Moto3 Race Highlights - 2024

Lights out, we're racing in Filip Island in Moto3. Here's a good start from the head of that second row behind the 64 bike of David Muñoz, who moves alongside both Fernandez and Valle. In fact, Muñoz moves up now into second place. What a clean getaway it was from pole position, though, by Otole, who sweeps through the Duhem corner. Half of Island's clear. Oh, Kelso getting moved wide onto the kerb, but he's on the inside and up into fifth place. A mistake into the southern loop for Ivan Otole, which lets Muñoz turn into the lead. Yeah, a few riders running really wide, going through the southern loop on this very first lap. There is Davide Alonso then, already made up three place on that sweep down to Duhem corner. 10th to 7th for the world champion. They're all bunching up then on the way into Miller corner. Three, four abreast. That's Knepper up the inside of Ivan Otole. Knepper up into second place. He needs to make early progress. He's got two long lap penalties to serve. Look at that by Muñoz on the inside of Otole. Through stone a corner. That was really brave. But now on the inside of Muñoz goes Kelso. Knepper sweeps in then for the first of his two long laps. And that has put the Australian, the home crowd favorite, the home hero, Joel Kelso, at the front of the Australian Grand Prix. This is game on. This is building already into another Phillip Island thriller. They're almost three, four abreast. Barioli has cracked out in that front end. They're almost three, four abreast as they hit the southern loop for the first time. Andrew Fernandez then, threading it through the iron needle, splitting the five motorsports KTMs and the 31 back at the front. Just as he did here last year in very different conditions. And it's now the third consecutive Grand Prix that Andrew Fernandez has muscled his way to the front. No, this isn't the first lap of this Australian Grand Prix. It's the fifth. And we've now got pretty much the entire point scorers in the picture. David Muñoz in second place. And the likes of Alonso, Kelso, Otole and Forosato are now going to pick up some slipstream as they now fan out. And Fernandez is going to get swapped all the way to the first corner. Boy, is that break for Muñoz. And Otole comes through for fifth to the fifth, the lead of the race. Talk about iron the needle stuff here in Moto3. They're almost stripping the pain words off each other's motorcycles, weren't they? Otole somehow is back at the front. He came over the line down in fifth place at the start of this lap six, but he now hits the front with the slipstream, paying big dividends for the Spanish rider. Here comes Muñoz. He's looked, he thought about that same move, didn't he? On the inside of Kelso, coming from a long, long way back there was Hologado, Otole. Well, he should have had the inside line going through 11, but just had his nose properly rubbed off, didn't he, as Carraro... Well, he ran into his teammate, and he think that one or both of the MTA riders were involved, and it ended up being the pair of them, as Carraro somehow didn't take Nefer out, but did take himself out. That would not have been a very popular move, would it? Might have been a long trip to Thailand for Niccolo Carraro. Over the line we go, then it is Muñoz that led over the line. But Davide Alonso, here we go, folks. This is a very familiar tale, isn't it, in 2024. So a long, long way to go here in Phillip Island. Unlikely that Alonso's got the pace to break up this field, but he has decided to go early and lead this Australian Grand Prix. Fernandez is looking on the inside, and Muñoz, he has made it work. Oh! Big, big tangle further down the field. That's Koliwier and Otole. And that is Koliwier and even Otole. Two riders who were right in the thick of that battle for second overall in the World Championship. There's a bit of a gift coming their way here for Dani Algardo. So two of the big hitters here in Australia hit each other and go out of the Australian Grand Prix. This is the helicopter shot then of the incident at Turn 4. Well, what happened was Valle attacked Piqueiras initially, didn't he? That washed his front tyre out, and then he just plows into Otole. Talk about wrong place, wrong time for the Spanish rider who started on pole position. Well, clearly the guilty party of all that was Valle. Fernandez into the lead then. So David Alonso's spell at the front has finally been brought to an end. Adrian Fernandez has had podium finishes now. He's had another front-row start at Moto3. I guess the last thing for him to do now in the lightweight class is to take a victory. Could have taken it, remember, here, one year ago, when he led for so long in wet conditions. This is some Philippe Aylen redemption coming the way at the 31. Kelso over the line, last time around was 12th. That was one place behind his compatriot, Jacob Rolston. Don't discount those two from a home podium challenge. They're still right in the hunt. Rolston over the line was 1.4 seconds further back. Best finish in Moto3. A couple of rounds ago, that second place in Mandelika. This is the third Grand Prix in a row that Adrian Fernandez has done. A lot of the legwork at the head of the pack. Is this going to be the day that he tastes Grand Prix glory for the very first time? Dropped down there now through Turn 10. That was Piqueiras, wasn't it, who was trying to find a way through on Rolston there, just a little bit further down. It's going to be a real test of Adrian Fernandez's mental strength here, particularly when he looks at his pit board and sees plus 0.80 behind him. He is the number 80, but he is essentially the number one now in Moto3, having clinched the World Championship last time out in Japan. And he's now right in touch now as they come onto the home straight. He pulls out alongside Adrian Fernandez. Is he going to get past before the line? And, sir, well, almost. They were dead level as they came across the line. And Alonso does get his nose in front as they arrive at the corner. Just keeping a close eye on a rider who's sort of dicked from the radar for this Grand Prix. Luca Linetta on the 58 bike, who is looking really strong. He's trying to find a way through now at the Southern Loop on Yamanaka. He's got the inside line, he's made that work. In fact, he picks up Yamanaka, or whether it was just Yamanaka maybe on a slightly dirtier offline, just trying to pick up the throttle, lost a bit of traction. But Yamanaka now is vomiting out of this podium battle. We're on the last lap here. And what a battle this is waging for the final place on the podium. Muñoz versus Holgado versus Fernandez. Holgado now attacks Muñoz through the Southern Loop. Alonso is going to cruise to the victory here in Australia. Fernandez on the inside of both Muñoz and Holgado through Turn 2. Brilliant battle this for second. Credit Nepo again, by the way. He's back at the front of that next group. Fifth place again after going off the road for a second time. Fernandez from Muñoz in this battle for second place. They're all playing the battle of best of the rest. It's really a story of this Moto3 season. Alonso once again, just far, far too good. But can Fernandez hang on for this 30 seconds in podium? Well, runaway victories in Moto3 are full of fire. They're as rare as rocking horse manure. But David Alonso has put on yet another super show here. This will be win number 15. 11th win of the season, which will break Juan Mir's record. Now Muñoz trying to wade through on the approach to Luque Heights into second place. Fernandez slams the door shut. Don't discount Nepo here, because maybe if he can get some slipstream, he's going to recover and maybe finish on the podium for the first time in his Grand Prix career. Checked out into the distance, then, is world champion David Alonso. This has been a world champion's ride. It has been pure class, pure quality from Alonso. Who's going to win the battle? David Alonso wins the Australian Grand Prix in 2024. He's now the most successful rider in terms of Moto3 victories in a single season. Holgado snatches second place. And Fernandez does block out the podium. He's on the top three for the third time in a row.