MotoMatters.com | Kropotkin Thinks

Light cloud cover returned over the Sachsenring, but it wasn’t there to cause any trouble for the lightweight class and David Alonso certainly didn’t need any sun to shine, getting the job done for this 10^th GP victory. The Colombian took advantage of some mistakes from his rivals and once he hit the front of the field he resisted the pressure of a packed group of contenders to secure victory by a tenth of a second. Taiyo Furusato had a face like thunder after he parked in 2^nd position in parc ferme, as the only rider able to give the championship leader some trouble, while Ivan Ortola was happier with 3^rd, after a fourth row start and a long lap penalty. 

Poleman Collin Veijer was in the limelight early on, staying ahead at the first corner as a fast-starting David Muñoz attacked Luca Lunetta and Alonso in the first few turns. The rookie lost a bit of ground early on, as he came under fire from both Alonso and Furusato, while Jose Antonio Rueda, Adrian Fernandez, a quick starting Ortola, Scott Ogden and Tatsuki Suzuki completed the top 10 on the opening lap, with Dani Holgado staying 13^th. 

Disaster struck early at the front, with Veijer crashing out of the lead at turn 11 of the second lap – a painful lost opportunity both for victory and in the championship battle. That left Muñoz briefly in control of proceedings but an eager Alonso took advantage of an open door on lap 4 to take over the lead. The duo still had a feisty group behind them, with Furusato, new arrival Angel Piqueras and Fernandez making the most noise early on, although a moment for Muñoz at turn 7 pushed both him and Furusato out of top 5 and forced them to regroup. Also in the leading group were Rueda, Suzuki, Holgado, Joel Kelso, Jacob Roulstone and Ogden, while Lunetta and Ortola briefly left the top 10 line-up after serving their long lap penalties for riding slowly throughout the weekend.  

Alonso had a good run at the front and by lap 7 the Leopard Racing duo were his main challengers, while Muñoz and Furusato were trying to catch up after their incident and were squabbling with Rueda in the process. Piqueras soon found himself on his own recovery ride, as a mistake at turn 10 dropped him from 2^nd to 8^th that same lap. However, the steady pace set by Alonso allowed a sizeable group to stay in contention, a dozen riders still in the podium battle after 10 laps – the group now ended by Ortola, who was given an opportunity to catch up after his penalty. Lunetta led the pursuit from 13^th position, 2 seconds behind Ortola but was quickly catching up with the leaders. 

Back ahead, Alonso continued to set the pace, now with Rueda as main contender but with Furusato, Muñoz and the Leopard duo still in the limelight. Although yet to challenge for the podium positions, Holgado was up to 7^th and Ortola in 8^th by the halfway point of proceedings. Other than a brief exchange with Furusato at the end of lap 14, Alonso was untroubled at the front, but Holgado and Ortola were becoming more of a threat in the top 6. Even Lunetta had caught up with the leaders but only made it as high as 8^th before crashing out with four laps remaining.

Furusato seemed to be the keenest in challenging Alonso, having another go at turn 7 with 6 laps left, but the Colombian responded by the end of that same lap. Rueda occasionally hindered Furusato’s plans as well and the Japanese rider soon found himself 4^th as Ortola became a factor with 4 laps remaining. Tables turned once more the start of the penultimate lap, when Rueda locked up into the first corner and had to abandon ship, leaving Furusato and Ortola as the sole challengers to Alonso. A slight gap started expanding behind the trio for the final few of laps, Piqueras dropping a full second behind and coming under fire from his teammate on the final lap.

Back at the front, Alonso proved untouchable until the chequered flag, as wheelspin at turn 10 persuaded Furusato to settle for second, with Ortola completing a successful recovery ride in the final podium position. A late attack from Fernandez deposed Piqueras of 4^th, while Ryusei Yamanaka recovered from three long lap penalties (two for a jump start and one inherited from qualifying) to rob Holgado of 6^th on the final lap. Muñoz faded to 8^th, with Suzuki and Ogden completing the top 10. 

Alonso’s victory extends his advantage to 58 points over Ortola in the world championship standings, with Holgado another point back and Veijer losing ground by 64 points. 

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