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The impressive rise of teenager Carter Thompson in Europe continued at Jerez with a standout performance in the opening round of the Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup, claiming a thrilling race two victory and is confident that the result will ‘definitely be a big help for the rest of the year.’

After charging from ninth on the grid to finish P4 in Saturday’s race one, the highly-rated 17-year-old Thompson stepped it up a level on Sunday.

In a last-lap showdown, Thompson fought his way to the front of the pack, going four-wide into the final turn alongside Hakim Danish, Kristian Daniel Jr. and Marco Morelli before emerging with a career-first Rookies Cup win.

“It was definitely a crazy race,” Thompson reflected. “A lot happened, the conditions were quite a lot different to the rest of the weekend, the track was so much cooler that there was more of a drop in rear tyre grip, so I was really hunting for that at the end.

“It’s a boost to my confidence, and now I know I can run at the front. It’s the first time in Rookies Cup that I’ve really been fighting for the win, so now I know how it all works. It should definitely be a big help for the rest of the year.”

Alongside his Rookies Cup commitments, Thompson has also been impressing in the WorldSSP300 ranks. Riding for MTM Kawasaki aboard a Ninja 400, he currently sits fifth in the standings after two rounds, highlighted by a season-best fourth-place finish in race two at Portimao.