Iván Ortolá returned to victory in the Moto3 Dutch GP. In a race decided right at the finish line, the rider clinched his first win in over a year, last standing on the top podium at the Spanish GP in 2023.
At the start, Ángel Piqueras (Leopard Racing/Honda) took advantage of pole position to stay ahead, while Ortolá (MT Helmets-MSi/KTM) moved up from fourth to second before overtaking the leader. Taiyo Furusato (Honda Team Asia) settled into third.
The top positions remained stable until, with 17 laps to go, Piqueras lost positions to Furusato and Collin Veijer (Liqui Moly Husqvarna Intact GP). Despite the stability, the pack remained tightly grouped.
The fight for 3rd is ON! 🔥@Angelpiqueras18 is having the upper hand so far behind @IvanOrtola48 and @Taiyofurusato72 ⚔️#DutchGP 🇳🇱 pic.twitter.com/a58KxPQgCb
— MotoGP™🏁 (@MotoGP) June 30, 2024
Two laps later, Piqueras regained his position against Veijer, moving up to third. While Ortolá held the lead, there were multiple position changes behind him, with a large group of riders in contention.
With 11 laps remaining, the top seven were within less than a second. The leader changed a lap later, with Veijer taking the top spot in his home round for the first time. Ortolá also lost his position to Furusato at that moment but quickly regained it.
👨🍳 @CollinVeijer95 has been cooking this slowly!
— MotoGP™🏁 (@MotoGP) June 30, 2024
The Dutchman now leads the race on home soil! 🙌#DutchGP 🇳🇱 pic.twitter.com/P4XfrSpLG8
With seven laps to go, Furusato dropped significantly in the standings to seventh, and Adrián Fernández (Leopard Racing/Honda) reached the podium places for the first time. Five laps from the end, there were more significant changes: Ortolá dropped to fifth, while Alonso moved up to second.
The intense battle for podium positions continued, with Veijer managing to open up a solid lead. Position changes were constant, with many riders involved in the fight. Everything was open at the start of the final lap.
On the last lap, Veijer was under pressure from Ortolá. The fight for the win was between them. The Spaniard overtook just before the final chicane. Veijer counterattacked on the exit and almost regained the lead at the finish line, but had to settle for second place, just 0.012s behind.
🏁 #Moto3 RACE 🏁@IvanOrtola48 WINS by 0.012s in an INCREDIBLE PHOTO FINISH🤯#DutchGP 🇳🇱 pic.twitter.com/gIinkGNzWr
— MotoGP™🏁 (@MotoGP) June 30, 2024
Also on the last lap, Muñoz secured the last step of the podium, with José Antonio Rueda (Red Bull KTM Ajo) and Alonso completing the top five. For the Colombian, who leads the championship, it marks the end of a streak of three wins in a row. Daniel Holgado (Red Bull KTM Tech3) finished only 11th, losing the second position in the World Championship standings to Veijer as a result.
