Ajo Motorsport rider finishes twelfth in Australian Grand Prix and increases his advantage in the overall standings to 22 points.

Johann Zarco experienced a positive conclusion to the weekend at Phillip Island, adding an extra point to his advantage in the Moto2 overall standings. The Ajo Motorsport rider placed twelfth in a 25-lap race, held in the dry after a weekend of mixed conditions. The Frenchman increases his lead to 22 points over his nearest rival in the fight for the title.

Starting from tenth position, Zarco was unable to hold his position at the start, finding himself relegated to sixteenth after the first lap. The Ajo Motorsport rider climbed back up to ninth place, five laps in. Following a crash for the man who had been his main title rival, Alex Rins, Zarco played things safe and closed the group, crossing the finish line in twelfth and collecting 4 points.

The Moto2 World Championship heads to Malaysia this week, for the penultimate round of the 2016 season. Johann Zarco leads the series, 22 points ahead of new closest rival Thomas Luthi and 25 ahead of Alex Rins.

Results (Race)
1. Thomas Luthi (Kalex) 39:15.891
2. Franco Morbidelli (Kalex) +0.010
3. Sandro Cortese (Kalex) +0.530
4. Lorenzo Baldassarri (Kalex) +3.081
5. Takaaki Nakagami (Kalex) +3.815
12. Johann Zarco (Ajo Motorsport) +17.796

Moto2 World Championship Standing 2016
1. Johann Zarco (Ajo Motorsport) 226 points
2. Thomas Luthi (Kalex) 204 points
3. Alex Rins (Kalex) 201 points
4. Franco Morbidelli (Kalex) 177 points
5. Sam Lowes (Kalex) 162 points

Aki Ajo – Team Manager
“We knew this weekend would not be easy for us. It is not a circuit where Johann [Zarco] feels comfortable but the sessions yesterday and on Friday went well -although the conditions were very difficult and he had two crashes. However, today in the race, we did not find the best feeling to opt to form part of the leading group. Now we have to focus on the Malaysian GP.”

5 JOHANN ZARCO

“Today’s race was difficult. I wanted to attack for better positions, but in these dry conditions I found my limit and couldn’t push any harder. I saw that Rins had crashed out, so it was a good day to pick up points. I was closing out the group fighting for eighth position and wanted to pass them, but I was at the limit. I was slow on some corners, so I had to compensate at others and couldn’t gain positions. It’s a shame because I wanted more points, but the race went well. I was able to extend the gap to Rins and now it is Luthi who is second. In Malaysia we will have our first chance to clinch the title, and this is something that motivates me. I’ll give it my best.”