Red Bull KTM Factory Racing saw all three riders classify in the top thirteen of a sizzling and unpredictable Gran Premio Red Bull de España with Mika Kallio taking a updated version of the KTM RC16 to a season-best 10th position, Pol Espargaro less than two seconds behind and Bradley Smith notching a 2018 highest finish of 13th. KTM were also victorious in the Moto3 category with a full podium sweep and were present on the Moto2 rostrum with Miguel Oliveira.
MotoGP
Almost 70,000 spectators cooked in early summer sunshine at the Circuito de Jerez – Angel Nieto for the fourth round of nineteen in the 2018 MotoGP contest. Track temperatures crept up to 45 degrees by the time of the 25 lap premier class race in the middle of the afternoon in southern Spain.
In a dramatic affair that was lined with incident and accident, Mika Kallio took the updated spec of the KTM RC16 to a top ten ranking and just beat Pol Espargaro. The Spaniard had to defend his slot from a last corner attack from Bradley Smith as the duo defied rear grip issues to battle to the final moments. All three riders were within 21 seconds of race winner Marc Marquez.
Red Bull KTM Factory Racing will remain in Spain with two busy days of testing slated for Monday and Tuesday.
Kallio: “It is always nice to be the best KTM. Even to finish in the top ten is a brilliant result, although we know a few guys crashed today. The best thing for me is to see the gap to the front; I’m really satisfied with that. Now we are starting to get closer to the level where we finished last season. Slowly we are coming back and that’s positive. Of course we have been testing this bike before, here and in Mugello, and we had an idea how it would work over long distance. The other guys started to suffer more with grip and were spinning out of the corners more than me. This was a really good point of the new bike.”
Espargaro: “We had a clear direction with the tyres yesterday then today everything in the race changed; it is like a gamble. I didn’t feel good from the first lap and thought ‘wow, it is going to be a long race’. I was trying, and in the end Mika overtook me: it is a good sign that the things coming are working well. I want to start to develop the new toys for the future and it will be fun for us. I would love to use it but KTM is over-working and what we are doing nobody has done before. It is pretty crazy that Mika is using the updated bike in Jerez. I don’t like that he is in front of me today…but we need to take it as positive.”
Smith: “The opening half of the race was pretty good and then (Alvaro) Bautista and Maverick (Viñales) started to up their pace a little bit. I tried to go with them but got a bit nervous and stressed on the bike. I spent half the race digging-in-deep. Pol and I then duked until the last corner: I was off the track! To the white line and everything. I was going for the pass; whether it stuck or not was another matter. It was a bit of a shame to lose a place but I was pleased with my pace. It is nice to see our ’updated bike looking strong and Mika threw some good sectors at the end. It is looking like the right direction. Let’s see how this test goes and the team have some good ideas for progress.”
Mike Leitner (Team Manager MotoGP): “Before we started the MotoGP race it was great to see an all-KTM podium in Moto3 and Miguel (Oliveira) did a great race in difficult conditions in Moto2. MotoGP was a bit crazy and we said to the riders before ‘please keep focused because it will be a long race and demanding on the tyres’. We saw some crashes and mistakes and the guys did great to keep concentration and make their best pace. It was good to see three bikes in the points and that Mika was ahead as he’s using a slightly different set-up on the bike, which is very positive for the future. The team did a great job to bring all the bikes home with points. Now we must look to the test, and to work on some items where we normally don’t have any time in the (Grand Prix) sessions. There will be some long days but also necessary to make the next step. It is especially good to get so close to the leader on a difficult track like Jerez; we still need to work to make that gap smaller.”
Moto2
Both Red Bull KTM Ajo riders vied for the lead in Moto2 in the initial phases of the 22 laps with Miguel Oliveira and Brad Binder making very positive starts on ther KTM Moto2 bikes. The Portuguese threatened the rear wheel of eventual winner Lorenzo Baldassarri but couldn’t quite relegate the Italian while Binder had to ease his pace to finish 6th. Oliveira has now collected three podium finishes from the first four rounds and is third in the championship table.
Oliveira: “Qualifying yesterday was very hard for me, because I couldn’t find the right line. I knew inside that I had some strong points for this race but yesterday I couldn’t place higher than 14th position. I knew I had to give everything in the race and climb positions as quickly as possible. On the first few laps I realised that the group at the front was breaking away, but I thought I would be able to catch up with them. Fighting for the victory was difficult because Baldassarri was very strong and gave everyone else no chance. This second position, with all the fans that have come from Portugal cheering me on – it’s like my home Grand Prix – feels even better than a regular victory.”
Moto3
Moto3 was won by Philipp Öttl; the German took his Sudmetal Schedl GP Racing KTM RC250 GP to Grand Prix victory for the very first time after a close, final-lap dash with Marco Bezzecchi. The race was notable for two major ‘pile-ups’ that claimed a host of riders, including championship leader Jorge Martin. The chaos combined with Bezzecchi’s second podium finish of the season has elevated the Italian to the top of the standings. KTM machinery filled all top three positions with Marcos Ramirez in third.
Öttl: “It was a difficult and long race, especially when the rear tyre started to drop. It was difficult to ride but I’m so happy to get this win, and also for KTM and the team. I’m proud to be here with my father and the team. It is special to me. The bike was really fast on the straight and the mechanics did a great job. At the moment everything is perfect.”
MotoGP moves north through Europe for round five at the historic setting of Le Mans for the Grand Prix de France in two weeks time.
Next Race: May 20 – Le Mans (FRA)
Results MotoGP Circuito de Jerez 2018
1. Marc Marquez (ESP), Honda, 41.39.678 min (25 laps)
2. Johann Zarco (FRA), Yamaha, +5.241 sec
3. Andrea Iannone (ITA), Suzuki, +8.214
4. Danilo Petrucci (ITA), Ducati, +8.617
5. Valentino Rossi (ITA), Yamaha, +8.743
KTM
10. Mika Kallio (FIN), KTM, +19.405
11. Pol Espargaro (ESP), KTM, +21.149
13. Bradley Smith (GBR), KTM, +21.765
Standings MotoGP 2018 after 4 of 19 rounds
1. Marquez, 70 points
2. Zarco, 58
3. Maverick Vinales (ESP), Yamaha, 50
4. Iannone, 47
5. Andrea Dovizioso (ITA), Ducati, 46 points
KTM
14. Espargaro, 13
19. Kallio, 6
22. Smith, 3
Results Moto2 Circuito de Jerez 2018
1. Lorenzo Baldassarri (ITA), Kalex, 39:33.889 min (23 laps)
2. Miguel Oliveira (POR), KTM, +2.851 sec
3. Francesco Bagnaia (ITA), Kalex, +6.250
4. Xavi Vierge (ESP), Kalex, +6.953
5. Mattia Pasini (ITA), Kalex, +10.138
KTM
6. Brad Binder (RSA), KTM, +11.731
8. Sam Lowes (GBR), KTM, +18.677
9. Iker Lecuona (ESP), KTM, +20.743
Standings Moto2 2018 after 4 of 19 rounds
1. Bagnaia, 73 points
2. Baldassarri, 64
3. Oliveira, 63
4. Pasini, 58
5. Alex Marquez (ESP), Kalex, 47
KTM
8. Binder, 30
10. Lecuona, 23
Results Moto3 Circuito de Jerez 2018
1. Philipp Oettl (GER), KTM, 39:39.799 min (22 laps)
2. Marco Bezzecchi (ITA), KTM, +0.059 sec
3. Marcos Ramirez (ESP), KTM, +3.733
4. Alonso Lopez (ESP), Honda, +3.515 (penalty)
5. Jaume Masia (ESP), KTM, +3.958
KTM
8. Jakub Kornfeil (CZE), KTM, +4.161
10. Gabriel Rodrigo (ESP), KTM, +4.216
DNS Darryn Binder (RSA), KTM (declared unfit to race after crash in qualifying)
Standings Moto3 2018 after 4 of 19 rounds
1. Bezzecchi, 63 points
2. Jorge Martin (ESP), Honda, 55 points
3. Aron Canet (ESP), Honda, 48
4. Fabio Di Giannantonio (ITA), Honda, 46
5. Oettl, 35
KTM
7. Rodrigo, 28
9. Kornfeil, 26
22. Binder, 3
