The Mantova circuit hosted the final act of the 2024 Internazionali d’Italia MX.
It was a very challenging Sunday for the riders and the bikes, as the rain that fell in the days leading up to the race made the Nuvolari track very heavy.
In the morning time trials both Yago Martinez and Brando Rispoli showed very good speeds. Yago was fourth fastest in his MX2 group and Brando was third in his 125 group.
For Yago the start of the first race was very good and allowed him to get right into the top five. For more than half of the race he was in sixth position, but in the last laps a technical problem slowed him down and forced him to retire.
The second race started well and he was ninth on the first lap. This time Yago did even better and was fighting for the lead until the last lap. He finished in a very good sixth place.
For him these Internazionali ended with a 19th place in the MX2 class, but improvements were seen compared to Riola, now it is a matter of continuing to work to take another step forward.
Brando, who started the 125cc heats as one of the fastest men on the track, was unlucky today. In the first heat he made a good start from the gate and was sixth on the first lap. Then he had to slow down and return to the pits on lap three.
In the second race he was immediately in the top ten, then after a small mistake he rejoined the race in about 15th position and climbed up to 12th by the chequered flag.
Brando finished the International in 15th place, but the knowledge that his pace is one of the best in the field remains.
Now a few weeks off before the next race commitments. The team will prepare for the first round of the Italian Pro Prestige, again in Mantova, on 16th and 17th March.
YAGO MARTINEZ: ‘A positive weekend for me and the team in Mantova.
We are still looking ahead to the World Championship, but this was a good training session, a step forward, this is the way to go. I was fourth in my group in the time trial, which gave me a good starting position.
In the first race I felt pain in my forearms and I couldn’t ride as well as I would have liked, in any case we didn’t finish the race because of technical problems that we are already working on so that they don’t happen again in the future. We finished the second race in sixth place, with two crashes in between. Now we know where we need to improve and we have a few weeks to get to the top. See you next time.
BRANDO RISPOLI: “It was a difficult weekend at Mantova, which started well with a third place in my group and fifth overall. In the first race I retired after a good start due to a mechanical problem, while in the second race I climbed up to sixth place after a bad start, then a crash on the second lap dropped me back to the middle of the group and I finished 12th. There is still a bit of bitterness in my mouth because we had the potential for a podium, but a bit of bad luck stopped us. We will continue to work to be ready for the races that count. I would like to thank Ivano Zanatta, Simone Lorenzoni, Robin Caldelli, Brian Tiso and a special thanks to Gastone Serafini, we will see you on the track.
