The Repsol rider duo clinched the top two positions in a race they dominated along with third place finisher Maverick Viñales at the Grand Prix of Indianapolis.
It was a race to remember for the two Repsol Moto3 riders, in which Alex Rins claimed his third victory of the season and Alex Marquez climbed onto the World Championship podium for the first time. The second place podium for Marquez came after just losing out to victory at the finish line. Nevertheless, it was a deserved reward for the narrowly missed podiums in recent races.
Both riders started from the top two positions on the grid though fell behind in the first few corners after less than ideal starts. Rins ran off the track in the second corner, though returned to the tarmac in seventh place, three spots behind his teammate who by then had been overtaken by Arthur Sissis, Maverick Viñales and Luis Salom. In just six laps, Rins recovered the lost positions to take over at the front while setting the fastest lap of the race. He then stretched his lead at the head of the pack, taking Viñales and Marque with him.
In a race long battle, despite Rins attempting to escape, Marquez sought his chances of victory on the penultimate lap. Marquez overtook his teammate down the straight, but one lap later Rins passed him back and stepped up the pace, to cross the finish line first. It is Rin’s third win of the season and his second in the U.S., leaving him with 167 points in the World Championship, 16 behind category leader Salom and 7 behind Viñales.
Thrilled, Alex Marquez claimed his first World Championship podium, which places him fifth overall with 90 points, confidence and momentum for the next race, when the World Championship returns to Europe this week for the Grand Prix of the Czech Republic.
Alex Rins >> Audio
1st – 41:37.200
“It was a very difficult race. At first, right after the start, I ran off the track and I had to push hard to recuperate the lost positions. In the end, the race was decided in the last laps. With three laps to go, [Alex] Marquez passed me, but with one lap to go I passed him back. In that moment, I gave it full gas because I knew that he could pass me on the finish line, as his bike was a little faster than mine. In the end everything worked out and I finished in first position. Above all, I would like to dedicate this race to the victims of the train accident in Galicia.”
Alex Marquez >> Audio
2nd at 0.177 sec.
“I’m very happy. At the beginning of the race, I knew that the three of us, Rins, Viñales and me, could break away, and that’s what I tried to do. At first I wasn’t completely comfortable on the bike, and I struggled a bit. But when I passed Rins, I saw that I could run with them and I felt better on the bike. At the end, I tried to pass Rins on the final lap, but the truth is that today he was very strong and I have to congratulate him. We have to continue in this way, it’s important to have the three races in a row with a podium because it’s really motivating, mentality and for the team as well. We had been on the verge of podium for a while now, so we should be happy. Next we go to Brno, a track that I like.”
