The Moto2 Americas GP witnessed the first wet race for the class at the Circuit of The Americas, bringing a wave of uncertainty to the grid as riders debated between slicks and wet tyres. In the end, the wet tyre proved to be the winning choice, with Jake Dixon delivering a dominant performance from start to finish. Meanwhile, the five riders who gambled on slicks paid a heavy price, most notably then-championship leader Manuel Gonzalez, who struggled to 22nd place.
Fresh off his victory in Argentina, Jake Dixon has made it two in a row, clinching another dominant win at the Grand Prix of the Americas. The British rider was unstoppable in the challenging conditions, leading from start to finish and further strengthening his grip on the 2025 Moto2 World Championship.
Tony Arbolino made a strong return to the Moto2 podium by claiming second place. Completing the all-Boscoscuro podium was Alonso Lopez, who delivered a solid ride to finish third on the Team HDR Heidrun machine.
Aron Canet  was unable to match Dixonâs pace, crossing the line in fourth place, massive 28 seconds behind the race winner. Meanwhile, Izan Guevara showcased his talent in the tricky conditions, securing an impressive fifth-place finish for the BLU CRU Pramac Yamaha Moto2 squad.
Unfortunately Celestino Vietti crashed out of 5th place with 2 laps to go. The day only got worse for him, as immediately after he rejoined, he crashed moments laterâŚ
Dixonâs commanding performance solidifies his status as a true title contender, showcasing the best version of Jake Dixon weâve seen yet.
Total dominance from the Colombian teenage sensation David Alonso (CFMOTO Aspar Team) this weekend in Austin, Texas. Quickest in practice, pole position and an easy race with Alonso leading every lap of it.
Alonso would have been unaware of the chaos and drama behind him, especially the terrific fight for the remaining podium places. Daniel Holgado (Red Bull GASGAS Tech3) and Angel Piqueras (Leopard Racing) finished the Grand Prix with a photo finish. Holgado finished 2nd and Piqueras just a bike wheel behind in 3rd.Â
Holgado continued his great run of form and hasn’t finished outside of the top 3 so far this season. The championship lead cut down to just 2 points to Alonso as we head to Jerez in two week’s time.
Image Credit: @AsparTeam on X
AS IT HAPPENED
Unfortunately due to illness, Jose Antonio Rueda (Red Bull KTM Ajo) was unable to compete in today’s race despite the excellent qualifying session yesterday. This promoted everyone up the grid one slot and Collin Veijer (Liqui Moly Husqvarna Intact GP) up onto the front row.
After the antics in yesterday’s sessions, most of the field had a long lap penalty and some a triple long lap penalty to take during the Grand Prix.
A great start from pole position from Alonso and Filippo Farioli (SIC58 Squadra Corse) went down on the first corner with several riders taking evasive action to avoid any collision. Farioli far too late on the brakes went into the back of Veijer and Veijer lucky to stay on the bike past turn 1.
Joel Kelso (BOE Motorsports) collided with Holgado into turn 8, luckily both riders stayed on their bikes. Alonso with the chaos behind him gained a half a second lead at the front on the opening lap.
Holgado into turn 12 went up the inside of Veijer and back up into 3rd. Ivan Ortola (MT Helmets – MSI) and Stefano Nepa ( LEVELUP – MTA) crashed out with Ortola too keen to get by. Ortola confused in the melee almost re-joined the race on the wrong bike. Holgado after the incident with Kelso got by Matteo Bertelle (Rivacold Snipers Team) and back up to 2nd place as we headed into lap 2.
Into lap 2 and Alonso pulled away at the front with Piqueras, Taiyo Furusato (Honda Team Asia) and Veijer all getting by and swapping places with Holgado.
With all of the field fighting behind, Alonso started lap 3 over 2 seconds clear at the front. Piqueras lead the chasing pack with Holgado 3rd and Furusato in 4th.
Yellow flags waved in sector 1 as Luca Lunetta (SIC58 Squadra Corse) crashed out with 11 laps to go. Lunetta able to re-join but would end up finishing in last place. Alonso now had a 3.5 seconds lead at the front. The chasing pack of 6 riders lead by Holgado but Holgado was unable to break away from Piqueras and co. behind.
Holgado, Piqueras, Yamanaka (MT Helmets – MSI) and Veijer all in a fantastic fight for the 2nd and 3rd podium places here in Austin. At the half way point of the race, it was Alonso’s to lose with a huge advantage of 4 seconds at the front. Kelso caught up to the chasing pack and now a group of 5 emerged to fight it out for the podium places.
5 laps to go and Holgado set the fastest lap of the race, reducing the gap to 3 seconds to Alonso ahead in the lead. Kelso crashed out at turn 1 to remount and was still in the top 10 as Kelso re-joined in 8th place.
Alonso’s gap shrunk by over a couple of seconds as Veijer went down in sector 1 through the fast twisty section with Yamanaka and Holgado narrowly missing Veijer and his bike. The crash handed breathing room for Piqueras and was on target for his first ever podium for Leopard Racing.
OH! @CollinVeijer95 with a highside through the fast S bends! đĽ
Incredibly everyone avoided him and inadvertently it's taken the pressure off Alonso at the front! đŽ#AmericasGP đşđ¸ pic.twitter.com/gEmc9XM60v
3 laps to go, Alonso lead with Piqueras 2nd and Yamanaka in 3rd. Holgado and Yamanaka fought it out through the twisty section for 3rd place. Veijer retired on lap 12 after a more than eventful Grand Prix for the young dutchman. Hit multiple times from other rider’s before a high speed crash himself. Through turn 12 and up the inside of Yamanaka, Holgado moved back up into 3rd place.
2 laps to go and Holgado moved ahead of Piqueras into 2nd place late on the brakes up the hill into turn 1. Yamanaka and Piqueras both fighting for their first ever podiums in Moto3. Piqueras up the inside of Yamanaka and started the last lap of the race in 3rd place hunting down Holgado.
Onto the last lap and Piqueras was on the back wheel of Holgado and looked to take 2nd place away from the Red Bull GasGas rider. Down the long straight, Piqueras went up the inside of Holgado into 2nd. Holgado though patiently waited to attack and into turn 19 Holgado made his move. Up the inside of Piqueras and we had a photo finish on the line between the pair of them. Holgado took 2nd place by just a bike wheel ahead of Piqueras who finished in 3rd.
Image Credit: MotoGP
With all of the carnage behind him, David Alonso kept his cool and cruised to victory in Austin. Alonso capped off a fantastic weekend today and was dominant in every session.
Aron Canet takes his second pole in three races, beating out Fermin Aldeguer and Sergio Garcia for the best spot on the grid for tomorrowâs race. Local rider Joe Roberts was able to qualify in fifth.
Some riders who would have go to through qualifying one were Celestino Vietti, 2023 Moto3 Champion Jaume Masia and FIlip Salac. After the first fast laps, Vietti was the fastest rider on the circuit, even when he had to make his way around other riders who were slow on the track.
Darryn Binder caused a yellow flag at the end of the session and was unable to set a lap time. Because of the yellow flag, Zonta van der Goorberghâs fastest lap time was deleted. The Dutch rider the fastest through sector one and without the yellow flag could have made it through to the second qualifying session.
The four riders who went through to Q2 were Vietti, Masia, Albert Arenas and Diogo Moreira.
The second qualifying session started, and all the riders went out within the first few minutes except Ai Ogura and Garcia. This was Jake Dixonâs first qualifying session of the season after the injury he sustained earlier in the season.
Canetâs first lap was cancelled due to exceeding track limits at turn one.
The early pace setter was Alonso Lopez who set a 2:08.231 on his Speed Up Racing Boscoscuro motorbike. This was slower than the time set by Vietti to progress from Q1 to Q2.
After the success of progressing to Q2, unfortunately Vietti crashed at turn four causing a yellow flag. Due to this, he was unable to set a lap time. There was also gravel on the track which the riders would need to avoid.
At the halfway point of the session, Canet was at the top of the timesheet from Barry Baltus, Marcos Ramirez and Dennis Foggia.
After finishing first in the second practice session, Arbolino was a lot of peopleâs choice for pole position, but he crashed at turn 15 causing a yellow flag in the third and fourth sectors. This led to some riders losing their lap times.
Garcia and Aldeguer were going quick following the removal of the yellow flag and at the end of the second sector, both were around two tenths under Canetâs time and went up to the top of the timesheets.
As the only American racer in the field, all eyes were on Roberts also and he set his fastest lap which put him in fourth place but was bumped down by a few riders. He improved on his following lap and jumped up to third place, eclipsing his American Racing teammate, Ramirez.
The checkered flag came out and Canet was on another fast lap that looked as though it would be good enough for pole position and it was. He set a 2:07.631 that was unable to be beaten by any of the other riders, namely Lopez and Ramirez who looked close to setting the fastest time of the session.
For tomorrowâs race, Canet will head up the field from Aldeguer and Garcia. Arenas, Roberts and Ramirez populate the second row ahead of Foggia, Lopez and Gonzalez. Bo Bendsneyder rounded out the top ten.
After a brief break with the Argentinian race cancelled, everyone was raring to go here in Austin, Texas this weekend.
Championship leader and winner last time out in PortimĂŁo, Daniel Holgado (Red Bull GASGAS Tech3) continued his great run of form rounding off the front row of the grid qualifying in 3rd.
Jose Antonio Rueda (Red Bull KTM Ajo) was close, had a lap cancelled and then had pole snatched away from him in Q2 this afternoon. Teenage Colombian wonderkid David Alonso (CFMOTO Aspar Team) took his first pole position in Moto3 and has looked unstoppable this weekend so far.Â
With a front row of the top 3 title protagonists for 2024, it’s all set up to be a great battle in Texas tomorrow.
Image Credit: @AsparTeam on X
AS IT HAPPENED
Qualifying 1
Being in the leading group in the opening races of the season, we would certainly not of expected to see Riccardo Rossi (CIP Green Power) in this Q1 session.
David Almansa (Rivacold Snipers Team) went over the handle bars at turn 20, hopefully Almansa is ok after that as the first batch of flying lap times filtered through with just 8mins left of the session.
Leopard Racingâs Adrian Fernandez sat at the top of the timings after the first batch of flying laps were posted. The top 4 heading through to Q2 with 4mins of the session remaining were Fernandez, Jacob Roulstone (Red Bull GASGAS Tech3), Joel Esteban (CFMOTO Aspar Team) and Luca Lunetta (SIC58 Squadra Corse).
Ryusei Yamanaka (MT Helmets MSI) had a lap cancelled and only 2mins remained in Q1. Only one more attempt to salvage something from the session and progress to Q2 with a final flying lap.
The lap is 5.5kmâs in distance and with a 15mins qualifying session and over 2mins per lap time, nobody in Moto3 can afford to make a mistake.
Yamanaka pulled up on the long straight as Roulstone lit up the sectors red at the half way point of the last flying lap. Both Rossi and Yamanaka had a day to forget not getting into the top 4 to progress to Q2,
The fastest and through to Q2 were Fernandez, Roulstone, Esteban and Lunetta
Qualifying 2
Could anyone stop the charging David Alonso in this Q2 session? Alonso has been flying this weekend and was on course in practice to set a new all time lap record but instead opted to cruise into the pits.
With long out laps completed, it was Rueda who got us started with flying laps with 12mins left of the session.
Rueda set the bench mark of a 2:15.063 and as the rest of the field filtered through Alonso moved back to the top a tenth of a second quicker than Rueda with a 2:14.907. Alonso on provisional pole after most of the field completed their first runs.
Holgado moved up to 5th with 8mins left of the session and teammate Roulstone went into 2nd. Superb from the young Australian rider.
Alonso on his next flying lap went quicker setting a new provisional pole lap time of 2:14.661. Roulstone and Rueda filled the rest of the front row with 4mins left of the session.
Rueda out of the pits and to the top of the timings with a new lap record but dipped his wheels into the green coming out of the last corner. Rueda would later have this lap cancelled with just 1 min left of the session.
Collin Veijer (Liqui Moly Husqvarna Intact GP) with the last sector of his career jumped onto pole as the chequered flagged waved. Rueda, Alonso and David Munoz (BOE Motorsports) though all on final flying laps lighting up the sectors red.
Rueda crossed the line but only had pole position for a few seconds as Alonso snatched it away to take pole position here in COTA.
Holgado managed to fight onto the front row just ahead of Veijer in 4th.
A first pole position for David Alonso in Moto3 and well deserved. Alonso will be hard to stop in tomorrowâs race.
The NASCAR Cup Series returns to Circuit of The Americas for the fourth successive year this Sunday for the first road course of the season, in what promises to be another wild and fiercely competitive COTA race, with 2023 Chicago Street Race winner and three-times Supercars champion Shane Van Gisbergen and ex-Formula 1 driver and 2021 24 Hours of Le Mans winner Kamui Kobayashi, both making their first Cup start of the season.
Race breakdown
Shane van Gisbergen and Kamui Kobayashi return
Qualifying
Full qualifying results
3 min read
Race breakdown
The EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix at Circuit of The Americas will consist of 68 laps (232 miles), broken down into three stages of 15, 15, and 38, around the 3.41-mile 20-turn premiere road course with the race starting at 3:30pm ET/7:30pm UK time.
NASCAR have brought a new race package this weekend for the Cup Series which includes a simplified diffuser and diffuser strake, accompanied by a three-inch spoiler, the shortest spoiler package the Cup Series currently run, all in an effort to take away downforce from the cars.
All three prior COTA Cup races have been wild affairs, with the inaugural race in 2021 seeing a torrential downpour that saw NASCARâs wettest ever Cup race brawl ensue that saw Hendrick Motorsportsâ Chase Elliott win.
AUSTIN, TEXAS – MAY 23: Joey Logano, driver of the #22 Shell Pennzoil Ford, and Kurt Busch, driver of the #1 Monster Energy Chevrolet, lead the field during the NASCAR Cup Series EchoPark Texas Grand Prix at Circuit of The Americas on May 23, 2021 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images)
2022 came down to a three-wide wrestle that saw Trackhouse Racingâs Ross Chastain come out on top after moving AJ Allmendinger out of the way to take his first Cup Series win.
Last year featured several manic overtime attempts that saw 23XI Racingâs Tyler Reddick finally take the checkered flag.
AUSTIN, TEXAS – MARCH 26: Tyler Reddick, driver of the #45 Monster Energy Toyota, celebrates in victory lane after winning the NASCAR Cup Series EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix at Circuit of The Americas on March 26, 2023 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images)
Chase Elliott has the most wins amongst Sundayâs field with seven road course victories. Martin Truex Jr., Kyle Busch, and Kyle Larson have five, four, and four road course victories respectively.
Shane van Gisbergen and Kamui Kobayashi return
Shane van Gisbergen looks set to compete up front again in his third Cup Series start now racing for Kaulig Racing after he stole the show from the Cup regulars, out-braking, and outmanoeuvred all to take the win at the inaugural Chicago Street Course on his Cup Series debut last summer.
Gisbergen also finished 10th in last yearâs Indianapolis road course race. He qualified 12th for Sundayâs COTA Cup race.
Gisbergen raced in yesterday’s Xfinity COTA race as part of his full-time schedule with Kaulig Racing in the Xfinity Series this season, and was up front all day long with teammate AJ Allmendinger and was leading when the caution came out with less than four laps to go.
In the final overtime Gisbergen got moved of the way by Richard Childress Racingâs Austin Hill in turn one, that then saw the No. 17 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Kyle Larson, who was on much fresher tyres, pass both of them on the final lap to take the win away, as Gisbergen got back by Hill in the final corners.
Gisbergen was then penalised for marginally cutting a corner in the esses on the final lap that relegated him to a 27th finishing position.
Kamui Kobayashi is piloting 23XI Racingâs No. 50 Toyota, making his second Cup Series start after making his debut in last yearâs Indianapolis road course race, where he finished 33rd one lap down.
Kobayashi who has qualified 25th for the COTA race said: âIâm definitely looking forward to COTA. Weâve had more preparation. Iâve raced COTA five times already in Formula 1 and WEC. I think Indy, it was my first time ever racing there, but at COTA I have more experience, so definitely looking forward to the race.â
Kobayashi will be sporting a Mobil 50th anniversary livery for the Cup race.
A scheme fit for a celebration and the best things come in 3ď¸âŁs
We canât think of a better way to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Mobil 1 than running the 50 car (courtesy of @tmtracing50) three times with three driversđ¤Š
Qualifying saw William Byron take his 13th Cup Series pole and fifth on a road course with an average lap speed of 94.696 mph, beating Ty Gibbs by 0.15-seconds, who finished 24th in yesterdayâs Xfinity race after being up front up for much of it.
Byron said: âHonestly this has been my first normal week since the [Daytona] 500 and being in my rhythm and kind of in my cocoon and being able to focus on driving the race car. I feel very happy with the way the week has gone and feel very fresh going into this race.â
The EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix at Circuit of The Americas starts 3:30pm ET/7:30pm UK time.
Full qualifying resultsÂ
William Byron
Ty Gibbs
Tyler Reddick
Christopher Bell
Corey Lajoie
Ross Chastain
Martin Truex Jr.
Denny Hamlin
Chase Elliott
Bubba Wallace
Austin Cindric
Shane van Gisbergen
Justin Haley
AJ Allmendinger
Kyle Larson
Kyle Busch
Alex Bowman
Carson Hocevar
Daniel Suarez
Chris Buescher
Austin Dillon
John Hunter Nemechek
Kaz Grala
Ryan Preece
Kamui Kobayashi
Todd Gilliland
Michael McDowell
Ryan Blaney
Harrison Burton
Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
Josh Berry
Chase Briscoe
Daniel Hemric
Zane Smith
Joey Logano
Brad Keselowski
Timmy Hill
Erik Jones
Noah Gragson
Featured Image: AUSTIN, TEXAS – MARCH 24: A general view of practice for the NASCAR Cup Series EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix at Circuit of The Americas on March 24, 2023 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Sean Gardner/Getty Images)
After claiming pole position earlier in the day, Pecco Bagnaia has taken a truly dominant win for the Americas Grand Prix sprint race in Texas. Just behind him was Alex Rins in 2nd and Jorge Martin who held on to 3rd despite a tough fight with Aleix Espargaro in 4th.
Pecco Bagnaia gave a faultless performance at the Circuit of the Americas to win the Americas GP sprint race. Having started on pole, he was able to hold off an early attack from Alex Rins at the start and quickly pulled out a large lead to win very comfortably. He also smashed the race lap record at the halfway point of the race.
As the lights went out, the race started surprisingly cleanly and everyone completed the first lap safely. The winners off the line were Jorge Martin, who flew from 12th up to 5th, and Miguel Oliveira, leaping from 15th up to 9th. Others faced more of a struggle with the likes of Luca Marini going wide and dropping from 3rd down to 13th and Maverick Vinales struggling at the start and falling back from 8th to 17th.
On the second lap, Rins went wide at turn 12 and gets shuffled back to 3rd. This dropping in right in to a battle with Fabio Quartararo who was trying desperate moves to try and get something out of his Yamaha. As the pair fought, Quartararo clatters in to the side of Rins, leaving rubber marks on his leather.
As the riders settled in to the race, and Bagnaia was enjoy some clear air, Quartararo was still fighting against his Yamaha at every corner. It eventually ended in tears as he went down at turn 1 of lap 5. He was able to rejoin the race and eventually ended the day in 19th.
On lap 7, Rins makes an aggressive move on Aleix Espargaro to steal 2nd from him. However, a few corners later, he goes wide and takes Espargaro with him. Whilst Rins holds on to 2nd, this error gifts 3rd place to Jorge Martin and shuffles Espargaro back down to 4th.
On the same lap, at turn 12, Alex Marquez goes down on the slipper track surface. This promotes Bezzecchi to 6th and allows him to keep the lead of the championship for another day.
In the final laps of the race, Espargaro is trying everything he can to get past Martin and in to 3rd but he simply canât find a way through.
Lights will go out for the feature race in less than 24 hours time so make sure you follow Crew On Two for all the action.
Round Four saw the Moto GP riders in Austin, Texas at the Circuit of the Americas. But, did anyone see the Ducati lockout at the front of the grid?
Jorge Martin (Ducati) took pole, with a new all-time lap record (2:02.039) from Jack Miller (Ducati) in second and Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati) in third. Fourth and fifth went to Ducati riders Johann Zarco and Enea Bastianini.
Race:
With 3.426 miles for just one lap at COTA, the laps are long and the wind was strong. With such an unpredictable season so far, who would come out victorious?
Martin and Miller had a great start but it was Miller who took the lead into the first lap, from Martin, Bagnaia and Bastianini. It was a disastrous start though for Marc Marquez (Honda), who had returned from injuries after missing last race. He seemed to have issues with his launch control and stumbled from his grid position, falling to last place.
COTA. Courtesy of Moto GP website.
Bastianini claimed third place fairly quickly from Bagnaia, Whilst Martin overtook Miller into turn 20 but Miller was in the mood to fight and took the position back immediately.
Marquez was on a mission and already on lap 2 had made up 5 places, claiming 17th place. Miller also knew he had to try and create a gap between himself and second, trying to do this he put in the fastest lap.
By lap 4 of 20 it was another Ducati’s turn to claim fastest lap, this time it went to Zarco, in 5th place.
Having won so many times at this race track, Marquez knew exactly what he had to do, with 17 laps to go he was up to 14th position. Was the win just a dream this time round?
Zarco and Bagnaia tussled for 4th place, Marquez took another step towards the front and Alex Rins (Suzuki) passed Fabio Quartararo (Yamaha) for 6th.
Mini battles in the field. Courtesy of Moto GP website.
For the first time in the race the top five Ducati’s were suddenly split by the Suzuki of Rins who took 5th place on lap 6Â and in doing so claimed fastest lap. Unfortunately for Alex Marquez (Honda) on the same lap, he crashed out cutting his race short, in sector 2.
Having looked good for some time, Rins took 4th place from Zarco, but Zarco wasn’t going down without a fight. Meanwhile the two factory Hondas switched places and Marquez was now up to 10th position.
With only 12 laps until the end Miller set another fastest lap and Rins and Zarco continued their battle for 4th.
Half-way through – Miller led Martin, Bastianini and Rins. Turn 11 though – Rins passed Bastianini, but Enea fought back for the spot.
Battling for 9th place, Marquez soon claimed it from Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia) – last weeks winner.
The Suzuki and Ducati clash continued between Rins and Bastianini with Bastianini coming out the stronger of the two and even taking 2nd place from Martin. Marquez also put in fastest lap â was a podium within reach?
Lap 12 of 20 and Miller continued to lead from the front, from Bastianini, Rins and Martin. While Mir passed Zarco once again for 6th.
Miller leads Bastianini. Courtesy of Moto GP website.
Marquez continued to push even harder, this time beating his own record and taking the best race lap ever (2:03.553). This did not last long as Bastianini, soon after, did an even better lap record of 2:03.521.
The overtakes just kept on coming: lap 14 of 20 â Quartararo finally passed Zarco this time managing to make it stick. Mir passed Martin and Bagnaia took full advantage doing the same. Meanwhile Marquez passed Quartararo for 7th.
Back at the front and Bastianini looked menacing behind Miller. Could Miller make his tyres last for just 6 more laps?
Two laps later and Bastianini made his move on Miller, taking the lead on turn 12, he straight away pushed hard to create a gap between the pair.
Martin continued to go backwards in Austin and found himself being passed by Marquez for 7th place, only to then have Quartararo seize the opportunity to also pass and force Martin into 8th, however, Martin fought back and and re-took 7th from Fabio.
Marquez hunts Martin. Courtesy of Moto GP website.
With only 3 laps until the chequered flag Bastianini created a gap of 1.031 seconds ahead of Miller. While Quartararo and Marquez went back-and-forth for 6th position.
Last lap and the Ducati’s of Bastianini and Miller led Rins in 3rd.
The continued battle for 6th raged on while Rins and Miller decided to battle it out. Miller went defensive but in the end it was Rins who claimed 2nd spot on the podium from Miller.
It was an absolutely heroic race from Marquez, who showed with enough determination, will and grit, he could still fight through the pack to claim a valiant 6th place.
Having now taken a second win this year â Bastianini rode the Ducati to claim victory, securing Ducati’s first ever win at COTA.
Bastianini takes the flag at COTA. Courtesy of Moto GP website.
Top Ten Finishers:
1st
E. Bastianini
2nd
A. Rins
3rd
J. Miller
4th
J. Mir
5th
F. Bagnaia
6th
M. Marquez
7th
F. Quartararo
8th
J. Martin
9th
J. Zarco
10th
M. Vinales
This season is so unpredictable, we now have another new championship leader:
Championship:
1st
E. Bastianini
61 points
2nd
A. Rins
56 points
3rd
A. Espargaro
50 points
4th
J. Mir
46 points
Rins claiming second on the podium, equaled Suzuki’s 500th podium finish in GP history across all classes.
Are we seeing a new championship contender in Enea Bastianini? Who would have predicted such a Ducati dominance? Can they continue in this fashion? We will have to see in round 5.
Jaume Masia has come out on top, winning in COTA, ahead of a seven-way battle that rumbled on for much of the race. He was joined on the podium by Dennis Foggia and Andrea Migno.
It was the experienced Moto3 riders who came out on top at the Grand Prix of the Americas today. The chaotic race saw seven riders battling for only three podium positions for most of the race. Eventually, it was Jaume Masia who came out on top, taking the lead on the final lap.
Masia hasnât won a race since the first round of the 2021 season, making it an emotional return to the top step of the podium for the Spanish rider. Having spent last year in the shadow of his teammate and eventual 2021 Moto3 champion, Pedro Acosta, this win will provide him with some much-needed confidence.
On the podium were fellow Italian riders Dennis Foggia, in second, and pole-sitter Andrea Migno, in third.
As the race commenced, it was Deniz Oncu who took an early lead, passing Migno at the first corner. He took rookie Diogo Moreira with him as he leapt from his starting position of sixth up to second. Oncu and Moreira were then battling for the lead and came to be side-by-side on the long straight. As they crossed the line to start the second lap, Moreira swerves across in to Oncuâs path. Oncu was forced to back off and Moreira stole the lead.
Foggia and Masia also struggled and, by lap 4, they were quickly shuffled back to 10th and 11th despite starting second and fifth respectively.
On the same lap, Oncu took the lead back from Moreira. Shortly after, Xavier Artigas got the best of both of them and flew his way up in to the lead. Two laps later and Moreira was back in the lead of the race, only to be overtaken by Oncu shortly after.
At this point, a number of other riders joined the leading pack, stating their intentions for the win. Championship leader Sergio Garcia closed up to the leading three but then clashed with Daniel Holgado, who crashed in to him on the final corner. Both riders were able to rejoin the race but Garcia eventually retired on lap 13 and Holgado crashed again on the final lap of the race. Holgado will be disappointed with his race result today, as he makes his return from injury.
Lap 8 saw Ayumu Sasaki and Masia join the leading group, taking second and third respectively behind Oncu.
As the grid started their final lap, Migno was leading ahead of Masia in second and Foggia in third. Moreira crashed at the first corner of the lap – he was trying to hard to make his way through the leading pack and showed his inexperience with a rookie error that ruined his hard work.
Due to a number of incidents around the circuit, yellow flags were hampering the progress of most riders and left it difficult to find a way past Migno. However, down the long straight, Masia made his move and took the lead. He went out wide and found himself on the rumble strips, giving some hope to Migno. However, as Migno tried to make his way around the outside of Masia at turn 19, giving it everything he had in an attempt to win, he ran wide and let Foggia through the inside to take second. Masia remained unbeatable out in front and crossed the line in first.
Just missing out on a podium finish was Sasaki in fourth, Oncu in fifth and Artigas in sixth.
Izan Guevara was deemed to have jumped the start and was given a double long lap penalty. As this wasnât served quickly enough, the penalty then went up to three long laps. This should have ruined his race but he was able to climb back up the field and ended the day in seventh.
The top ten was rounded out by Carlos Tatay, Ricciardo Rossi and Tatsuki Suzuki in eighth, ninth and tenth respectively.
Championship Standings
Thanks to Foggiaâs second-place finish today, he has now jumped to the top of the championship standings. He leads Garcia, in second, by 16 points. Migno is in third ahead of Guevara in fourth. Oncu is sitting in fifth ahead of todayâs winner, Masia, in sixth.
Tony Arbolino secures his first win in Moto2 as both Celestino Vietti and Aron Canet crash out of the lead. Ai Ogura takes second ahead of Jake Dixon who takes his maiden Moto2 podium.
Tony Arbolino laid down a cool, calm and collected performance to take his maiden win in Moto2, despite tricky weather conditions. He found himself in the lead of the race after two front runners, Celestino Vietti and Aron Canet, crash out in the early stages of the race, potentially caused by those windy conditions.
Ai Ogura came home in second, having made huge strides from his starting position of 11th. This is his second podium in as many races – the first time he has achieved this in Moto2. He was joined on the podium by British rider, Jake Dixon, who enjoyed his first podium in Grand Prix racing.
Pole sitter and home hero, Cameron Beaubier had a difficult day – he was shuffled back in the early stages of the race and, despite making up ground, crashed out in the dying moments of the race.
As it happened
As the lights went out, Beaubier had an initial good start but was quickly shuffled back to fourth. Vietti flew off to take first, just ahead of Canet in second and Arbolino in third. Dixon slipped down to seventh whilst Sam Lowes jumped up to eighth.
The early stages of the race were filled with drama as the riders got to grips with those challenging conditions. Six riders all ended up in the kitty litter at the end of the first lap. As the grid came to turn 12 on the first lap, Somkiat Chantra hit the rear wheel of Sam Lowesâ bike as he mistimed his breaking. This then created a domino effect as Zonta van der Goorbergh hit Gabriel Rodrigo and the pair collected Fermin Aldeguer. Augusto Fernandez was lucky to not fall along with this group, however he was shuffled down to 15th as a result of the drama.
Rookie Pedro Acosta then crashed out from fifth in a separate incidence on lap four – he hit the ground at turn three before sliding dangerously across the track. Whilst all riders walked away unscathed, Rodrigo and van der Goorbergh were taken to the medical centre for a precautionary check-up.
On lap three, Canet found a way around the outside of Vietti at turn six, before firmly shutting the door at turn seven. With Canet now in the lead, he was able to pull out a 0.4s gap in the space of one lap.
On lap five, Vietti then crashed out from second place as the bike fell from under him at turn six. This promoted Arbolino up to second and Dixon up to third. Ogura was in fourth with Marcel Schrotter in an impressive fifth, despite starting down in 13th.
At this point in the race, Dixon was lining up for a move on Arbolino. This battle gave Canet the opportunity to put 1.5s of free air between himself and the rest of the grid.
However, everything went south for Canet shortly after as the front tire folds underneath him at turn seven on lap eight. He was almost able to save it but sadly ended up in the kitty litter. This promotes Arbolino to first, Dixon to second and Ogura to third.
Despite an initial challenge from Dixon, Arbolino was able to pull out a comfortable lead which he held for the remainder of the race. As the checkered flag fell, he had a 4s lead over his nearest competitors.
On lap 12, Dixon lost out on second place to Ogura after going wide – it is suspected that he faced a false neutral as Ogura came at him from very far behind.
A few laps later, just behind Dixon, Schrotter goes wide which allowed Beaubier past and into fourth. However, he wouldnât be able to hold on to this position as the checkered flag fell.
Further retirements came from Simone Corsi who crashed on lap two, Alessandro Zaccone who retired on lap three and Niccolo Antonelli who retired on lap 14.
Championship Standings
Despite a tricky weekend, Vietti remains at the top of the championship standings with 70 points, with Canet in second and Chantra in third. Todayâs podium finisher, Ogura, is fourth in the title fight with Lowes and Arbolino close behind.
However, if Canet had been able to hang on to the lead of the race, he would have left America as the championship leader. It will certainly be a weekend of âwhat ifâsâ for the Spanish rider.
Andrea Migno has claimed pole position for tomorrowâs race in COTA. He will be joined on the front row by fellow-Italian, Dennis Foggia, and Xavier Artigas. Our championship leader, Sergio Garcia, had to settle for 11th.
Todayâs qualifying session was dominated by Italian riders, Dennis Foggia and Andrea Migno – the latter rider was able to come out on top as he set a time of 2:15.814 to secure pole position ahead of tomorrowâs race.
Foggia was bested by only 0.067s, forcing him to settle for second for tomorrowâs race start. The front row will be rounded out by Xavier Artigas, who made his way through Q1 before posting an impressive time that was just 0.242s off pole.
The early pace setter was Izan Guevara, who eventually settled for 10th, before Migno jumped to the top of the timing sheets. Despite not opting for fresh tires part way through the session, Foggia was next to top the timing sheets.
It wasnât until the final flying lap when Migno was able to lay down his pole-clinching lap – a time which simply couldnât be bested by Foggia or Artigas.
Image Credit: MotoGP
Deniz Oncu, on the KTM Tech3 machine, and Jaume Masia, on the KTM Ajo machine, took fourth and fifth respectively. Rookie Diogo Moreira claimed sixth, ahead of Daniel Holgado who is returning from injury. The top ten is rounded out by Kaito Toba, Ayumu Sasaki and Izan Guevara in eighth, ninth and tenth respectively.
Three riders who made their way through from Q1 line up just outside the top 10 – Stefano Nepa, Scott Ogden, and Elia Bartolini took 11th, 12th and 13th respectively. This is Ogdenâs best qualifying result in his rookie Moto3 year.
Our championship leader, Sergio Garcia, had a shocking day and was only able to claim 15th. He certainly seems to be off the pace after winning the last race in Argentina.
The grid will be in action at 2.30pm local time, and Crew on Two will have all the action for you.
