FTR Moto is looking to Sunday’s 15th round of the Moto2 World Championship at Phillip Island, Australia to challenge for a first win of the campaign after a series of second and third place finishes in 2011.
FTR’s M210 took third place in last year’s Australian round and this year’s leading rider on the FTR M211, Ioda Racing Project’s Simone Corsi, has consistently challenged for victory in recent rounds. Corsi, 24, is the only rider in the Championship to have finished every race in a top 15, point-scoring position, taking 12 top 10 finishes from the 14 races of 2011. The Italian finished fifth in the last race in Japan 10 days ago and sits in fifth place in the World Championship.
Esteve Rabat, riding the Blusens-STX M211, has scored World Championship points in four of the last five races and is targetting the final three races – Australia, Malaysia and Spain – to try and improve on his current eighth place in the Championship.
The HP Tuenti Speed Up Team’s Pol Espargaro is focussed on at least a repeat of his Phillip Island 125cc podium finish of 12 months ago when the five times Grand Prix winner finished runner-up at the Victoria state coastal circuit. Espargaro sits in 16th place in the World Championship but only 19 points away from the top 10. FTR enjoyed three top 10 finishes in last year’s Australian race and is hoping for at least a repeat of that from its 12 riders in Sunday’s 25-lap race.
Anthony West (MZ-FTR) will be aiming for a strong finish in his home race after being in the points in the last two races while his team-mate Max Neukirchner is 19th in the Championship and will be keen to return to the early and mid season form that led to seven top 15 finishes from the first eight races.
Yonny Hernandez (Blusens-STX) continues his return after injury while Corsi’s Ioda team-mate Mattia Pasini is capable of podium finishes after leading races twice this year and Ratthapark Wilairot (Thai Honda Singha SAG) extends his quest for points to add to his only other top 15 finish of the year in Spain in April.
Kenny Noyes (FOGI/GP Tech M211), Santiago Hernandez (SAG) and Valentin Debise (Speed Up) are all chasing their first points of the year as is Aeroport de Castello replacement rider Joan Olive.
