KTM duo stuns with one-two at Island

THE KTM team waited all year for a win in Moto2 but broke through with a stunning one-two thanks to Miguel Oliveira and Brad Binder at Phillip Island.

The KTM duo were the riders to catch from the opening laps and snapped Kalex’s dominance of the category.

The victory was the first for Portuguese rider Oliveira in two years of competing in Moto2.

“I couldn’t more grateful for this win,’’ Oliveira said.

“With three laps to go it started to rain and I had a sixsecond lead but I stressed a bit and lost some time.’’

Championship leader Franco Morbidelli was third after a dogfight with Binder and extended his break over Swiss ace Thomas Luthi to 29 points with just two rounds to go.

Luthi struggled in the conditions and could only manage 10th place.

Italian Mattia Passini started from pole but was taken out early by German Marcel Schrotter as they entered Turn 5.

Morbidelli’s teammate Alex Marquez, brother of Marc, finished sixth.

Japanese rider Takaaki Nakagami was running second on the second-last lap but lost the front end as he entered Lukey Heights.

Australian Remy Gardner picked up one championship point from his 15th placing.

In the Moto3, Spanish youngster Joan Mir secured the world title in a typically actionpacked race at Phillip Island. The Leopard Honda star, who turned 20 last month, edged ahead of his rivals as wet weather cut the 23-lap race to 15.

Teammate Livio Loi from Belgium was second, just 0.351 seconds back, while pole-sitter Jorge Martin was third, also on a Honda.

The race delivered another Moto3 classic, with a swarm of up to 10 riders dicing for the lead, often two or three abreast into Turn 1.

Mir’s victory was his 10th of the year and, with two rounds to go, is now 70 points clear of Italian Romano Fenati.

“To be world champion is incredible,’’ Mir said.