Podium eludes Tech 3 Racing in Phillip Island

Mike di Meglio and Bradley Smith both brilliantly fought for the podium in today's Australian Moto2 Grand Prix before they eventually finished ninth and 18th respectively in a race run in gloriously sunny but treacherously windy conditions.

Starting from the front row for the first time in his Moto2 career, di Meglio made a fantastic start in front of 43,800 windswept fans at the spectacular Phillip Island circuit.

The Frenchman, who won the 2008 125cc World Championship in Australia, starred in an enthralling early battle for the podium and he showed the high potential of the Mistral 610 machine by holding a terrific third place until lap eight.

His ros trum hopes though were ended just two laps later when he superbly saved a big front-end slide at Turn 4. The slide dropped di Meglio back to ninth position and that's where he finished after fighting hard in a pulsating five-rider battle for fifth.

Smith was also mounting a strong challenge for the podium in the early stages of the 25-lap race and a brilliant start from seventh on the grid rocketed him into third on the second lap.

The 20-year-old was briefly bumped back down to sixth but two fine passes on lap seven moved him back into fourth when his top three attack ended a lap later. Pushing hard to keep pressure on di Meglio in third he ran off track and dropped back to 28th.

He displayed his tenacity and determination though once again to launch an impressive fightback and he eventually finished 18th.

Bradley Smith: 18th 121-points:

"Obviously today was pretty disappointing and not what I hoped for. I did exactly the same as I did every other lap going into the corner, but I think the bike was unsettled a little bit by the curbs and just went sideways. I had to go straight and there was nothing that I could do. It is one of those moments that when they happen you just have to react as quickly as possible to keep control of the bike. I was fourth at the time and feeling really confident of getting a podium, so to be not even in the points is difficult to accept. At the moment we don't seem to be able to catch a break and we've had some bad luck. But that's racing and once again we have shown the potential of the bike and I hope to be battling for the podium in Sepang in a few days."

Hervé Poncharal - Team Manager:

“Not since the beginning of the season have we seen both of our Mistral 610 bikes fighting at the front like here today. That is a very satisfying feeling and credit to everybody that has worked so hard on this project. Mike and Bradley both had a really solid start and were pushing very hard in the first few laps. We knew it was not going to be easy, but having two bikes in front meant we were hoping for at least one top five. Unfortunately Bradley lost the rear at Siberia and he had to run off track and he finished outside of the points. This is a big disappointment for him as it would have been the possibility to go back to fifth in the World Championship. Mike was very fast and it was by far the best race of the year for him. Coming after his fantastic qualifying he was unlucky not to stay in the fight for the podium. Unfortunately he had small issue with the grip from the front ty re that he'd never experienced all weekend, so we have to check the reason why. There's no doubt he got a big boost though with how fast he was all weekend and I hope he will be back in Moto2 next year because he proved today he can fight with the best in this very competitive class.”

Pictures are available at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/12117702@N05/