A superb 13 KTM lead battle blessed Mugello’s beautiful curves and it was points leader Màximo Quiles who flashed across the line just 0.004 seconds ahead of Brian Uriarte. Álvaro Carpe grabbed 3rd, 0.044 off the win.
Less wind and more sun raised the track temperature slightly affecting settings and the teenage aces had to adjust.
Quiles wins photo finish
“The bike didn’t feel the same today as it did in Qualifying,” explained the 16-year-old Spaniard. “I didn’t feel comfortable from the start and when I pushed I felt I was nearly crashing and saving it. I said, ‘Right, it’s going to be a hard race.’
“I couldn’t break the group, I pushed as hard as I could but couldn’t get away. Then going onto the last lap it was very close, I was in front, I was overtaken, when we braked, Perrone hit me, I hit Veda and we almost went down.” 
“Then I pushed on, I overtook Brian, it was like a replay of last year’s I got in front, I closed the door in the last corner and managed to hold the lead to the line.”
“I want to thank everyone, I enjoyed that race so much.”
Uriarte hates 2nd
“Second is the first loser, I’d rather be third. I could win today… but I didn’t,” stated the Spanish 15-year-old.
“But still a good race, a hard race, I was a bit tired at the end, couldn’t grip the bar so well, I had a big blister.”
“I was pretty confident through the race, I got a bit of chatter in the last few laps but nothing too bad, I have to talk to Aitor (Lafoz, suspension engineer) and see if we should change anything for tomorrow, the track was hotter than Qualifying but it will be cool again tomorrow morning.”
“I think that I learnt from yesterday, I think I put it all together today but we didn’t show it.”
“I gave it everything, I tried to pass on the last straight but Maximo made something strange, I couldn’t follow the slipstream and I couldn’t quite get past. It was good points, a good result but tomorrow must be better.”
“I was a bit lost yesterday, I saw today that the guys in front had some different lines and I learnt from that and will use it in Race 2.”
Carpe knows he needs more than 3rd
“It was an incredible race, so much fun, a big group with everyone pushing so hard all the way. I stayed towards the front of the group almost all race and I’m happy with the way I have been riding here, fastest in all sessions yesterday and 3rd today.”
“I was looking to win this but a rider hit me in the first corner of the last lap and I had to battle back to the front in the next corners.”
“P3 is a good result for the championship but tomorrow I have to do better.”
“Today was hotter than yesterday, that made the bike move around more but my feeling with the KTM was good, the Pirelli tyres also felt good so I don’t think I will change anything for tomorrow.”
Ruche Moodley in the hunt for the win – P4
“I pushed really hard, I had to as I started P9,” explained the 17-year-old South African. “Yesterday I felt quite confident overtaking so I knew that I could do it. I did well but I am a little bit disappointed to miss out on the podium by so little. I have to think that if I did some things differently, small changes, I could have made it.”
“I will try to make some changes myself and do better tomorrow.”
Veda Pratama bumped off the podium – P5
“I am happy with the race today but I didn’t have such great luck,” commented the 15-year-old Indonesian. “In the first corner on the last lap, someone hit me and I got pushed out but I was lucky because I didn’t crash. I pushed hard in that last lap and finished 5th so I am happy with that.”
“The bike wasn’t quite perfect but it wasn’t a big problem for me and I am learning all the time, learning from the top riders.”
Valentin Perrone running up front – P6
“I’m not really happy with the result,” revealed the 16-year-old Argentine. “I felt not so bad with the bike but the temperature of the track was higher and that gave me some chatter on some corners.”
“It’s good points for the championship but I will talk to Dani (Ribalta, Rider Coach) and see if he has any suggestions for me to improve and do better tomorrow.”
Hakim Danish fought through – P7
“This race was really difficult for me because at the start I lost many positions,” revealed the 16-year-old Malaysian. “I tried to come back but it’s not easy, I tried to fight with the other riders and as I felt more confident in the corners I started to overtake one by one.”
“I arrived in the front group and I tried to stay there, I wanted to fight for the podium. In the last lap, I made a small mistake in the first sector and I finished P7. I will try to push more for a better result tomorrow.”
Carter Thompson takes big step – P9
“I felt really good,” stated the 16-year-old Australian. “In the first few laps, I didn’t get as far up as I wanted to off the start. But I kept chipping away every lap, by the end I got up with the front group.”
“It’s unfortunate that in the last lap, I got hit and had to go in the gravel trap but overall it was a positive race, a big improvement over last year and the last couple of races so I am really happy with the progress.”
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