“Dream win” for Takahashi

Yuki Takahashi’s first World Championship victory since 2006 (250cc in Germany) was an emotional moment for both the Japanese rider and his Tech 3 Racing team on Sunday, when he won the Moto2 Gran Premi Aperol de Catalunya at Montmeló in an action-packed race.

Starting from second place on the grid the 25 year-old gave himself the best possible chance of success, and by being so far up the order at the start of the race he also managed to avoid a crash at the first turn which collected nine riders.

“Luckily I got on the front row in qualifying and that meant I wasn't involved in the big crash at the first corner,” said Takahashi. “I didn't have a very good pace in the early laps while I gained some confidence with the front tyre, but once in my rhythm I could easily catch Lüthi and Simón. My bike was working fantastic out of the last corner and it meant I could pass them both on the brakes at the first corner.”

Andrea Iannone’s overtake on Takahashi while the yellow flag was still out from the opening-lap crash resulted in a Ride Through penalty for the Italian, and the Tech 3 man then regained the lead as Iannone took his punishment on lap 16.

“I tried to follow Iannone but it was very difficult. He was riding very fast and I didn't realise he was penalised for passing me under a yellow flag,” said Takahashi. “My board said P1 even though I was second and for a while it was a little confusing. But when I saw him pull into the Pit Lane I understood the situation because I'd seen the penalty board and his number but I wasn't sure what was happening. Then it became incredibly hard to maintain concentration because Iannone was a good reference. I settled down though and could win and it was an amazing feeling.”

Takahashi had scored a previous best finish of fourth at Jerez in round two, and admitted he was surprised by his win in Barcelona.

“I am a little bit speechless right now because I expected to be on the podium but this win is like a dream for me,” he said. “I can't thank my team at Tech 3 Racing enough. This team is like a family and everybody works incredibly hard. They have an unbelievable passion for racing and for me, and this win feels a lot more special than before because it is with a bike we've all developed.”