Joe Roberts seals triumph in style at the Italian Moto2 Grand Prix

Joe Roberts finally achieved his first victory of the season in Moto2 at the Italian GP. The American started from pole position and was frequently in the lead to secure his second triumph in the category.

The race was shortened from 19 to 12 laps after the delay caused by the red flag in the Moto3 race. Roberts (OnlyFans American Racing/Kalex) took advantage of the pole position and maintained the lead, with Alonso López (MB Conveyors SpeedUp/Boscoscuro) in second and Darryn Binder (Liqui Moly Husqvarna Intact GP/Kalex) in third.

The top positions remained stable until on the fourth lap López managed to overtake Roberts – after almost succeeding at the beginning of the lap by taking advantage of the slipstream on the main straight. Fermín Aldeguer (MB Conveyors SpeedUp/Boscoscuro) crashed at the same time, suffering his second consecutive retirement.

What a battle! 🔥@AlonsoLopez_21 takes the leads from @joerobertsracer ⚔️#ItalianGP 🇮🇹 pic.twitter.com/SiSbYDcumR

— MotoGP™🏁 (@MotoGP) June 2, 2024

Binder would lose positions to Manuel González (QJMotor Gresini/Kalex) and Arón Canet (Fantic Racing/Kalex), and on the fifth lap González reached second by exchanging positions with Roberts. When he was fighting for the top five, Binder crashed at Arrabiatta 1 with seven laps to go.

What a shame after the best performance of 2024 💥@DarrynBinder_15 podium hopes end in the gravel 👀#ItalianGP 🇮🇹 pic.twitter.com/dZbozroKvr

— MotoGP™🏁 (@MotoGP) June 2, 2024

On the ninth lap, González and Canet took advantage of an attack by Roberts on López to move up to first and second, respectively. In the front group were also the MT Helmets-MSi riders, Ai Ogura and Sergio García. Canet took the lead in Scarperia on the same lap. Everything was shrouded in uncertainty, and Roberts quickly returned to the lead, with González in second and López in third. The top two started the last lap with a more significant margin to the chasers, and González used the slipstream to overtake Roberts at turn one.

However, the American quickly responded to regain the lead and maintain it until the end to secure the first victory of the season. González finished in second and López closed out the podium. García, the championship leader, managed to reach fourth place on the final lap by overtaking Ogura. It is also worth noting that wildcard Mattia Pasini (Team Ciatti Boscoscuro) was close to scoring points with a 12th place finish, but crashed on the last lap.