Redding storms to podium finish in his home race

Scott Redding gave the home crowd something to celebrate yesterday by taking second place in a thrilling Moto2™ race that was decided only in the final laps.

Redding was involved in the battle for the lead right from the start of yesterday's 18-lap Moto2 race, forcing his way to the front on the second lap and then setting a blistering pace that his pursuers found difficult to maintain. More importantly the 19-year-old Briton adopted a riding style specifically to conserve his tyres, knowing full well that maximum grip would be required for the challenge ahead.

Pol Espargaró managed to sneak through and pull out a lead, as Redding got involved in a battle with Andrea Iannone and Marc Marquez. Iannone was soon dropped, leaving Redding and Márquez to battle it out for second place. Redding made his move early on the final lap, only for the lightweight Spaniard to take back the advantage on the straight, forcing the Marc VDS rider to put in an aggressive overtake on the brakes and then defend the position to the line.

Scott Redding

"The start of the race was a bit hectic, as both me and Bradley wanted to be the top Brit, so the battle at the front was, shall we say, a bit aggressive! All good fun though! Once I was through and into the lead I was able to find a good rhythm that was easy on the tyres but still fast enough to make it difficult for the riders chasing me. Eventually they caught me and as Espargaró went through, I got involved in a bit of a ding dong with Márquez and Iannone that held us all up a bit. I knew it was going to be a bit of a scrap with Márquez on the last lap and I wasn't wrong. I passed him early, he came back on the straight, so I stuck it up his inside on the brakes. He was struggling with the bike, but he still tried to come back at me in the final corner, but I was having none of it! It was a good, clean fight; a great result and I hope the crowd enjoyed it as much as I did! Thanks to Marc van der Straten, the team and everyone who was here to support us."

Michael Bartholemy, Team Principal



"Yesterday we saw a different side of Scott. We know he's capable of riding on the ragged edge, as we've see this so often in the past, but today he also rode with his head. He hit the front early in the race and then rode as smoothly as he could to conserve his tyres. It was a good plan because it was the extra grip that allowed him to get the better of Marc Marquez on the final lap. It was a great race by Scott and a great result for the team. I hope the British crowd enjoyed is as much as I did!"

Press release courtesy of Marc VDS Racing Team.