2011 Qatar Moto2 Race Result: One Man Dominates, Chasing Pack Thrills

Results and summary of the Moto2 race at Qatar:

Stefan Bradl has taken victory in the first Moto2 race of the season with a clear and unchallenged victory, simultaneously securing the first ever win for the Kalex chassis.

The race turned into a replica of the 125cc race earlier in the evening: After dominating all weekend, just as Nico Terol had in the 125cc class, Bradl got the holeshot off the line and was never challenged again. The Viessmann Kiefer rider's lead did not grow as quickly as Terol's in 125, but at no point was he in serious danger of losing the lead, other than through a mistake of his own making. Victory came simply and impressively.

And just as in the 125 race, the real battle was for 2nd. A chasing group quickly formed, consisting of Thomas Luthi, Jules Cluzel and Yuki Takahashi. Andrea Iannone joined the battle for 2nd on lap 4, and soon worked his way firmly into the middle of the chasing group. Cluzel slipped off the back of the group, while Alex de Angelis battled his way toward the front, but the chasers had no one leading the hunt.

Luthi, Iannone and Takahashi fought a hard and thrilling battle for 2nd, with bold moves for the lead from all three. Iannone had the advantage down the straight, but Luthi would not surrender easily, trying multiple times to attack Iannone back round the outside. The scrap allowed De Angelis to join the fun, sitting poised to take advantage of any mistake.

In the end, Iannone came out on top, clinching 2nd spot after an impressive fight up through the grid from 16th. Iannone just held off Luthi, forcing the Interwetten rider down into 3rd, while Alex de Angelis got the best of Takahashi on the final laps.

Marc Marquez' first race in the Moto2 class was a real baptism of fire: the Catalunya Caixa rider got a horrible start, getting swamped off the line and finding himself battling around 10th position. After pushing forward to 6th, the reigning 125cc champion made a small mistake, crashing out of the race and furious at himself for allowing it to happen.

Results: