Circuit of the Americas

MotoGP USA

Lacklustre weekend for Ogura and Chantra

Ai Ogura showed flashes of pace at the Circuit of the Americas but ultimately had to settle for a pair of ninth-place finishes. The Japanese rider briefly held P4 in practice before dropping to P14, followed by a P17 in FP2. He fell short of advancing to Q2, qualifying P18 for both races. In Saturday’s Sprint, Ogura secured P9, and he repeated the result in Sunday’s Grand Prix, capitalizing on the chaos ahead to bank some points.

Somkiat Chantra endured a difficult weekend with IDEMITSU Honda LCR, struggling for pace throughout the sessions. After finishing P20 in FP1 and P21 in both practice and FP2, he was unable to progress from Q1, qualifying P21 for both races. A tough Sprint saw him cross the line in P19, while Sunday’s main race brought slight improvement as he climbed to P16.

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Moto2: Aji holds on to secure points in COTA

Mario Suryo Aji put in a strong performance in Austin, securing a well-earned ninth-place finish in the Moto2 race. The Indonesian rider made it into Q2 after finishing P14 in practice but struggled in FP2, dropping to P20. He bounced back in qualifying to secure P12 on the grid and held his ground in the race, making the most of the opportunities ahead to claim P9 at the checkered flag.

Yuki Kunii showed early promise, finishing P12 in FP1 and improving to P10 in practice to secure direct entry into Q2. However, his weekend took a turn in FP2, where he finished P28. He could only manage P17 in Q2 and lined up in the same position for the race. Unable to recover lost ground, Kunii finished P17, missing out on the points.

Ayumu Sasaki had a difficult weekend with RW Idrofoglia Racing GP, struggling to find pace throughout the sessions. After finishing P25 in FP1 and P24 in practice, he made it into Q1 but was unable to progress further, qualifying P24 for the race. He made little headway on Sunday, crossing the line in P19.

Moto3: Furusato Puts On a Strong Recovery Ride as Buasri and Yamanaka Face COTA Challenges

Honda Team Asia’s Taiyo Furusato began his COTA weekend with a P18 finish in the FP1, improving to P14 finish in the Practice session. Despite struggling yet again in the FP2 and ending up last on the charts, Furusato took P17 on the grid. He put on a gritty ride in the race and climbed up the order and to finish a respectable P9.

Meanwhile, his teammate, Tatchakorn Buasri finished FP1 at P20. He did, however, get better, rising marginally to P17 during the practice session, close to his teammate. Unfortunately, FP2 was also not kind to him, and he could only manage up to P23, although ahead of Furusato. Before he could make a better Q1 run, Buasri suffered a serious crash, injuring his knee tendon. He was thus unable to start the race but is optimistic of making a comeback at Qatar.

Ryusei Yamanaka, who scored P9 at Argentina, had a slow start at COTA, ending up on the grid at P15 for FP1. His struggles were further compounded as he was at P15 during the Practice session, unable to qualify for Q2. During FP2, he went further down the order, ending up at P19. He recovered well during Q1, ending up at P5 and on the grid at P19. Despite his efforts, Yamanaka was unable to make further progress during the race and ended up at P19.