It is wet at the Sachsenring for the Moto 3 race. The wind has really picked up and the start has been delayed. The turn twelve grandstand at the Sachsenring is completely obscured. There are discussions about these bad conditions. MotoGP and Moto 2 have been completed. But, will the Moto 3 event run as planned? Yes. It will. Sandro Cortesi starts from pole. Luigi Morciano is starting from pit lane because he's exceeded his allocation of usable engines for the season already.
The bikes are on their formation lap. The race is late, but will get underway. Danny Kent is also up on the front row. Maverick Vinales starts down the order. The race will be 27 laps. But, Hector Faubel stalls his bike. At the start, Jack Miller flies off the starting blocks but Danny Kent will take the lead. Adrian Martin will lead this race with others coming. Louis Rossi, Danny Kent and others file through the first few corners as the bikes come through to the Stemquell. No one is sure of the grip levels in the wet. Tony Finsterbusch and Jakub Kornfeil are moving up.
Jonas Folger, Luis Salom and Brad Binder are up at the sharp end. Adrian Martin is in the race lead as the bikes go through turn eleven and twelve as Jack Miller goes for the lead and makes it work. The bikes go through the Sachsen curve and the Queckenberg curve. Maverick Vinales turns into the first corner (the Coca Cola curve). Sandro Cortese is also moving up well. The rain has now stopped and there are blue skies beginning to appear. There might be a dry racing line starting to form, too. Brad Binder is quickest at a 1:43.4 lap time.
Zhulfammi Khairuddin is moving up having passed Sandro Cortese. Maverick Vinales continues to languish. He's passed Marcel Schrotter. It could be Schrotter's last race at least temporarily as his Mahindra bike isn't performing. Khairuddin passes Jakub Kornfeil for seventh place. Hector Faubel sets fast lap at a 1:42.7. Louis Rossi is closing up on Jack Miller. With 20 laps left, Miller slides into corner number one (the Coca Cola curve). Maverick Vinales has to go quicker. Alex Rins is ahead of Vinales. Danny Webb, Simon Grotzkyj and others are hounding Vinales and Rins.
Brad Binder passed Adrian Martin. Luis Salom runs wide into turn one allowing Binder and Martin to pass. The track continues to dry as Schrotter wants to pass Vinales. Vinales is making sure he can stay in the race but is running slower. Danny Kent is coming. Alexis Masbou resets fast lap at 1:41.2. Brad Binder is quick right now. Alexis Masbou is running fast as he's three seconds quicker than Louis Rossi and is six seconds behind the leaders. Masbou is on intermediate tires, not full wets. The track is really beginning to dry now. Masbou sets another fast lap time. Jack Miller remains in the lead.
Romano Fenati is passed. He won in Spain, but has not had a good season since. Alexis Masbou passes Sandro Cortese. The race isn't even half over yet. Alan Techer passes Maverick Vinales. The track still has puddles and the pavement is steaming in turn nine. It's a battle between Jack Miller and Louis Rossi. Masbou is two seconds quicker than the leaders. Luis Salom is side by side with Jack Miller. Salom will take the lead. Can he win this race?
Twelve laps remain. Louis Rossi slides wide and Alexis Masbou goes by. Danny Kent has retired his KTM. There could be a radiator issue. Masbou can push, but he cannot wear down his tires. Sandro Cortese rides into third. He's a German, but keep in mind, his name sounds Italian. Hector Faubel has come into the points, running just ahead of Arthur Sissis. Cortese takes the lead in front of his home crowd. Can he win? Masbou runs ride and there's a backmarker in the way, Giulian Pedone of Switzerland. Jonas Folger seems to be coming into the picture.
The track is drying, but riders need to find water to keep the tires cool. Ten laps left. Adrian Martin tries passing Luis Salom, but no. ...And Jonas Folger crashes. He's got no luck and will be out of this race. Salom and Martin scrap for the lead. Cortese fends off the challenge from Masbou. No German has won a race at the Sachsenring since MotoGP came back to the Sachsenring back in 1998. Efrin Vazquez is running well. Luis Salom could be making a charge at the end. Continue looking for water with the wet weather tires still on the bike.
Alexis Masbou has taken the lead from Cortese with just six laps remaining. The Sachsenring is very abrasive and that could cause these tires to fade fast. Brad Binder or one of the other riders is slowing, allowing Maverick Vinales to come into the points. Masbou remains in the race lead. Masbou and Salom have not won races yet in their careers. So, there could be a first time winner at the end of this one. Masbou wants it bad. He's run 95 125cc races and has run eight races in Moto 3. Danny Kent is out of the race.
Cortese wants to win, but, Louis Rossi and Jack Miller might have something to say. Zhulfami Khairuddin is seventh and has five bikes trying to swamp him for position. Sandro Cortese retakes the lead. Three laps left. Jack Miller sets fast lap of the race. This could be a five way battle for the win after all. Hmmm. Maverick Vinales will score one point in this race. He's 15th now. Jack Miller sets fast lap at 1:37.718. Spaniard Alberto Moncayo stops his bike on the front straight with mechanical issues. Luis Salom battles Sandro Cortese as well as Alexis Masbou.
Marcel Schrotter has dumped his bike and is out. Two laps remain. Louis Rossi does likewise, crashing out. It's Cortese vs. Masbou. Cortese runs the fastest lap of the race. Jack Miller closes up, too. Maverick Vinales is back in the points, passing another rider. Sandro Cortese is going to win this race! He blocks the line and will be the first German to win at the Sachsenring in 1998 and also takes the Moto 3 points lead!
#11 Sandro Cortese GER KTM
The next round of the Moto 3 championship is the halfway mark in the season. It's going to be the Italian Grand Prix at the Mugello circuit, next weekend.
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