At 13:15 local time the lunchtime 250cc race took centre stage in Malaysia. The penultimate round of the series saw a surprise leader in the early stages, as Jules Cluzel took charge from the start. The favourites for victory were soon back in the picture, however, as the race pace upped rapidly under the sweltering heat. Hiroshi Aoyama clocked a new circuit record of 2’07.597, before tyres started to wear away and falls became a regular occurrence. That favoured a break for the top three, with Aoyama eventually taking victory. He holds the advantage in the overall standings, as the class becomes the only one of the three not to have a victor already decided.
Mapfre riders Mike di Meglio and Álvaro Bautista had a productive weekend that turned sour come Sunday. Once again the two were the victims of a certain amount of misfortune, and both hit the asphalt in race-ending crashes that ruined the hard work put in over the previous two days. Di Meglio started from third on the grid and was amongst the frontrunners early on, but suffered a lack of confidence in the front end of his Aprilia and slipped after just four laps of the Sepang Circuit. He picked the bike back up to attempt a restart, but engine issues ended his day four laps later.
Bautista had similar luck, having made a bad start and making a comeback through the field to try and take the lead. One lap after Di Meglio’s fall, it was Bautista who lost the front end on turn nine, ending his race and any chance of a title push.
Balatonring rider Balázs Németh had his best race of 2009 at the Sepang Circuit, delighting both he and his team. The Hungarian had made a big effort to get into the points after disappointment in Australia, and from the beginning he was a force to be reckoned with in the middle group. The Budapest-born rookie took off from twentieth on the grid, but his best pace of the weekend and crashes ahead of him moved him up to the heady heights of the top ten. Eventually placing eleventh, Nemeth picked up five more points for his tally and extra motivation for the final round of the year in Valencia.
Mike Di Meglio (DNF):
“Today I made a good start, but after the first few laps I felt something strange going on with the front of my Aprilia. I don’t know if it is anything to do with the heat, but I just never felt confident in the performance. In any case, I told myself to keep calm, that the race was long and that I should try to find my feeling. I was able to pass some riders, and I was picking up pace, but suddenly on the last corner the front crossed over and I went down. It was unexplainable really, because I wasn’t pushing hard and the ike just went down with no prior warning. I went back on track to try and finish the race, but the engine started to cut out so I had to come back in. Obviously these things happen, but I feel bad about it because we had a very good weekend up to then and I wanted to end it well. I hope to e back up front for the final race in Valencia.”
Álvaro Bautista (DNF):
“Things were going more or less fine, and I had hooked up to the lead group after making up some places. I felt comfortable riding and wasn’t going at full gas, saving a little for the final push. This track is very demanding, and I wanted to be able to seize my opportunity and take the lead when it came around. My goal was to stay in the pack until then. I hit the bakes before going into turn nine, and I crossed the bars and was unable to avoid the crash. It is a pity, because in three races our chance of the title has gone up in smoke, as we gave our all but had some horrible luck. In Valencia I will try to enjoy the last race at home, and look to give the fans a good result to finish off the year.”
11th Balázs Németh:
“I must say that I am delighted with this result. I was very motivated when the lights went out, and my keenness helped me to get off to a good start. I was in amongst a group and able to push hard with them. After a few laps I hit a rough patch, but I was able to keep my focus and not lose positions. I carried on progressively overtaking riders and was helped to an extent by the crashes from those in front of me. Suddenly I realized that not only could I get into the points, but I could also push even further -such was my level of comfort riding today. I rolled up my sleeves and got down to a final push, and I was able to get up to eleventh. I am very satisfied with this result, and with the fact that I had a better pace today than at any other time this weekend. I want to thank the team for their efforts in making me improve so much, and I hope to repeat this performance in Valencia next time out.”
Pos Rider Bike Time/Gap
1. Hiroshi Aoyama Honda 42m55.689s
2. Hector Barbera Aprilia + 6.397s
3. Marco Simoncelli Gilera + 6.397s
4. Thomas Luthi Aprilia + 14.871s
5. Hector Faubel Honda + 19.177s
6. Ratthapark Wilairot Honda + 19.567s
7. Alex Debon Aprilia + 20.255s
8. Lukas Pesek Aprilia + 34.561s
9. Alex Baldolini Aprilia + 50.937s
10. Shuhei Aoyama Honda + 1m04.186s
11. Balazs Nemeth Aprilia + 1m08.917s
12. Karel Abraham Aprilia + 1m10.616s
13. Valentin Debise Honda + 1m17.945s
14. Bastien Chesaux Aprilia + 1m29.669s
15. Vladimir Leonov Aprilia + 1m43.536s
16. Shoya Tomizawa Honda + 1 lap
