Moto2 – Gran Premio Gryfyn di San Marino e della Riviera di Rimini. Misano
Qualification:
Celestino Vietti took pole at one of his favourite tracks, World Circuit Marco Simoncelli Misano. Albert Arenas was P2 and on fire Alonso Lopez P3. Augusto Fernandez was P9, Ai Ogura P8.
The Race:
Alonso Lopez was sensational off the line and held off a pack of riders in to turn one, shutting down the others to take the lead, and more importantly holding it. At turn 2 Jake Dixon went down in an “own fault crash”, leaving his bike in tatters, and his confidence with it; sad to see after recent good form. Following Lopez was Albert Arenas in P2, Fermin Aldeguer P3, Celestino Vietti P4 and Ai Ogura P5.
As the race settled into lap 2, Alonso Lopez had a 0.460 gap on P2 man Arenas, not a lot, but enough for Lopez to find his rhythm and with clear air ahead of him, create a pace that suited him. P2 in the race in Austria after having led the race for some considerable time must have given Alonso confidence and it was showing.
Sixteen laps to go and disaster for Celestino Vietti as he crashed out of the race in an “own fault” low side, messing up his special livery on the Kalex, scratching it up in the kitty litter. Vietti, once tipped for the championship this year, and having problems in previous races, must have hoped his local circuit would bring him luck, but it was not to be so. Meanwhile, at the business end Alonso was holding the lead, with a 0.863 gap over P2 man Arenas, and in P3 Aron Canet. Ai Ogura was P4 and Augusto Fernandez P5.
On the last lap, Alonso Lopez had a 1.800 second gap over Aron Canet in P2, with Augusto Fernandez 2.172 seconds away. The race had been a little bit processional, but this would not bother Lopez as he made his way to the finish line, to take the win, his first in the Moto2 class, and well deserved.
The Result:
P1, Alonso Lopez, +Ego Speed Up, Boscoscuro. P2, Aron Canet, Flexbox HP40, Kalex. P3, Augusto Fernandez, Red Bull KTM Ajo, Kalex.
For Alonso Lopez, this was the dream come true. He had been pushed out of the paddock when the Biaggi team let him go in Moto3, they seemed to favour Romano Fenati, which is inexplicable. He made his way to the European Moto 2 Championships, not the most competitive, and then was brought back into the MotoGP paddock by Boscoscuro, to replace, you got it, Fenati, who had been dismissed, very explicable. So, poetic justice reigns, and Alonso deserves all the success now available to him.
Author: Martin Northern
Founder of Bike Directory
