Erno Juhani Kostamo won yesterday’s 54th Macau Motorcycle Grand Prix, becoming the first Finnish rider ever and first non-British winner since 1997, according to a statement from the Macau Grand Prix Organising Committee’s (MGPOC) website.
Kostamo, 31, the statement noted, dominated the free practice and qualifying races. He also recorded the fastest lap of the race. He finished the eight-lap race with the total time of 19 minutes and 54 seconds.
The statement added that the rider, who rode a BMW S1000RR for Penz 13, did not get off to a good start, having worked his way up from fourth place after starting from the pole position.
He went on to overtake British rider Robert Hodson, 35 and then 30-year-old German rider David Datzer as they rounded the Lisboa Bend for the first time, the statement added.
In the third lap, Kostamo and Datzer passed South African-Portuguese rider Sheridan Morais, 37, who was in the lead, at the Melco Hairpin. The race ended with Datzer finishing second, while Morais came in third.
The statement quoted Kostamo as saying: “The week went as planned”. He also said that he “felt confident from the word go, just focusing on doing my own thing. I worked hard on my braking and that paid off. It’s an amazing feeling to win at Macau.”
This year marked the Finnish rider’s third time competing in the Macau Grand Prix. His career highlights include competing in the International Road Racing Championship, Superbike in 2018 and 2022.
This year saw a female rider taking part in the Macau Grand Prix Motorcycle event for the first time. 31-year-old Nadieh Schoots of the Netherlands riding a Kawasaki ZX10RR finished the race in twelfth place.
This handout photo provided by the Government Information Bureau (GCS) and downloaded from the Macau Grand Prix Organising Committee shows Erno Kostamo en route to his victory at the 54th Macau Motorcycle Grand Prix yesterday.
