Moto3: Acosta completes a Hat-Trick of Victories in Jerez

Pedro Acosta made history at the Circuito de Jerez with his third consecutive win and fourth consecutive podium finish in his rookie season.

An inch-perfect double overtake down the inside of Turn 6 on the final lap put Acosta in front and he made no mistake to take the victory.

Disaster struck for Deniz Öncü and Jaume Masia at the last corner, taking them out of contention and gifting the remaining rostrum positions to Romano Fenati and Jeremy Alcoba.

Tatsuki Suzuki (SIC58 Squadra Corse) took the holeshot from pole, closely followed by Andrea Migno (Rivacold Snipers Team) and Gabriel Rodrigo (Indonesian Racing Gresini).

The race was meanwhile over for John McPhee (Petronas Sprinta Racing) before it really began when a self-inflicted highsider took him out at T7 and likely put an end to his championship ambitions.

Rodrigo took Migno with an aggressive lunge down the inside at T6 and beat Suzuki to the lead down the start-finish straight at the end of lap 1.

Suzuki fought back and the pair kept exchanging punches with Darryn Binder (Petronas Sprinta Racing) hot on their heels.

Championship leader Pedro Acosta (Red Bull KTM Ajo) made his way up the order from P13 and caught up with the leading group by lap 5.

Deniz Öncü (Red Bull KTM Tech3), Romano Fenati (Sterilgarda Max Racing Team) and Jaume Masia (Red Bull KTM Ajo) were now also in the mix while out front, Rodrigo surrendered the lead when the front end of his Honda tucked and he highsided out of the race.

Positions kept swapping and changing in a big lead group and Acosta hit the front for the first time on lap 8 with Binder behind him taking charge of not letting him get away.

The South African inherited the lead when a twitch on lap 9 cost Alcoba positions. His lead did not last long though and it soon were the three KTMs of Öncü, Masia and Alcoba that headed the field.

Suzuki’s race came to a premature end on lap 13 when he lost the front going into T2.

Out front, Fenati was the first chaser of the three KTMs with Binder, Ayumu Sasaki (Red Bull KTM Tech3) and Migno in pursuit.

Fenati capitalised when the KTMs ruffled each other’s feathers on lap 16, but the trio immediately fought back and the messy riding allowed the field, led by Jeremy Alcoba (Indonesian Racing Gresini Moto3), to close in on the leaders.

Acosta almost highsided at the exit of T6 on the penultimate lap, giving Öncü and Masia breathing space in the lead. But the rookie sensation swiftly railed back in and dragged Fenati with him to form a front group of four going into the final lap.

A clinical block pass at T6 brought Acosta back into P1 when he stopped his KTM, hugged the inside line and swept past his marque colleagues.

Acosta executed the race to perfection, but disaster struck behind at the final corner. Öncü attempted a desperate move down the inside line and as he failed to stop his bike, he wiped out Masia who in turn brought down Binder with nowhere to go.

The final podium spots were up for grabs for Fenati and Alcoba who finished on the rostrum despite two long lap penalties.