Moto3 runs its second round of the world championship. There is some rain in the sky right now. Brad Binder, scores his first pole in Moto3. There are dry patches on the race track, and wet patches on the camera. The 20 minute warmup, was wet. The three VR46 team riders are the only motorcycles to come to the grid, on slick tires. Enea Bastianini, Jules Danilo, and Niccolo Antonelli, are those riders. Other riders came to the grid on wets. General consensus is, slicks are the tires to shoot for, because there's lots of grip on this Termas de Rio Hondo circuit. Similar situations to Indianapolis last year, and Aragon in Spain, in 2014.
This has been declared a wet race. So tire options are open. The riders are on their sighting lap at the moment. Tatsuki Suzuki already has different tires out and ready. He was out on wets, and will change to slicks. Niccolo Bulega and Romano Fenati are not going to touch the tires they already have. You have to start on slicks, because it's drying out pretty quickly. Recall last year at Indianapolis, when Livio Loi gambled on using wet tires and it paid off. Moto3 rookie Joan Mir has his career best starting spot in fifth, in the middle of row two, for this race. He outqualifies his more experienced Italian team mates, Fabio Quartararo, and Andrea Locatelli.
If you use slicks, get heat into the tires and don't do anything silly. With wets, get some heat in them, but they will last for a very short period, if the track dries out. Watch out for young Malaysian rider Khairul Idham Pawi. He was 1.3 second quicker than Niccolo Antonelli, and he was the only rider in the 1:59 lap time bracket. No one wants to reveal their tire choice. Some have taken wets off and put slicks on. The riders are the only ones as they've seen the track conditions. This is very tense, just like any world championship race.
Not too many riders are too thrilled about going out on track for this race. The weather, is the obvious reason. You are charging into turn one, not knowing how it will be. Most of the top riders are on slicks. There is no real standing water out there. Spaniard Juanfran Guevara will start 12th in this race. He was going well in Qatar, and crashed out. Jorge Navarro is third, Romano Fenati, second, and Brad Binder, is a first time Moto3 polesitter. The tension ramps up. At this point, Livio Loi is the only one on wet tires. This will make for an interesting race, as we are indeed, ready for a start.
The final sighting lap is now underway. Livio Loi, has made an extraordinary gamble. We'll see how it works. Wet tires may not be the best option. Livio Loi, will have to fly to the front, and open a gap while the track is still damp, if he wants to be in contention for this race. As the track dries, will Loi be able to manage the gap? There is a chance rain might come during this race. Loi will have to push and take risks. Romano Fenati is the only rider who is starting this race, with a dry patch of road under his motorcycle. Get ready. This will likely be a scorcher.
When the red lights go out, we race. Moto3 is go, in Argentina! Romano Fenati goes inside Brad Binder, and takes the lead into the first corner. Livio Loi dives for position. But, Fenati definitely got the hole shot here. Pawi is already knocking on Fenati's door. Jorge Navarro didn't get the best start. But, he's coming. Pawi is now leading! Watch out for Khairul Idham Pawi. He could be a spoiler in this race, ladies and gentlemen. Pawi is on slicks and Livio Loi is starting to chase him down.
Brad Binder is taking things cautiously through the sweeper, as deeper into the pack, there's a little argy bargy happening. Pawi is going for it and so is his countryman from Malaysia, Adam Norrodin. Pawi was quickest in the morning warmup and he's absolutely booking it out in front right now. Pawi is generating more heat into his slick tires and this can only be good news for him as he tries to consolidate his lead. Norrodin is up to third now. It is official, that Pawi is using slick tires. Unreal! He's run a 2:04.4. The next rider on slicks is 6.3 seconds behind. Adam Norrodin is third.
Pawi is in another zip code right now. There is a monstrous battle for third place. The order is Pawi, Livio Loi, Adam Norrodin, Jorge Navarro, Jorge Martin, Hiroki Ono, Andrea Locatelli, Brad Binder, Fabio Quartararo, and Aron Canet, is caboose on this train of riders. Pawi is absolutely going for it. But, he's cleaning their clocks right now! The rain flag is being waved. You can have a bike that's set up half wet and half dry, running on slick tires, and having a wet chassis setup. 2:01.1 is Pawi's best lap time, and that's two seconds quicker than Livio Loi.
A good number of the well known riders in this field are some four or five seconds off Pawi's pace. Pawi's fast lap, (the official time), is 2:01.129. Livio Loi is closing, but, he has to be flabbergasted. Pawi was champion in the 2014 Asia Cup, and sixth in the CEV Repsol junior series last year. Those championships, use Moto3 spec motorcycles. Locatelli is fourth, and Aron Canet is chasing him down. Niccolo Antonelli, who won the season opener in Qatar, last time out, is really struggling here, to stay on pace with Khairul Idham Pawi. Adam Norrodin is up to third. Norrodin has not had the same results as Pawi, his countryman.
Norrodin is not as experienced. Navarro, Binder, Quartararo, and Mir, battle for the back half of the top ten. Livio Loi's wet weather tires have to be fading by now. 18 laps left. Still a long way to go. Pawi lowers fastest lap time to 1:59.712. Pawi gets loose in turn seven. Loi is desperately looking for water to cool his rain tires. The gap is eight seconds between Pawi and Loi. Aron Canet is giving it a good showing in fourth, as Pawi, resets fast lap. Another 1:59. But, he lowers the bar, to 1:59.261.
Keep an eye out for Brad Binder. He won't try to do anything silly, and will just ride with a consistent pace through the remainder of this one. Honda Asia team boss Tadayuki Okada looks on. Okada, is a World Grand Prix winner, in the old 500cc days, before MotoGP became the top category. He is a former HRC Honda factory rider, along with well known Australian, Mick Doohan. Pawi's team mate Hiroki Ono is also doing very well in this race. There's another big pack of riders, just outside the top ten. Included in this group are Juanfran Guevara, John McPhee, Joan Mir, Jakub Kornfeil, Fabio Quartararo, and Niccolo Antonelli.
Adam Norrodin seems to be closing quickly on Livio Loi. Jorge Navarro passes team mate Aron Canet. Jorge Navarro is the most experienced rider in the top eight places. Brad Binder passes Andrea Locatelli, and so does Jorge Martin. Pawi is running three or four seconds quicker than most of the other top contenders. He's running 1:58 laps, while other riders cut laps in the 2:02 bracket, and at the same time, the crew is telling him to back off a shade. Canet runs ahead of Hiroki Ono. A danger of backing off, is, as he's pushing hard, he's trying to maintain heat in the tires. If he backs off, the tires could cool down and he could lose grip.
Adam Norrodin has passed Livio Loi. Loi passes Norrodin back. Livio Loi might be a sitting duck. Norrodin is pushing. Don't push too hard. Loi had no front grip, and Norrodin and Navarro pass him like he's standing still. Aron Canet gets chopped. Another rain flag is displayed. We have not had a Malaysian rider win a Grand Prix. Zulfahmi Khairuddin (now racing in FIM World Supersport), came close, in 2011. The wet tires should be turning to bubblegum soon. Brad Binder is beginning to move up. Jorge Martin passes Livio Loi, and so does Aron Canet. Livio Loi, is plummeting like a stone.
John McPhee comes up from being all the way down in 28th on the grid. Canet and Ono pass Loi. Canet passes Ono. Pawi leads by 20 seconds, lapping consistently in the 1:58s. Pawi has a total dry setup on that motorcycle. Jorge Navarro, Adam Norrodin, and others, have come on terms with Pawi insofar as lap times. Too little too late, though. He's cooking, and these blokes just won't be able to turn off the steam. Pawi wiggles a bit. Navarro posts a faster lap time than Pawi, and Pawi, almost loses the motorcycle! Settle down, sunshine. Settle down. Rear tire, hits a damp patch, and he's riding a bucking bronco.
With that wiggle, Jorge Navarro resets fast lap down to the 1:58 range. 1:58.173. The Malaysian round of the MotoGP, Moto2 and Moto3 championships, is not until October. However, if Pawi and Norrodin do well here, tickets for that race, are sure to sell like hotcakes. Eleven laps now remain. Hafizh Syahrin was on the podium in 2012. There has not been a Malaysian rider who has won a race yet. Pawi is still nailing the throttle. Niccolo Antonelli almost crashes. He's the world championship leader right now. Antonelli passes poor old Livio Loi, who is surely languishing. Antonelli almost wrecked.
Ten laps left. Jorge Navarro has four podiums, but wants a race win. We see lots of rain on the camera lens. It is localized drizzle. Pawi has this race, in the bag. But, with the rain, his heart might begin fluttering a bit. Adam Norrodin is still going for it, and we see another big pack. Maria Herrera passes Livio Loi. Loi will pray that it chucks down with rain, or he'll run out of time. Brad Binder is doing damage limitation. Romano Fenati, Niccolo Bulega, and "Pecco" Bagnaia are nowhere to be seen.
Bo Bendsneyder and Romano Fenati, and having a tug of war. Those two had gone for harder dry setups, and needless to say, that's not working. Enea Bastianini is also down in the basement. Livio Loi is in the final points paying position, and is under pressure, from Fabio Quartararo. Pawi is storming through the rain. No pun intended. New fastest lap, lowered to 1:57.686! The localized shower, has stopped. Pawi has done a masterful job, through qualifying, and the race. The gap is growing to 22 seconds between Pawi, and the tussle between Navarro and Norrodin.
Two 17-year-old riders, are on the verge of really doing well. Brad Binder has been demoted, by Andrea Locatelli and Aron Canet. He has Hiroki Ono on the sister Honda Team Asia bike, to Pawi. Navarro is being pressured by Norrodin, still, and Norrodin goes a bit wide. Binder made a mistake, and slowed up compared to Locatelli. Pawi is leading this motorcycle race, by a country mile. He's got a 22.8 second gap over everyone else. Livio Loi is outside the points, but has turned his personal best lap of the race.
Locatelli moves inside Canet. If you wear down the profile of the rain tire, it can be advantageous for a short time. Joan Mir pushes Brad Binder out of the way, and Binder says, "oh no you don't". There are three championships that are springboards into Moto3. Red Bull Rookies Cup, FIM CEV Repsol, and the Asia Talent Cup. Six laps left now. Binder takes Aron Canet by surprise, and goes right around him! Yikes! Some drama in these closing laps. Binder has thrown caution to the wind. Chalk up another fastest lap, for Pawi. 1:57.387! This kid, is flying! He's got 24 seconds over Navarro and Norrodin.
Before this race ends, lets look again, at our top fifteen. Pawi, followed by Jorge Navarro, Adam Norrodin, Brad Binder, Andrea Locatelli, Aron Canet, Joan Mir, Hiroki Ono, and others. Loi is on rain tires, but still lapping quickly. Five laps to go. Navarro had a lackluster seventh place finish in Qatar. Pawi leads from Navarro, Norrodin, Norodin, Binder, Locatelli, Canet, Mir, Ono, Martin, McPhee, Guevara, Antonelli, Kornfeil, Quartararo, and Herrera. Livio Loi is sixteenth. But, he runs ahead of four more riders. Phillip Oettl, Gabriel Rodrigo, Nicolo Bulega, and Bo Bendsneyder. Romano Fenati and Enea Bastianini are down the order, doing their best laps in the 1:59 range.
Three riders who fought for a podium in Qatar, are outside the top 20 here in Argentina. Four long laps to go for Honda Team Asia, and for Pawi. Pawi almost falls off! The bike wiggles, but, he stays in the saddle! Unreal. New fast lap, this time from Joan Mir, at 1:57.372. Hiroki Ono gets the door slammed in his face by Andrea Locatelli. Locatelli and Ono eat up Brad Binder. Joan Mir almost clipped Binder! Yikes! Canet and Mir almost wipe out! John McPhee and Jorge Martin fall back. But McPhee will give the Peugeot team a good result.
Pawi is still cutting 1:57s. Pawi passes lapped Italian riders Fabio Spiranelli and Lorenzo Petrarca. Pawi laps Petrarca an now, sets his sights on Darryn Binder. Oh dear! Jorge Navarro has crashed out! No. Correction. It's Aron Canet! Canet is disgusted. Pawi gets through. Canet's motorcycle is right in the middle of the road. Not a good place for it. Someone could clobber it. Another fast lap for Joan Mir. 1:57.260. Two laps to go, as marshals retrieve the Estrella Galicia Honda of Aron Canet.
Will Adam Norrodin be able to pass Jorge Navarro? But, this is the last lap of Moto3 in Argentina. Pawi will win this race, easily. Brad Binder puts in fastest lap at 1:57 flat. 1:57.001. Joan Mir, takes it away, and is the first man into the 1:56s. 1:56.935. Norrodin passes Navarro. We will see a Malaysian 1-2! This is a historic win! Pawi wobbles, but wins anyway! Will we see a Malaysian 1-2 here in Argentina? Norrodin and Navarro are going to scrap right to the end! Who will get second? Norrodin has the line on the inside. Oh no! Norrodin is down! Norrodin will not finish! No Malaysian 1-2! Navarro takes second!
Brad Binder takes the last podium place! Poor Adam Norrodin. He fell with one corner remaining, hitting a damp patch on track. Running his bike across the line after the wreck! We could have had a Malaysian 1-2. But, what a victory for Pawi!
#89 Khairul Idham Pawi MAL. Honda
Brad Binder takes the points lead. What an amazing race, by a rookie! He is the first Malaysian rider to win a Grand Prix race. Amazing. We'll see you, this coming weekend, in the United States, for the next round in Moto3, at Circuit of the Americas, in Austin, Texas.
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