A classic big, brave move from Brian Uriarte at the last corner gave the 16-year-old Spaniard his third win of the season.
Points leader Hakim Danish did get back in front on the run to the Aragón finish line, but the 17-year-old Malaysian’s choice of gearing cost him in the final metres and Uriarte flashed across the line 0.007 seconds ahead.
The race-long 5 KTM battle for the win had been superb and 0.169 seconds covered them all at the finish, with David González completing the podium ahead of early leader Veda Pratama and Giulio Pugliese.
The battle for 6th was equally exciting, and incredibly, Zen Mitani pulled 4 riders with him and closed the gap to the lead 5 from over 4 seconds to 0.921 at the finish.
Brian Uriarte 1st
“I planned that I should pass David (González) early on the back straight on the last lap because I know him, we have raced together since we were kids and he’s a hard competitor. He’s new to Rookies Cup and I thought that with the adrenaline, it might make a mess of things.”
“Into the last corner, Hakim was there and I needed to get out ahead of him and I managed it, it was close, a bit of a risk, but it worked. So now I have 3 Saturday wins, I need to also do it on Sunday,” he grinned.
Hakim Danish 2nd
“The race today was fantastic. I enjoyed it a lot, the overtaking and fast pace. In the last lap, I tried to win and in the last corner, Brian passed me. I got a good drive though and passed him again, but just didn’t hold it to the line.”
“It’s okay. I will try to fight again tomorrow, let’s continue like this.”
David González 3rd
“The race was difficult because it was very hot. There was a lot of fighting and I am very happy to get on the podium. The KTM was great, I will not change anything, just give a bit more gas,” exclaimed the 17-year-old Spaniard.
Veda Pratama 4th
“I wanted to be on the podium in this race, but well, I will learn a lesson from this and use it tomorrow for Race 2. I was in front early on, but then made a mistake at the end of the back straight and ran wide, they passed me. We will think about bike settings and gearing, but I think I just have to learn from today.”
Giulio Pugliese 5th
“It was a lot of fun, I made a good start,” enthused the 16-year-old Italian who took off from 4th on the grid into the lead group. I enjoyed running at the front and battling all the way. On the last lap, I knew that it would be decided at the last corner, but when I got on the throttle, the bike was just sliding and I wasn’t going forward.”
Zen Mitani 6th
“I felt so good on the bike, the best I have all year,” explained the 18-year-old Japanese. “But I need a little bit more for a good result. I just went for it, I could see I was catching the guys in front. I just pushed as hard as I could, we just needed another lap or two. Tomorrow.”
Broadcast
This weekend’s Rookies Cup races can be seen live on www.redbull.tv and on TV stations around the world.
Race 2 is on Sunday at 08:45, the show starts 10 minutes before the race.
For more info checkout our dedicated Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup News page Rookies Cup News
Or visit the official Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup website rookiescup.redbull.com/
