Рубрика: Motosport News

How Michael Jordan inspires Acosta to bet on KTM for his MotoGP future


Pedro Acosta’s world championship career has been meteoric. He made his debut in Moto3 in 2021 and won the title at his first attempt. He made the jump to Moto2 in 2022, and although he needed one season to get the hang of the category, he dominated in his second attempt in 2023, racking up seven wins and 14 podiums out of a possible 20.

In 2024, with just three years in the paddock, Acosta is the only rookie in MotoGP this year. But he needed just three races to prove he had the level to be in the top class.

His fight with Marc Marquez in the season-opening Qatar GP, first podium in the second race at Portimao, and second place in Austin confirmed the young Spaniard as the ‘chosen one’ many had been referring to since he emerged. That initial explosiveness, however, slowed down as the season passed through its midway point, only to pick up again at Aragon and Indonesia.

The reasons for this ‘disappearance’ can be sought in many places, but the least questionable reality is the strength of the bikes that Ducati offers its riders. Those who compare Acosta to Valentino Rossi, Marc Marquez or Jorge Lorenzo, who won in their first MotoGP season, probably do not take into account that these three legends debuted on the best bike available at the time, even though the competition between manufacturers was much greater than it is now.

Today, MotoGP is divided into two distinct groups. In the first group, those riding one of the Borgo Panigale bikes compete for the title, victories and pole positions. The rest are measured by what Ducati, which has been profiting for years from a well thought out and well executed strategy, leaves behind.

«KTM is no longer about contracts»

Motorsport.com spoke to Acosta in Indonesia last weekend about the dominance of the Italian bikes, and the difficulty for other riders to compete with them. It enjoys a monopoly that is not likely to end overnight, inevitably leading to tentative rumours that Acosta may be looking for a way out of KTM at the end of 2025 and into the Ducati fold.

Acosta has been a revelation in his rookie season, taking second place in Indonesia as he pushed Jorge Martin all the way

Acosta has been a revelation in his rookie season, taking second place in Indonesia as he pushed Jorge Martin all the way

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

How long will Acosta’s patience with the current KTM situation last before he tries to get on a Ducati? It’s the rider himself who answers the question.

«The thing is that my relationship with KTM is no longer about business or contracts; now it’s a question of heart,» says the 20-year-old, holding his right hand to his chest before adding in an almost solemn tone: «KTM is already a family for me.»

Acosta won the Red Bull Rookies Cup in 2020. That brought him closer to the energy drinks brand and placed him in the orbit of KTM, which, through Ajo’s structure, gave him a place in the Moto3 world championship in 2021. This remains a gesture that the rider is grateful for, given that at the time there was no place for him.

Acosta has no plans to leave KTM in the short or medium term to look for a Ducati to ride, a move that everyone would probably understand, and which would be completely legitimate

In 2022, his first experience in Moto2, Acosta signed a contract as a rider for the Mattighofen-based manufacturer, guaranteeing him a move to MotoGP in 2024 and a factory bike in 2025, as planned. There, he will be reunited with Aki Ajo, who was announced on Monday as the new team manager of the KTM’s MotoGP division, replacing Francesco Guidotti.

The alliance between Acosta and KTM contains an option to continue together in 2026 and 2027 if certain conditions are met, in what is now known as a multi-year tie-up. The deal contains very precise clauses which, Motorsport.com understands, would allow the rider to be released at the end of each year.

«Feelings now come before contracts,» says Acosta. «I’m determined to pull the brand and take it forward. Hopefully, we will win a MotoGP world championship together.»

Michael Jordan as an inspiration

The story of Acosta and KTM is reminiscent of Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls. When the franchise selected the North Carolina native with the #3 pick in the 1984 draft, it was one of the worst teams in the league. Jordan was the leading scorer in his first year, but the team lost most of its games and he was showered with offers to move, even from dominant, big-name clubs.

Acosta's meteoric rise will continue next year as he trades his satellite Tech3 bike for a factory-run example

Acosta’s meteoric rise will continue next year as he trades his satellite Tech3 bike for a factory-run example

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

«It would have been easy to go to a winning team and be a champion. The hard part was bringing the ring to Chicago,» Jordan recalled.

«Nobody believed in that team [the Bulls], but they managed to build a group around [Jordan] and they took it forward,» explains Acosta, who recalls The Last Dance, the famous Netflix docuseries that chronicles the basketball phenomenon’s career and those Chicago Bulls who strung together six crowns between 1990 and 1998.

«There’s a line in the documentary in which Jordan recalls the moment when he stopped thinking about just scoring points and started using the team to win championships. That’s when he really went from being a great player to becoming the legend that everyone knows today,» adds Acosta, showing maturity beyond his years.

Acosta has no plans to leave KTM in the short or medium term to look for a Ducati to ride, a move that everyone would probably understand, and which would be completely legitimate. His circumstance has some similarities with Marc Marquez, who left Honda — his own Chicago Bulls — to join a modest satellite structure in Gresini. Within a year, this path opened the door to Ducati’s factory team.

But the fact is that Acosta and Marquez have nothing to do with each other, even if they have already met on track several times.

«At KTM, with all the team we have and doing my part, we can make a great working group to try to move forward and make this factory a champion,» Acosta explains. «My big dream is to be world champion, but my biggest challenge is to achieve it with KTM.»

Will Acosta realise his dream of winning the MotoGP title with KTM under new boss Ajo?

Will Acosta realise his dream of winning the MotoGP title with KTM under new boss Ajo?

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images



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Bagnaia recovery in Indonesia GP keeps MotoGP title pressure on Martin


Francesco Bagnaia produced a solid recovery in the Indonesian Grand Prix to keep the pressure on MotoGP world title rival Jorge Martin, despite having no answer to the Spaniard’s dominance.

The two-time defending champion whittled Martin’s erstwhile 24 point advantage down to 21 points after consolidating his win in Saturday’s sprint race with a run to third in the full-length encounter.

After struggling initially to get his tyres up to working temperature after a bad start, Bagnaia ran as low as seventh during the early stages and would spend a large portion of his race behind Franco Morbidelli, Enea Bastianini and Marco Bezzecchi’s that were fighting for third.

However, after rising to fourth in the closing stages when Bastianini crashed out with seven laps to go and Bezzecchi out-braked himself at Turn 10 moments later, Bagnaia picked off Morbidelli to seal his 11th grand prix podium of the season.

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As such, despite an emphatic lights-to-flag victory for main rival Martin, it was Bagnaia who still came away from the Lombok venue having scored more points across the weekend in total.

“I tried to do the same start as yesterday [the sprint race] but the clutch had a different reaction, so I got a wheelie and it started to spin,” Bagnaia said.

“I didn’t lose many positions but after the start I was a bit too careful in the first laps so I started to lose positions and I struggled to get them back.

“My pace was very strong but it wasn’t enough to overtake riders in front of me easily because I need around 10 laps to overtake Bez. I was struggling with traction. It was difficult, but I’m happy because after yesterday we still gained good points.”

Enea Bastianini, Ducati Team

Enea Bastianini, Ducati Team

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

Bastianini pushing for second led to crash

Bastianini was left to rue the missed opportunity of a podium after crashing while in pursuit of Pedro Acosta in second place during the closing stages of the grand prix.

Having moved within 1.5s of the Tech3 KTM rider with seven laps remaining, Bastianini low-sided off into the gravel at Turn 1.

Picking up his a first Sunday race DNF of the season, Bastianini admitted pushing to capture second place cost him, following his own poor start.

“My objective was to win but Jorge was already quick from the start and I struggled a lot at the start with the rear tyre,” he said. “I tried my best to not lose any time but in the end we lost a lot of time.

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“I don’t know about winning the race, probably I think it was possible to get second position.

“For me with Pedro, it was hard because he was faster but maybe in the last two or three laps my pace was very close to him.

“I tried to attack him, to fight but I arrived a bit faster than the lap before. I was pushing very hard, trying to close the gap to Pedro, but I arrived over the limit.”



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Is it fair to brand MotoGP 2024 ‘a championship of mistakes’?


It was Francesco Bagnaia who’d be the one to rather succinctly sum up the general mood towards the 2024 MotoGP world championship title race as he settled in for his media session on Saturday afternoon.

«This season it is looking like a championship of mistakes!»

It’s a comment that was delivered jokingly, yet at the same time articulated exactly what many were thinking after Jorge Martin took his turn in allowing precious points to slip through his grasp with his fall from the lead of the Indonesian Grand Prix sprint race on Saturday.

To his credit, far from allowing himself to feel a touch smug as the one to profit from Martin’s misfortune by taking a fourth win sprint win of the season, Bagnaia no doubt feels a touch of empathy too given only days earlier he had been the one brushing gravel out of his locks after crashing at Misano.

They are incidents that have come to rather typify the thread of a 2024 MotoGP title fight that even now, with just five rounds remaining, at times still feels as though it is yet to fully get going.

It gives the suggestion that this is a 2024 MotoGP title battle that won’t be ‘won’ per se, more than the other rider lost it. But is it fair to critique this as simply a rider dropping the ball, or is it a measure of the limits they are now skirting in order to reach the top?

Martin's crash in the Indonesian sprint race once again opened up the title fight with Bagnaia

Martin’s crash in the Indonesian sprint race once again opened up the title fight with Bagnaia

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

Whatever happens from this point on, it is almost certain the rider on the losing end of this year’s title fight will — as ever — spend the winter retrospectively going over those moments where the title was won and lost.

For Martin and especially Bagnaia, the pivotal flashpoints have been abundantly clear in 2024. Indeed, this isn’t a forensic analysis of ifs, buts and maybes, where the difference between sweet title glory and a salty defeat is as nuanced as an incorrect tyre choice here or an erroneous set-up tweak there.

Instead, what is striking about this year’s battle is how it has evolved into a personal battle of holding nerve, rather than a battle in the more literal sense of on-track jousting.

This can in part be explained by MotoGP’s evolution towards a more aero-dependent, technically advanced blueprint that while mind-bending in its impressiveness, has undoubtedly shifted the balance of priority away from the input of a rider and more towards the output of the bike.

«When you are at this limit, you are closer to a crash. So it is super important for the championship that we have to remain focused»
Francesco Bagnaia

Not that man and machine is always a symbiotic relationship, as Martin suggested on Saturday after confessing he had no indication as to why his Ducati folded underneath him.

«I don’t feel I was on the limit,» he asserted. «It’s difficult to understand why I crashed. I have looked into it and everything looks normal, so if there is something I need to change then I will look into it more deeply and understand to ensure I don’t make the same mistake.»

Bagnaia offered up his own theory, pointing out that only innovations and engineering are the reason why tenths are being slashed off lap records on a regular basis, and that means the margin for error has become increasingly slim.

Bagnaia has his theories as to what is causing crashes that are proving pivotal in the title race

Bagnaia has his theories as to what is causing crashes that are proving pivotal in the title race

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

«I have an idea that it has arrived from the performance of the tyres — they are an enormous step forward,» he offered. «We are braking so hard because the rear is up a lot, so in the front, we have more issues because we enter corners much faster.

«The performance Michelin has improved this season is incredible, at all the circuits we have improved the pace a lot. But when you are at this limit, you are closer to a crash. So it is super important for the championship that we have to remain focused.»

While it would end up fairly honours even between Martin and Bagnaia in Mandalika — 25 points for the former, 28 for the latter — they’d barely crossed swords all weekend. It has been a similar story at other venues too, the pair engaging in a rivalry that has so far avoided the grazed elbows and swapped paint of on-track combat and has been defined by which rider inflicts fewer defeats on himself. 

Indeed, as indicated by Bagnaia’s appraisal, the 2024 MotoGP title fight might well hinge on which rider ends up proving less fallible rather than which rider is faster. Indonesia was a case in point. Martin showed superior pace throughout the weekend — including during his charge through the field upon remounting in the sprint race — but paid the higher price with his sprint slip-up.

For the most part, Martin’s quest for greater consistency requires only fine-tuning. A rider whose unquestionable turn of speed on a MotoGP bike was for a long time counteracted by a tendency to go bust after going boom, the Spaniard has worked hard to prove he can race with a mature head too.

After seeing his 2023 title hopes undone by costly slips — Indonesia, Australia and Valencia — during high-stake critical junctures, Martin has limited his glaring faux pas to a late crash in Germany and that tactical blunder in Misano.

Could consistency over the final races decide the title?

Could consistency over the final races decide the title?

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

That said, the Spaniard is still prone to race day foibles — Silverstone, Mugello, Catalunya — that help explain how he has been able to sustain a lead in the overall standings over Bagnaia despite going nine events and four months between bagging 25 points for a Sunday win.

Over then to Bagnaia, whose scatter graph scoresheet sees him boast big numbers, albeit for both the right reasons and the wrong ones. Eleven wins — seven main, four sprint — tell their own story, but then so do the six occasions he failed to score at all.

It has left the Italian yo-yoing with his greater number of wins. An ability to keep rebounding back into the mix suggesting the onus is Bagnaia — and not Martin — to shape the future by either stringing more of those strong results together, or allowing his rival to maintain a psychological edge.

If we were no closer to finding out who will reign supreme between Martin and Bagnaia, the Indonesian round did at least help all but confirm this is now a two-horse race between the duo for a second successive year.

The fact it would take two remarkably rare events — a crash for the normally robust Enea Bastianini and the untimely expiration of Marc Marquez’s trusty Gresini Ducati — to bring this about, perhaps we — as well as Martin and Bagnaia — should still be giving greater credit to cold hard fate in matters of racing.

It might just make all the difference.

Will MotoGP finally be treated to an all-out Martin vs Bagnaia race battle?

Will MotoGP finally be treated to an all-out Martin vs Bagnaia race battle?

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images



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Acosta says he’s getting «closer and closer» to first MotoGP win


Pedro Acosta believes he is «getting closer and closer» to a first win in MotoGP after finishing second behind winner Jorge Martin during the Indonesian Grand Prix.

The Spanish rookie produced arguably the most convincing performance of his short MotoGP career so far, as he muscled his way up to second place during the early stages before closing the gap to race leader Martin.

While his bid for victory ran out of steam in the closing laps, the GasGas Tech3 rider brought his KTM home second to equal his best finish of the season, just 1.4s shy of the win.

His fourth podium of the season marked a welcome return to form for Acosta, after crashing in both Misano races, and lifted the 2023 Moto2 world champion back ahead of KTM stablemate Brad Binder in their fight for status as the highest placed non-Ducati rider in the standings.

With five rounds of the season remaining, the rookie sits fifth on the leaderboard.

«We need to be happy because we have got this consistency inside the top five, which against Ducati is not easy,» reflected Acosta.

«But we are getting closer and closer.»

Pedro Acosta, Red Bull GASGAS Tech3

Pedro Acosta, Red Bull GASGAS Tech3

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

Acosta, who will join the factory KTM squad next year that the Austrian manufacturer confirmed on Monday will be headed up by Aki Ajo, admitted to prioritising a safe return home over taking risks to get on terms with championship leader Martin’s Pramac Ducati.

«Since Thursday I have said this is a good track for us and KTM, so I’m happy because I needed to finish a race,» he reflected.

«In Misano we had good pace and I was competitive, but in both I crashed.

«I tried to catch him but I had a moment on lap 16 that allowed him to pull away again, so I say that maybe it is better to have second place than to have another crash.»

Shortly after Acosta had taken the chequered flag in second, the race control issued a message stating that the Spanish rider was under investigation for a potential breach of MotoGP’s tyre pressure rules.

However, post-race technical checks revealed that the loss of pressure was down to a leak in the tyre rim, and the stewards subsequently cleared him of any wrongdoing.

Shortly after Acosta had taken the chequered flag in second, the race control issued a message stating that the Spanish rider was under investigation for a potential breach of MotoGP’s tyre pressure rules.

However, post-race technical checks revealed that the loss of pressure was down to a leak in the tyre rim, and the stewards subsequently cleared him of any wrongdoing.

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Aki Ajo confirmed as KTM MotoGP team manager


KTM has announced that Aki Ajo will take up the role of team manager at its factory squad from next season.

The Finn will step away from his current position as head of his own Ajo Motorsport Moto2/3 team in favour of helming KTM’s efforts in the premier class.

Ajo comes on board in place of current KTM Factory Racing team boss Francesco Guidotti, who was this weekend confirmed as leaving the team at the end of the season despite having a year left to run on his contract.

“It’s an honour to be offered this great new role and opportunity to work in MotoGP with Red Bull KTM Factory Racing,” Ajo said in a statement from KTM.

“At the moment MotoGP is at a very high level so we need to continue to work in many areas and use the strengths that we have to build this KTM package to an even better standard. 

“We need to keep pushing but I think this project already has many good parts to be right at the very top; we have to manage them in the best way. 

“Thank you to Stefan, Hubert, Pit and Jens and everyone in the KTM structure.”

Brad Binder, Red Bull KTM Factory Racing

Brad Binder, Red Bull KTM Factory Racing

Photo by: Rob Gray / Polarity Photo

Ajo arrives at KTM on the back of immense success achieved at Moto3/125cc and Moto2 level since Ajo Motorsport arrived in the grand prix paddock in 2001. Since then it has gone on to collect ten riders’ titles in total, five in Moto2 and five in Moto3/125cc.

Renowned for his skill in the scouting and development of fresh racing talent, Ajo’s appointment will see a return to working alongside Pedro Acosta and Brad Binder, who will form KTM’s rider line-up in 2025.

The duo are counted among Ajo’s esteemed title-winning alumni, together with current MotoGP riders Johann Zarco and Augusto Fernandez, plus WorldSBK frontrunner Remy Gardner.

With KTM having already developed a close working relationship with Ajo Motorsport by providing backing for both its Moto2 and Moto3 teams, Motorsports Director Pit Beirer regards him as a logical choice.

“We have a special relationship and a very close collaboration with Aki and so we felt this was the best decision to take the MotoGP project forward. 

“I’ve said it before and will mention it again: he believed in us when we were just getting organised in this paddock, so the trust and the friendship is unmatched. His team’s success speaks for itself. 

“He has won titles with both of the riders that will be in the pit-box for 2025 but that knowledge is just part of the skillset he will bring. We know we can count on a lot of pedigree and, of course, Aki knows our company and the way we race. 

“I’m really pleased and proud that we are taking this challenge together and we are continuing a story that began a long time ago and has had so much success and great stories already.”



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Martin glad to dispel Mandalika ”ghosts” with Indonesia MotoGP win


MotoGP points leader Jorge Martin admits he is relieved to have put the “ghosts” of his Mandalika mistakes to rest after completing a lights-to-flag victory in the Indonesian Grand Prix.

The Pramac Ducati rider came into Sunday’s full-length encounter feeling the pressure after failing to score in Saturday’s sprint race. Martin finished down in tenth after a fall from the lead on lap one dropped him to the back of the field.

Having also crashed while leading in Indonesia last season, Martin redeemed himself by controlling the grand prix from the first turn and remaining error-free all the way to the flag.

Representing his first full-length grand prix win since the French Grand Prix in May, the maximum haul of 25 points goes a long way to restoring Martin’s lead over Francesco Bagnaia in the overall standings.

After Bagnaia halved the deficit to 12 points in the wake of his sprint victory, Martin’s Sunday win swelled that margin to 21 points with five rounds of the season remaining.

Admitting to being haunted by the “ghosts” of his previous errors mid-way through the race, Martin was happy to exact some “revenge” this time.

“I got some revenge today,” he joked. “I stopped and kissed the floor, because I think it is even better when you crash and then win, than if you win both races!

“It was a difficult race, not only for yesterday’s crash but the crash last season too.

Jorge Martin, Pramac Racing

Jorge Martin, Pramac Racing

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

“The mental side of it was really complicated and around lap 13 I started to have some ghosts [come up] about last year, but after getting through that part of the race everything was OK.

“At Turn 16 [where he crashed in the sprint race], I was really trying to manage it well and not make the same mistake as yesterday, so I am happy I learned from my mistakes.”

Though pushed all the way by Pedro Acosta, who closed to within 0.6s of the lead at one stage, Martin says he was determined to avoid taking risks to keep the GasGas Tech3 rider at arm’s length.

“I was really confident with a 1.4s gap and then he started catching,” he continued. “I was quite calm and I tried to keep the same pace, but he started catching me to [close to] 0.6s.

“At some point I found some more speed in the first part of the track so I started to build a bit of a gap. Sometimes I risked to increase the gap but I was in control.”

Looking ahead to the next round in Japan, Martin says his sprint race error will teach him to not get “too confident” as the title fight reaches a critical point.

“Let’s keep the momentum, every race weekend is different and this weekend I was maybe too confident,” he added.

“I felt really strong and everything came so good that I was too confident, then I made a mistake, so I need to be more alert.”



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KTM announces exit of team manager Guidotti at end of MotoGP season


KTM Factory Racing team manager Francesco Guidotti will leave both his role and the team at the conclusion of the 2024 MotoGP season, it has been announced.

The Italian joined the KTM from Pramac Ducati at the start of the 2022 MotoGP campaign, but as was widely predicted will leave his position after completing just three of the four seasons he was originally contracted for.

Though KTM declined to reveal any details regarding who will replace Guidotti as its MotoGP team lead, talk in the paddock in Mandalika this weekend suggests Aki Ajo — founder and manager of eponymous Ajo Motorsport Moto2 and Moto3 teams — is likely to succeed him.

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“After three years with Francesco and a lot of positive progress an working methods, we are moving the team with a different leadership approach,” confirmed KTM Motorsports Director, Pit Beirer.

“Making these changes is never an easy process and we can only thank Francesco warmly for what he has done in our MotoGP story.

“2025 will bring some big movements to the whole programme in this close and exciting sport and we are laying the foundations now to keep making steps ahead.”

Brad Binder, Red Bull KTM Factory Racing

Brad Binder, Red Bull KTM Factory Racing

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

Guidotti’s premature exit comes amid a drought of race-winning success for KTM that now stretches back to 2023 and Brad Binder’s sprint race win in Argentina. Its most recent full-length grand prix victory came courtesy of Miguel Oliveira’s triumph in Thailand a year earlier.

KTM will undergo a shake-up of its rider line-up for 2025 to coincide with a management reshuffle that might also see Dani Pedrosa take up an executive position alongside his development and test rider duties.

While Binder stays on board for a sixth season in the factory set-up, Pedro Acosta will be promoted alongside him from the satellite Tech3 Racing set-up. The French team, meanwhile, will have an all-new pairing in Enea Bastianini and Maverick Vinales next season.

The announcement followed the Indonesian GP where Acosta finished second to winner Jorge Martin’s Pramac Ducati. His fourth podium of the season lifts Acosta above Binder to fifth as the lead KTM rider in the standings and best non-Ducati.



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MotoGP Indonesian GP: Moto2 and Moto3 results


Aron Canet took a dominant second Moto2 victory of 2024 in the Indonesian Grand Prix, while a ninth win of the Moto3 season moved David Alonso to within striking distance of the title at the Mandalika Circuit.

After being out-sprinted in the dash for the line a week ago in Misano, Canet ensured there would be no repeat around the Lombok venue as he romped clear of the chasing pack from pole to reel off a first win since Portugal in March.

Opening up a margin of two seconds by lap five, the Fantic Racing rider continued to increase his advantage to the flag, eventually crossing the line a full 6.2s up on runner-up Ai Ogura.

Though he’d have no answer to Canet’s scintillating race pace, championship leader Ogura collected another healthy portion of points on a day when MT Helmets-MSI team-mate and nearest title rival Sergio Garcia failed to score for a third time in four rounds after crashing on lap 16.

It means Ogura has opened up a comfortable 42-point buffer over the Spaniard with five races remaining.

The Japanese had been made to work hard for his second place after getting embroiled in a feisty battle with SpeedUp Racing riders Alonso Lopez and Fermin Aldeguer for much of the race.

Ai Ogura, MT Helmets MSI

Ai Ogura, MT Helmets MSI

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

Eventually he’d break clear of the Spanish duo, Ogura leaving Lopez and Aldeguer to duke it out for the final spot on the podium, with the former eventually prevailing.

Aldeguer had seemingly ruled himself out of podium contention with off-track moments on both lap eight and lap 13, but recovered strongly to get the better of Manuel Gonzalez for fourth and finished on Lopez’s tail.

With Gonzalez slipping back to ninth in the final moments, Darryn Binder capitalised to secure a career-best fifth place finish on the Husqvarna IntactGP entry as Joe Roberts, Izan Guevara and Tony Arbolino finished up sixth, seventh and eighth respectively.

There was disappointment however for Jake Dixon, who suffered a second successive DNF with a crash out of sixth place at Turn 10 on lap three.

Moto2 Indonesian GP — race results

David Alonso, CFMOTO Aspar Team

David Alonso, CFMOTO Aspar Team

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

In Moto3, Alonso continued to stamp authority over his rivals as he notched up his ninth win in 15 races on the CFMoto Aspar machine.

The Colombian kept his cool during heated exchanges among a large lead group for much of the 20-lap encounter before stepping up his pace in the closing stages to deny Adrian Fernandez a first Moto3 victory.

Alonso left it late to mount his bid for glory, the 18-year old trailing both Fernandez and David Munoz upon entering the final lap.

However, after dispatching Munoz for second place at Turn 1, Alonso went on to overhaul Fernandez for the lead at Turn 10 before holding firm for his 13th career Moto3 win, a new category record.

Moreover, with closest title rival Daniel Holgado finishing sixth, Alonso’s 97-point advantage over the Spaniard means he can mathematically now clinch the 2024 Moto3 title next time out in Japan.

Despite coming up just short of victory, second place for Fernandez represents the Leopard Racing rider’s first Moto3 podium, while it was a fourth trip to the rostrum this season for third place Munoz.

Angel Piqueras consolidated Leopard strong’s day with his run to fourth as Luca Lunetta tallied another top five result for the SIC58 team in fifth.

Title contender Holgado, meanwhile, showed no ill-effects of a nasty collision with team-mate Jacob Roulstone on Saturday morning as he quickly made gains from a 14th place starting position to tussle it out with the leaders throughout. However, after being run down to sixth in the closing stages, the GasGas Tech3 rider’s title hopes are seemingly now all-but-over.

He still fared better than Collin Veijer and Ivan Ortola, however. The former threw away a chance at victory after crashing out of the lead at Turn 8 on lap 12, while the latter could only recover to tenth after serving two long lap penalties having started on pole.

Moto3 Indonesian GP — race results

1


D. Alonso

CFMOTO Gaviota Aspar Team

80 CF MOTO 20
156.6 25
2

Mexico

A. Fernandez


Leopard Racing

31 Honda 20
0.085
156.5 20
3

Spain

D. Munoz


BOE Motorsports

64 KTM 20
0.140
156.5 16
4


Á. Piqueras

Leopard Racing

36 Honda 20
0.439
156.5 13
5


L. Lunetta

SIC58 Squadra Corse

58 Honda 20
0.171
156.5 11
6

Spain

D. Holgado


Red Bull GASGAS Tech3

96 GASGAS 20
0.027
156.5 10
7

Japan

T. Suzuki


Liqui Moly Husqvarna Intact GP

24 Husqvarna 20
0.438
156.5 9
8

Australia

J. Kelso


BOE Motorsports

66 KTM 20
0.535
156.4 8
9


I. Ortola

MT Helmets — MSI

48 KTM 20
14.829
155.2 7
10


N. Fabio

LEVELUP — MTA

10 KTM 20
0.010
155.2 6
11


J. Antonio

Red Bull KTM Factory Racing

99 KTM 20
0.096
155.2 5
12

Italy

M. Bertelle


Kopron Rivacold Snipers Team

18 Honda 20
0.037
155.2 4
13

United Kingdom

S. Ogden


FleetSafe Honda — MLav Racing

19 Honda 20
0.198
155.2 3
14


J. Esteban

CFMOTO Gaviota Aspar Team

78 CF MOTO 20
0.239
155.2 2
15

Italy

S. Nepa


LEVELUP — MTA

82 KTM 20
6.560
154.7 1
16


J. Roulstone

Red Bull GASGAS Tech3

12 GASGAS 20
2.320
154.5
17

Japan

R. Yamanaka


MT Helmets — MSI

6 KTM 20
13.188
153.5
18


N. Dettwiler

CIP

55 KTM 20
18.028
152.1
dnf

Japan

T. Furusato


Honda Team Asia

72 Honda 17
3 Laps
156.5 Accident
dnf


C. Veijer

Liqui Moly Husqvarna Intact GP

95 Husqvarna 11
6 Laps
156.5 Accident
dnf

Italy

R. Rossi


CIP

54 KTM 10
1 Lap
152.3 Retirement
dnf


X. Zurutuza

Red Bull KTM Factory Racing

85 KTM 10
28.159
148.2 Retirement
dnf


T. Buasri

Honda Team Asia

5 Honda 4
6 Laps
152.5 Accident
dnf


F. Aditama

Honda Team Asia

93 Honda 4
0.130
152.5 Accident
dnf


F. Farioli

SIC58 Squadra Corse

7 Honda 2
2 Laps
151.6 Accident
dnf


D. Almansa

Kopron Rivacold Snipers Team

22 Honda 2
0.309
151.4 Accident



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Quartararo blames limitations of Yamaha package for Morbidelli clash


Fabio Quartararo has bemoaned the limitations of his Yamaha MotoGP package for contributing to his clash with Franco Morbidelli that denied him a points-paying result in the Indonesian sprint race.

The Frenchman had been eyeing a fifth consecutive top-10 finish after consolidating his eye-catching Friday practice pace by securing a spot on the second row in qualifying with sixth place on the grid.

Quartararo got within striking distance of a rare top-five finish, before a leery attempt at overtaking Morbidelli on lap eight of 13 instead led to contact and a slide down the order.

Eventually coming home 12th, a defiant Quartararo deferred blame for the incident to a Yamaha M1 package that he says is forcing him to push the limit in his attempts to overtake rivals.

“It’s the only way for us to overtake and it was completely wrong,” he said.

Fabio Quartararo, Yamaha Factory Racing

Fabio Quartararo, Yamaha Factory Racing

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

“I pushed to the maximum but we have basically less grip than them, less acceleration, more wheelies, more problems to stop the bike… we have no stronger points than them.

“We are riding in a defensive way during the race so we don’t get overtaken, but then we cannot overtake also.”

While Quartararo’s vocal — and often damning — appraisal of Yamaha’s performance limitations are certainly familiar, the 2021 MotoGP champion nevertheless admits the issue is particularly frustrating given the manufacturer’s recent upturn in form.

“In the fight, Yamaha has been quite bad for many years, especially now that I start to have the pace but I was not able to make even one overtake — this is a point we have to get stronger soon,” he added.

“It’s frustrating because it has always been the same issue: not possible to overtake.

“In 2022, it was really similar but, in 2022, the other brands were not that strong, so I could fight more at the front. But now, if we are behind, we cannot do anything.”



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