- Exceptional start to race weekend
- Straight into Q2
- Points scored
Riding sensation Ruche Moodley had an exceptional outing at the most recent round of the Moto3 World Championship. The sole SA rider in the field is making his return from a fractured arm and a missed round in France.
The Gqeberha-born rider had a tough weekend last time out at Silverstone. Moodley had more time to recover from a painful outing in England a few weeks ago. But he was optimistic heading into round eight at Ciudad del Motor de Aragon in Spain.
“I knew that Silverstone was going to be tough. But with a bit more time to build more strength in my injured arm, I had a good feeling going into the Aragon race,” said the teenager.
And so, it proved. Moodley started the weekend strong. He was in 10th place at the end of the opening practice session on Friday morning. He maintained this strong showing and claimed 14th place in the second session.
MotoGP applies an interesting system for qualifying. The top ten times recorded in the second practice session give riders a free pass directly into Qualifying 2 (Q2). In Q2 they compete for pole position. The rest of the field has to fight in Q1 for their grid positions. A similar concept has been applied to Moto3 where the top 14 riders immediately pass into Q2. Moodley’s lap time was quick enough to progress straight into Q2.
“It was great to keep up the early pace from the start of the weekend. I had a good feeling with the bike and delivered a lap that was quick enough to get into Q2. I knew from there it was game on.”
Qualifying in Aragon relies heavily on slipstreaming. There is a near one-kilometre-long straight towards the end of the lap where a good draft can be worth about half a second per lap. Moodley preferred to run alone during qualifying where another rider’s mistake can ruin a good lap time. This may have cost a little time, but a clean lap meant he would start 14th on the grid.
The Moto3 race start was, as always, a close-fought affair. Aragon Motorland is an exceptional motorcycle circuit that provides plenty of overtaking opportunities. Moodley fought from the beginning.
“I knew it’s a long race here and that tyre strategy would come into play. Our strategy since the start of my rookie season has been to complete every race as we learn all the tracks of the calendar.”
Moodley slowly picked off his rivals to edge up to 14th by half race distance. His pace hotted up as the race progressed and his confidence built. His quickest lap time was quicker than his qualifying lap, and just a few tenths off the race leaders.
“There was a massive ten-bike group battling for the lead. I was just off that pack, in a middle ground. They were all dragging each other along down the long straight, I could see them but I was just too far back to get a slipstream. It was a bit frustrating, but they were also not getting away from me.”
Moodley crossed the finish line in 14th, claiming yet more points in his first-ever campaign at this level.
“All in all, I am really pleased at how this weekend progressed. It was a good showing now that my arm is getting stronger. We can only go upwards from here,” said the comeback kid.
