Brad Binder takes eighth place at Red Bull Indianapolis Grand Prix. Karel Hanika places twelfth and Miguel Oliveira fifteenth.

Binder, Moto3 race, Indianapolis MotoGP 2015

A unique Moto3 race that will be remembered for years took place at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Sunday. After the race had been declared wet, virtually all of the grid had to change tyres during the contest. Brad Binder was the Red Bull KTM Ajo rider who utilised the best strategy, achieving eighth place and adding 8 points to his tally. Also entering the points were Karel Hanika, in twelfth place, and Miguel Oliveira, fifteenth.

The Red Bull Indianapolis Grand Prix Moto3 followed an entirely different script than anyone could have imagined. For the first time this weekend it began to rain just before the race started, forcing Race Direction to declare it wet.  That led to all bar three Moto3 riders to fit rain tyres. The low rainfall and good track conditions forced the participants to go through the pits at the very start of the race to put on slicks. In the case of the Red Bull KTM Ajo riders, Oliveira was the first in –on the opening lap– whilst Binder and Hanika did so on the second lap.

It was these two who ultimately benefitted the most, returning onto track inside the Top 10. The South African fought over 23 laps for fifth place, whilst the Czech did likewise for tenth place. Oliveira soared from 21st to 15th place, despite the rain flag being waved twice. Finally, Binder and Hanika crossed the finish line in eighth and twelfth, respectively.

After the first round of the second half of the season, Miguel Oliveira lies fourth in the overall standings with 103 points. Binder is sixth with 83 points and Hanika sixteenth with 33 points. Next up is Hanika’s home race at Brno, in one week’s time.

Race – Results
1. Livio Loi (Honda) 40:50.747
2. John McPhee (Honda) +38.860
3. Philipp Oettl (KTM) +57.781
4. Romano Fenati (KTM) +1:15.296
5. Isaac Viñales (KTM) +1:19.814
8. Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Ajo) +1:24.659
12. Karel Hanika (Red Bull KTM Ajo) +1:35.801
15. Miguel Oliveira (Red Bull KTM Ajo) +1:43.203

Moto3 World Championship Standing 2015
1. Danny Kent (Honda) 190 points
2. Enea Bastianini (Honda) 134 points
3. Romano Fenati (KTM) 112 points
4. Miguel Oliveira (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 103 points
5. Efren Vazquez (Honda) 96 points
6. Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 83 points
16. Karel Hanika (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 33 points

Miguel Oliveira,
“Today’s race was in quite difficult conditions. We decided to start with wet tyres, but on the first lap I decided to enter the pits and switch to slicks. It was not an easy stop, as this is not like F1, so I want to thank the team. We got back on track a little far back, but I did not stop pushing to recover as many positions as possible, and finally entered the points. It’s not the result with which we wanted to finish the weekend, but we are strong for the race next week.”

Brad Binder,
“I’m a little disappointed with the race today, because all weekend I felt good and I was convinced I was going to have a good race if it had been completely dry. I think that in this type of race the most important thing is to get as many points as possible, because things can change at any time. I did not finish the race as I would have liked, but I have to thank my whole team for the great extra work they had to do in the stop to change tyres. Now we have to focus on Brno, one of my favourite tracks.”

Karel Hanika,
“It was a crazy race. We started in the wet and put on wet tyres, but the track dried very quickly and on the second lap we to go into the pits –possibly one lap too late. It is clear that if we had put slicks on earlier, we could have fought for better positions, as other riders did, but sometimes these things happen. Our strategy was not the best and we have to learn from this. My team did a great job in the pits, changed the tyres very quickly and got us back out on track to try to recover places, so I have to thank them. We were near the top 10, but at least we managed to get some points. Next week we will try to have a good race at my home track.”

Aki Ajo,
“Today’s race was like a lottery. It was very hard to pick the tyres to start with on the grid. Most of the riders were clear that we had to go out with wet tyres, but in the end everyone had to go through the pits. It was not easy to manage the whole issue of tyre changes during the race, because it is unusual. It was not our best day but we know that we are getting stronger with every race, and we will be back with more enthusiasm than ever in Brno.”