TATSUKI Suzuki has walked onto the Misano podium with team owner Paolo Simoncelli as the winner of the Misano Grand Prix. The poignant act mirrors a tweet Tatsuki posted to Marco after his death, not only predicting the event but asking Marco to watch on from the sky.
The tweet read: ‘Dear Mr Marco Simoncelli. One day I will be going up to the podium with your father so please watch us from the sky... Tatsuki Suzuki’
The picture accompanying the tweet is Tatsuki and Marco’s father, now Tatsuki’s team principle, Paolo Simoncelli, a man who Tatsuki himself admits is like a father to him. Making the feat even more special is that Tatsuki took his first Moto3 win at the circuit named after Simoncelli, a stone’s throw from the family home.
After the race, Tatsuki said: “I was crying in the helmet when I came to the parc ferme. First pole position and first victory on the track named Marco Simoncelli. It’s fantastic, I cannot explain about this.”
The SIC58 Squadra Corse rider brought the podium after leading for much of the race, until the final six laps when he had to defend and attack in equal measure.
An ecstatic yet emotional Paolo said of the victory: “When you win, you win. The victory is unique. You can’t compare it with anything.”
Behind him fellow Honda rider John McPhee had kept out of danger as Andrea Migno clipped Ai Ogura, taking the pair out.
The next round of the championship takes place at Aragon this weekend.
