Weather drama: Moto2 title battle and Agius’s show at Phillip Island called off

Just as in the premier class, the battle for the title is still in full swing in the middle category of the World Championship. Since Saturday’s sprint race, which saw Marc Marquez return to the top of the standings, the competition has been tighter in the Moto2 World Championship than in any other class. Intact GP rider Manuel Gonzalez and Izan Guevara (Pramac-Yamaha) are separated by just 5.5 points.

Following three consecutive GP wins by Guevara, his rival and championship leader Gonzalez managed to turn the tide. Pole position went to the Spaniard from the German Intact team. Yet at Phillip Island, much had pointed in favour of his team-mate Senna Agius. The youngster, who finished third on his debut in 2024 and won in 2025, was also on course for pole position – but the fans’ favourite overdid it and crashed (in the same corner that proved Jorge Martin’s undoing shortly afterwards).

Senna Agius for Australien: Keine Chance auf den Heimsieg

Foto: Ronny Lekl

Senna Agius dropped back to seventh on the grid, aiming to dive straight into his home Grand Prix behind Izan Guevara (6th) – and, without any team orders, do everything he could to repeat his 2025 triumph.

But the glorious final farewell to Moto2 at the legendary circuit was not to be. After several postponements, the race was officially cancelled at 2 pm local time, partly because track safety could not be guaranteed for the proposed start time. Intact GP team boss Jürgen Lingg commented briefly on the cancellation after a long wait: “The conditions – with wind, wetness and very cool tarmac – were really very poor; who knows, perhaps it was for the best that we left our bikes in the pits. But of course, it’s not a good feeling for any of us to be here only to end up not racing.”

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One thing is certain: the race will not be rescheduled. The number of remaining races is now down to Malaysia, Qatar, Portimão and Valencia. The tense situation in the World Championship standings is on hold and will resume this coming Sunday in Sepang. For both World Championship rivals, the cancellation means a missed opportunity – for Gonzalez to extend his World Championship lead from pole position, and for Guevara to close the gap on his compatriot in every respect.

Izan Guevara bleibt erster WM-Verfolger

Foto: Gold and Goose