The race for the 2024 FIM Supersport World Championship is well and truly on after the Motul French Round, with Yari Montella (Barni Spark Racing Team) taking victory in Race 2 and closing the gap to Adrian Huertas (Aruba.it Racing WorldSSP Team) in the standings to 14 points; it had been 46 heading into the Portuguese Round two rounds ago. Speaking after his victory at the Circuit de Nevers Magny-Cours, the Italian stated how it could be the most important win of the season after a hard-fought battle with Huertas and Stefano Manzi (Pata Prometeon Ten Kate Racing).
Montella claimed sixth in Sunday morning’s Race 1 but was penalised for irresponsible riding after making contact with title rival Huertas at Turn 8 in the closing stages, forcing the #99 onto the wet patches although he was able to keep his Panigale V2 machine upright. Montella was given a Long Lap Penalty for the incident, and while he finished behind Huertas in Race 1, it seemed to fire him up for Race 2.
Montella started Race 2 from sixth, while Huertas was third, with the pair having contrasting starts. Montella got away superbly to move into second by the end of Lap 1, behind only Can Oncu (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing), while Huertas dropped to fifth. Huertas was back in second behind Montella by Lap 4 but was unable to pass his rival before the fight intensified as Manzi joined the party. It turned into a three-way fight in the final third of the 19-lap race, with Montella, Manzi and Huertas scrapping it out. Championship leader Huertas dropped back over the last couple of laps to finish in third, with Montella resisting Yamaha star Manzi by just 0.171s to claim a hard-fought victory in Race 2 even with the trio often trading positions on track.
Discussing his victory, Montella said: “It was a great victory, and so important. Maybe the most important one of the year, because we fought as a trio until the end. It wasn’t easy to manage the other two riders who I know are very strong. It’s great to be here, win the race and nothing more. We need to keep focused. We were able to start the first two laps with the race pace and maybe I opened the gap, and I forced other riders to push so they could close it. I was able to win because I knew that for them to close the gap, they’d need to use more tyre than me and, in the end, not Manzi but maybe Adrian felt less grip at the end.”
The gap in the Championship standings has closed up massively in the last two rounds. Heading into Portimao, Huertas held a 46-point lead over the #55 Ducati, but it now sits at just 14 points with four rounds to go. Montella gained 26 points at the rollercoaster Portimao venue to reduce it to 20, before gaining another six on the leader at Magny-Cours. With four rounds and eight races to go, there are still 200 points available.
Previewing the next round, which takes place at the Cremona Circuit, Montella said: “It’s more or less a ‘home’ round because I’m seven or eight hours away by car! I expect, like every race, Huertas, Manzi and maybe some other riders. We tested there after Misano and the MV Agusta was strong so maybe they could fight for the victory also. It’s a new track for everybody so I think everybody needs to understand it better. It’s a small track but not easy, with a lot of turns and technical parts. I think it’ll be fun.”
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Source: WorldSBK.com