MOTOGP
FIM MOTOGP WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP
ROUND 17 / OCTOBER 29, 2017
SEPANG INTERNATIONAL CIRCUIT / SEPANG, MALAYSIA
P70
MOTO2
The sting, what was left of it,
was taken out of the champion-
ship when Luthi was ruled out in
the morning, but it did nothing
to spoil a striking second vic-
tory in a row for Miguel Oliveira,
and with rookie teammate Brad
Binder second again, a second
successive one-two for rookie
constructor KTM.
It was a climax to a race that
only just managed to run full
distance, with rain flags out
four laps from the end, and the
deluge starting soon after the
finish.
Champion Franco Morbidelli
(VDS Kalex) was on pole ahead
of Oliveira, with Fabio Quar-
tararo (HP40 Kalex) a front-row
first-timer, ahead of second VDS
rider Alex Marquez. With fifth-
fastest Luthi out, Marcel Schrot-
ter (Dynavolt Kalex) was promot-
ed to the second row alongside
Pecco Bagnaia (SKY VR46
Kalex); Binder led row three.
In hot but otherwise perfect
conditions, the race started in
dramatic fashion as Oliveira led
Marquez, Morbidelli and the rest
into the first corner. In the follow-
ing pack, Andrea Locatelli (Ital-
trans Kalex) missed his braking
point and triggered a mass col-
lision. The Italian stayed on his
wheels, but Luca Marini, Khairul
Idham Pawi and Axel Pons went
flying into the gravel.
One corner later, Marquez
fell all by himself, remounting
only to crash out for good on
lap two. Further around the first
lap Sandro Cortese (Dynavolt
Suter) also crashed, taking Taka
Nakagami (Idemitsu Kalex) down
with him. And on lap two, Remy
Gardner (Tech 3) skittled Na-
varro's replacement Dimas Ekky
Pratama.
Miguel Oliveira gave KTM another victory in Moto2.
