Mahindra earn their second podium at 'The Cathedral'

Assen (Netherlands), June 28 (IANS) Mahindra Racing's Miguel Oliveira finished a fine third in the Moto3 Dutch TT, earning the team's first podium of the season at the TT Circuit Assen here Sunday.

The Portuguese picked his way through after starting 13th and took control of the podium position in the sixth of the 22-lap race around the 4.54 km classic circuit also known as the "The Cathedral". The race was won by Honda's Álex Márquez of Spain while teammate and compatriot Álex Rins came second.

This is only the second podium finish for the Indian team after the same rider came third last year in Malaysia on the MGP3O.

However, second rider Arthur Sissis finished a disappointing 21st after suffering handling issues that saw him drop back from a strong start.

"It was a hard race. I was quite lucky at the start not to lose much time overtaking or getting involved in accidents. After that I focused on my lap time. I already knew that on used tyres we could make a good rhythm. Being so constant gave me an advantage," said Oliveira.

"After I passed Rins for second he was behind me for quite a long time. He studied me very well and was able to pass me on the last braking point. There are still areas we need to improve our bike and the team is working very hard. This result gives much more motivation to keep working, to improve the bike and be constantly on the podium."

Team CEO Mufaddal Choonia said he is over the moon to achieve a podium at the classic circuit.

"I'm over the moon. It has been a weekend of ups and downs but completely up and up in the race. I would have like to finish second but that is racing. Miguel again showed what he is capable of. We had pole at this race last year and finished fourth. It seems our devotions are heard here at the Cathedral of Racing," said Choonia.