Moto3: Bastianini plays it smart to defeat Binder

Enea Bastianini has played it smart to beat new Moto3 world champion Brad Binder at the Japanese Grand Prix, leaving it until the last lap to make his move and doing enough to keep the South African behind him down the line.

The Red Bull KTM rider made a break at the start of the race, breaking away and extending his lead to the chasing five-rider pack to half a second with only a few laps to go. But Bastianini was able to close him down in the final laps, pulling off a move with three corners to go and holding him over the line.

The battle for the final podium spot was won by home hero Hiroki Ono, taking the place only after a race-long battle with the Team Sky VR46 duo of Andrea Migno and Nicolo Bulega that was also only decided in the last corners, when contact between Ono and Migno left the Italian in the gravel and his teammate back in fourth.

Scotsman John McPhee was massively unlucky to not even make it around a lap, crashing out in the opening corner after a fall for Jorge Navarro left both McPhee and Gabriel Rodrigo with nowhere to go but into the gravel trap.