thirteenth place last year, when he was passed for twelfth by a recovering Francesco Bagnaia in the final corner, whilst he crashed out in 2016 and 2017 (with some physical consequence in the latter) and finished outside the points in 2015.

Lorenzo Baldassarri’s non-finish in Assen was not what the Italian needed as he aimed to get back on track after slipping to fourth in the championship in Barcelona following his unbroken topping of the points between Qatar and Italy. Baldassarri crashed out of last year’s German Grand Prix, and like Marquez he has never finished in the top three in Germany, with his best result coming in 2016 when he finished fifth. A strong finish this weekend will be crucial for the Italian to go into the summer break with a good mindset, which will be important for the second half of the season if he wants to re-engage in the championship fight.

Brad Binder took KTM’s first Moto2 podium of 2019 last time out in Assen, their first since Miguel Oliveira won in Valencia last year. Binder also won in Sachsenring last year, and after a positive weekend in Holland it will be important for the Austrian marque, and Binder, to confirm what seemed to be a significant step forward at round eight.

Featured Image courtesy of KF GLAENZEL/Intact GP

The eighth round of the 2019 Moto2 World Championship saw a strong battle at the front between as many as nine riders for almost the duration of the race. Eventually, it was Augusto Fernandez (Flexbox HP 40) who came out on top for his first Grand Prix win.

Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Ajo) took the early lead with the holeshot, and led from pole sitter Remy Gardner (ONEXOX TKKR SAG Team). Binder’s lead lasted for more than half the race, whilst the group battled behind. The South African had a quick bike and minimal corner speed. He was riding the KTM like a Ducati MotoGP bike, hitting the brakes late, stopping in the mid-corner and firing the bike out. It was a strategy that was crucial to his race, because his rivals had superior pace.

This became clear when Binder was able to pull a gap of almost one second to the group behind thanks to their battling. However, with Alex Marquez (EG 0,0 Marc VDS) in second place Binder’s advantage was gone in one lap, and Lorenzo Baldassarri (Flexbox HP 40) had come along with Augusto Fernandez, too.

Marquez was able, eventually, to pass Binder, and with four laps to go had a chance to break away. However, Baldassarri got past Binder, too, and closed down Marquez. Two laps from the flag, Baldassarri tried to make his move – one that both he and teammate Fernandez had pulled off several times before in the race – by cutting to the inside at Osserbroeken. This time, though, it did not work for Baldassarri, who folded the front and took Marquez with him. Six of the first seven races had been won by Baldassarri and Marquez, and now they were both out (also bringing to an end Marquez’ run of consecutive race wins stretching back to Le Mans in the middle of May).

That left Fernandez out front from Binder, who had almost no grip on the KTM. Of course, in the final two laps Binder would try to close down the Spaniard, but it was not possible.

Fernandez took his first ever GP win, in the same vein as Takaaki Nakagami three years ago. The #40 rider had looked aggressive all race long, if frustrated by the limiting pace of Binder out front. The Spaniard was nearly out at De Strubben just a few laps before Baldassarri cleaned out Marquez and handed him the win, when he lost the front in the middle of the corner after passing Binder in Osserbroeken. It was impressive enough that Fernandez should stay on the bike so to come away with twenty-five points is remarkable.

KTM finally took their first podium of 2019 thanks to a fantastic ride by Brad Binder. His second place is the result of a perfect strategic play, Dovizioso-esque, and some luck courtesy of Baldassarri. It will be interesting now to see whether this latest update from KTM is something that will work in other tracks, too, and if they are finally on the right direction back to the front of Moto2.

The carnage at the end of the race meant that Luca Marini (Sky Racing Team VR46), who dropped in and out of the front group as the race went on, was able to come away with a rostrum. After Baldassarri and Marquez crashed, Marini had to hold of Tom Luthi (Dynavolt Intact GP) who had been forced backwards when he was caught up in the crash of Xavi Vierge (EG 0,0 Marc VDS) at De Strubben when the Spaniard had his bar taken away by Fernandez. Vierge’s bike was in the middle of the track and, whilst Luthi hit it, he did not go down. Marini was successful in his defence and, despite another up-and-down weekend for the Italian he was able to take his second podium of the season.

Luthi was unfortunate to be involved in the Vierge crash, although not as unfortunate as Enea Bastianini (Italtrans Racing Team) who was unsighted behind Luthi and went down as a result after yet another strong ride for the rookie. However, with the no-score of Marquez Luthi’s fourth place takes him to the top of the championship ahead of Sachsenring.

Tetsuta Nagashima (ONEXOX TKKR SAG Team) spent most of the race just off the back of the leading group, which in the end got him fifth place and his best result in the Moto2 World Championship simply by avoiding trouble. Similarly, Andrea Locatelli (Italtrans Racing Team) got promoted to sixth place with the absence of the leaders in the final laps. Stefano Manzi (MV Agusta Idealavoro Forward) was able to come from last on the grid (courtesy of a penalty for his hand in taking IDEMITSU Honda Team Asia’s Dimas Ekky out of the weekend) to seventh – his equal best finish in Moto2 (the other coming in Silverstone 2017). Marcel Schrotter (Dynavolt Intact GP) received a long lap penalty and finished in eighth, ahead of Dominique Aegerter (MV Agusta Idealavoro Forward) and Marco Bezzecchi (Red Bull KTM Tech3) who scored his first points and first top ten in Moto2.

Fabio Di Giannantonio (Beta Tools Speed Up) took an early trip through the gravel and finished eleventh, whilst Jake Dixon (Sama Qatar Angel Nieto Team) picked up his first Moto2 World Championship points in twelfth. Lukas Tulovic (Kiefer Racing) was another first-time World Championship points scorer in thirteenth, whilst Iker Lecuona (American Racing) finished fourteenth after a crash and Joe Roberts (American Racing) took the final point in fifteenth.

Steven Odendaal (NTS RW Racing GP) was sixteenth, ahead of Jonas Folger (Petronas Sprinta Racing) and Xavi Cardelus (Sama Qatar Angel Nieto Team) who was the final finisher in eighteenth.

Bo Bendneyder (NTS RW Racing GP) had a home race to forget as he was taken out in an incident with Simone Corsi (Tasca Racing Scuderia Moto2) and Nicolo Bulega (Sky Racing Team VR46) who also both retired. Remy Gardner seemed to have a gearbox issue and crashed out at the chicane, before Jorge Navarro (Beta Tools Speed Up) ended his run of top tens and joined Gardner in the final chicane gravel one lap after the Australian. Sam Lowes (Federal Oil Gresini Moto2) crashed out in an incident with Jorge Martin (Red Bull KTM Ajo) whilst the pair were running in the front group – Martin later retired when he lost the rear of the KTM into Osserbroeken. It was a shame for both Martin and Lowes, who were having their best respective rides of 2019. Enea Bastianini was taken out in the aforementioned crash of Xavi Vierge, before Alex Marquez was taken out by Baldassarri.

Featured Image courtesy of Gold and Goose/KTM

Two weeks on from a third consecutive masterclass by Alex Marquez (EG 0,0 Marc VDS), the Moto2 World Championship heads to Assen for round eight of the 2019 season.

His Catalan Grand Prix win gave Marquez the World Championship lead, one that he holds by seven points from Tom Luthi (Dynavolt Intact GP), although Marquez has two more victories than the Swiss. Marquez has only two podiums, though, in Assen, when he won dominantly in 2014 in the Moto3 class, and last year when Lorenzo Baldassarri (Flexbox HP 40) suffered a puncture in the closing stages of the race which cost him second place. However, his recent form means Marquez goes into this weekend as the favourite.

In fact, Marquez is the only rider racing in the Moto2 class this weekend who was on the podium last year in the intermediate category. Tom Luthi, though, was second in 2017, although his previous Dutch TT podium before that was back in 2010. In all, Luthi has only three podiums across all classes in Assen, the first coming in the 250cc class back in 2008. His form this year has been good, with four podiums from the first seven races, the lowest finish being the sixth place in Le Mans and only one DNF, back in Argentina when he clipped the back wheel of Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Ajo). However, if Luthi wants to challenge Marquez for the title this year he needs to start beating him on track.

The same could be said for Lorenzo Baldassarri. The Italian was dominant in the first part of the season, unbeatable when he kept his backside off the asphalt. Since Le Mans, however, things have not gone so well for #7, with two crashes in the three races since then (in addition to the one in Texas when he collided with Jorge Martin (Red Bull KTM Ajo) on the opening lap in turn ten) and a fourth in the other. As previously mentioned, it was a puncture which cost Baldassarri a podium last year, and it could have cost him the win, since he was closing down eventual winner Francesco Bagnaia in the final stages of the race. The Pons rider needs to return to the podium this weekend and, as Luthi, get the better of Marquez if he wants to continue to challenge for the title. Qualifying will be the key to this. When Baldassarri qualifies poorly he tends to crash, perhaps pushing too hard to try to make up for the time lost at the stat when mired in the pack. Start up front, however, and he has a chance.

Jorge Navarro (Beta Tools Speed Up) returned to the podium last time out in Barcelona with third place – his fourth rostrum visit of the season. Perhaps more was expected of the Spaniard and his Italian chassis, as Fabio Quartararo has won on it a year before. Similarly, Quartararo was second in Assen last year, so Navarro should be hopeful of a good weekend in the Netherlands, as should his teammate, Fabio Di Giannantonio (Beta Tools Speed Up), who was second in Assen on his first visit back in 2016, although he crashed in 2017 and was only ninth last year. Di Gianntantonio had something of a breakthrough weekend in the Moto2 class last time out in Montmelo, despite his crash in the race, so could be running up at the front again this weekend.

Similarly, Di Giannantonio’s fellow Italian Moto2 rookies, Enea Bastianini (Italtrans Racing Team) and Nicolo Bulega (Sky Racing Team VR46) have had good rookie seasons so far, Bastianini exceptionally so with two top fives in the last two races and seven out of seven finishes in the top ten. Bulega, on the other hand, has shows some flashes of speed but has been unable to transform that into a race result as yet.

Featured image courtesy of Gareth Harford /Marc VDS

The sun had been beating down on the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya for six hours by the time the Moto2 race started. The track temperature was excessive and the grip was low, so tyre management would be crucial.

The holeshot went to Tom Luthi (Dynavolt Intact GP) from pole sitter Augusto Fernandez (Flexbox HP 40) and Sam Lowes (Federal Oil Gresini Moto2).

Things were going bad for championship leader Lorenzo Baldssarri (Flexbox HP 40), who was wide in turn four and then clipped Remy Gardner (ONEXOX TKKR SAG Team) who went down as a result.

But at the front at the end of the first lap, Luthi and Fernandez were pulling away from Lowes behind, who was under pressure from Fabio Di Giannantonio (HDR Heidrun Speed Up), Alex Marquez (EG 0,0 Marc VDS), Enea Bastianini (Italtrans Racing Team) and Jorge Navarro (HDR Heidrun Speed Up).

Soon, Marquez and Di Giannantonio were able to pass Lowes, which was especially important for Marquez who had his sights set on his third consecutive victory.

As soon as Marquez had some clear track for a lap, he was able to be the fastest rider on the track, and he began closing down the leading two.

Meanwhile, Bastianini had been able to pass Lowes. With Di Giannantonio being pulled along by Marquez, it was important for Bastianini to jump onto the back of his compatriot’s Speed Up before Marquez dragged him away.

A small mistake from Tom Luthi in turn ten with eighteen laps to go, allowed Fernandez a chance at the lead. The Spaniard didn’t need asking twice, and he moved ahead. This was a much needed move for Fernandez, with Marquez and the two Italians of Di Giannantonio and Bastianini closing behind.

Fernandez, though, was unable to make a break from Luthi, who re-passed the Spaniard a lap after he hit the front. Marquez was now on the back of the leading pair, with Di Giannantonio not too far away. Bastianini, on the other hand, had been dropped by the front four and had Jorge Navarro for close company.

As the leaders hit fifteen laps to go, Lorenzo Baldassarri crashed at turn ten. He was unable to re-join, and the Italian waved goodbye to the championship lead he had held since Qatar.

Seconds later, Marquez was past Fernandez on the pit straight, as Luthi dropped the hammer. One lap later, Jorge Navarro passed Bastianini for fifth, as his teammate, Di Giannantonio, was pressuring Fernandez for third place.

Di Giannantonio made the move on Fernandez at turn one with thirteen laps to go, which was an important one to make for the Italian, with the Speed Up’s tendency to look after the tyres. However, at turn ten on the next lap it was all over for Di Giannantonio, as he crashed out of what was turning into a strong ride for the rookie.

Out front, though, it was still Luthi leading from Marquez. With Baldassarri out, this was not just the battle for the lead of the race, but also for the lead of the championship. As they entered the final ten laps, Marquez was starting to apply more pressure to the Swiss rider. One lap later, the Spaniard was through, and looked to have more pace.

Simultaneously, Navarro passed Fernandez for third, although it seemed that would be as far as he could get, such was the gap to Luthi in second.
With six laps to go, Marquez started to stretch his advantage. A moment for Luthi in turn ten six laps from the flag was a sign for the Swiss that his front tyre was giving up on him.

For the final five laps, it was plain sailing for Marquez, who had a comfortable run to the flag to claim his third win of the season, and to move into the front of the championship. Three dominant wins in a row will have Marquez’ rivals worried, and this championship could soon start getting out of reach of the others should Marquez continue this form.

Behind Marquez, though, things were heating up in the final three laps, as Navarro was closing in on Luthi for second place. The Spaniard was not fast enough, though, and Luthi maintained second ahead of Navarro. It was not a bad race for the Swiss, but he will know that to take the fight to Marquez he needs to make a step, because the gap Marquez has in race pace is too much.

Navarro made a welcome return to the podium in his home race after missing it in Mugello. With third place – Navarro’s fourth rostrum in five races – the Spaniard moves ahead of Baldassarri in the standings and into third.

Fourth place went to the pole sitter, Augusto Fernandez, who dropped back after a strong start, whilst the top five was rounded out by Bastianini, who once more took the top rookie spot and equalled his best 2019 result of fifth place.

A tough battle behind Bastianini went on in the final stages of the race, one which Luca Marini (Sky Racing Team VR46) came out on top of for sixth place, ahead of Marcel Schrotter (Dynavolt Intact GP) and Xavi Vierge (EG 0,0 Marc VDS). Sam Lowes took ninth spot, whilst Tetsuta Nagashima (ONEXOX TKKR SAG Team) completed the top ten.

Eleventh place went to Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Ajo) who was the top KTM, twenty seconds off the lead. Andrea Locatelli (Italtrans Racing Team) was twelfth, ahead of Nicolo Bulega (Sky Racing Team VR46), Simone Corsi (Tasca Racing Scuderia Moto2) and Jorge Martin (Red Bull KTM Ajo) who completed the points.

Dominique Aegerter (MV Agusta Idealavoro Forward) finished sixteenth, ahead of Somkiat Chantra (IDEMITSU Honda Team Asia), Bo Bendsneyder (NTS RW Racing GP), Jonas Folger (Petronas Sprinta Racing) and Joe Roberts (American Racing) who completed the top twenty.

Dimas Ekky (IDEMITSU Honda Team Asia) was twenty-first, ahead of Steven Odendaal (NTS RW Racing GP), Marco Bezzecchi (Red Bull KTM Tech3), Lukas Tulovic (Kiefer Racing) and Xavi Cardelus (Sama Qatar Angel Nieto Team) who was the twenty-fifth and last finisher.

The aforementioned Remy Gardner was the first rider to retire, on lap one after the incident with Baldassarri. Iker Lecuona (American Racing) was the next rider to drop out, as he retired down pit lane with twenty laps to go. Baldassarri then crashed out four laps later, before Di Giannantonio crashed. Stefano Manzi (MV Agusta Idealavoro) crashed out with six to go, before Jake Dixon (Sama Qatar Angel Nieto Team) fell on the final lap.

Featured Image courtesy of David Goldman/Marc VDS

The sixth round of the 2019 Moto2 World Championship took place in Mugello, for the Italian Grand Prix, and saw Alex Marquez (EG 0,0) claim his second successive victory, and second of the season.

It was Tom Luthi (Dynavolt Intact GP) who made the best start, leading from teammate Marcel Schrotter (Dynavolt Intact GP) on the opening lap. Their gap over the rest of the field was increased thanks to a quite audacious move by Luca Marini (Sky Racing Team VR46) on Alex Marquez in the Sevelli corner. Marquez held his position but the gap to the Dynavolt duo was already quite large.

Marquez had shown strong pace over the course of the weekend – the strongest, in fact – and he needed that pace to overhaul the advantage of the two leaders. When he arrived he had brought Marini with him, but the Spaniard was able to pass both Dynavolt bikes in quick succession and make a break in the lead before Marini could do the same.

In fact, it seemed like Marini had accepted that it was not going to be possible for him to catch Marquez even if he passed Luthi quickly, so the Italian observed the Swiss rider, before finally making his move on lap thirteen.

With championship leader Lorenzo Baldassarri (Flexbox HP 40) not far behind, it seemed that Luthi would struggle to make the podium, but once Marini passed him the #12 was able to rally, and he picked his pace back up to stick with the Italian.

In the final laps Baldassarri’s pace, after charging through the pack from down in fifteenth on the grid, started to slow and that ensured a podium position for Luthi, although he could do nothing about Marini in front.

No one, though, could begin to think about doing anything about Alex Marquez, who was completely dominant in winning his second race of 2019. Two wins in a row have brought him right into title contention, as the 2014 Moto3 World Champion heads to him home round at Montmelo just two points behind the championship leader, Baldassarri.

Luca Marini’s second place was the result of a complete turnaround in form from the previous European races. The start to the season had not gone to plan for Marini, especially the Spanish and French rounds which preceded Mugello, but after a positive test in Barcelona after the French Grand Prix , the Italian was able to be strong throughout his home Grand Prix weekend, and he will hope for this to continue as the series heads towards the halfway point.

Third place was an important result for Tom Luthi, who was previously without a podium since his win in Austin at round three. With Baldassarri’s poor weekend, it was always going to be important for the Swiss to make in-roads into the Italian’s championship advantage in Italy, and he did just that.
The strong comeback from Baldassarri, though, limited the damage he took.

Coming from fifteenth the Italian finished fourth, his first finish of the season off the top step. With the momentum swinging the way of Alex Marquez in recent races, the Catalan Grand Prix could prove a pivotal one in the course of this championship, and it will be important for Baldassarri to respond.
Just a couple of tenths behind Baldassarri was his teammate, Augusto Fernandez (Flexbox HP 40), who swapped places with Tom Luthi in that he missed the podium for the first time since the championship arrived in Europe as he finished fifth, owing to a bad start.

Enea Bastianini (Italtrans Racing Team) was the top rookie in sixth place, having battled in the final laps with Fernandez for the top five, losing out by only 0.012 seconds. It seems that this season continues to improve for Bastiaini.

One second back from Bastianini was Jorge Navarro (MB Conveyors Speed Up) who missed the podium for the first time since COTA as he finished seventh, ahead of Schrotter, Sam Lowes (Federal Oil Gresini Moto2) and Fabio Di Giannantonio (MB Conveyors Speed Up) who recovered from contact with Xavi Vierge (EG 0,0 Marc VDS) on lap one to score his first Moto2 top ten.

Mattia Pasini, once again replacing Khairul Idham Pawi at Petronas SRT, finished a disappointing eleventh, ahead of Vierge and Remy Gardner (ONEXOX TKKR SAG Team) who is still yet to show the form he displayed in the fly away races in Europe. Tetsuta Nagashima (ONEXOX TKKR SAG Team) and Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Ajo) completed the points, Binder being the top KTM rider in a lowly fifteenth.

Jorge Martin (Red Bull KTM Ajo) took sixteenth place, ahead of Dominique Aegerter (MV Agusta Idealavoro Forward), Andrea Locatelli (Italtrans Racing Team), Bo Bendsneyder (NTS RW Racing GP) and Lukas Tulovic (Kiefer Racing) who completed the points. Twenty-first went to Philipp Oettl (Red Bull KTM Tech3), ahead of Steven Odendaal (NTS RW Racing GP), Marco Bezzecchi (Red Bull KTM Tech3), Dimas Ekky (IDEMITSU Honda Team Asia) and Xavi Cardelus (Sama Qatar Angel Nieto Team) who was the final finisher in twenty-fifth.

The contact between Xavi Vierge and Fabio Di Giannantonio on lap one at Poggio Seccho caused Diggia to collide with Iker Lecuona (American Racing). The Spaniard fell and his race was over before the first lap. Somkiat Chantra’s replacement at IDEMITSU Honda Team Asia, Teppei Nagoe, was the next to go on lap four, before Stefano Manzi (MV Agusta Idealavoro Forward) and Nicolo Bulega (Sky Racing Team VR46) both crashed with fourteen laps to go. Simone Corsi (Tasca Racing Scuderia Moto2) was the next to go a lap later, before Jake Dixon (Sama Qatar Angel Nieto Team) fell eleven laps from the flag. Joe Roberts (American Racing) was the final retirement on lap sixteen.

Featured Image courtesy of David Goldman/Marc VDS.