The CFMOTO Inde Aspar Team rider fought tooth and nail to defend first place and secure his first win of the season

Dani Holgado has sealed a dream win for the CFMOTO Aspar Team, coming just minutes after the victory of his Moto3 teammate Máximo Quiles. The Spaniard secured his second podium of the season, doing so with an undisputed victory at the Brazilian Grand Prix. The CFMOTO Inde Aspar Team rider started the race from pole position after having to go through Q1 and defended the lead in a thrilling battle in the final laps with Dani Muñoz, who finished in second place and certainly didn’t make things easy for the Spaniard. Manu González crossed the finish line in third place and relinquished the lead in the overall standings to Holgado, who leaves Brazil with a four-and-a-half-point advantage. His teammate David Alonso finished fifth in a very fast and demanding race for all the riders.

After the intermediate category’s qualifying session took place early on Sunday morning due to delays from the previous day, the CFMOTO Inde Aspar Team riders started the race at the Brazilian circuit in the best possible way: with Dani Holgado on pole, accompanied by David Alonso in second place. The Moto2 race was one of the longest in terms of lap count in living memory, so managing pace and tyres was crucial to reaching the final laps still in contention. Dani Holgado went from strength to strength throughout the weekend and today once again showed his best performance to defend the lead. Despite losing the lead at the start, last season’s Rookie of the Year regained first place and defended it with everything he had right up to the final laps, treating fans to a thrilling battle that culminated in Holgado’s third victory in the category and his second consecutive podium finish this season. Meanwhile, his team-mate David Alonso had a race full of lessons. The Colombian remained in the top three during the early stages of the race despite dropping a few places when the lights went out. The high pace set by the riders ahead put the CFMOTO Inde Aspar Team rider to the test, and he fell back to fifth place.  Ultimately, Alonso held his ground in that position to avoid making any unnecessary mistakes and crossed the finish line in fifth place. With these results, Dani Holgado leads the Moto2 overall standings for the first time since his debut in the category. At the same time, the CFMOTO Inde Aspar Team also tops the team standings.

Win Dani Holgado: “I’m absolutely delighted with how the day finished. We went from Q1 to securing pole position, and then the win. I really enjoyed myself on the bike today; whenever I saw my mechanic on the pit wall, I pushed harder and harder and didn’t give up, even though the race was getting tougher and tougher. I feel great about being the Moto2 leader, but also because my Moto3 teammates are leading their class. I love that we’re performing so well because it gives me extra motivation to see that we’re all doing so well. I’m very proud of myself for not giving up when things go wrong. I always try to have the mindset of not throwing in the towel and giving it my all right to the end. On the first day, I found it a bit hard to adapt to the conditions; I’m not using that as an excuse, but rather as another learning experience.”

5th David Alonso (+8.652): “It was a very positive race. After the crash in Thailand, finishing in fifth place here in Brazil is a good result. I was able to gather a lot of information, although at the start I lost my concentration a bit because the lights took a little longer to come on. In the early laps I managed to move up, although I found it very hard to keep up with the pace of the podium positions. I decided to settle for the top five because I was right on the limit and didn’t want to crash. I was the first in my group, so I’m happy about that. This race has helped me figure out what we need to work on for the next one so we can be better prepared.”