Somkiat of Idemitsu Honda Team Asia became the first Thai rider to win a Grand Prix race after clocking 25 minutes 40.876 seconds, 3.230 seconds ahead of second-placed Italian Celestino Vietti, reports the Bangkok Post.
Somkiat, who was out of the season-opening race in Qatar due to injury, fired from fourth on the grid to dominate a Moto2 race that was shortened from 25 to 16 laps due to safety concerns regarding track conditions in the extreme Indonesian heat that hit 43C yesterday.
The Thai picked up a maximum of 25 points for the win and moved up to fourth in the world championship standings while Qatar-winning VR46 rider Vietti was 45 points, nine ahead of Spaniard de Pons Racing Aron Canet, who completed the podium. Marc VDS rider Sam Lowes of Great Britain was third with 29 points.
Pole winner Jake Dixon of Great Britain retired after crashing at Turn 10.
In the MotoGP race, which was delayed 75 minutes by heavy rain, Miguel Oliveira kept his cool to win and then promised to give the trophy to his daughter.
The Portuguese KTM rider finished 2.205 seconds ahead of current world champion Fabio Quartararo of France, who started from pole position on his Yamaha.
Another Frenchman, Johann Zarco, was still 3.158 seconds behind for the Pramac Racing team.
Quartararo launched comfortably into the first corner, but at the end of the first lap he was caught by Oliveira and Australian Jack Miller on a Ducati.
Oliveira spent a few laps behind the Australian before realizing he had the pace to stretch as the soggy track began to dry out.
“When I passed him I just tried to concentrate for the next five laps,” said Oliveira, who won his fifth Grand Prix. “Then I widened the gap and managed it for the whole race, but it certainly wasn’t easy.
“It’s really moving,” Oliveira said. “I promised my daughter I would get an Indonesia trophy, so this one’s for you baby.”
Six-time world champion Marc Marquez was ruled out earlier with a concussion after a horrific morning warm-up crash catapulted him through the air at turn seven.
The Spaniard’s Honda rolled from end to end as it disintegrated, with Marquez appearing to land heavily on his left arm and hit his helmet on the ground at around 180km/h.
A shaken Marquez got up and carefully walked away before being taken to a nearby hospital where he was declared unfit to run.
The race was also reduced to 20 laps instead of the originally planned 27.
-Additional reports by AFP
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