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SA's Brad Binder takes his third win of the year in Australian Moto2

Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto2 rider claimed a hard-fought victory at Phillip Island, whilst team mate Oliveira finished eleventh.

An excellent performance from Brad Binder on Sunday at the Australian GP ended with him achieving his third victory of the season, following on from successes in Germany and Aragon.

The South African's win was the Red Bull team's second in as many years at Phillip Island, following on from last year’s triumph for Miguel Oliveira. He finished eleventh on Sunday, reducing the gap at the top of the standings by a point.

Binder started from the second row, and was ready to go one better than his second place from the 2017 Australian GP.

Making a good start, he led the way on Lap 3 and would hold onto it for 10 further laps. Later swallowed up by a group of 7 riders fighting for the podium, it would not be until two laps remained that the South African definitively snatched the top spot.

Binder says: "It was a crazy race; I thought I was in Moto3! I made a good start, got to the front and tried to break the group, but with 13 laps to go, I saw that there was no way to do that.

There were people everywhere
"I tried to stay in the group and save something for the end. There were a few scares involving other riders; it was a little crazy, as there were people everywhere.



"I had planned to take the lead when there were two laps left and I pushed with everything I had. I was able to have a good race and take another victory, so I’m very happy. I thank the team a lot, as after the crash in FP3 I had to ride a completely new bike and it worked wonderfully. I hope that things remain the same in Mala

With two races remaining, Miguel Oliveira lies second in the overall standings and cuts the gap to the top to 36 points. Brad Binder is third with 193 points. Red Bull KTM Ajo remain leaders of the team standings, with a 35-point advantage. The Australian GP podium was the team's 25th rostrum in their two seasons in Moto2 to date.

The next race will be the penultimate round of the season, and takes place next week in Malaysia.

Results (Race)
1. Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 39:23.427
2. Joan Mir (Kalex) +0.036
3. Xavi Vierge (Kalex) +0.949
4. Augusto Fernandez (Kalex) +0.957
5. Luca Marini (Kalex) +1.767
11. Miguel Oliveira (Red Bull KTM Ajo) +8.675

Moto2 World Championship Standing 2018 – Riders
1. Francesco Bagnaia (Kalex) 288 points
2. Miguel Oliveira (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 252 points
3. Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 193 points
4. Lorenzo Baldassarri (Kalex) 152 points
5. Joan Mir (Kalex) 149 points

Moto2 World Championship Standing 2018 – Teams
1. Red Bull KTM Ajo 445 points
2. Sky Racing Team VR46 410 points
3. EG 0,0 MARC VDS 297 points
4. Dynavolt Intact GP 257 points
5. Pons HP40 199 points

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