MotoE - In the French GP Hikari Okubo, Japanese rider of the Avant Ajo MotoE team, got the first podium in the MotoE World Cup. Okubo is the first Asian rider to participate in the MotoGP electric class. Thanks to the results of the two races at Le Mans, Okubo is now fifth in the overall standings.
The Le Mans circuit hosted the second round of the fourth edition of the MotoE World Cup, in a weekend characterized by good weather and high temperatures. Hikari Okubo, in his second year in MotoE, once again completed two excellent races, taking his first career podium in MotoE and obtaining a sixth place in race 2. With the points scored in the French round, the Japanese rider is now fifth in the standings with 47 points.
In two years in MotoE, Okubo had 11 races in total, obtaining third place as his best result just last weekend at Le Mans. Before this podium, Okubo's best result in a race was fifth place in Jerez two weeks ago. Okubo had achieved the same result in his debut season in the Austrian GP at Red Bull RIng.
The next appointment of the MotoE World Cup is in two weeks on the Italian Mugello track for the Italian GP.
Hikari Okubo (Avant Ajo MotoE rider) - 3rd and 6th in the French GP of MotoE
“I finished Friday with good sensations, as we qualified on the second row and this gave us the opportunity to fight for a good result in the two races this weekend. After the first qualifying session (Q1) we made a small change to the bike that allowed us to take a step forward in Q2. On Friday we lapped with very consistent and fairly fast times, which is important.
I am very happy to have achieved my first podium in this series. The goal of this round was to be in the Top 3 and we achieved it, so we are very satisfied. Saturday's race was not easy, but despite that I gave my XNUMX% to fight with my opponents and get this result. We started well and pushed a lot from the start, but the riders in the leading group were faster than me. At a certain point I was overtaken, but in the end Zannoni who was second crashed and we got our first podium. This result and the points are important for the championship.”
MotoE World Cup 2022
The gallery of the French GP of MotoE in Le Mans
“Sunday was a good second race. We tried to fight for the podium, but the others were stronger than me. We had a great feeling after the podium on Saturday and we got some important points for the championship. Overall, it has been a great weekend at Le Mans and we have shown that we have the potential to fight for a top position this year. Now is the time to focus on the next appointment in Italy, where we will give 100% to try to get a good result again.”
MotoE World Cup 2022
The World Cup standings
Photos: motogp.com and Avant Ajo MotoE team
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