Andrea Migno wins amidst the magic and mayhem of Mugello
MotoGP 2017 – Round Six – Mugello – Italian GP – Moto3
Andrea Migno (Sky Racing Team VR46) has taken his first ever Grand Prix win on home turf in the Gran Premio d’Italia Oakley, staying just ahead of compatriot Fabio Di Giannantonio (Del Conca Gresini Moto3) as the two broke free from the pack on the final lap.
Juanfran Guevara (RBA BOE Racing Team) took his first ever podium in P3, breaking free of the Moto3 mayhem out of the final corner.
Andrea Migno (ITA – KTM) 39’43.963
Fabio Di Giannantonio (ITA – Honda) + 0.037
Juanfran Guevara (SPA – KTM) + 0.166
It was Di Giannantonio who got the best start, taking the lead into Turn 1 as teammate Jorge Martin also got a spectacular first few corners from P13 on the grid to move up into the top six. Romano Fenati (Marinelli Rivacold Snipers) was another good starter, as the big loser off the line proved Nicolo Bulega (Sky Racing Team VR46) and the Italian dropped back outside the top ten.
The initial front group that emerged saw Fenati leading Di Giannantonio, Jorge Martin, Tatsuki Suzuki (SIC58 Squadra Corse), John McPhee (British Talent Team) and Marcos Ramirez (Platinum Bay Real Estate), as Ramirez’ teammate Darryn Binder looked to tag onto the back. Bulega regrouped to then lead the second freight train, but the slipstream down the more than kilometer long straight soon came into play as the top eleven closed up, followed by almost the entirety of the field.
With over twenty riders in the “front group” – a spectacular sight down the straight – positions switched and changed at the sharp end as advantages were gained and lost in the slipstream. Some stunning overtakes around the rest of the lap made for a signature Moto3 spectacle, with riders going eight or nine abreast into Turn 1 and the fight through the field one of the best displays of Grand Prix racing in the lightweight class seen this year, this decade – or possibly even this century.
The timesheets seemed to flip every time over the line, but as the last lap dawned it was Migno and Di Giannantonio who managed to pull a tiny gap from the tousle behind – with the VR46 academy rider able to just stay ahead over the line to take his first ever Grand Prix win, by only 0.037.
‘Diggia’ – who had also been hunting his first win – took another podium as he gains traction in 2017, and showed incredible sportsmanship as he congratulated his compatriot on the win just past the line.
Andrea Migno (ITA – KTM) – Winner
“The most beautiful day of my life. There are no other words to describe this moment. Winning the first race in my career at Mugello in front of this incredible crowd is a dream that goes beyond all my expectations. It was a tough weekend: I was not fast in the sessions, then in the warm up something has changed. The last lap was too long: I was in front of Di Giannantonio at the first corner, and it is difficult here at Mugello cross the finish line first from that position. I believed it, I wanted it. What to say? I want to thank my family, they always supported me, Team Sky for their incredible job and the VR46 Riders Academy that follows us step by step. A special dedication also to Marco Simoncelli and Nicky Hayden.”
Aki Ajo (KTM Team Manager Moto3)
“At Mugello the Moto3 race is always very special. We have several races in the championship where large groups are formed, so many riders place outside the points when in reality they are only 1.5 seconds away from the winner. But in any case, we cannot be happy with our results this weekend. As I have repeated several times during this season, we have to keep working hard and we need to do a thorough analysis to find out how we can improve our level in the coming races.”
Juanfran Guevara’s first podium came ahead of an equal best-ever result for Darryn Binder in fourth, with Aron Canet (Estrella Galicia 0,0) completing the top five. BTT rider John McPhee took sixth in a solid ride to bag more points, and crucially finished just ahead of Championship leader Joan Mir (Leopard Racing).
Ayumu Sasaki (SIC Racing Team) was the rookie of the day, as the former Asia Talent Cup winner took an incredible P8 after fighting at the front for the first time on the world stage – and coming from P24 on the grid. Marcos Ramirez took P9, ahead of Italian duo Nicolo Bulega and Enea Bastianini (Estrella Galicia 0,0).
Bo Bendsneyder took P12, ahead of a more difficult finish for initial leader Romano Fenati. Philipp Oettl (Südmetall Schedl GP Racing) was fourteenth, in front of another key title challenger to lose out in the latter stages of the race: Jorge Martin.
Honda still hold down the top four positions in the championship standings with Joan Mir enjoying a significant 34-point buffer over Aron Canet at Moto3 heads to Cataluna next weekend.
MotoGP 2017 – Round Six – Mugello – Italian GP – Moto3 Race Results
- Andrea Migno (ITA – KTM) 39’43.963
- Fabio Di Giannantonio (ITA – Honda) + 0.037
- Juanfran Guevara (SPA – KTM) + 0.166
Andrea Migno (ITA – KTM) 39’43.963
Fabio Di Giannantonio (ITA – Honda) + 0.037
Juanfran Guevara (SPA – KTM) + 0.166
MotoGP 2017 – Round Six – Mugello – Italian GP – Moto3 Championship Points Standings
- Joan MIR Honda SPA 108
- Aron CANET Honda SPA 74
- Fabio DI GIANNANTONIO Honda ITA 71
- Romano FENATI Honda ITA 68
- Andrea MIGNO KTM ITA 68
- John MCPHEE Honda GBR 63
- Jorge MARTIN Honda SPA 60
- Juanfran GUEVARA KTM SPA 50
- Marcos RAMIREZ KTM SPA 43
- Enea BASTIANINI Honda ITA 36
- Nicolo BULEGA KTM ITA 28
- Darryn BINDER KTM RSA 26
- Philipp OETTL KTM GER 22
- Jules DANILO Honda FRA 16
- Bo BENDSNEYDER KTM NED 16
