Danny Kent and Niklas Ajo finish the Spanish Grand Prix in eleventh and tenth place, respectively.

The fourth round of the Moto3 World Championship was held this Sunday at the Circuito de Jerez, with the Husqvarna riders again placing inside the Top 15. After battling throughout the race as part of the second group, Niklas Ajo and Danny Kent crossed the line in tenth and eleventh place, respectively, to claim 6 and 5 points for their season total. Kent is now tenth in the overall standings with 23 points, whilst Ajo is thirteenth with 16.

Danny Kent took off from thirteenth position on the grid and made ​​up ground early on. He moved up to ninth and spent much of the contest in the second group, but on the closing laps the Red Bull Husqvarna Ajo rider’s tyres suffered from heavy wear. He dropped to third in a five-man group, placing eleventh at the Spanish Grand Prix.

Starting from the third row, Niklas Ajo made a good start and gained two places off the line. From the fifth lap onwards, the Avant Tecno Husqvarna Ajo rider lost ground on his rivals before slotting into tenth place, fighting for ninth before the end of the race. He would eventually take tenth at the chequered flag, ending a second consecutive Grand Prix inside the Top 10.

The next round of the Moto3 World Championship is the French Grand Prix at Le Mans –the second European event of 2014– in two weeks’ time.

Results – Race
1. Romano Fenati (KTM) 41:28.584
2. Efren Vazquez (Honda) +0.144
3. Alex Rins (Honda) +0.147
4. Jack Miller (Red Bull KTM Ajo) +1.224
5. Isaac Viñales (KTM) +1.244
10. Niklas Ajo (Avant Tecno Husqvarna Ajo) +12.204
11. Danny Kent (Red Bull Husqvarna Ajo) +12.685

Moto3 World Championship Standing 2014
1. Jack Miller (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 79 points
2. Romano Fenati (KTM) 74 points
3. Efren Vazquez (Honda) 62 points
4. Alex Rins (Honda) 51 points
5. Alex Marquez (Honda) 49 points
10. Danny Kent (Red Bull Husqvarna Ajo) 23 points
13. Niklas Ajo (Avant Tecno Husqvarna Ajo) 16 points

Danny Kent >> Audio (only for radio use)

“It wasn’t our best race. We worked hard all weekend to get the right setup and this morning we made some final changes that worked well. There were 4 or 5 laps in the middle of the race in which our pace wasn’t fast enough and the lead group got away -although at the end we did have a good pace. Now we have a week’s rest, but I will continue working on my fitness in order to be as ready as possible for Le Mans. We need to be back to our best at the next race and get the best results possible.”

Niklas Ajo >> Audio (only for radio use)

“It wasn’t a bad race, although I am disappointed not to have been up in the lead group for the entire race -which was the aim for the weekend. I think that we had a great opportunity to be there. In any case, we didn’t concede much time to the leaders and were only a little over 10 seconds back -although that is still too much if we want to be up there at the front. Today we had some problems with the rear tyre. It was sliding out almost right from the start of the race, and that was why I wasn’t able to push so much off the line.  We can work a little more with the engine to find a quicker top speed, but I also need to improve my fitness and weight. We will need to work hard to find solutions to get amongst the frontrunners and fastest riders.”