With mixed conditions shaking up the grid, riders are tested on their mentality and skills. Crashes, last lap battles and a true Moto3 race.
Due to the early rain, tire choices are up in the air on a wet, but drying track. Do they risk it with the slicks, or try and push the wet tires on a track that might dry up?
Only seven riders go for the slick tires, in the end.
As the riders begin their warm up lap, Deniz Oncu is pulled off of the grid. His team was changing his tires after the three-minute warning, which is against the rules. He now has to start the race from the back.
With Oncu out of the way, Romano Fenati gets away well as the lights go out, followed by Sergio Garcia and World Championship leader Pedro Acosta. On the final turn of the track, Fenati loses traction and holds himself in third place, behind Acosta. The top three group is already beginning to put space between them and Jaume Masia, nearly two seconds ahead of the rest of the pack.
Taking a look at the second pack, Masia is leading the Tech 3 KTM of Ayumu Sasaki and rookie Ivan Guevara. But he quickly loses his position to home hero Maximilian Kofler, impressing the home crowd with a top six position.
Poleman Deniz Oncu is having a nightmare start to what should have been a race winning charge. He is in 20th place, behind the Petronas SRT of John McPhee. This is most likely due to the fact that he is on slick tires and that track still has damp spots. Unlike the riders at the front to make his way up the pack would mean needing to battle his way up the grid. With the slick tires on, it isn’t worth pushing the limits when the dry line isn’t even there.
The rookies Adrian Fernandez and Lorenzo Fellon are having a great run in the rain, both in the points at 12th and 13th, respectively.
Two riders who are not afraid of the conditions are Darryn Binder and Jeremy Alcoba, who continue to battle for 16th place.
With 15 laps to go, it’s becoming clear that Acosta is playing the long game. He has the speed to overtake Garcia, almost seeming eager to do so. But he remains behind the GASGAS bike. This could be because he is not great when leading races. Or because he is trying to save his tires. Either way, he is showing the strategy of a primed Moto3 rider.
While Garcia and Acosta remain over five seconds clear. Romano Fenati has fallen back with the likes of Masia and Sasaki. The positions have not changed, but if the track continues to dry, it can all change.
A couple of riders who could be in it for a long lap penalty are Binder and Masia. Both riders have track limits warning, which would be quite unfortunate.
With 11 laps to go, Acosta takes the lead of the race from Garcia. It’s a swift and easy move up the inside and he puts a couple of bike lengths in between them. But Garcia will not go down easy as he responds and takes back the lead. For Garcia it’s a game of the mind, knowing that Acosta is behind him and could attack at any moment. For Acosta, it’s about holding his position. Both of these are the riders weaknesses, so whoever can overcome will be the winner.
With eight laps to go, Jaume Masia has overtaken Romano Fenati for third place. While fourth is not bad for a championship run, it’s becoming clear that the championship will be taken by our front running men. It’s difficult to imagine Fanti taking the championship, at this point in the season.
Taking a look at the rookies, Fellon has to take a long lap penalty. This is most likely due to exceeding track limits. It’s so easy to exceed track limits in the wet, and if it happens on the final lap, the riders could be in trouble.
Back to the race leaders, Acosta overtakes Garcia at turn 13 for the third time in the race. It is not enough as Garcia is able to overtake him again and again. While it’s clear that Acosta has the speed out of the two, Garcia is able to close the door in the corners. It really is all about the kind of rider who will stick it out to the end.
Darryn Binder is now battling for sixth place, putting in the fastest lap of the race on the slick tires. While it is too late to push for a win, it’s definitely an impressive run on Binder’s part. He might be able to fight for the podium, but he will fight for a top five. Unlike his success, poleman Deniz Oncu is having a nightmare race as he falls down to 22nd.
There are two battles going on with two laps to go. One for the win and one for the final step on the podium. Garcia and Acosta are practically riding side-by-side, swapping spots and having a good, long look at each other. The same could be said about Fenati and Masia, but all eyes are on the race leaders as Acosta overtakes Garcia. But it looks like Acosta was in the green- and then they touch on the final lap!
They aren’t willing to give each other room to breathe. Garcia nudges him off of the track and Acosta only has three corners to take the lead, but the GASGAS rider won’t give up.
And on the final two corners, Garcia crashes out of the race, losing the front. But because of the lead they had ahead of third place, Garcia is able to remount and take second place.
The battle for third does end with Fenati in third.
But there is an issue here- Acosta possibly went into the green at the beginning of the last lap. If this is the case, then the Stewards might have something to say about the win- and Garcia could take it, instead. For now, Acosta has taken the win, but it could change. Either way, both riders put everything on the track.
With Race Direction remaining silent, it is clear that the results will remain the same.
Our Austrian race winner is Pedro Acosta, followed by Sergio Garcia and Romano Fenati.
With the top three riders being the top three in the championship, will the battle continue next week? Or will we see another rider step up?
Tune in next week for the Styrian GP to find out!
