John McPhee stood on the top step of the Moto3 podium in an intense battle which saw the PETRONAS Sprinta rider claim his second victory with the team, his third of his career.

McPhee timed his charge to perfection. Starting 17th on the grid, the Scott bided his time, sitting in the pack before gradually picking off his competitors, hitting the front on the final lap and taking the victory.

Speaking after the race, the rider from Oban said: “I’m over the moon! It’s a dream come true to be on the top step here after the last race and all the problems there. I tried to set all my times on my own on Friday and then I completely let the team down in qualifying, by having a crash right at the start.

“That race just couldn’t have gone any better for me though: it went perfectly to plan and I felt so strong. I knew it would be hard to make my way through, but on the first lap I was already up to P11 so I just tried to keep calm and creep my way forward. I found myself back in 14th so I just tried to mount a charge to see what happened. On that last lap, I felt really strong, so I knew I could pass one or two guys in the last few corners if I needed,” McPhee said.

The Scotsman finished by saying: “I just want to say a massive thank you to the team; I couldn’t have done it without them. It’s still early days in the championship, it’s good to close the gap but let’s see what happens next weekend.”

McPhee sits third in the overall standings, 14 points adrift of Albert Arenas, who failed to add points to his tally in Misano.

The Scotsman will be aiming for a repeat performance this weekend when the series returns to the World Circuit Marco Simoncelli for round eight of the season for the Emilia Romagna and Rimini’s Coast motorcycle Grand Prix.

Featured image: MotoGP.com