Author: admin_322345

The first season for Red Bull KTM Ajo in Moto2 finished in the best way possible at the Valencia GP, as Miguel Oliveira took a third consecutive victory in the race.

Unlike his two previous victories, at the Ricardo Tormo Circuit Miguel Oliveira had to fight his way through the field. At the start of the race, the Portuguese rider joined teammate Brad Binder and another rider in pursuit of first-placed Franco Morbidelli, progressing to second place in 10 laps. Despite the gap of 1.8 seconds between he and the Italian, Miguel Oliveira upped his pace to catch and overtake him with 6 laps remaining, capping the season with a win.

Miguel Oliveira, who will continue representing Red Bull KTM Ajo in the Moto2 World Championship next season, finished 2017 with 3rd place overall -241 points. Post-season testing at the end of KTM’s first campaign in Moto2 kicks off on Thursday at Jerez.

 #44 Miguel Oliveira

“It was a dream final Grand Prix. I came to this race in Valencia with the sole intention of having fun and we achieved that; I am very happy with this result. We would never have imagined that we could put together a run of three consecutive victories. I cannot thank the team and KTM enough for all the effort they have made throughout the season. It has been a very good season for us and I'm sure that next year we can do even better and fight for the title -which should be the goal”.

Results (Race)

1. Miguel Oliveira (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 40:18.480

2. Franco Morbidelli (Kalex) +2.154

3. Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Ajo) +4.181

4. Francesco Bagnaia (Kalex) +11.181

5. Alex Marquez (Kalex) +12.146

Moto2 World Championship Standing 2017

1. Franco Morbidelli (Kalex) 308 points

2. Thomas Luthi (Kalex) 243 points

3. Miguel Oliveira (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 241 points

4. Alex Marquez (Kalex) 201 points

5. Francesco Bagnaia (Kalex) 174 points

Miguel Oliveira placed fourth in qualifying for the Valencia Grand Prix, continuing his excellent run of form in the final stages of the season. The Red Bull KTM Ajo portuguese rider will look to take a third consecutive win on Sunday.

Moto2 FP3 saw the 22 years old rider start by trying out a new top fairing, similar to that used by the KTM MotoGP bikes, for the first time, drawing positive conclusions. In the remainder of the session, Miguel Oliveira and his teammate Brad Binder continued with the same dynamic as on Saturday, lowering their times for the third successive session. Miguel Oliveira was second, with  time of 1min35.637s.

In qualifying, the Red Bull KTM Ajo portuguese rider was inside the Top 10 early on. Miguel Oliveira was one of the few top riders to lower his times in the final minutes, setting a 1min35.182s lap that put him fourth.

#44 Miguel Oliveira

“The difference between our time and the pole lap was very small today. The positive thing is that we have a very good pace and I was the only one to lower my times at the end of qualifying. On my first run I didn't make the most of all the grip that the tyres offered, and that made things a little tough for me. The bike is performing well ahead of the race and I think I'm ready to fight. It will be important to not lose too much time at the start, and take risks when necessary, in order to fight for a third consecutive win”.

After consecutive 1-2 finishes, Miguel Oliveira and Brad Binder will attempt to repeat the feat at the season finale, which gets underway at 12:20pm. Both have previously won at Valencia in Moto3: In 2015 and 2016

Results (Qualifying Session)

1. Alex Marquez (Kalex) 1:35.050

2. Franco Morbidelli (Kalex) 1:35.115 +0.065

3. Mattia Pasini (Kalex) 1:35.155 +0.105

4. Miguel Oliveira (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 1:35.182 +0.132

5. Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 1:35.323 +0.273

The Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto2 portuguese rider is the man of the moment in the intermediate class, and he kepts up his flyaway form this Friday as the Valencia GP got underway. Miguel Oliveira was first on the combined timesheets after FP1 and FP2.

For Oliveira, the return to Europe has not changed his excellent performance, and he completed the first quarter of an hour of FP1 in the top position. Making a single stop in the pits to fit new tyres, the portuguese rider and his teammate Brad Binder, remained amongst the Top 5 at all times and ended the session in first -1:35.847- and third place -1:36.175.

That dynamic repeated in FP2, as both were strong from the beginning of the session. Oliveira improved his lap times progressively to lead the way on his final stint, setting a 1:35.802 that made him the fastest rider of the day.

#44 Miguel Oliveira

“Today we started the last Grand Prix of the year and our intention is to do our work and also have fun. At the moment we are doing both things. We have made a couple of changes to the bike with respect to the last races, but we are still not 100% happy. The conditions in FP2 were somewhat more difficult because of the wind, although we were able to improve our previous best time, which is very positive. We are ready for tomorrow”.

Tomorrow Oliveira will be gunning for pole in qualifying for the season finale, which will be held at 3:05pm local time.

Results (Combined practice times FP1-FP2)

1. Miguel Oliveira (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 1:35.802

2. Francesco Bagnaia (Kalex) 1:35.859 +0.057

3. Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 1:36.010 +0.208

4. Mattia Pasini (Kalex) 1:36.013 +0.211

5. Alex Marquez (Kalex) 1:36.038 +0.236

Miguel Oliveira will bring his first season with KTM in Moto2 to an end this weekend in Valencia, Spain. The Red Bull KTM Ajo rider has enjoyed an excellent year, evolving race by race, and showed his potential with two consecutive wins in Australia and Malaysia last month. Now he faces the last round of the year having achieved his goal, and is looking only to give his all and enjoy the season finale.

Whatever happens in Valencia, Miguel Oliveira will end the year in third place in the Moto2 World Championship. The Portuguese rider and his KTM bike have made steady improvement throughout the season, and Oliveira arrives at the Ricardo Tormo Circuit in his best form yet, after two consecutive victories. He will aim to repeat his success from 2015 at the track, where he won the Moto3 Valencia GP.

#44 Miguel Oliveira

“I’m very motivated for the last race of the year in Valencia. After having tested at this circuit a few times with the KTM Moto2 bike, I think we can be competitive this weekend. Even so, we must reinforce the idea that we have nothing to lose and that we have already secured third position in the World Championship standings. We will go out there to have fun, to do a good job and to try to give the fans a good result. We want to confirm the good form we had at the last Grands Prix”.

The Moto2 race will be held on Sunday at 12:20pm local time. At the gala on Sunday afternoon, Miguel Oliveira will be awarded his prize for finishing in third place in this 2017 Moto2 World Championship.

Circuit information – Ricardo Tormo

Length: 4.005m / 2.489 miles

Width: 12m

Left corners: 9

Right corners: 5

Longest straight: 876 m / 0.544 miles

Constructed: 1999

Red Bull KTM Ajo rider Miguel Oliveira repeated his Moto2 epic victory from the Australian GP at the penultimate round of the season in Sepang, Malaysia. Amidst intense heat and with the complication of fine rainfall on the final laps, the 22-year-old Portuguese rider held on for another remarkable result.

Miguel Oliveira’s race followed the same script as a week ago at Phillip Island. A great start allowed him to take the holeshot, and within two laps he had already established a lead of 1 second from the pursuing group. Oliveira gave his rivals no chance of catching him, setting new circuit records and upping his advantage to as much as almost 5 seconds. The Portuguese has managed to remain calm when the rain began, 4 laps from the end, and crossed the finish line with over a 2 second lead

#44 Miguel Oliveira

“Today I had to give everything, I can hardly speak. This was not the strategy I had in mind before we started, as Franco [Morbidelli] and Brad [Binder] had a very good pace, so my plan was to ride behind them. But I saw that I could give a little more on the first few laps and I went for it. I gave everything I had and I am very proud to have succeeded. At the beginning of the season I did not imagine that we would be able to achieve these results. I thought we would be competitive but not that we would do so well. We deserve this end to the season”.

With this excellent end to the flyaway rounds, Miguel Oliveira has secured third position in the overall standings, with 216 points.

The final race of the year will be take place on November 12th in Valencia.

Results (Race)

1. Miguel Oliveira (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 40:28.955

2. Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Ajo) +2.387

3. Franco Morbidelli (Kalex) +6.878

4. Mattia Pasini (Kalex) +21.774

5. Francesco Bagnaia (Kalex) +22.086

Moto2 World Championship Standing 2017

1. Franco Morbidelli (Kalex) 288 points

2. Thomas Luthi (Kalex) 243 points

3. Miguel Oliveira (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 216 points

4. Alex Marquez (Kalex) 190 points

5. Francesco Bagnaia (Kalex) 161 points

9. Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 109 points

Miguel Oliveira will start the Malaysian GP from the front row. After reaffirming his good feeling from Friday by placing in second in the last Free Practice session, the Red Bull KTM Ajo Portuguese rider finished the job by taking very good positions on the grid in qualifying. Oliveira, in second place, will start from the front row for the fifth time this year.

Knowing that dry track time in Malaysia is invaluable, the Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto2 rider made the most of his last 45 minutes of Free Practice. Oliveira improved on each of his three runs and a time of 2:06.698 placed him third.

In qualifying, high ambient temperatures reaching 32ºC meant the Moto2 Portuguese rider looked to set his fastest laps as early as possible. Oliveira again lowered his best time, and a 2:06.432 on his fourth lap put him just 0.026s off pole. He remained in the spot when the chequered flag fell.

#44 Miguel Oliveira

“I felt very good today. I’m very happy with this second position, and with getting back on the front row. I think we can say that we are a little more consistent than at Phillip Island. Tomorrow will be a battle of attrition in a way, because it is very hot, we will lose a lot of grip and it is easy to crash over the course of the race. We will be aware of all these factors and of the weather, which can change at any time; as always we will go out to enjoy ourselves and give everything in the race”.

Tomorrow's race will take place at 1:20pm local time -6:20am CET. Miguel Oliveira will try to fight for a place on the podium. Oliveira has already been on the rostrum at Sepang, in Moto3 two years ago.

Results (Qualifying session)

1. Franco Morbidelli (Kalex) 2:06.406

2. Miguel Oliveira (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 2:06.432 +0.026

3. Fabio Quartararo (Kalex) 2:06.478 +0.072

4. Alex Marquez (Kalex) 2:06.511 +0.105

5. Thomas Luthi (Kalex) 2:06.593 +0.187

After his victory in Australia last week, Miguel Oliveira remained at the head of the pack on day one of the Malaysian GP. At the Sepang International Circuit, the Red Bull KTM Ajo rider was the fastest on Friday thanks to his FP1 time. In the afternoon, in wet conditions, Oliveira finished third.

Miguel Oliveira once again sprung a surprise by going fastest in FP1, with a 2:06.856 time. The feat deserved special merit considering that Friday was the first time that the Portuguese had ridden at Sepang with a Moto2 bike -last year he missed the Malaysian round due to injury- and that it was also the first time a KTM Moto2 bike had run at the track.

In the afternoon, Oliveira continued his great form with third position in FP2 -2:24.139-, but this time on a completely wet surface in the rain. The Portuguese was comfortable in these difficult conditions and led the way for much of the session, going just 0.063s slower than the best time.

Tomorrow sees the penultimate qualifying session of the season in Moto2, taking place at 3.05pm local time -9:05am CET.

#44 Miguel Oliveira

“Today went fairly well here in Sepang, both in the morning when it was very hot and the track was dry, and in the afternoon in the wet and rain. We put ourselves in a good position quickly and that gave us confidence. We don’t know what to expect from the weather this weekend, but I think we will be ready if it’s either dry or wet. The goal is to continue with the same work as today and get a place on the starting grid that allows us to go all out in Sunday's race.

I also want to take this moment to express my sincere condolences to Stefan Kiefer’s family and friends, my last year team manager, which sadly left us today, unexpectedly. He will be missed.”

The former pilot Stefan Kiefer, also team boss and co-founder of Kiefer Racing, was found dead this morning in Kuala Lumpur, when the team was preparing to head to Sepang for the Malasian GP. Highly admired in paddock for his friendly personality, he was also Leopard Racing’s team manager, where Miguel Oliveira had his debut in the intermediate category, last year. With this tragic news, The Kiefer Racing team has decided not to participate in the Grand Prix, this weekend, in Sepang.

Results (Combined practice times FP1-FP2)

1. Miguel Oliveira (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 2:06.856

2. Franco Morbidelli (Kalex) 2:06.929 +0.073

3. Thomas Luthi (Kalex) 2:06.950 +0.094

4. Takaaki Nakagami (Kalex) 2:07.086 +0.230

5. Mattia Pasini (Kalex) 2:07.284 +0.428

With little time to take in his historic win in Australia, Miguel Oliveira moves straight on to the seventeenth round of the year in Sepang, Malaysia. With expectations high after his best weekend of the year, the Red Bull KTM Ajo rider will try to end the triple flyaways with another great performance.

Having achieved his goal of giving KTM their first victory in Moto2, Miguel Oliveira arrives in Sepang a point ahead of his closest rival in the fight for the third place in the overall standings. The portuguese rider will attempt to earn his eighth podium of the year. In 2015, Oliveira took victory at Sepang in Moto3 – during his previous spell with the Red Bull KTM Ajo team.

#44 Miguel Oliveira

“Of the two remaining races, I love the Sepang International Circuit and I also like Valencia. In fact, those are two tracks where I sincerely believe we can be competitive, so we will see how we respond, since I have never ridden a Moto2 bike in Malaysia. Third position in the World Championship is not my main objective; my real goal is to enjoy riding at the remaining rounds. Getting that position at the end would be a nice bonus, but the most important thing is to do a good job.”

Moto2 World Championship race at Sepang will be held at 13:20pm local time (6:20am CET).

Circuit information – Sepang International Circuit

Length: 5.543m / 3.444 miles

Width: 25m

Left corners: 5

Right corners: 10

Longest straight: 920m / 0.572 miles

Constructed: 1998

Modified: 2016

Sunday at the Australian GP could not have gone better for the Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto2 team. An historic day for the team, the Austrian factory and for Portugal saw Miguel Oliveira take his first victory in the class, becoming the first Portuguese rider to do so and, above all, giving KTM their first win in their maiden year in Moto2. This great success was capped off by the first podium for Brad Binder, a rookie this year, in second place.

Just like he did two seasons ago in Moto3, Miguel Oliveira stood tall on the highest step of the Phillip Island podium today. The Portuguese dominated the race from start to finish. A great start allowed him to take the holeshot, and he held the lead for the remaining 25 laps. With an unmatched pace, Oliveira escaped from teammate Binder and from Franco Morbidelli on the eighth lap, finally crossing the finish line with an almost 3 second advantage.

#44 Miguel Oliveira

"I'm very happy; I just feel happiness. I could not be more grateful for this victory because when it started to rain I struggled a little. I already had a certain advantage and was aware that the distance I had from the pursuing riders had been reduced, which created a little stress. As you can imagine, it has been the longest race of my life. I’m very happy with the team and with my first victory in the class, the first for KTM and hopefully not the last".

Miguel Oliveira (and also his teammate Binder) gain a position in the overall standings as a result of his historic Australian GP. With just two rounds of the season remaining, Miguel Oliveira has regained third position -191 points. The Portuguese rider will try to keep his form going next week at the Malaysian Grand Prix.

Aki Ajo – Team Manager

"After the excellent race today, the first thing I want to do is to thank the riders, KTM, Red Bull, all our partners and the team, because we are very happy to be part of a great project like this year after year. It was an unforgettable race, with Miguel [Oliveira] dominant at all times and setting a steady pace that allowed him to escape, and with Brad [Binder] showing his great evolution and getting a very hard fought and deserved podium. These results are the reward for the great work done throughout the season by all parties involved."

Results (Race)

1. Miguel Oliveira (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 39:25.920

2. Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Ajo) +2.974

3. Franco Morbidelli (Kalex) +3.846

4. Jesko Raffin (Kalex9 +7.348

5. Xavi Vierge (Tech3) +7.403

Moto2 World Championship Standing 2017

1. Franco Morbidelli (Kalex) 272 points

2. Thomas Luthi (Kalex) 243 points

3. Miguel Oliveira (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 191 points

4. Alex Marquez (Kalex) 190 points

5. Francesco Bagnaia (Kalex) 150 points

The Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto2 portuguese rider enjoyed a great qualifying session this Saturday at the spectacular Phillip Island circuit. Miguel Oliveira, thanks to his taking the third best time of the session, earned his fourth front row of the season, and was also the fastest rider in FP3.  

After the rain that affected the previous MotoGP session, there was uncertainty amongst the Moto2 field about their approach to FP3. Finally, Oliveira went out with slicks and continued working on the setup of his KTM bike. The Portuguese was the most successful in the 45 minute session, being one of just four riders to improve their times from yesterday and also going fastest in FP3 with a 1:33.919 lap.

The same script was followed in qualifying, with a few drops of rain falling at the beginning of the session. However, the Portuguese rider did not have to wait long to go out and fight for pole position.

The Red Bull KTM Ajo duo – Miguel Oliveira and Brad Binder – set their best times on their respective third stints. Oliveira and Binder went out on track together, in an excellent strategy, and lowered their times on two consecutive laps, placing in third -1:33.422- and fourth -1:33.453- position, respectively. Both clocked their best times of the weekend in the session.

#44 Miguel Oliveira

“It was a bit of a strange qualifying session. It immediately started to rain when we went out on track for the first time, and we had to begin a little later than we had planned. In the end everything went well, I feel good on the bike and am comfortable. It was a little disappointing because I felt I had something more in reserve and could have done a little better, but I encountered a lot of riders ahead of me who prevented me from going for a better position. It's a shame not to have been able to set a higher pace, but for tomorrow I'm confident we’ll get a good result.”

Tomorrow sees the sixteenth race of the year take place, starting at 2.20pm local time (4.20am portuguese time). Both Oliveira and Binder hold previous wins at Phillip Island as Red Bull KTM Ajo riders in Moto3, in 2015 and 2016, respectively.

Results (Qualifying Practice)

1. Mattia Pasini (Kalex) 1:33.300

2. Marcel Schrotter (Suter) 1:33.308 +0.008

3. Miguel Oliveira (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 1:33.422 +0.122

4. Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 1:33.453 +0.153

5. Franco Morbidelli (Kalex) 1:33.495 +0.195