2024 Australian Moto3 Grand Prix - Race Results

Round seventeen of the Moto3 championship, the Australian Grand Prix, began as a close, cagey affair but ended with domination from David Alonso. With the hammer down the Colombian finished the clear winner at a finally sunny Phillip Island.

The CFMoto Gaviota GasGas rider had only qualified tenth, but the close nature of the race allowed the Sunday men to surge forward at the fast and flowing track.

Alonso was soon swapping places and hitting the front. When in the lead again with four laps remaining the #80 decided it was time to pull the pin and over a handful of corners had a half a second gap.

That was at a second after a lap and only extended with Alonso leading over the line by a sizeable 2.936s.

Alonso’s eleventh win matches the record total of Valentino Rossi in the lightweight class, he celebrated with a bandage around his head as that had been Rossi’s podium celebration when he hit the same milestone, standing next to Jorge Martinez ‘Aspar’ in 1997 , who is now Alonso’s team manager.

Behind, it had become a four way battle for the remaining two podium places, with Daniel Holgado, Adrian Fernandez, Stefano Nepa and David Munoz fighting it out for the remaining rostrum spots.

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Holgado had struggled in qualifying again, sitting in 14th to start the race. A poor start saw him down to 18th on lap one, but the close nature allowed him to rally as well.

The big crash in the main pack - Collin Veijer was left nowhere to go by Angel Piqueras, collecting polesitter Ivan Ortola on the way down, saw the Red Bull GasGas Tech3 rider able to claim second in the chaos, winning the fight for the position to the line after coming out on top in the quartets last corner battle.

Adrian Fernandez lead for a large portion of the race and was not shy of a move up the inside to stay in the mix. The Leopard rider only just missed out on second, keeping his fine run of form going as he collected his third podium in a row on the Leopard Honda.

That meant Stefano Nepa just missed out.

Nepa stages comeback from penalty and double contact for fourth.

Stefano Nepa was given a double long lap penalty for riding slowly in the build up to race day, for a fourth offence. Starting sixth, the LevelUP - MTA rider was quick to hit the front and straight up the penalty loop returning to track in 16th. The second loop trip was taken quickly so the Italian could concentrate on moving forward, now from 19th place.

Nepa set a new race lap record as he made his moves, but was on the receiving end of contact from his own teammate, Nicola Carraro, as he crashed out, their lines crossing on track, leaving the tail of the KTM damaged. There was further contact with Riccardo Rossi but the swapping out front left Nepa able to bridge the gap and come tantalisingly close to a podium finish, instead taking a hard earned fourth.

David Munoz also had a spell out front on his way to fifth for BOE Motorsports, the last of the group to take the chequered flag.

Ryusei Yamanaka was not far behind in sixth on the only remaining MT Helmets - MTA bike, also making up places from eleventh on the grid. The Japanese rider held off a late push from fellow countryman Taiyo Furusato, who was seventh for Honda Team Asia.

Luca Lunetta was lucky to still be aboard after a very sideways moment on the SIC58 Squadra Corse bike, the top rookie in the race in eighth, just ahead of Angel Piqueras, who started the weekend as the form rider, after an early moment for the Leopard rider, recovering to tenth, just behind Jose Antonio Rueda, who split the newcomers in ninth for Red Bull KTM Ajo.

Joel Kelso also had a spell in the lead of his home race, but fell back into the pack, taking a close eleventh on the second BOE Motorsports bike. Fellow Australian Jacob Roulstone was 13th, with Rossi splitting the pair in twelfth.

The remaining points went to Matteo Bertelle in 14th for Rivacold Snipers and Tatsuki Suzuki in 15 for Liqui Moly Husqvarna Intact GP.

Crashes, Injuries and Replacements

Veijer remounted to finish 18th and was quick to the garage to apologise and explain his own contact to Ortola at the end of the race.

Eddie O’Shea was one place further back on his return from injury. Fellow MLav Racing rider Scott Ogden was another faller, finishing a lap down in 22nd.

David Almansa and Filippo Farioli also failed to finish.

Championship Standings

Alonso had the title secured in Japan , so remains on top - now with a new lightweight class points total of 346, which can still be added to with several rounds remaining after passing Joan Mir’s old milestone of 341.

Holgado sits second overall, on 232, now fairly clear of third placed Veijer (209) and fourth placed Ortola (191) after booth suffered DNF’s.