Hakim Danish put in an incredible last lap and perfect final corner to take Sunday’s Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup Race 2 victory in Aragón ahead of Brian Uriarte and David González.
12 KTMs battled for the win in the final laps but Danish, the 17-year-old Malaysian, found the extra edge he needed to end his run of 5 second places with a victory.
Saturday’s winner, Uriarte, the 16-year-old Spaniard, flashed across the finish line on his tail, alongside 17-year-old fellow countryman González. Uriarte was only 0.007 seconds ahead of González and 0.188 behind Danish. Less than 1 second covered the top 8 at the flag.
Hakim Danish 1st
“Finally it is P1. It was a fantastic and a difficult race because we had a very, very fast drop in tyre performance. I tried to manage the tyres very well. Then in the last lap, I tried to open the gas very early in the last corner, so I arrived, finishing in P1. I am super happy and I would like to say thank you to everybody who supports me.”
“I had to work for the win because on the second to last lap, I made a mistake with the gears at the last corner and lost the lead and a lot of places. I fought to come back, just passing riders wherever I could, I don’t know how I did it, but I did.”
Brian Uriarte 2nd
“It was very difficult with the cold conditions because the tyres suffered with the cold and it was hard to manage. I’m a heavy rider and it’s hard to keep the tyres working. Hakim was riding very well and I could see he looked after the tyres well.”
“In the last corner, I touched David (González). I didn’t expect him to move the way he did and he touched my handlebar. Perhaps if he was not there, I could have won, but Hakim was very well today. I’m happy with the battle, but we didn’t gain any points on Hakim this weekend. I’m only 30 points away, so we can fight.”
David González 3rd
“I am very happy to be on the podium again. The race was difficult because I pushed hard every lap and at the end I was fighting for the victory, but I couldn’t make it. It’s good for the championship and I am very happy. I plan to be as fast in Italy as I was here if I can.”
Veda Pratama 4th
“Today is the same position as yesterday,” stated the 16-year-old Indonesian. “I always do all that I can do. I pushed 100% all weekend, all in Race One, also in Race Two. Today I felt the tyre drop really quickly and I tried to manage it, but I couldn’t do better.”
Leo Rammerstorfer 5th
“This was good because after the crash yesterday, I was struggling a bit in the first laps,” explained the Austrian 20-year-old. “Then I got the pace back and also the feeling for the bike so I could push to catch the lead group.”
“On the last lap, I made a mistake on the exit of the chicane and didn’t quite have the slipstream for the last straight. In all, I’m happy and let’s see if I can get a podium at the next race.”
Yaroslav Karpushin 6th
“I had a decent start. I think I passed two people at the start, then just waited for the group to split up a bit. Then I got to the front, I led a couple of times and to be honest, leading in the Rookies felt very different. It was a very good feeling and I hope that I will experience it more.”
“At the end of the race, we were all struggling with the tyres, you could just see how they were wobbling in every corner. I’m happy with the fact that I’m in the first group, and I hope that I will get a better ending next time.”
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