Image: Supplied.

Liqui Moly Dynavolt Intact GP team’s Senna Agius has identified early race pace as the next area of improvement in his young Moto2 career, the Australian achieving ninth-place at the penultimate round in Portugal on Sunday.

Agius qualified 13th in Portimao after an engine failure ended his Malaysian GP early, which arrived just one week after claiming victory at his home Grand Prix in Phillip Island.

A slow start in Portugal saw him drop down the order during the opening stages, before recovering to P9 and scoring seven world championship points to sit 10th overall in the standings.

“It wasn’t a bad race, even though I didn’t get off to the best start and the first lap didn’t go – that’s why I fell back a few positions,” said Agius. “I also had a little trouble finding my speed at the start of the race, which is why I ended up losing some places.

“In the last three laps, I overtook some good riders and made it into the top 10. So, let’s take the positives, because we have a strong race pace. That’s important, but right now the focus is on being faster in the early stages, qualifying better, and getting a better start to the race.

“The good thing after this weekend is that the guys and I are clear on how we can improve. I think we need to focus on that now to finish the season in Valencia in the best possible way.”

The 20-year-old’s future was secured in the category in July, where he signed a one-year contract extension with the team that will see him through the 2026 Moto2 World Championship season.