Teruel Moto3: Masia takes back-to-back wins with MotoLand masterclass

Jaume Masia left it to the last lap to make his final move and secure victory in the Moto3 Teruel Grand Prix at MotorLand Aragon.

The Leopard rider was comfortably sat in second behind championship leader Albert Arenas, rehearsing his passes patiently after swapping the lead several times with his compatriot over the race distance.

After managing to snatch the win at the same track last week in Aragon, the Spaniard took advantage of Arenas’ wider line and made his final assault for first, leading at the chequered flag by just 0.051s in a close lunge to the line.

The win also brings up Honda’s 800th victory across all race classes.

It was Ayumu Sasaki who followed Masia’s line and moved into second for Red Bull KTM Tech 3 - the Japanese rider collected his first ever podium finish in the process.

Kaito Toba was back to his best in third. The Red Bull KTM Ajo rider played a big part in the final result, first running John McPhee wide with a strong race move, before a similar attack on Arenas at the line saw him claim the final rostrum spot.

That left Arenas having to settle for fourth despite having consistently lead the way for most of the race. The Solunion Aspar rider maintains his championship lead of 13 points back to Ai Ogura.

Celestino Vietti made late gains to climb to fifth and keep himself in the title hunt for Sky Racing Team VR46.

John McPhee’s race mirrored his performance of last week - starting 17th for Petronas Sprinta Racing put him in a similar situation to his penalty in Aragon.

Again, the Brit set about moving through the pack with confidence, and climbed into the lead group to run as high as second, challenging for the win. This time the number 17 finished sixth.

Deniz Oncu equalled his best result of the season as his late pace rocketed him up to seventh for Red Bull KTM Tech 3, completing a strong showing for the team. The Turkish rider was also the top rookie in the race.

Darryn Binder faded a little in the closing stages after featuring in the front three, he finished eighth for CIP Green Power.

Ninth went to Ogura, earning a valuable seven points for the Honda Team Asia rider, to keep him second in the overall standings. 

The Japanense rider also left it late to move through the field, having spent much of the race outside the top 15.

Tony Arbolino lacked Aragon experience after missing last weekend’s race (travelled with someone who tested positive for Covid-19, but tested negative himself). Despite qualifying second and topping warm-up, the Rivacold Snipers rider faded quickly in the race, taking the chequered flag tenth.

Alonso Lopez (along with Khairul Idham Pawi and Barry Baltus) had a long lap penalty to serve in the race as the first riders sanctioned under the new system. 

The Husqvarna rider made the best recovery of the trio to finish eleventh for Sterilgarda Max Racing.

Raul Fernandez had started from pole, but after being pushed wide mid-way through the race he never really recovered. The Red Bull KTM rider was twelfth as the race came to a close.

Filip Salac fought hard to keep for 13th on the second Rivacold Snipers entry, while Gabriel Rodrigo started brightly but slipped to 14th after an out of his seat moment for Kommerling Gresini.

His team-mate Jeremy Alcoba collected the final point on offer.

Tatsuki Suzuki (SIC 58 Squadra Corse) crashed out on turn nine of the last lap, taking Sergio Garcia with him. The Estrella Galicia rider had come from 28th on the grid to run with the race leaders. 

Riccardo Rossi was absent from the race following a positive Covid-19 test.