MOTO2™ SEASON OPENER

Aron Canet set a blistering pace in qualifying and added a new lap record to his tally with a 1m 56.788. The 15 time Moto2 runner up messed up his start however, slipping back to 8th and making it even harder for him to secure that elusive first Moto2 win. Meanwhile Alonso Lopez took the lead ahead of Manuel Gonzalez and Albert Arenas. Canet wasted no time powering back through the field though and had retaken the lead by lap three.

The championship favourite coming into the weekend was Fermin Aldeguer, however the SpeedUp rider started from 10th after a grid penalty and slipped back to 13th on the first lap. Last year’s vice champion, Tony Arbolino, looked good early on but soon started dropping down the order out of contention with both riders ultimately finishing outside the points.

Back at the front, Lopez and Gonzalez were battling it out for 2nd behind Canet but the race leader started going backwards and it was Barry Baltus who was the man on the move. The Belgian rider, who started his 50th GP today in 6th, started picking off riders to take the fight to Lopez, pressuring the Spaniard all the way.

Lopez defended brilliantly to take the lead ahead of Baltus who scored his first Moto2 podium. Sergio Garcia was another rider who shone under the lights of Lusail as he went from 18th on the grid to take the final podium spot, also his first Moto2 podium.

Ai Ogura finished 4th ahead of Gonzalez and Marcos Ramirez. Ramirez was the fastest rider on track at the end of the race, running 1.3 seconds a lap faster than the leaders, going from 17th at one point and battling through to finish 6th.

Triumph Triple Trophy

Triumph and MotoGP announced a new format for the Triumph Triple Trophy for 2024 in Qatar and unveiled this year’s unique Street Triple 765 RS prize bike that the winner will take home at the end of the season.

This year, a judging panel will pick a short list of three standout riders which will be published on MotoGP’s Instagram stories. Fans will then be able to vote for their favourite.

The points awarded are in reference to Triumph’s 765cc engine

• 7 points for the rider with most fan votes
• 6 points for the rider with second most fan votes
• 5 points for the rider with third most fan votes

This week’s shortlist is:

• Barry Baltus for ending a luckless history in Qatar, never having scored points here before tonight, to take his first Moto2 podium.
• Sergio Garcia for an incredible surge through the field to go from 18th on the grid to finish 3rd, also his first podium in Moto2.
• Alonso Lopez for ending his winless streak with a stunning ride to take to the top step for the first time since Phillip Island, 2022.

Moto2 returns to Europe in two weeks for round two in Portugal, 22 -24 March.