Spanish Moto3: Ortola takes back to back wins after last lap thriller in Jerez

Ivan Ortola left it to the last lap to make his move and take a second win in a row in the Moto3 Spanish Grand Prix in Jerez

Lisa Lewis

30 Apr 2023

Ivan Ortola, Moto3 race, Spanish MotoGP, 30 April

Ivan Ortola proved his Austin win was not a one off and crossed the line first In the Moto3 Spanish Grand Prix, round four of the championship.

The Angeluss MTA Team rider had been a frontrunner throughout, going with every break in the lead group and runninghis own lines.

The Spaniard had needed to bounce back from practice to even be in contention 22nd after P3 saw him go through Q1 to hit the front row in second.

Breaking with Holgado, then Masia by the last lap Ortola was once again in the lead four that pulled away, the lively final saw him hunt for a way around Masia.

Calmly he pulled into the lead, using the pace of the KTM though turns eleven and twelve to push ahead at the right time, running on the kerb and taking risks to stay ahead into the final corner to take back to back wins with his female lead team.

History for David Alonso.

David Alonso did not fix his qualifying - so had it all to do from sixth on the grid.

The rookie, in just his sixth race, was in the top ten after just a handful of laps and pushed to stay in the lead group to give himself a shot at the win on the final lap.

The Gaviota Gas Gas Aspar rider was everywhere behind Masia, and gave a typical tight finish to the Jerez race, just 0.034s behind Ortola as he attempted to drag his bike past at the line.

His first ever podium is one that makes history - the #80 is the first ever Colombian rider to feature on a grand prix podium.

Jaume Masia was a constant feature at the front after chasing down one time lead pair Holgado and Ortola and lead the final lap over the finish to turn eight, he was then bullied and swamped by the pack but rallied to finish third and take consecutive podiums on the Leopard.

Ayumu Sasaki missed out in the front four break. After working hard, initially with Deniz Oncu to catch the front pack, he could not find a way around on his Liqui Moly Intact GP Husqvarna, finishing fourth.

Jose Antonio Rueda struggled with track limits along with teammate Oncu but managed to ride tighter to bring the Red Bull KTM Ajo home in sixth, with Xavier Artigas close behind in seventh for CFMoto Racing PruestelGP

Oncu had started from pole and lead for the first few laps, but had a track limits penalty warning hanging over him soon after as he dropped back to keep in the limits. The Turkish rider staged a comeback with Sasaki and crossed the line eighth, but as soon as he hit the lead group the penalty was applied. With less than three laps the #53 opted to finish the race, crossing the line eighth.

With three seconds added he swapped places with Tatsuki Suzuki on the second Leopard.

Diogo Moreira never really recovered from his poor qualifying, which saw him line up thirteenth, making up enough places for tenth by the chequered flag.

Romano Fenati’s tyre gamble, opting for a hard front, didn’t pay off as the temperature didn’t increase. The veteran of the class dropped back from third on the grid to finish eleventh for the Snipers Team.

Scott Ogden was in close pursuit with both he and Fenati in the running for a top ten finish, the VisionTrack rider taking eleventh. His Teammate whatley was 24th.

The remaining points on offer went to Matteo Bertelle on the second Rivacold Snipers entry in 13th, Filippo Farioli (Red Bull KTM Tech3) in 14th and Stefano Nepa, riding with a broken bone bravely finishing 15th for the Angeluss MTA Team.

Crashes, injuries and replacements

Syarifuddin Azman was demoted to the back of the grid and handed a long lap penalty for ‘riding slow and interfering with others on the racing line’. He finished 21st.

David Munoz was unable to serve his double long lap penalty for his crash late in COTA with Stefano Nepa. The #44 was taken to hospital for further checks following his huge quiafying crash and declared unfit to complete the weekend with a heel fracture.

Andrea Migno is in for Lorenzo Fellon again at CIP Green Power and took the chequered flag in 17th.

David Almansa is no longer a replacement with Joel Kelso back in action, but is back as a wildcard for Finetwork Intact GP. He placed 21st while Kelso was 18th on his return

David Salvador was the first to exit - a highside from his bike spinning him in the air at Dani Pedrosa corner on lap six. He was sent to the medical centre for a check-up.

Ryusei Yamanaka was distraught after his bike gave up when he had climbed to second, retiring to the pits shortly after. The Japanese rider returned to the track but was a lap down.

Riccardo Rossi exited on lap nine, with five laps to go Kaito Toba fell from eleventh. Collin Veijer remounted from his crash but finished out of the points.

Where does that leave the championship?

Holgado and Moreira left COTA tied on points, with Holgado ahead on countback. Neither featured on the podium, but retained their positions in the title hunt. The Tech3 rider remains on top with a total of 59 after finishing sixth, while Moreira added six to his tally in tenth to be four points adrift.

Ortola’s win sees him move up to third on 50 points, while his podium moves Masia to fourth, not far behind with a total of 47 points in his account.