Tony Arbolino (Elf Marc VDS Racing Team) scored its third victory of the season by winning the Malaysian Moto2 Grand Prix after a fierce battle with Ai Ogura (IDEMITSU Honda Team Asia) at the Sepang International Circuit. The spectacular outcome took place on the last lap when the Japanese driver, then leading by 3,5 points in the championship, tried to overtake the Italian and made a mistake.
So, it is Augusto Fernandez (Red Bull KTM Ajo), ranked fourth at Sepang, who takes control of the championship, with a lead of 9,5 points over the unfortunate Japanese.
Tony Arbolino : " An incredibly great race! I felt amazing today. I tried to push from the first lap and saw that it was not possible to continue doing my fastest pace throughout the race. But I'm really happy. It's a shame for Ogura who fell. He didn't need to overtake me, especially since I was 100% convinced that I was going to win the race! I was able to do some crazy things on the track. In short, I feel very good and there is not much to add. I want to thank the team, as always. They believed in me. They work very hard and hard work pays off. I'm always trying to improve in all areas behind the scenes. I think this result shows that we are doing some good things! This is a really special day for me. »
Ai Ogura : " I fought to win the race. I tried, but this time I fell. For me, finishing second was not enough to arrive with a comfortable advantage over Valencia. I needed to win here. In the end, I crashed, but that's racing, and sometimes that happens. Now I have to concentrate on winning in Valencia. The championship is not over. What happened today has already happened. I have to focus on the future and do my best. »
Augusto Fernandez : “It was a race in which I had to manage things very well. I had to fight hard for fifth place, and I was able to stay calm and wait for the best moment. I felt strong and in the end we were fourth. This is a very good result and gives us some very important points. We also regained the lead and we will arrive in Valencia with a chance to fight for the title until the end. »
