Toni Elías facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Toni Elías
Elías at the 2010 Australian Grand Prix
Nationality	Spanish
Born	(1983-03-26) 26 March 1983 (age 42) Manresa, Spain
Motorcycle racing career statistics MotoGP World Championship Active years 2005–2009, 2011–2012, 2015 Manufacturers Yamaha, Honda, Ducati, Yamaha Forward Championships 0 2015 championship position 27th (2 pts) Starts Wins Podiums Poles F. laps Points 105 1 6 0 3 574 Moto2 World Championship Active years 2010, 2012–2013 Manufacturers Moriwaki, Suter, Kalex Championships 1 (2010) 2013 championship position 18th (22 pts) Starts Wins Podiums Poles F. laps Points 41 7 8 3 2 343 250cc World Championship Active years 2002–2004 Manufacturers Aprilia, Honda Championships 0 2004 championship position 4th (199 pts) Starts Wins Podiums Poles F. laps Points 48 7 20 5 6 603 125cc World Championship Active years 1999–2001 Manufacturers Honda Championships 0 2001 championship position 3rd (217 pts) Starts Wins Podiums Poles F. laps Points 35 2 9 4 1 243 Superbike World Championship Active years 2013–2014 Manufacturers Aprilia Championships 0 2014 championship position 9th (171 pts) Starts Wins Podiums Poles F. laps Points 32 0 0 0 0 241

Antonio "Toni" Elías Justícia (born March 26, 1983) is a Spanish former professional motorcycle racer. He made history by becoming the very first champion of the Moto2 World Championship. Toni is the third person in his family to compete in exciting motorcycle races. He recently retired from racing in the MotoAmerica AMA Superbike Championship in 2023.

In 2016, Elías finished 3rd in the MotoAmerica season. He won six out of 18 races and scored 304 points. The next year, in 2017, he won the championship! In both 2018 and 2019, he finished as the runner-up, just behind champion Cameron Beaubier.

Toni's Racing Journey

Elías testing his bike at Sepang in 2007.

Toni Elías was born in Manresa, Catalonia, Spain. He began his racing career in the 125cc World Championship in 2000 when he was 17 years old. In 2001, he finished 3rd overall and won his first race at the famous Dutch TT in Assen.

He then moved up to the 250cc class in 2002. He finished 4th that year, 3rd in 2003, and 4th again in 2004.

In 2005, Toni joined the top class, MotoGP, with the Fortuna Yamaha team. For 2006 and 2007, he rode for Gresini Honda. In 2006, he achieved his first and only win in the MotoGP class. In 2007, he had a podium finish early in the season but then broke his leg in a crash at Assen. This injury affected his season, but he still managed to get another podium finish at Motegi.

After racing with the Alice Ducati team in 2008, Elías returned to Gresini Honda in 2009.

Moto2 Champion

In 2010, Toni moved to the new Moto2 class, riding a Moriwaki bike for Gresini. He was very strong in practice races. Even after a big crash, he became a favorite to win the title. He won the race at Le Mans. After this win, he took the lead in the championship and held onto it. He won the first-ever Moto2 World Championship at the Malaysian Grand Prix, with three races still to go!

He went back to MotoGP in 2011 with Team LCR, riding a Honda RC212V. This was his toughest season in MotoGP, and he finished 15th. In 2012, he returned to Moto2 with the Aspar Team. However, he left the team after the Mugello race.

Later in 2012, Toni filled in for an injured rider, Hector Barbera, on the Pramac Ducati team. He raced in a few MotoGP events.

Toni's First MotoGP Win

Toni Elías won his first big MotoGP race on October 15, 2006. It was an amazing final lap at the Portuguese MotoGP in Estoril. Toni started the last lap in third place. He made a bold move, braking hard into the first corner, and passed both Valentino Rossi and the leader, Kenny Roberts, Jr., to take the lead.

Rossi then passed Roberts for second place. As they neared the end of the lap, it looked like Rossi might pass Toni. Rossi tried to get ahead, but Toni kept pushing. In the final turn, Toni stayed right behind Rossi. In a super close finish that needed a video replay, Toni won the race by only 0.002 seconds! This was one of the closest finishes in MotoGP history. This victory helped Toni get a new contract with Honda for the 2007 season.

Interestingly, Toni's win meant Rossi lost five points. This was the exact number of points Rossi finished behind Nicky Hayden in the championship that year.

MotoAmerica Success

In 2016, Toni Elías joined the MotoAmerica Superbike series. He raced for Yoshimura Suzuki Factory Racing. He started strong, winning the first three races of the season!

Toni won the Superbike championship in 2017. He had 10 victories and finished on the podium 18 times. He never finished lower than second place in any race he completed that year.

Toni announced his retirement from MotoAmerica Superbike racing at the end of the 2020 season. He ended his career with 32 wins and 60 podium finishes for Suzuki.

Career Statistics

Elías on a Honda RC212V at the 2009 Dutch TT.

Summary of Toni's Career

Grand Prix Motorcycle Racing by Class

All statistics are from MotoGP.com.

MotoAmerica Race Results by Year

(key) (Races in bold mean pole position, races in italics mean fastest lap)

Suzuka 8 Hours Results

Year	Team	Co-Riders	Bike	Pos
2015	TOHO Racing with MORIWAKI	Tatsuya Yamaguchi Ratthapark Wilairot	Honda CBR1000RR	14th

See also

In Spanish: Toni Elías para niños