Source: Red Bull.

Pole man Bo Bendsneyder made a fabulous start to the ninth Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup season with a hard fought victory in race one at Jerez.

Bendsneyder carried his qualifying form into the race and set a fast pace from the early laps but could never break away from Australian Olly Simpson and Oscar Gutierrez, who left the front row with him.

The trio couldn’t break away either and were joined by 16-year-old Italian Fabio Di Giannantonio. As if that was not exciting enough Asia Talent Cup Champion Kaito Toba, the 15-year-old Japanese rider, caught them after making up for a couple of early mistakes.

Then as the five fought it out fellow Japanese Ayumu Sasaki, the 14-year-old and 15-year-old Spaniard Rufino Florido closed in to make it a seven-way contest.

Onto the last lap anyone of them could have won but no one could out scrap Bendsneyder when it counted, winning ahead of Gutierrez and Simpson.

Double winner for the weekend in Jerez, Bendsneyder made Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup race two very different by charging away from the pack. Three seconds behind him at the flag was Di Giannantonio, who had to fight all the way to come out ahead of the seven rider scrap for second.

Simpson, 17, took third for the second time in the weekend and admitted that he was a touch lucky to be on the podium again. He benefitted when Japanese 15-year-old Kaito Toba collected his 14-year-old fellow countryman Ayumu Sasaki at the last corner.

Races three and four in the 13-race season are scheduled for Assen in the Netherlands on 26-27 June.

2015 Red Bull Rookies Cup
Round one – Jerez, Spain

Race one results:
1. Bo BENDSNEYDER
2. Oscar GUTIERREZ
3. Olly SIMPSON (AUS)
4. Kaito TOBA
5. Fabio DI GIANNANTONIO
6. Ayumu SASAKI
7. Rufino FLORIDO
8. Enzo BOULOM
9. Marc GARCIA
10. Robert SCHOTMAN

Race two results:
1. Bo BENDSNEYDER
2. Fabio DI GIANNANTONIO
3. Olly SIMPSON (AUS)
4. Rufino FLORIDO
5. Enzo BOULOM
6. Oscar GUTIERREZ
7. Walid SOPPE
8. Marc GARCIA
9. Kaito TOBA
10. Mattia CASADEI

Championship standings:
1. Bo BENDSNEYDER 50
2. Olly SIMPSON (AUS) 32
3. Fabi DI GIANNANTONIO 31
4. Oscar GUTIERREZ 30
5. Rufino FLORIDO 22
6. Kaito TOBA 20
7. Enzo BOULOM 19
8. Marc GARCIA 15
9. Walid SOPPE 14
10. Ayumu SASAKI 10

Click here for detailed results