Moto2: A battle for the ages
Friday, 14 October 2022
The battle for the Moto2 world title looks set to go to the wire.
This weekend’s battle at the Animoca Brands Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix 2022 at Phillip Island offers contenders the chance to put one hand on the trophy.
Augusto Fernandez and Ai Ogura are staging a titanic battle for the title, the Spaniard coming south with a very narrow lead of 1.5 points over the Japanese Honda protege. Fernandez already has a MotoGP™ contract for 2023 in his pocket and would like nothing better than to graduate to the Tech3 team (which will be branded in GasGas colours next year) in the footsteps of Remy Gardner as a Moto2 world champion.
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Ogura will be out to stop him, the two rivals rarely far apart on their identical Triumph-powered Kalexes. So too, will Aron Canet, the perennially unlucky Spaniard, still to answer Moto2’s biggest mystery; why does he wear a ‘dicky’ tie in parc ferme? He has promised to explain all after his maiden Moto2 GP win; let us up the wait it a short one!
Keeping the title favourites honest are sure to be Tony Arbolino, who won Thailand, and 2021 Moto3 world champion Pedro Acosta, already earmarked as a star of the future but a rider making his first appearance in any category at Phillip Island.
Two more riders to watch will be an American with a famous name, though Joe Roberts is no relation to father and son world champions Kenny Roberts and Kenny Jr, and rising British star Jake Dixon.
And remember; while every rider will have the power of a three-cylinder Triumph motor, there is another make a motorcycle in the Moto2 class, with Alonso Lopez going from a rider on the bench at the start of the season to winning at Misano on the Boscoscuro at Misano last month.
The Moto2 racers are due to take to the track at 10:55 am for Free Practice 1, and 3:10 pm for Free Practice 2, both sessions set for 40 minutes.
