A high-intensity Moto2™ season opener saw Pedro Acosta (Red Bull KTM Ajo) fight hard to fend off Aron Canet (Pons Wegow Los40) to make the perfect start to his 2023 season. Tony Arbolino (Elf Marc VDS Racing Team) pushed his way to the front and rounded out the podium in Portimao.
Tensions were high on the grid as the Moto2™ riders prepared for the first Grand Prix of 2023. Canet made a lighting start taking the whole shot into Turn 1, with Filip Salac (QJMOTOR Gresini Moto2) and Acosta following the Spaniard closely through the opening stages of the race.
1 lap later and Acosta was on the move slotting his way up the inside of Salac to take 2nd, and soon after making an incredible dive up the inside of Canet for the race lead.
It didn't take long until Acosta began stretching out the gap in an attempt to break away from the field.
Canet wasn't going down without a fight as the Valencian chased down the young Acosta, applying pressure on the Red Bull KTM man. Canet shadowed Acosta's every move as the race went on, threatening to make a move on the youngster.
The pace was hot at the front as the two Spaniards checked off lap after lap, pushing their Kalex machines to their absolute limits. With the battle for the race win on a knife edge, no one could match the pace of the leaders.
As the race came to a close it was a case of who would blink first in an intense battle of attrition. 2 laps to go and Acosta began stretching out a small gap to give himself crucial breathing space ahead of the last lap. With over a second in his pocket, Acosta crossed the line with an inch-perfect performance leaving Canet to pick up the scraps in 2nd place.
The battle for the final spot on the rostrum was just as intense as Filip Salac began to drop down the order early on with Manuel Gonzalez (Yamaha VR46 Master Camp Team) making his way up into 3rd spot.
No less than 5 riders in contention for P3! ⚔️ #PortugueseGP ???????? pic.twitter.com/TBRud2WEik
— MotoGP™???? (@MotoGP) March 26, 2023
The battle raged on through the race as Gonzalez was faced with defending the final podium spot ahead of a freight train of riders queueing up behind him.
13 laps to go and the battle began to spread out as Tony Arbolino slipstreamed his way past Gonzalez to take hold of the final rostrum position, as it became a two-way battle between the Italian and the Spaniard for podium honours.
As the race went on Arbolino pushed on to break away from Gonzalez and edge closer toward the leading duo. The Italian gave it everything he had, but it wasn't enough to catch the flying Spaniards out front, and Arbolino brought home his Elf Marc VDS machine to open his 2023 season with a podium finish.
Salac fought his way back up through to catch and overtake the late-fading Gonzalez, taking 4th place and pushing the Spaniard back to 5th.
Jake Dixon (GASGAS Aspar Team) fought hard through the pack showing incredible pace, but with a mountain to climb the Brit's progress was halted at 6th position, despite a heroic to open his 2023 season.
Jeremy Alcoba (QJMOTOR Gresini Moto2) rounded out the top 10 with the rookie Sergio Garcia (Pons Wegow Los40) taking the final points-scoring position in 15th.
With Round 1 completed, the attention now turns to the Gran Premio Michelin® de la República Argentina for the 2nd round of the Grand Prix calendar. Make sure to keep updated with all the action as it unfolds on motogp.com.
1.Pedro Acosta (Red Bull KTM Ajo) – 1:42.525
2. Aron Canet (Pons Wegwow Los4) + 1.358
3. Tony Arbolino (Elf Marc VDS Racing Team) + 4.460
4. Filip Salac (QJMOTOR Gresini Moto2) + 7.110
5. Manuel Gonzalez (Correos Prepago Yamaha VR46 Team) + 8.193
6. Jake Dixon (GASGAS Aspar Team) + 9.146
7. Sam Lowes(Elf Marc VDS Team) + 9.649
8. Albert Arenas (GASGAS Aspar Team) + 12.270
9. Somkiat Chantra (IDEMISTU Honda Team Asia) + 13.619
10. Jeremy Alcoba (QJMOTOR Gresini Moto2) + 13.840