The 125cc race at Misano was the opposite to that of Indianapolis one week ago, beginning with a tight group and a close fight at the head of the field.

It was a strange race under good conditions, with a surprise ending that left the 2009 World Champion one step closer to being crowned.

Julián Simón took advantage of a last lap crash between Andrea Iannone and Pol Espargaró to clinch the win.

Bancaja rider Julián Simón took victory number four of the 2009 season to all-but-certainly secure his first world title. The Spaniard showed no caution in the race, however, as he got off to his best start of the year and rolled up his sleeves for a fight with Andrea Iannone for the lead. Riding at the limit, he backed off in order to conserve points and avoid any unwelcome altercations.

It was a strategy that paid off in the end, as Iannone and Pol Espargaró came together on the final lap and showed just how dangerous the battle for the win could be. The elimination of the two riders ahead of him allowed Simón to cross the line first and extend his advantage to 57.5 points in the overall standings.

“I am very happy with the win, even though it came in a very strange way. I suppose it makes up for the mistake that we made in Barcelona”, he said. “I feel bad for Espargaró and Iannone, but I think that it is clear that Iannone was in the wrong. That corner is difficult to pass on and everyone knows that. I worked well all weekend, doing everything possible to stop our rivals closing in, and it was successful. I had a much better start than at other races and I am very satisfied with every aspect of the weekend. I'm sorry about the crash between the two guys in the lead, but with the effort that we put in I think that we deserved the victory just as much. We are getting closer to the title with every race, and I can ride more calmly because of this. I would lve to take the title in Portugal because of how close it is to home, but I'm not banking on it because Nico and Bradley will make things hard for me. I will be going for the win there because it is a track that I like a lot. NowI'm going to rest up and get ready for Estoril.”

Chasing the podium with grit and determination was Simon´s teammate Bradley Smith. The Brtiton was plagued by problems after taking off from pole, lacking trust in his machinery over the opening handful of laps. One comeback later and he was in the fight for the rostrum, but when in sixth place the difficulties returned in the form of a gearbox issue. Rather than giving up, Smith fought to maintain positions, and worked his way up to fifth once more. The crash at the front rewarded him for his efforts with third place.

“I can say that I am happy with the podium, but it is a shame that we couldn't have fought for an even better result. The start of the race was difficult for me –braking didn't feel comfortable- but I felt better and better as the race progressed and I started to overtake other riders”, he explained. “I had fun riding and coming back through the field, and I knew that little by little I could get up to the podium places, but with ten laps to go I had a problem with the gearbox on the slow corners. That dropped me down again, and I thought that the rostrum had escaped my grasp. The last lap incident between Espargaró and Iannone gifted me third place, and I think that this was the perfect result. Fourth, second and third in the last three races are good results, and I'm feeling a lot more comfortable. I will have to continue like this and attack hard in the last four races to get the runner-up spot.”

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