Jonathan Rea dedicates Estoril victory to Jason Dupasquier after fatal crash at Mugello

The 19-year-old was involved in a multi-rider accident during qualifying for the Moto3 race on Saturday and was treated at the trackside before being airlifted by medical helicopter to Careggi Hospital in Florence.

Sadly, he succumbed to his injuries and his death was confirmed on Sunday.

Northern Ireland rider Rea, who finished third in Saturday’s first race at Estoril won the Superpole sprint race on Sunday for his maiden victory at the Portuguese circuit and paid tribute to Dupasquier afterwards.

“I just got back to parc ferme to hear the news that Jason Dupasquier has passed away, so I dedicate that [win] to him and his family and I pray that they have strength at this time,” said Rea.

The six-time champion opted for the harder option rear tyre and won the 10-lap race by 0.6s from Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pata Yamaha), with Scott Redding – winner of Saturday’s opening race – taking third on the Aruba.it Ducati.

Rea added: “It was an incredible race for me. I put my head down from the start and it was a little bit scrappy – everyone wanted to lead to get a clear view out of the last corner to understand who was coming on the brakes.

“Normally the SCX tyre would suit me for the shorter races but I can be fast with the ‘0’, so I’m super happy with that.”

Redding was left to rue a costly mistake in the race when he ran wide while holding second place behind Razgatlioglu, allowing Rea and American rider Garrett Gerloff (GRT Yamaha) through.

He managed to fight his way back past Gerloff to claim third, but Redding’s chances of challenging for the race win were thwarted after the error.

Rea was imperious as he finished the race strongly with a series of fastest laps after taking the lead on the brakes into turn one from Razgatlioglu.

It was the Kawasaki rider’s 102nd career WSBK victory and he now leads the championship by 13 points from Redding going into the final race of the weekend (14:00 BST).

Michael Ruben Rinaldi (Aruba.it Ducati) finished fifth with Alex Lowes (Kawasaki Racing Team) rounding out the top six.

Eugene Laverty – a faller in Saturday’s race – finished eighth on the RC Squadra Corse BMW behind Tom Sykes (BMW Motorrad).

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