Victories don’t get much more dominant than the one Aron Canet (Fantic Racing) rolled out at the Pertamina Mandalika International Circuit as the Spaniard pulls clear to win by over six seconds.
Thanks to a P2 finish, Ai Ogura’s (MT Helmets – MSI) advantage in the Championship was extended to 42 points, while third place went the way of Alonso Lopez (Beta Tools SpeedUp) after a fascinating fight for the final podium spot played out.
Ogura earned the holeshot into Turn 1 but Canet didn’t take long to retake the lead on Lap 1. There was drama into Turn 10 on Lap 1 as Somkiat Chantra’s (IDEMITSU Honda Team Asia) race ended early after his right leg was clipped by Fermin Aldeguer (Beta Tools SpeedUp), with Senna Agius (Liqui Moly Husqvarna Intact GP) having a separate incident at the same corner as the Australian’s race came to a halt too.
On Lap 4, Canet was racing off into the distance in P1 as Jake Dixon (CFMOTO Gaviota Aspar Team), battling with Manuel Gonzalez (QJMOTOR Gresini Moto2™), crashed at Turn 10 from P6.
The race then settled with Canet boasting a three-second lead ahead of a trio of Boscoscuros. Lopez led Aldeguer and Ogura, with Gonzalez not too far adrift in P5. Then, Turn 10 saw Aldeguer run wide as the Spaniard slipped from P3 to P9 on Lap 8 – a podium place now a long way up the road.
On Lap 11 of 22, Canet’s advantage was hovering around the five-second mark. It was a commanding display from the polesitter, but the fight for the rostrum was raging and joining in the fun was South Africa’s Darryn Binder (Liqui Moly Husqvarna Intact GP).
With seven laps left, Canet was 6.5s clear of the chasing pack, one which was led by Ogura. And speaking of, the Japanese rider’s teammate, Sergio Garcia, suffered another DNF. The #3 was slightly wide on the exit of Turn 5 and that saw the Spaniard crash out of the top 10 at a crucial stage in the title race.
Ogura, meanwhile, was starting to break clear of Lopez, Gonzalez and Binder in the race for P2. With three laps to go, Ogura was 1.3s ahead of the trio, as Lopez continued to cling onto P3 despite the constant threat of Gonzalez swarming all of his rear wheel. That briefly changed at Turn 16 on Lap 20 of 22, but Alonso bit straight back.
Gonzalez tried another move that only stuck for one corner, this time the Spaniards interchanged at Turn 12 and 13, as Aldeguer entered the podium fight chat on the last lap with a final corner move on Binder on the penultimate lap.
Four riders, one place on the podium. Canet and Ogura were gone as we focused on the group, with Aldeguer shoving his way past Gonzalez at Turn 10. That saw Binder come through too, but Lopez managed to hold into P3 despite the late charge. However, the 25 points belonged to Canet. What a ride the #44 produced in Mandalika, and kudos too to second place Ogura as the #79 picks up 20 valuable points in the Championship.
Aldeguer’s late race pace was superb but the #54 couldn’t quite grab a podium place, it’s P4 for the SpeedUp star, as Binder bagged a season-best result in P5. Joe Roberts (OnlyFans American Racing) picked up 10 points in P6, the American finishing ahead of Izan Guevara (CFMOTO Gaviota Aspar Team) who also earned a season-best points haul in P7 before the Spaniard was DSQ’d post-race for being under the minimum weight. Tony Arbolino (Elf Marc VDS Racing Team) had a quiet Sunday to end the race in P8 which turned into a P7, as a mistake at Turn 16 saw Gonzalez pick up P8 ahead of Deniz Öncü (Red Bull KTM Ajo) and Marcos Ramirez (OnlyFans American Racing) who pocketed top 10s.
Barry Baltus (RW-Idrofoglia Racing GP), Celestino Vietti (Red Bull KTM Ajo), Jeremy Alcoba (Yamaha VR46 Master Camp Team), Albert Arenas (QJMOTOR Gresini Moto2™) and Filip Salac (Elf Marc VDS Racing Team) rounded out the points scorers in Lombok.
A classy performance from Canet sees him rise to P3 in the Championship standings heading to Japan, but next weekend’s home hero is the one they’re chasing. Ogura holds a 42-point lead ahead of a trip to Motegi, will he continue his momentum on familiar soil?
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