JOE ROBERTS VICTORIOUS IN THRILLING MUGELLO MOTO2 GRAND PRIX
This weekend the Triumph 765cc triple Moto2 engines roared back into action for the Italian Grand Prix. Joe Roberts was the man to beat setting a new lap record of 1m 49.877 on his way to his first pole position of the year. He was joined by Championship leader Sergio Garcia and Alonso Lopez on the front row of the grid.
The race was shortened to 12 laps after the previous Moto3 race was red flagged. Roberts got the perfect start to lead from pole ahead of Lopez and Darryn Binder who’d equaled his best ever qualifying result starting in fifth and got himself into third. Manuel Gonzalez was fourth ahead of Garcia, Ai Ogura and Aron Canet. This leading train of seven riders went on to have a battle for the ages trading places throughout the race.
Ogura had got through from 10th to fourth before dropping back to seventh. Gonzalez and Garcia rubbed paintwork as they battled for fourth, while Lopez and Binder were pressuring Roberts for the lead. Canet passed Garcia for fifth as Lopez went round the outside of Robert’s on the straight and they were three abreast as Binder joined the battle. Roberts held onto the lead briefly before Lopez made it stick and Gonzalez took Binder for third.
Canet and Binder were having a brilliant battle for fourth until Binder crashed out of what would have been his best result of the season. The front train of seven became six riders who were all covered by just a second and a half with Lopez leading Roberts at the front.
Celestino Vietti in seventh was the quickest rider on circuit but looked like he wouldn’t have time to catch the front six in the shortened race.
The battle at the front raged on as Roberts went back through to the lead but they were four abreast and he ended up at the back of the quartet with Canet taking the lead from Lopez, Gonzalez and Roberts and Ogura passed his teammate into fifth. They all continued to trade places in the closest race of the season that looked like it could have been won by any of the group. Roberts got back to the front ahead of Gonzalez and the duo battled it out for lead while teammates Ogura and Garcia battled to the line with Canet.
Roberts ultimately crossed the finish line for his first victory of the year and the first win for his team American Racing. Gonzalez equaled his best Moto2 result in second ahead of Lopez who took the final podium position. Garcia won the battle for fourth ahead of Ogura and Canet in sixth.
The Moto2 action returns for round eight in Assen, 28-30 June.
