The British rider wins a fantastic battle for victory in his penultimate Moto3™ race as drama unfolds for World Champion Guevara
In his penultimate Moto3™ World Championship race, John McPhee (Sterilgarda Husqvarna Max) produced a phenomenal ride to come from P22 on the grid to P1 at the PETRONAS Grand Prix of Malaysia to claim his first win since the 2020 San Marino GP. Ayumu Sasaki made it a Sterilgarda Husqvarna Max 1-2 with a second place finish, with Sergio Garcia (Gaviota GASGAS Aspar Team) picking up the final podium in P3.
Comeback King McPhee wins as Guevara holds on for P12
Tricky conditions greeted the riders at the beginning of the race as there were still plenty of damp patches lingering from overnight rain in Sepang, but everyone – rightly – opted for slicks. Off the line, newly crowned World Champion Izan Guevara (Gaviota GASGAS Aspar Team) timed his launch to perfection to grab the holeshot, with Dennis Foggia (Leopard Racing) and teammate Garcia slotting in close behind. Turn 9 then saw Foggia overtake both GASGAS Aspar riders before David Muñoz (BOE Motorsports) expertly grabbed P3 – Guevara was now down to P9.
On Lap 2 coming out of Turn 9, Stefano Nepa (Angeluss MTA Team) highsided out of the top five as the field did a great job of avoiding the Italian, but the incident saw Nepa – thankfully conscious – taken to the medical centre. Once the race had settled down, a lead group of five had formed but we then saw Turn 9 catch out Muñoz and Tatsuki Suzuki (Leopard Racing) in quick succession.
With 12 laps to go, the fight for the lead was now between eight riders: Garcia, Diogo Moreira (MT Helmets – MSI), Jaume Masia (Red Bull KTM Ajo), Foggia, Daniel Holgado (Red Bull KTM Ajo), Ayumu Sasaki (Sterilgarda Husqvarna Max), Guevara and Ivan Ortola (Angeluss MTA Team). McPhee – after starting P22 – was dragging himself and Riccardo Rossi (SIC58 Squadra Corse) into the lead group, quickly making it a 20-wheel battle.
After Guevara took the lead for a couple of laps, Foggia bit back with eight laps to go before Guevara was back holding the baton with six laps left. After making great progress, Rossi crashed out of P7 at Turn 1 with five laps to go, seeing a group of five form for the lead – McPhee in sixth was seven tenths away from Foggia’s rear wheel.
Coming out of the final corner on Lap 13 of 17, Guevara made contact with the rear end of Sasaki’s machine. The World Champion was out of shape and on the grass, but thankfully the number 28 wrestled control of his GASGAS bike to avoid a crash. However, it was podium hopes over for the Spaniard – he was now P12.
Heading onto Lap 16 of 17, Garcia led from Sasaki, Masia, Foggia, Moreira and McPhee. Six riders going for Sepang glory. The last corner on the penultimate lap saw Foggia dive underneath Masia and Sasaki, which gave Garcia some crucial breathing space on the final lap – 0.3s to be precise. Turn 9 – a stranglehold for Garcia in the race – saw Foggia take P1 as an almighty battle played out for victory. McPhee saw an opportunity at Turn 14 to pounce – and pounce he did. Four riders dispatched in one move.
Sasaki was second and got a good dose of slipstream from teammate McPhee, but the Japanese rider was slightly wide at the final corner to allow McPhee to take the inside line. The Scotsman won the race to the chequered flag to claim a spectacular victory in his penultimate Moto3™ race. Sasaki made it a 1-2 for Sterilgarda Husqvarna Max, with Garcia battling his way to P3. That result hands the latter advantage in the Championship P2 race, while GASGAS also wrap up the triple crown.
The points scorers in Malaysia
Masia missed out on a podium by just 0.099s as Moreira and Foggia take home P5 and P6 – Foggia now sits eight points down on Garcia in the chase for P2 in the overall standings. Holgado, Ryusei Yamanaka (MT Helmets – MSI), Ortola and the recovering Deniz Öncü (Red Bull KTM Tech3) rounding out the top 10, the Turk coming from P25 on the grid.
Xavier Artigas (CFMOTO Racing PrüstelGP) was 11th ahead of Guevara, a disappointing end to another great weekend for the Champion, as Elia Bartolini (QJMotor Avintia Racing Team), Andrea Migno (Rivacold Snipers Team) and Adrian Fernandez (Red Bull KTM Tech3) completed the points.
0.3s covered the top six in a classic Moto3™ encounter. Next up: the final round in Valencia!
Top 10:
1. John McPhee (Sterilgarda Husqvarna Max)
2. Ayumu Sasaki (Sterilgarda Husqvarna Max) + 0.048
3. Sergio Garcia (Gaviota GASGAS Aspar Team) + 0.146
4. Jaume Masia (Red Bull KTM Ajo) + 0.245
5. Diogo Moreira (MT Helmets – MSI) + 0.319
6. Dennis Foggia (Leopard Racing) + 0.371
7. Daniel Holgado (Red Bull KTM Ajo) + 5.817
8. Ryusei Yamanaka (MT Helmets – MSI) + 6.034
9. Ivan Ortola (Angeluss MTA Team) + 6.230
10. Deniz Öncü (Red Bull KTM Tech3) + 6.732
