Moto2: Elias relieves points pressure with win
Moto2 world championship leader Toni Elias scored a mature, and timely third victory of the season in the German Grand Prix, to re-establish his points advantage over Thomas Luthi in the standings
The result was made all the sweeter by the fact that only one of Elias's key rivals finished as the race took an extraordinary toll on the established runners.
Simone Corsi, Luthi, Julian Simon, Alex Debon and Yuki Takahashi all fell off unprovoked in various accidents during the race.
The Gresini Moriwaki rider was bullied down the order in a chaotic start that witnessed yet another multi-bike shunt at the first corner - which among others, accounted for Joan Olive, Lukas Pesek and Raffaele de Rosa. But in typical fashion Elias responded quickly.
By lap 10 he had found his way to the front of a huge gaggle of bikes in pursuit of the two runaway Fimmco Speed Ups of Andrea Iannone and Gabor Talmasci, which led the race.
Talmasci took the early lead, but Iannone - seeking recompense for the win he should have taken in Barcelona (but for a penalty having passed under yellows) - quickly moved ahead of his team-mate and established a lead.
That lead initially looked unassailable, but Elias was closing fast.
As Talmacsi, the 2007 125cc German GP winner, faded along with his medium/hard rear Dunlop, so Elias appeared to get stronger, and having dispatched the Hungarian with ease, he set about Iannone.
On lap 24 Elias made his move, a clean one down the inside into Turn 1, and ensured that Iannone will have to wait just a little bit longer for his third Moto2 race win of the year. The Italian afterwards admitted that he simply didn't have rear tyre to defend the advances of the former MotoGP race-winner late-on.
With Corsi, who had followed Elias through the field, having fallen, an enormous battle behind him became the scrap for third.
It was only settled on the last lap when Roberto Rolfo made a daring move down the inside of the feisty Fonsi Nieto in to Turn 1 on the last lap. And while Nieto didn't give up without a fight, he couldn't prevent the Italian taking his first podium of the season.
Karel Abraham took a strong fifth position in yet another convincing performance, while Talmacsi eventually slipped to sixth.
Australia's Damian Cudlin, replacing Carmelo Morales who crashed so spectacularly in Barcelona, did well to finish seventh on the Pons bike ahead of Dominique Aegerter.
Stefan Bradl was another in with a shout of a strong finish before slipping back to ninth in the end, while Yonni Hernandez completed the top ten.
Pos Rider Bike Time/Gap 1. Toni Elias Moriwaki 41'57.745s 2. Andrea Iannone Speed Up + 3.297s 3 Roberto Rolfo Suter + 6.574s 4. Fonsi Nieto Moriwaki + 6.781s 5. Karel Abraham FTR + 7.396s 6. Gabor Talmacsi Speed Up + 9.555s 7 Damian Cudlin Pons Kalex + 9.697s 8 Dominique Aegerter Suter + 11.373s 9. Stefan Bradl Suter + 13.152s 10. Yonny Hernandez BQR + 13.726s 11 Alex Baldolini ICP + 15.802s 12. Jules Cluzel Suter + 17.666s 13. Anthony West MZ + 25.927s 14. Vladimir Ivanov Moriwaki + 26.476s 15. Xavier Simeon Moriwaki + 26.626s 16. Valentin Debise ADV + 27.465s 17 Ratthapark Wilairot Bimota + 29.007s 18 Shoya Tomizawa Suter + 42.961s 19. Yusuke Teshima Motobi + 43.141s 20 Niccolo Canepa Force + 43.277s 21. Kenny Noyes Promo Harris + 43.580s 22. Claudio Corti Suter + 44.171s 23. Sascha Hommel Kalex + 52.382s 24 Vladimir Leonov Suter + 1m04.234s 25 Hector Faubel Suter + 1m19.211s 26. Yannick Guerra Moriwaki + 1m23.078s 27. Arne Tode Suter + 1m28.151s Retirements: Mike di Meglio Suter 28 laps Raffaele De Rosa Tech 3 25 laps Robertino Pietri Suter 24 laps Simone Corsi Motobi 19 laps Mashel Al Naimi BQR 17 laps Scott Redding Suter 10 laps Alex Debon FTR 10 laps Thomas Luthi Moriwaki 9 laps Sergio Gadea Pons Kalex 7 laps Julian Simon Suter 3 laps Yuki Takahashi Tech 3 1 laps Lukas Pesek Moriwaki 0 laps Joan Olive Promo Harris 0 laps Ricard Cardus Bimota 0 laps
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