Sasaki returns to the podium, Kaito Toba fails to finish both races and Masaki proves himself a true top five contender.
Two eventful races awaited the Asia Talent Team at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, both experiencing red flags. In the first race the red flag came out on the first lap due to a fall from Andi Farid who fell heavily at Turn 5. The Indonesian was fortunately unharmed in the fall but did not make the race restart.
When racing did get back underway it was a frantic ten-lap dash, no time for waiting around. Kaito Toba, Nakarin Atiratphuvapat and Kazuki Masaki jumped into action straight away. They were all in contention for the podium until lap three when Atiratphuvapat suffered an incredibly vicious highside, luckily walking away unhurt. While all of this was going on Ayumu Sasaki had made his way up inside the top five, the podium in his sights.
Action raged until the last lap, Toba doing all he could to pass Alonso Lopez for second. Sadly the Japanese rider’s charge ended on the final lap in the final chicane as he lost the front and slid out. This gifted a podium return to Ayumu Sasaki, able to shake off his disastrous qualifying with third.
Masaki took a respectable seventh with both Izdihar and Atiratphuvapat failing to finish after their falls.
All five of the Asia Talent Team riders were back out on the grid for race two, Sasaki making a lightning start from 21st on the grid to be in contention for the podium from Turn 1. He was joined by Toba, Atiratphuvapat and Masaki inside the top ten, the Asia Talent Team looking set for one of their best weekends.
Yet again disaster would strike for Toba as he once more lost the front in the chicane, this time early in the race. Although unhurt, his terrible weekend was over. Both Sasaki and Masaki were in a fierce battle for third till the end of the race, which occurred three laps earlier due to a red flag.
The red flag was brought out due to a nasty fall for Marcos Ramirez and the results brought back a lap. This saw Sasaki take fourth place with Masaki in sixth, a great weekend for the pair overall. Atiratphuvapat leaves the weekend with a ninth place and seven more points while Andi Farid raced to a deserving 17th.
As they leave Barcelona to prepare for their next races in Albacete Circuit, Toba sits third with equal points to Alonso Lopez. His two falls haven’t helped his championship ambitions as Dalla Porta is 54 points ahead.
Sasaki and Masaki both remain inside the top ten in fifth and eighth respectively, split by only nine points. Nakarin Atiratphuvapat is 16th with 16 points.
