2018 Thailand Moto2 and Moto3 Sunday Results
Moto 2 Race – 24 laps, 109.296 km
The race was already compelling. Then at the finish it became fascinating – and deeply depressing for the Red Bull KTM teamsters, as championship leader Pecco Bagnaia’s seventh win of the year was in the last lap backed when SKY VR46 Kalex team-mate Luca Marini pushed past into a valuable second place.
Title rival Miguel Oliveira had disputed the lead in the early stages, but suffering brake problems had been obliged to settle for second as Bagnaia took firm control at half distance. Then it became third, costing him another four points.
His Red Bull team-mate Brad Binder had been shadowing him throughout, with each having at least a spell in the lead in the early stages … but he had perforce succumbed to the late-charging Marini on the 22nd lap.
Bagnaia explained that he thought the hot conditions had “made it easier for me. I could see Oliveira was struggling, and I made my move.”
Oliveira was philosophical. “I pushed a lot, but I had a problem with the front brake – the lever was sometimes too close and sometimes so far, so I didn’t know how to adjust it. There are still four races – never give up.”
Fabio Quartararo (Speed Up) lost touch after fighting with Marini, and was a lone fourth, ahead of Mattia Pasini (Italtrans Kalex). Pole starter Lorenzo Baldassarri (Pons H40 Kalex) crashed out, trying to make up time lost after gear-shifting problems.
American Joe Roberts was 13th on the NTR, claiming his second points of the year.
Bagnaia stretched his advantage over Oliveira to 28 points, with four races left’ Binder’s finish reinforced his third overall ahead of Baldassarri and Alex Marquez (EG-VDS Kalex), who also crashed out for a fourth time in five races.
PTT THAILAND GRAND PRIX
Moto2 Race Classification 2018
Buriram, Sunday, October 07, 2018
| 1 | 25 | 42 | Francesco BAGNAIA | ITA | SKY Racing Team VR46 | Kalex | 168.1 | 39’00.009 |
| 2 | 20 | 10 | Luca MARINI | ITA | SKY Racing Team VR46 | Kalex | 168.0 | +1.512 |
| 3 | 16 | 44 | Miguel OLIVEIRA | POR | Red Bull KTM Ajo | KTM | 168.0 | +1.651 |
| 4 | 13 | 41 | Brad BINDER | RSA | Red Bull KTM Ajo | KTM | 168.0 | +1.808 |
| 5 | 11 | 20 | Fabio QUARTARARO | FRA | MB Conveyors – Speed Up | Speed Up | 167.6 | +6.260 |
| 6 | 10 | 54 | Mattia PASINI | ITA | Italtrans Racing Team | Kalex | 167.3 | +11.784 |
| 7 | 9 | 27 | Iker LECUONA | SPA | Swiss Innovative Investors | KTM | 167.0 | +15.290 |
| 8 | 8 | 45 | Tetsuta NAGASHIMA | JPN | IDEMITSU Honda Team Asia | Kalex | 166.9 | +16.903 |
| 9 | 7 | 5 | Andrea LOCATELLI | ITA | Italtrans Racing Team | Kalex | 166.8 | +18.608 |
| 10 | 6 | 24 | Simone CORSI | ITA | Tasca Racing Scuderia Moto2 | Kalex | 166.6 | +21.181 |
| 11 | 5 | 97 | Xavi VIERGE | SPA | Dynavolt Intact GP | Kalex | 166.5 | +22.021 |
| 12 | 4 | 87 | Remy GARDNER | AUS | Tech 3 Racing | Tech 3 | 166.4 | +23.957 |
| 13 | 3 | 16 | Joe ROBERTS | USA | NTS RW Racing GP | NTS | 166.3 | +24.668 |
| 14 | 2 | 64 | Bo BENDSNEYDER | NED | Tech 3 Racing | Tech 3 | 166.2 | +26.302 |
| 15 | 1 | 66 | Niki TUULI | FIN | Petronas Sprinta Racing | Kalex | 166.2 | +26.817 |
| 16 | 77 | Dominique AEGERTER | SWI | Kiefer Racing | KTM | 165.9 | +30.758 | |
| 17 | 9 | Jorge NAVARRO | SPA | Federal Oil Gresini Moto2 | Kalex | 165.6 | +34.782 | |
| 18 | 99 | Thitipong WAROKORN | THA | SAG Team | Kalex | 165.4 | +38.315 | |
| 19 | 57 | Edgar PONS | SPA | MB Conveyors – Speed Up | Speed Up | 165.3 | +40.294 | |
| 20 | 95 | Jules DANILO | FRA | Nashi Argan SAG Team | Kalex | 165.2 | +40.845 | |
| 21 | 89 | Khairul Idham PAWI | MAL | IDEMITSU Honda Team Asia | Kalex | 165.2 | +41.349 | |
| 22 | 18 | Xavi CARDELUS | AND | Marinelli Snipers Team | Kalex | 165.0 | +43.908 | |
| 23 | 4 | Steven ODENDAAL | RSA | NTS RW Racing GP | NTS | 164.1 | +57.257 | |
| 24 | 32 | Isaac VIÑALES | SPA | Forward Racing Team | Suter | 163.9 | +59.207 | |
| 25 | 21 | Federico FULIGNI | ITA | Tasca Racing Scuderia Moto2 | Kalex | 163.9 | +59.383 | |
| Not Classified | ||||||||
| 22 | Sam LOWES | GBR | Swiss Innovative Investors | KTM | 166.1 | 1 Lap | ||
| 7 | Lorenzo BALDASSARRI | ITA | Pons HP40 | Kalex | 151.1 | 14 Laps | ||
| 73 | Alex MARQUEZ | SPA | EG 0,0 Marc VDS | Kalex | 147.7 | 18 Laps | ||
| 62 | Stefano MANZI | ITA | Forward Racing Team | Suter | 157.5 | 23 Laps | ||
| Not Finished 1st Lap | ||||||||
| 40 | Augusto FERNANDEZ | SPA | Pons HP40 | Kalex | 0 Lap | |||
| 23 | Marcel SCHROTTER | GER | Dynavolt Intact GP | Kalex | 0 Lap | |||
| 36 | Joan MIR | SPA | EG 0,0 Marc VDS | Kalex | 0 Lap | |||
Moto3 – 22 laps, 100.188km
Put 30 Moto3 rivals into an overheated cake-tin, shake it up for 38 minutes, then see who is on top. And who has fallen out. With long straights keeping the field packed close for the full 22 laps, five or six abreast into the corners, the first race of the day could hardly have been closer.
It brought a second win for Del Conca Gresini Honda rider Fabio Di Giannantonio, second place for Lorenzo Dalla Porto (Leopard Honda), and a classic first podium for rookie Dennis Foggia (SKY VR46 KTM), up from 25th on the grid.
And resentment boiling over for front-running Marco Bezzecchi (Redox Pruestel KTM), who had frequently led and had high hopes of closing the points gap on troubled title leader Jorge Martin. Instead, second Leopard Honda rider Enea Bastianini cut inside him for third into the last corner, only to fall under his wheels, taking both out.
Martin (Del Conca Honda) was struggling with a left hand that had frozen up because a pre-event massage to the wrist, broken five races before at Brno, had trapped a nerve. Not even sure he could start, the last-corner tangle promoted him to a fourth place that extended his points lead over no-score Bezzecchi to 26 points.
PTT THAILAND GRAND PRIX
Moto3 Race Classification 2018
Buriram, Sunday, October 07, 2018
| 1 | 25 | 21 | Fabio DI GIANNANTONIO | ITA | Del Conca Gresini Moto3 | Honda | 157.4 | 38’10.789 |
| 2 | 20 | 48 | Lorenzo DALLA PORTA | ITA | Leopard Racing | Honda | 157.4 | +0.135 |
| 3 | 16 | 10 | Dennis FOGGIA | ITA | SKY Racing Team VR46 | KTM | 157.4 | +0.466 |
| 4 | 13 | 88 | Jorge MARTIN | SPA | Del Conca Gresini Moto3 | Honda | 157.3 | +0.980 |
| 5 | 11 | 19 | Gabriel RODRIGO | ARG | RBA BOE Skull Rider | KTM | 157.3 | +1.084 |
| 6 | 10 | 77 | Vicente PEREZ | SPA | Reale Avintia Academy 77 | KTM | 157.3 | +1.232 |
| 7 | 9 | 8 | Nicolo BULEGA | ITA | SKY Racing Team VR46 | KTM | 157.3 | +1.312 |
| 8 | 8 | 42 | Marcos RAMIREZ | SPA | Bester Capital Dubai | KTM | 157.3 | +1.440 |
| 9 | 7 | 35 | Somkiat CHANTRA | THA | AP Honda Racing Thailand | Honda | 157.3 | +1.643 |
| 10 | 6 | 84 | Jakub KORNFEIL | CZE | Redox PruestelGP | KTM | 157.3 | +1.718 |
| 11 | 5 | 16 | Andrea MIGNO | ITA | Angel Nieto Team Moto3 | KTM | 157.2 | +3.386 |
| 12 | 4 | 27 | Kaito TOBA | JPN | Honda Team Asia | Honda | 157.1 | +3.613 |
| 13 | 3 | 65 | Philipp OETTL | GER | Sudmetal Schedl GP Racing | KTM | 157.1 | +4.130 |
| 14 | 2 | 14 | Tony ARBOLINO | ITA | Marinelli Snipers Team | Honda | 157.1 | +4.319 |
| 15 | 1 | 7 | Adam NORRODIN | MAL | Petronas Sprinta Racing | Honda | 157.1 | +4.657 |
| 16 | 9 | Apiwath WONGTHANANON | THA | VR46 Master Camp Team | KTM | 157.1 | +4.802 | |
| 17 | 5 | Jaume MASIA | SPA | Bester Capital Dubai | KTM | 157.1 | +4.884 | |
| 18 | 52 | Jeremy ALCOBA | SPA | Estrella Galicia 0,0 | Honda | 155.8 | +23.915 | |
| 19 | 81 | Stefano NEPA | ITA | CIP – Green Power | KTM | 155.8 | +23.964 | |
| 20 | 22 | Kazuki MASAKI | JPN | RBA BOE Skull Rider | KTM | 153.4 | +59.390 | |
| 12 | Marco BEZZECCHI | ITA | Redox PruestelGP | KTM | 152.5 | +1’13.285 | ||
| Not Classified | ||||||||
| 33 | Enea BASTIANINI | ITA | Leopard Racing | Honda | 157.3 | 1 Lap | ||
| 17 | John MCPHEE | GBR | CIP – Green Power | KTM | 157.2 | 2 Laps | ||
| 41 | Nakarin ATIRATPHUVAPAT | THA | Honda Team Asia | Honda | 153.0 | 3 Laps | ||
| 71 | Ayumu SASAKI | JPN | Petronas Sprinta Racing | Honda | 157.4 | 9 Laps | ||
| 75 | Albert ARENAS | SPA | Angel Nieto Team Moto3 | KTM | 137.8 | 16 Laps | ||
| 23 | Niccolò ANTONELLI | ITA | SIC58 Squadra Corse | Honda | 157.1 | 18 Laps | ||
| 24 | Tatsuki SUZUKI | JPN | SIC58 Squadra Corse | Honda | 156.9 | 18 Laps | ||
| 40 | Darryn BINDER | RSA | Red Bull KTM Ajo | KTM | 157.2 | 19 Laps | ||
| 72 | Alonso LOPEZ | SPA | Estrella Galicia 0,0 | Honda | 154.9 | 19 Laps | ||
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