29/10/2023

Veijer takes furious first podium, Sasaki with no-fault crash

In a spectacular Thailand Grand Prix, sensational rookie Collin Veijer claimed his long-awaited and hard-fought GP podium thanks to P3, while LIQUI MOLY Husqvarna Intact GP Moto3 team's world championship favorite Ayumu Sasaki was forced out of the race on the second lap through no fault of his own. Luckily the Japanese rider was unhurt.

It was a Moto3 thriller, which only reached its climax on the finish line after 19 laps. In the middle of the fight: Collin Veijer. The Dutchman rode a sensational race in which he made countless leading kilometers and put himself in the best possible attacking position for the final sprint. But then, on the last lap, the 18-year-old almost catapulted himself out of the race with a highsider, but the rookie thwarted the catastrophe, reacted quickly and eventually turned into the last corner on the 4.5 km Chang International Circuit in fourth place. The youngster did not want to finish fourth a fourth time in a row and so, with a lot of fighting spirit, he pushed past world championship leader Jaume Masia in the last meters to finally take third position. The first Grand Prix podium for Collin Veijer - a dream come true from which it will only go forward from now on.

However, unlucky Ayumu Sasaki was unable to intervene in this thrilling race. Still stunned, but fortunately uninjured, the Japanese rider sat in his pit and could do nothing more than hope that his closest World Championship rival Masia would not make up too many points. But what had happened? On lap two, a technical defect on David Muñoz's bike caused a rapid loss of speed, causing Sasaki to crash into the Spaniard without braking. Daniel Holgado was also involved but managed to stay seated. It is an extremely bitter pill to swallow for the 23-year-old, who has his sights so firmly set on the World Championship title. With three races remaining, Sasaki is now separated by 17 points from Jaume Masia. Now it's time to take a breath, shake off the devastating experience, and come back stronger for the Malaysia Grand Prix from 10th - 12th of November.

Results

Race
1. David ALONSO/ SPA/ GASGAS
2. Taiyo FURUSATO/ JAP/ HONDA – (+0.266)
3. Collin VEIJER/ NED/ HUSQVARNA – (+0.359)
DNF Ayumu SASAKI/ JAP/ HUSQVARNA

World Championship
1. Jaume MASIA/ SPA/ – 230
2. Ayumu SASAKI/ JAP – 213 (-17)
3. David Alonso/ SPA - 205 (-25)
9. Collin VEIJER/ NED – 105 (-125)

Team Classification
1. LIQUI MOLY HUSQVARNA INTACT GP – 318
2. RED BULL KTM AJO – 302 (-16)
3. LEOPARD RACING – 292 (-26)

Ayumu Sasaki

DNF
Moto3 World Championship 2023 - P2 - 213 Points

"It was a very disappointing day. We were so unlucky so early in the race but it was a racing accident so there's nothing much to say. We just need to try and come back at the next race as strong as possible. We won't give up. We now have a 17-point gap, which is capable of closing so I will try to catch Masia again."

Collin Veijer

P3 - (+0.359)
Moto3 World Championship 2023 - P9 - 105 Points

"I'm super happy, although I tried everything to win this race, in the end, the tyre was at its end. I was struggling a lot. But I think I managed it quite well to stay at the front. The whole race I tried to lead the field and stay in front so that if something happened, I would be there. On the last lap, David passed me, but I tried to catch him again in turn five. But in that situation, I almost went off with a highsider, which fortunately I managed to avoid, while Denis almost overtook me, but I managed to keep my position. Then in the penultimate corner before the finish line I almost had another highsider because the tyre was completely gone, I think. Going into the last corner, Masia tried to pass David on the inside, but he went wide, which was my chance, and I took it. Finally, it worked out with my first podium, I'm overjoyed to celebrate it here. A great thank you to my team."

Peter Öttl

Team Manager

"The weekend started very well for us. Thanks to Ayumu and Collin's good teamwork, they qualified for the first and second row respectively on the grid. That was a good performance from both and at the same time a strong starting position for today's race. Unfortunately, Ayumu crashed out in the early stages through no fault of his own, because another bike directly in front of him had a defect. He had absolutely no chance to avoid it. Fortunately, Ayumu remained uninjured because such incidents can also have worse consequences. On the other hand, Collin gave us a lot of pleasure today. His race was excellent because he was in the leading position for most of the time. He was always in the right place at the right time and fought like a lion over the entire distance. Despite a near crash, he was able to move up to third place on the last lap and achieved his first podium. Just as important, he left Ayumu's direct title rivals behind. As a result, we remain in the game with Ayumu as far as the championship is concerned. At the same time, we were also able to extend our lead in the team standings. These are two positive aspects after the race ended very unhappily in our pits on one side. Hopefully, with Ayumu we can reduce the points gap again next time and keep the championship open until the finale in Valencia."

Thailand GP 2023 – Sunday Moto3

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