Saturday’s MotoGP sprint race at Portimão got all our hopes up. A three-way thriller with some of the best overtakes we have seen in years, plus a final couple of laps that saw Pedro Acosta almost catch Alex Márquez. So the prospect of a repeat on Sunday had us licking our lips with anticipation.
We got an appetizer with a superb Moto2 race, which saw the field spread out and then close up again, Diogo Moreira hunting down and then passing Collin Veijer, and David Alonso completing the podium. Moreira extended his lead in the championship to 24 points, leaving Manu Gonzalez, who finished sixth, needing a miracle if he is to catch the Brazilian.
It has been a sterling resurgence by Moreira, the Italtrans Moto2 rider easily handling the pressure. He insisted he is still not thinking about the championship, saying he is focusing on winning races and taking it one race at a time. MotoGP legend Casey Stoner said the same thing back in 2011: focus on winning races, and the championships take care of themselves.
KTM Ajo’s Collin Veijer, who bagged his first ever Moto2 podium, finally matching the level of fellow rookies David Alonso and Dani Holgado, was impressed by Moreira’s resilience, but not surprised. “He was ready for MotoGP at the beginning of the season,” the Dutchman said.
Hope withers
