Red Bull KTM Ajo begin European tour

29/04/2015

Red Bull KTM Ajo riders reach Spanish Grand Prix after going closer than ever to podium positions at previous round.

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Miguel Oliveira and Brad Binder came close to a podium finish in Argentina, whilst Karel Hanika took his best result as a World Championship rider. With those results fresh in the mind, Red Bull KTM Ajo contest the Spanish Grand Prix this weekend -the fourth event of the season and the first in Europe. The young riders are optimistic after feeling much more comfortable and confident on their bikes in Argentina. The podium is the goal for the weekend.

The Jerez circuit is a track where Moto3 riders test frequently, with up to six days of official testing action per year besides the GP weekend. Oliveira, Binder and Hanika hope to use this experience to take the final step to a rostrum finish.

Binder and Hanika, are enjoying their best start to a World Championship season, whilst Oliveira took pole position and fourth at Termas de Rio Hondo. Some of the most important results for the trio of Red Bull KTM Ajo riders in Jerez are the front row by the Portuguese in 2012, and fourth in the race for the South African in 2013.

The schedule for this weekend is the usual one for European events, running from Friday to Sunday with the Moto3 race at 11:00am. Jerez de la Frontera, the 2015 Motorcycling Capital of the World, will host the first of four Spanish events this season and the first of six consecutive Grands Prix in Europe.

Circuit information – Jerez
Length: 4.423 m / 2.748 miles
Width: 11 metres
Left corners: 5
Right corners: 8
Longest straight: 607 m / 0.377 miles
Constructed: 1986
Modified: 2002

Miguel Oliveira,
“After the fourth place in Argentina, it was good to have had some time at home to recharge my batteries after all the long trips. I’m leaving for Spain filled with positive energy, with a reinforced objective to score points and to pull back the gap to the championship leader. My goal is to be fast from the first day, because before the beginning of the season when we were testing in Jerez, we didn’t feel at ease at the circuit. I hope that from Friday we manage to perform well over the weekend. My aim is to always be at the front, but the first priority is to finish the race in a points-scoring position. That’s the stepping stone to build a good championship campaign.”

Brad Binder,
“After the GP in Argentina I have much more confidence with the bike, because we found a race setup that helps me to turn and catch the apex of the corners. I feel much more comfortable. Now we go to Jerez. It will be very different from preseason, since there you have many hours to achieve a good lap. In the race you do not have much time and the important thing is your pace In addition, the Jerez Circuit is one of my favourites, I’ve done well there in the past, so we’ll see how it goes this weekend.”

Karel Hanika,
“The last race weekend in Argentina was very good, both for me and for the team, and obviously we want to continue in the same way to get the same or better results in the upcoming European events. I’m looking forward to Jerez because it’s a circuit we all know very well -both the team and the other riders. I think we can get a good result because we have important data collected from preseason testing. If I’m calm and work the same as in Termas de Rio Hondo, I sincerely believe that we will be back in the front group. That would be important.”

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