Vierge claims PETRONAS Sprinta Racing’s first Moto2 podium

2021-06-07 08:01
The CatalanGP proved to be one for the history books for PETRONAS Sprinta Racing, with Xavi Vierge claiming the team’s first Moto2 podium since joining the intermediate class. Team-mate Jake Dixon made a good recovery ride to cross the line 18th, after starting 32nd.

A great start for Vierge in his home GP saw him gain two places off the line, to lift himself from sixth to fourth on the opening lap. The first few laps saw him begin to distance himself from those behind him, before he started to pile the pressure on the third placed rider in front. Finally able to make his move on lap 16, Xavi then proceeded to set his sights on defending his podium place. Despite another rider doing their best to get past, Vierge valiantly held on to his third place at the chequered flag and took the first Moto2 podium for PETRONAS Sprinta Racing. This result now lifts Xavi to eighth in the championship standings, with 42 points.

Team-mate Dixon had his work cut out, starting from 32nd due to a crash in Q1 yesterday. The Brit immediately got his head down and gained four places on the opening lap, before claiming a further two more two laps later. Jake continued making progress throughout the opening half of the race and was up to 22nd at the midpoint. As the 22-lap race unfolded, it proved to be more difficult for Dixon to make progress through the field, however he was able to claim a few more places before the final lap. In the end Jake crossed the line 18th and unfortunately missed out on adding to his 11-point total in the World Championship – however he does hold on to his 18th place in the riders’ standings.

Vierge and Dixon will now have a short break, following two back-to-back race weekends, before heading to Sachsenring for the eighth round of the year: the Grand Prix Deutschland (18-20 June).






Johan Stigefelt
Team Director





We have worked a long time for this podium and it feels great! We have seen it coming because, for the last few races, Xavi and his crew have been working really well. We’ve been a bit unfortunate in some races, like being taken out of Le Mans and the crash in Mugello when we had good pace, but Xavi has always been there. Everything was executed perfectly and we managed to take this podium. It’s a big relief and everyone has worked so hard, so thank you to all of them.

Unfortunately on the other side of the garage, it was another struggle for Jake and this wasn’t what we were hoping for. We have some things to work on and we need to figure out how to improve his feeling on the bike. It’s good that we can use Xavi’s data and learn from it to hopefully help Jake ahead of the next race in Germany.

Source: SIC Racing Team

Click here to visit our forums to discuss this story