Month: September 2022

After San Marino's Grand Prix, in Italy, which took place on the first weekend of September, Miguel Oliveira, as well as the rest of the MotoGP caravan, remained at the circuit that honors the name of Marco Simoncelli, for two days of official tests on the track.

The Portuguese rider confessed that he was not given new materials to test on his KTM RC16, as from 2023 onwards he will embrace a new challenge on the tracks. The purpose of these official tests for Oliveira was to focus on the best setup for his bike until the end of this season, when there are still six races to go before the end of the season.

Having run a total of 113 laps: 86 on the first day of official testing and 27 on the second, Miguel Oliveira said he had, together with his team, worked on a better set-up to have more stability in the corners entry and throughout the trajectory up to the exit curves. Increases in traction and acceleration capacity were also analyzed by Red Bull KTM team, with a view to improving the bike's performance.

The Portuguese rider, especially on this second day, came to ride within the top 10 of riders with the best times, in a fantastic effort that demonstrates the resilience and determination of him.

Miguel Oliveira is now heading to MotorLand, in Aragon, Spain, for the 15th round of the MotoGP championship, with 90 points in his portfolio that give him 11th place in the overall standings of the championship.

Miguel Oliveira finished this Sunday in 11th position the race in San Marino, Italy, in what it was the 14th round of the MotoGP world championship. The Portuguese rider, during almost the entire race, has guaranteed his position within the top 10, but a 'long lap penalty', for having exceeded the track limits, sent him to 11th place after passing the checkered flag, through the finish line.

With no glimpse of rain, contrary to the weather forecasts, the race took place on dry ground, but that was not what prevented the many falls within the field, either when the red lights went out or throughout the race.

After a good start, in which he managed to stand out from the inside and gain a position, Miguel Oliveira started his climb to the top places: the fight with Alex Marquéz until the 9th lap made him lose some time, until he managed to overtake him and starts to dispute a place above with Jorge Martin. But, that's when fellow Red Bull KTM teammate Brad Binder appears and starts chasing the Portuguese for about 5 laps; manages to occupy the position of Miguel Oliveira, who holds on to 10th place, practically guaranteed. However, in the course of these battles, Oliveira twice exceeded the track limits and was forced to perform a long lap penalty, which compromised his 10th place. The rider from Charneca de Caparica passed the checkered flag in 11th position, at +23s685 from the winner of the race, the Italian Francesco Bagnaia, in a race that proved difficult to manage.

Despite having managed to collect 5 points at the end of this race, Miguel Oliveira dropped one place in the general classification of the championship, being now 11th, with 90 points.

Now, Miguel Oliveira will remain in Misano these days, for two test days this Wednesday and Thursday, 7th and 8th of September.

The next round of the championship will take place at Motorland, in Aragon, Spain, on the 16th, 17th and 18th of September, with just 5 races to go before the end of the season.

Miguel Oliveira managed this Saturday to qualify in 10th place to start from the 4th row of the starting grid for this Sunday's race, taking place at the San Marino circuit, in Italy, in what will be the 14th race of the MotoGP. The Portuguese rider managed to qualify directly to Q2, after in the third free practice session of the weekend, even after another non-serious fall, he managed to stay within the top 10 of the combined time table. In Q2 he then managed to close the 10th best time, at 1:32.775, which will allow him to start from that same mark, as soon as the red lights go out, at 13:00 on Sunday.

The first practices in the morning, corresponding to FP3, contrary to the weather forecasts, gave all the riders a dry floor. Miguel Oliveira took to the track with hard and soft tires, front and back respectively, ready to attack again, knowing that the previous day's crash would have limited his work progress. Lap after lap, he managed to reduce his personal mark, having set the 7th best time of the session, with 1m31s955. But, a new fall of the rider from Almada, when he 'fled' the front of his bike, two minutes from the end of the session, almost cost him his place in the much-desired top 10 of qualifying for Q2. Two drivers had their laps canceled at the end of the session, which reinforced Oliveira's direct access to the second timed session.

In FP4, with the usual duration of 30 minutes, the pilot from Almada managed to run 15 laps on the track that honors the name of Marco Simoncelli. He did his best lap in 1m32s914, which put him in 13th position at the end of the session.

For Q2, the rain flag was showed from the start, but the fierce Miguel Oliveira was one of the few riders who took to the track with slick tires – a strategic move by the experienced Almaden rider. Building on that advantage, Oliveira showed his 'time attack' lap after lap, leading the top places in qualifying for most of the session. With several sectors in orange and even red, the rider from Almada was doing his best, but in the meantime, several riders were being called to their respective 'boxes' to get on their bikes prepared for dry ground. He closed his best record in 10th position, with 1m32s775, which will allow him to start tomorrow from the 4th row of the starting grid for tomorrow's race.

This Sunday, the race that will have 27 laps is scheduled for 13:00, mainland Portugal time.

This Friday the 14th round of the MotoGP championship began, this time at the Italian circuit of San Marino. The peloton held the first free practice session (FP1) on dry ground, although with about 70% humidity, and these same conditions happened in FP2, although with the sun peeking out. Miguel Oliveira managed to set his best mark of the day in 1m33s636, a mark that results from the combined times of both sessions, which placed him in 12th position this Friday.

Medium tires, front and rear, were Miguel Oliveira’s choice during the 45 minutes of FP1, a session in which he managed to run 21 laps, despite having twice left for the RedBull KTM ‘box’. Having reached practically over 300 km/hour, it was on the 8th lap that the Almadense got his best time of the session – 1:33.636 -, which put him in 18th place, +1.323 than the best time of the first practice of the day.

In FP2, Oliveira made a huge leap in the timesheets, having been part of the provisional top 10 for tomorrow, for a good part of the session, but a non-serious crash at turn 10 ended up preventing Miguel Oliveira from securing himself inside. of the top 10 best brands of the day. The one considered by the paddock to be one of the most highly gifted riders closed the combined timesheet in 12th place.

Tomorrow, work begins with the third free practice session of the weekend at 08:55, followed a little later by the fourth practice session, as well as the qualifying sessions. The race on Sunday is at 1:00 pm Mainland Portugal time.