Terol takes fourth consecutive podium and championship lead

125cc racing resumed in the first race since the passing of Moto2 rider Shoya Tomizawa, with the race delayed by five minutes in order to allow for a homage to the late Japanese talent. The paddock and the Spanish king were present to pay their respects to Tomizawa with a minute’s silence at the Motorland circuit.

The race itself had an early shake-up with a crash for series leader Marc Márquez. That left the race more open but the victory no less impressive. Nico Terol and Pol Espargaró immediately took to the front in search of a home win, although it was the latter who eventually crossed the line first following a fantastic last lap.

Bancaja Aspar took their first podium double of the season as Nico Terol regained the leadership of the World Championship. He was out in front with Espargaro for almost the entirety of the race, but had to settle for second and his fourth consecutive podium . Bradley Smith was able to return to the rostrum after a great start, despite losing ground on the opening laps and being squeezed out of the battle for victory. He upped his pace but was unable to catch the frontrunners, although third place was a welcome result for the Briton and his team.

2nd Nico Terol: “I am very happy, because we were able to get a great result here. It is important for the start of this final sprint in the championship -the toughest part of the year. Now we have three races in succession coming up and then two more. I really suffered in this race with keeping the tyres in one piece and in the end I was sliding all over the shop. There are a lot of fast corners here in which you are relying on back end grip, which takes a lot out of the rubber. I had just started the race when I saw on my pit board that Márquez was out, in a situation that would have made it normal to ride conservatively. But today I wanted to win. I tried to break away from Pol in the final lap, but he made good use of the slipstream and passed me on the final corner master than I had expected. I took the turn in third when I should have moved up to fourth and wider in order to make a move. I am satisfied in any case, because the result takes me back into the lead of the standings. Now is the time in which I have to keep cool, because we have some had races ahead.”

Source: Bancaja Aspar Team