Moto2 rider Marc Marquez (Team CatalunyaCaixa Repsol Suter) won his fifth race of the season in Indianapolis to stretch his championship lead to 39 points. The victory was important after his fifth place finish in Italy. Part of the credit goes to the new Suter chassis, which Marquez tested in Portimao, Portugal during the summer break.
Last year at Brno Marquez finished second by 0.161s amidst a run of victories. Had he won the race, he would have had a record string of seven Moto2 wins in a row.
The rider Marquez beat in Indianapolis was Pol Espargaro (Pons 40 HP Tuenti Kalex), his closest championship rival. Espargaro had gone into the summer break with a second-place finish in Mugello, which allowed him to close a bit on Marquez. But Marquez added five more points to his lead in Indy and now has a comfortable margin with seven races to go.
Espargaro had set a new Moto2 qualifying record on Saturday, but on Sunday the Spaniard could not replicate the feel from qualifying after choosing a different rear tyre.
Coming into Indy, Espargaro was tied with Andrea Iannone (Speed Master Speed Up) for second in the championship behind Marquez. Iannone had an off day and finished ninth, but the Italian feels more confident about Brno, where he won the race last year.
Moto2 Rider Quotes
Team CaixaCatalunya Repsol Suter rider Marc Marquez says:
"Brno comes immediately after my win in Indianapolis, so we are happy and in good shape. But this weekend we have to be focused from the start, just like we were last weekend. Brno is a very fast circuit and that means I will have a strong challenge from rivals like Iannone. Last year we got second at Brno and the aim once again is to be on the podium, to keep adding maximum points for the championship fight. Suter and the team worked very well at the Portimao test and in Indy, now we have to keep confirming that work."
Pons 40 HP Tuenti Kalex rider Pol Espargaro says:
"Yeah, I like the track. Last year for us was a difficult year and I was not fast there, but I was not fast in the other circuits. It's a long one with fast corners, so good there. So I don't know; I don't know how we will do. I'm sure we have to work because the level of Moto2 is so high now and I'm sure it will be difficult."
Speed Master Speed Up rider Andrea Iannone says:
"Last weekend was tough for us, so we want to come back strong at Brno. We had some problems at Indy after half-distance, so all I could do was try to score as many points as possible. I won at Brno last year, but every year is very different, so we will have to see what we can do this time. As always, the team and I will do everything we can to earn a good result."
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