MotoMatters.com | Kropotkin Thinks

The second MotoE race closed Super Saturday at the Red Bull Ring and did so with another bit of drama, after a crash at the penultimate corner handed victory to Hector Garzo – the championship leader now with a firm hand of the trophy heading into the season finale. Much like in race 1, Garzo was the main challenger for poleman Oscar Gutierrez, but a big mistake from the rookie left him off the podium, where Garzo was joined by Kevin Zannoni and Mattia Casadei. 

Although Gutierrez had a good launch off the line, running wide at the first corner allowed Garzo to take control of proceedings straight away. Gutierrez made a couple of attempts to retaliate on the opening lap but couldn’t make one stick until next time around turn 1. The exchanges prevented any gaps from forming behind them, with Zannoni following them closely from 3^rd, ahead of Jordi Torres and Casadei, while Miquel Pons crashed out at the first corner. The rest of the top 10 included Alessandro Zaccone, Lukas Tulovic, Matteo Ferrari, Nicholas Spinelli and Andrea Mantovani, while Eric Granado lost ground early on and was just outside the top 10. 

Gutierrez continued to lead the way over the next couple of laps but could not shake off his challengers and Garzo attacked once more at the start of lap 4, to reclaim top spot. Although Gutierrez again tried to retaliate, he couldn’t keep his compatriot behind at the first corner. While Zannoni easily kept up with the duo and even started to harass Gutierrez for second, Torres was trying to bridge an 8-tenth gap while fending off Casadei. His mission had limited success, as he halved that gap over the next two laps, but it was not enough to be in victory contention.

Garzo started the final lap with a very slight advantage, not breaking away despite repeated exchanges between Gutierrez and Zannoni behind him, and the duo both pounced into turn 1, the poleman reclaiming the lead from his title rival. The rookie looked strong as he tried to stretch a bit of an advantage at the front, but he threw it all away with a crash at the penultimate corner, handing Garzo victory and a healthy advantage in the world championship. Zannoni settled for second, with Casadei inheriting the final podium position after demoting Torres on the previous lap. Zaccone completed the top 5, ahead of Ferrari, Tulovic, Spinelli, Mantovani and Granado in the top 10.

Garzo’s victory and Gutierrez’s misfortune means that Garzo heads into the final race weekend of the season with a solid 38-point advantage over Casadei, 44 over Zannoni and 49 over Gutierrez. 

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