With early drama shaking up the championship, KTM continues to dominate the field with their superior team.
Ahead of the race, thick clouds begin to form. The temperature is dropping, so the tires shouldn’t be as big of an issue as they have been all weekend. Unlike the Junior Class, Moto2 does not have to worry about Race Direction pushing too much pressure on them to comply to the strict rules that we saw earlier today.
Race Start
The KTM’s of Raul Fernandez and Remy Gardner get a great start off the line while Fabio Di Giannantonio has a rough start. Not even a lap in, both KTM’s are already eighth tenths of a second clear from Xavi Vierge in 3rd place. Is this bound to be another KTM demolition job?
While Fernandez took the lead at the beginning of the laps, Gardner was able to make his way up front and claim 1st.
Aaron Canet is in 2nd place, a solid position for the Spanish rider. Behind him is Marco Bezzecchi, Vierge and Di Giannantonio. All three of those riders are capable of fighting it out for the two remaining spots on the podium. Jorge Navarro also has a chance, if he can improve his pace.
Further down the line we have both Marc VDS bikes suffering in 10th and 11th place. Lowes crashed out of qualifying and it was clear that he was suffering in Germany. It’s evident that his hopes for a championship run is over.
In an insane twist of events, R. Fernandez crashes out. It is the first mistake of his Moto2 career, which was prompted by Gardner pushing him to follow. It was a clever move by his teammate, pushing to see how far R. Fernandez will go. This not only gives him a five second lead ahead of anyone, but also allows the championship lead to grow. The two KTM riders are now separated by 36 points, if Gardner can keep the lead.
As for the riders who have crashed, Jake Dixon has crashed out with Augusto Fernandez at Turn 12. Dixon rejoined the race. Both MV Augusta boys have crashed out, bringing their brutal German GP weekend to an end.
20 Laps to Go
Gardner continues to maintain his lead while Canet grows his own lead in 2nd place. When it comes to Canet, it’s about being able to stay on the bike during that lead, which is where he usually has his issues. We’ve seen him fall from grace a couple of times this season so far.
In third place is Bezzecchi, the man perpetually in the last podium position. He and Vierge, who is 3rd in the championship, are separated by three points in the championship. If Bezzecchi wants to claim 3rd, he needs to keep off Di Giannantonio, stay cool, and hold strong. He is also expected to join Di Giannantonio and Gardner in joining the MotoGP team.
The halfway point of the race is proving to be a little slow with 1st and 2nd currently out of the picture for battle. The main battle is coming from the guys in 3rd, both Di Giannantonio and Bezzecchi smelling blood. All this battle does, though, is bring Vierge back into the picture. The Gresini rider is just so much better through the left hand turns, which outnumber the right hand turns at the Saschenring.
10 Laps to Go
With 10 laps to go, Gardner is still in the lead with Canet following in 2nd. Both riders have a lead over the rest of the field, which leaves the battle mainly to Di Giannantonio and Bezzecchi.
Down the field, Marcel Schrotter is holding a strong 7th place ahead of Lowes and Navarro. Navarro seems to be running low on energy as he continues to fall down the field. It’s a matter of time before Roberts takes 9th.
Ai Ogura, who has bided his time behind Vierge, has finally been able to make a move to take 5th. While it seems unlikely, if Bezzecchi and Di Giannantonio battle it out for 3rd, he has a chance of taking his first Moto2 podium. But Bezzecchi is busy trying to track down Canet for 2nd place. The Aspar Team rider is currently losing grip on his tires, his two second lead coming down to one. Can he maintain the lead with two laps to go?
And is it even wise for Bezzecchi to try and track him down?
Last Lap
Gardner is leading the race. The only thing that will stop him from winning is himself. The gap between Canet and Bezzecchi is closing, but there isn’t enough time.
Xavi Vierge crashes out at Turn 1 of the last lap and just a couple moments later, Roberts follows him into the gravel. Ai Ogura also crashes out. These crashes are most likely due to tire ware.
But all hats off to Gardner as he becomes the first Australian in the Moto2 class to have three wins in a row. Canet follows in 2nd and Bezzecchi in 3rd.
What comes next?
Ahead of the five week summer break is the Dutch TT, where we have seen some epic battles play out. Will Gardner make it four in a row, or will R. Fernandez return with a vengeance?
Tune in next week to find out.
