Motorsport Roundup: Fabio Quartararo Wins MotoGP Italian GP, Helio Castroneves Triumphs At Indy 500 And Rosberg X Racing Wins Ocean X-Prix

The last seven days saw various motorsport disciplines go racing, ranging from two-wheeled circuit racing, four-wheeled oval racing, as well as off-road thrills. That said, the weekend also witnessed the tragic loss of a Moto3 rider. Here’s more on what transpired:

MotoGP

The 2021 Italian Grand Prix at Mugello couldn’t have gone more perfect for Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP rider Fabio Quartararo. After taking pole position and fending off the early Ducati challenge, the Frenchman won the race in dominant fashion. Following him in second place was Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Miguel Oliveira, with Team Suzuki Ecstar’s reigning champion Joan Mir coming in a close third. 

Sadly, the race weekend was also one for mourning following the demise of Swiss Moto3 rider Jason Dupasquier of the Prustel GP team. The 19-year-old succumbed to injuries sustained post a three-bike crash during the qualifying session. We extend our condolences to the Prustel GP Moto3 team and the Dupasquier family. 

IndyCar 

Helio Castroneves certainly proved that age is just a number, taking his fourth win in the prestigious Indianapolis 500 at the age of 46. It was an extremely close-fought win for the Meyer Shank Racing-Honda, with Chip Ganassi Racing’s Alex Palou in second, and Team Penske’s Simon Pagenaud taking third after finishing just half-a-second behind.

Extreme E

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It’s two-for-two now for Rosberg X Racing at Extreme E, as the duo of Johan Kristoffersson and Molly Taylor took top honors at a dramatic Ocean X Prix in Lac Rose, Senegal. With early crashes for the X44 team owned by Lewis Hamilton and JBXE, owned by another Formula 1 world champion, Jenson Button, it was a showdown between Rosberg X Racing and the Veloce Racing squad of Stephane Sarrazin  and Jaimie Chadwick. In the end, Rosberg X Racing maintained their 100 percent win record in Extreme E by winning the second race of the season. Next up will be the Arctic X Prix scheduled to run in Kangerlussuaq from August 29.

Dakar

 

Preparations for the 2022 Dakar Rally continue to take shape, as Audi announced an all-star lineup. It comprises of 14-time Dakar winner Stephane Peterhansel (also known as Mr. Dakar), multiple Dakar winner and former WRC champion Carlos Sainz and Dakar rookie and  2016 World Rallycross champion Mattias Ekstrom. The trio will be piloting Audi’s upcoming all-electric racer that is expected to debut at the Goodwood Festival of Speed, scheduled for July 8-11 in Saudi Arabia. Dakar 2022 is set to run from January 1 and conclude in Jeddah on January 14.

This coming weekend, we’ll be seeing Formula One and Formula 2 return to racing action at Baku, Azerbaijan, with MotoGP heading to Barcelona for the Catalan Grand Prix. The 2021 World Rally Championship season will also return to racing action at Rally Italia, scheduled to run in Sardegna from June 3-6.