Aspar Mahindra's Francesco Bagnaia (29:29.351s) took a dramatic win at the Malaysian Grand Prix in Moto3, securing a perfect weekend. The race as described by Bagnaia was probably the best of the season, after the Italian rider converted a front row start into a dominant victory.
Bagnaia started the race in the front row but only managed to take lead as rivals Brand Binder, Joan Mir, Lorenzo dalla Porta and Fabio di Giannantonio crashed at Turn 7 of Lap 3 in the race. The crash doubled as an opportunity for the Mahindra rider to take lead and there was no seeing back since then.
With the Malaysian GP, Bagnaia took the 3rd win of the season
"I think that was the best race of my life. It is never easy to ride at the front on your own. You have to learn where the limit is and try to stay as fast as possible," Bagnaia said, after securing the win, his second win this season.
Speaking further, he said, "I think I have matured because last year I would have struggled to make a race like this, so we have taken a big step forward and I have to thank the team a lot."
Post the crash, Bagnania created a healthy difference between himself and other riders, while facing the closest competition from Czech rider Jakub Kornfeil (29:36.459s), of team Honda. The third place was secured by Netherlands racer, Bo Bendsneyder of KTM.
Bagnaia now stands third in the championship standings
In addition to Bagnania's victory, Mahindra Racing had a spectacular weekend as its other five riders also finished with points. Spaniard Marcos Ramirez (29:42.057s) secured his best finish of 6th, 0.292 seconds behind Andrea Locatelli, while South African teammate Darryn Binder (30:08.128s) finished the race in tenth place.
For other teammate Jorge Martin, things were on the disappointing end as he crashed on the high-side in Turn 1 of Lap 6, while also taking out several of his rivals. He was later airlifted to the hospital and was diagnosed with a concussion. Fortunately though, the doctors have given him a green signal.
Apart from Bagnaia, 5 other Mahindra riders scored points in the Malaysian GP
Malaysian rider Hafiq Azmi (30:15.178s), who replaced the injured John McPhee for the race had a positive 11th place on his Peugeot-Mahindra debut scoring crucial points. Italian riders, Stefano Valtulini (30:18.999s) and Lorenzo Petrarca (30:19.193s) of team Mahindra finished 13th and 14th respectively, claiming their first-ever world championship points.
The next Moto3 round is scheduled to be held in Valencia on November 13 and is extremely important as Bagnaia is now third in the overall championship standings. Will Mahindra be successful in replicating its dominance? This is something we will be waiting to see.
