Intense contest features five riders challenging for the win. Rins lies 14 points behind series leader Salom, with Alex Marquez in fourth overall.
A spectacular battle for victory in Moto3 kicked off the Malaysian Grand Prix. The race saw a 13-strong group of riders at the head of the field, only reducing in numbers at the midway stage. The title contenders were the standouts in an epic contest.
After Luis Salom had imposed a fierce pace, Rins and Marquez took turns to lead the race. Past halfway in the battle, the frontrunners had whittled down to five riders: Salom, Rins and Marquez, plus Maverick Viñales and Miguel Oliveira. There were passes galore on the final laps, with Salom eventually holding off Rins down the home straight to take the victory by 0.069s. Marquez was fourth, 0.782s behind the race winner.
Following this race, Rins remains second in the overall standings, 14 points behind Salom. Alex Marquez continues in fourth place.
Alex Rins >> Audio
2nd at 0.069 sec.
“We finished second, taking a deserved podium after a weekend of hard work. Together with the team we improved the bike a lot between yesterday and today and I felt very comfortable in the race. It was very fun; it’s been a long time since we had such a large group at the front. We had a lot of riders at the front, but fortunately by the end some of those who were challenging in the early stages had dropped back. I went first on the final straight, as I believed that it would be difficult for anyone to pass me at that point. I tried to close the door by going as far left as I could, but still Salom overtook me. I tried to brake later, but it wasn’t to be and I finished second. In any case, we are very happy with the result and we shall see what happens at Phillip Island.”
Alex Marquez >> Audio
4th at 0.782 sec.
“The weekend has been a bit difficult, because on Friday we could not ride too much due to a crash. Yesterday we took a step forward, but were not expecting to be in the leading group today, fighting with the fastest riders. With four or five laps to go I turned to look back, and that lost me some focus and I was passed. On the righthanders I lost a bit of time because I lacked some arm strength, but after a complicated weekend I think we’ve done well. Now we go to Phillip Island, a circuit that I like.”
