It was in a absolutely fantastic mood that Miguel Oliveira was received this afternoon in the city of Portimão. Alongside the mayor of the Algarve city and Paulo Pinheiro, CEO of the Autódromo Internacional do Algarve, the KTM rider returned to is 'home' in the 2022 championship calendar, and where he was the first winner of a MotoGP race back in 2020.
'It's always nice to come home and it's very special to be welcomed by my fans here in Portimão. This is without a doubt a special GP for me and just like in 2020 I will try again to at least be on the podium. We know it's not easy but we will fight as usual and with the extra support from the portuguese public, the will to achieve my goals will be even higher.'
Miguel Oliveira will wear a helmet specially decorated for this purpose in this GP of Portugal 2022 and in which the 88 and the X stand out, which was the 'cover' of the album with the same title by the iconic portuguese band 'Xutos & Pontapés' that associated with the pilot.
'All this 88 symbolism was born after I was offered a vinyl of the 'Xutos & Pontapés' album. At the time, I didn't even know what it was, but after having 'discovered' it, this association with the band made perfect sense and that's why we created the helmet decoration for this GP.' A helmet that will be raffled off among Miguel Oliveira's fans and whose value raised with the action will be donated to the Almadense Rumo ao Futuro association in partnership with football coach André Villas-Boas 'Race for Good foundation.
After the fantastic reception in Portimão, Miguel Oliveira led a large caravan of fans with his KTM RC16 to the Autódromo Internacional do Algarve who, in a festive atmosphere, 'left' the rider in the paddock, anticipating a fantastic weekend from next Friday.
