Moto3: Oncu secures photo-finish victory ahead of Holgado in Austrian GP

Red Bull KTM’s Deniz Öncü overtook the race lead on the final corner, at the Austrian Red Bull Ring, with a photo-finish to secure the victory against his teammate Daniel Holgado.

How the race unfolded…

It was an even start from the pole sitter and Holgado who went side-by-side on the run up to turn one but it was the latter who won the battle. The pack managed to work their way through the opening corner with little-to-no issues as Veijer fell backwards into third as the pack settled into their positions, behind both Holgado and Öncü. 

After the first lap, all of the riders remained out on track. At the same time, Veijer managed to regain second place as he made a move on Öncü as the field roared towards the first corner once more.

By lap four, the race had already established two different groups. The front runners consisted of Holgado, Veijer, Öncü, David Alonso (GASGAS Aspar), Jaume Masia (Leopard Racing), Sasaki and Riccardo Rossi (SIC58 Squadra Corse). Two seconds separated the lead group from the backmarkers as the following group.  

The lead group soon decreased to a three-rider group after Masia fell out of contention at the front on lap four. The Leopard rider was forced to retire out on track with no acceleration, between T8 and T9, after his rear tyre was touched by Sasaki’s front wheel. 

Although he lost the race lead at the start, from pole position, Veijer slipped down the inside of Holgado into turn one to snatch back the race lead, two laps later. Despite this, Holgado leapfrogged the pole sitter to regain first place in the same place he lost it a lap prior.

At the half-race distance, Holgado remained as the race leader ahead of Öncü and Alonso as Veijer fell to fourth place. Sasaki was the only rider left in the lead group, in fifth place, as SIC58’s Rossi (sixth) ran his own race 2.5s behind the Japanese rider.    

On lap 12, Alonso snatched the race lead from Holgado on the exit of turn one. However, this lead was short-lived as the Colombian rider fell off his bike at the turn two and three chicane, by himself, and crashed out of the race.

Shortly after, Sasaki moved up to second after he overtook Öncü. However, on the run through turn nine, this quickly turned into the race lead. 

This only lasted until lap 15 as Holgado slipped down the inside of turn four to regain the race lead which put Sasaki under pressure from Oncu, behind him. Fortunately, the Japanese rider was able to maintain his second-place position.

On the run into turn one, with two laps to go, the battle for the race lead intensified. Sasaki made a move for the race lead once more but it only lasted for two corners as Holgado regained the race lead.

In the last lap, the race was fiercely fought by the top three riders. Sasaki and Holgado changed positions once again, into turn one. However, the top two were quickly joined by Öncü down the top straight as the trio battled it out for the race lead.

On the run through the final corners, Sasaki held onto the race lead just ahead of Holgado who attempted a move down the inside of turn 10. However, on the run down the chequered flag, Öncü managed to snatch away the victory, winning by the width of his front wheel. 

Podium:

1. Deniz Öncü, Red Bull KTM
2. Daniel Holgado, Red Bull KTM
3. Ayumu Sasaki, Liqui Moly Husqvarna

That’s it for the article; Moto3: Öncü secures photo-finish victory ahead of Holgado in Austrian GP!

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Kamron Kent

Hi, I’m Kamron. I created ApexMotorsports.co.uk in the dying embers of the 2021 Formula 1 world championship. It allowed me freedom to write whatever I wanted to write about which was all things motorsports, my passion.

I have put a lot of effort in over the years to keep this website in its best shape and I’ve loved seeing the brand grow consistently, month-on-month, year-on-year. My ambition is to keep watching this brand grow into a primary outlet of news for all things motorsports whilst fueling my desire to pursue a career in sports journalism, specialising in motorsports.

Kamron Kent

Hi, I'm Kamron. I created ApexMotorsports.co.uk in the dying embers of the 2021 Formula 1 world championship. It allowed me freedom to write whatever I wanted to write about which was all things motorsports, my passion. I have put a lot of effort in over the years to keep this website in its best shape and I've loved seeing the brand grow consistently, month-on-month, year-on-year. My ambition is to keep watching this brand grow into a primary outlet of news for all things motorsports whilst fueling my desire to pursue a career in sports journalism, specialising in motorsports.