2024 Emilia Romagna Moto3 Grand Prix - Race Results

Round fourteen of the Moto3 championship, the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, came down to the very last lap, with four riders in contention and David Alonso coming out on top for the eighth time this season, for the return trip to Misano.

The CFMoto Gaviota Aspar rider had started from second on the grid, and completed his share of laps in the lead along with the rest of the frontrunners.

The last lap saw Daniel Holgado lead over the line after his move to the front, taking it from the Colombian on the penultimate lap, with Angel Piqueras, Alonso and Veijer ready to pounce.

Into La Quercia the riders were in a line, with the #80 coming out ahead, pulling out his best defensive moves out of Tremonto.

That tight line served him well, leaving Alonso able to hold on over the line by just 0.175s.

After celebrating on a unicycle, Alonso collected his trophy for his eighth win and ninth podium visit in a dominant season.

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Behind, there was a further battle for position going on - with Red Bull GasGas Tech3 rider Holgado making a move to retake second at Curvone, running wide.

Rookie winner on the last visit, Piqueras was then able to try to catch Alonso, wobbling to the line he was too far back to benefit from the slipstream behind Alonso’s tactical masterclass, taking a hard earned second for Leopard.

Holgado took the chequered flag in a clear third, but was judged by race direction to have exceeded track limits on the final lap by the tiniest of margins, seeing him demoted a position to fourth.

Having been dropped on the last lap, Collin Veijer was just a passenger with a great view of the battle ahead on his Liqui Moly Husqvarna Intact GP bike, before being elevated to third and a rostrum appearance, having looked much more comfortable with his settings and package the second time around in Misano.

Ivan Ortola got a poor start and was soon at the wrong end of the top ten. The MT Helmets - MSI rider knuckled down to finish at the front of the chasing group for fifth, with Luca Lunetta also making moves in the right direction from twelfth on the grid for the SIC58 Squadra Corse team, taking sixth at their home circuit.

Joel Kelso faded back slightly to seventh for BOE Motorsports, but was clear of early frontrunner Adrian Fernandez in eighth for Leopard.

Matteo Bertelle improved to place ninth for Rivacold Snipers, just ahead of Aragon winner Jose Antonio Rueda, who avoided being cleared out on his second visit to complete the top ten for Red Bull KTM Ajo.

In the same group, Tatsuki Suzuki took the finish right behind in eleventh for Liqui Moly Intact GP on the Husqvarna, with a gap back to Filippo Farioli, who claimed twelfth for SIC58 Squadra Corse.

Taiyo Furusato started from pole and was initially a feature in the lead group. Trying to pass Fernandez on lap nine saw him try a move there was no room for, dropping the Honda Team Asia  rider to 13th. His wild style also picked up an early track limits warning, which became a penalty by lap fifteen, seeing all his work to climb back undone by a long lap trip - pushing him back to 13th again, where he finished.

The remaining points on offer went to Stefano Nepa in 14th for LevelUP - MTA and Ryusei Yamanaka in 15th for the MT Helmets - MSI team.

Crashes, Injuries and Replacements

David Munoz qualified eighth, but had a double long lap penalty to serve, following his actions at the start of the race last time out in Misano.

The BOE rider crashed in the same manner at turn two, hitting the back of Nepa, but this time was the only faller. The Spaniard rejoined to complete his penalty so it did not carry over and went on to crash out again while racing around with Riccardo Rossi at the halfway point.

Rossi and Tachakorn Buasri both also fell in the first lap, and rejoined the Italian finished a very distant 23rd, while Buasri later retired.

Vincente Perez was riding through the pain barrier after falls at recent rounds, with a further spill on Friday leaving him sore, leading to him being withdrawn by the MLav Racing team before the race. It was due to be his final appearance for the outfit, as Eddie O’Shea takes over in Indonesia.

Championship Standings

The title beckons for Alonso, who extends his championship advantage to 82 points.

Holgado remains second, but is joined on 189 points by Veijer.

Ortola sits fourth overall with a total of 184, with Piqueras the top rookie in fifth on 118.