Tonucci and Fenati fought throughout the race but never became close to the front, closing in 17th and 20th position respectively.
Alessandro Tonucci (Team Italia FMI FTR Honda#19) started from 13th position and tried to close the gap early on, to no avail. He fought in the second group, showing a good pace and some bold moves, but a hard maneuver by Martin toward the end almost made him crash and left him stuck in the middle of the pack. As he was fighting against ten other riders, he was not able to score points.
Romano Fenati (Team Italia FMI FTR Honda#5) also faced a tough race. Starting in 17th position, he rode well and stayed close to his teammate early on but lost the seat after a contact and had to fight to stabilize himself in corners, losing positions toward the end.
The pair paid a hard price for a difficult qualifying session and a bike setup that was not completely solved. They will get another chance next week in Australia.
"It was a tough race. I did all I could, but in the final fight I pulled the shortest straw. I could have scored points and the feeling on the bike was not so bad. I'll try to recover in Australia, a track that I enjoy very much."
Romano Fenati (Team Italia FMI FTR Honda#5) 20th, + 45"824
"We were not lucky today. I lost the seat after a few laps as I touched with another rider, and had to adapt my riding style. Together with our setup problems, I couldn't do much more even if both me and the team pushed very hard. I don't know Phillip Island, but it seems a fascinating track and I hope to be able to adapt myself quickly."
Team Italia FMI Press Release
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