Qatar : 125cc raceHector Faubel took victory at the first 125cc race of the season in Qatar, following a masterclass in slipstreaming by the Spaniard.
Carrying on from his win at the end of last year at Valencia, Faubel took the 25 points up for grabs from under
the nose of team-mate Gabor Talmacsi.
The two Bancaja Aspar riders were out on their own for the majority of the race, although two of their early rivals dropped off the pace with a variety of mechanical problems.
Team-mate Sergio Gadea had taken the holeshot at the Losail International Circuit, but eventually had to retire. His troubles were mirrored by ex-Aspar rider Mattia Pasini, now with Polaris World, who suffered a fuel breather problem at the end of the first lap.
After making up a gap of nearly a second with a series of flying laps, Talmacsi finally took the lead with six laps to go, and he and Faubel traded the top spot for the final laps. The Hungarian looked to be on course for a repeat of his last Grand Prix win at Qatar two years ago, but was followed to the line by his new team-mate and mugged of glory after an audacious slipstreaming manoeuvre from Faubel.
Engaging in their own battle for a podium spot, Lukas Pesek and Raffaele de Rosa went hammer and tongs for third place.
Pesek eventually came out on top, with de Rosa joined in the top six by Simone Corsi and Tomoyoshi Koyama.
Pol Espargaro and Esteve Rabat continued their rivalry from the Spanish Championship in seventh and eighth respectively, with Pablo Nieto and Alexis Masbou completing the top ten.
DORNA / CAPSIS International
