Red Bull KTM Ajo rider has another good performance at the Red Bull Grand Prix of the Americas, placing sixth. Substitute rider Ricky Cardus finishes fourteenth.

For the second consecutive race, the Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto2 team managed to score points through both of their riders. In a first appearance for the KTM Moto2 bike at the Circuit of The Americas, Miguel Oliveira achieved a meritorious sixth position, adding 10 more points to his tally and maintaining third position in the overall standings. Ricky Cardus, standing in for the injured Brad Binder, claimed two points on his first Grand Prix apperance with the KTM machine, thanks to his fourteenth place.

Starting from seventh place, Miguel Oliveira gained a position on the first lap. The Portuguese climbed to fifth thanks to a crash from another rider, and defended the position upon seeing that riders ahead of him had broken free. He would eventually concede the place 7 laps from the end, having made a mistake on the entry to Turn 1.

In his first race with the KTM Moto2 bike, Ricky Cardus scored two valuable points. The Spanish rider dropped two positions on Lap 1, and as the laps went by he rode in a group of five riders in the fight for tenth place. An error in the final stages forced him to settle for fourteenth place.

With this third round of the season concluded, Miguel Oliveira has a total of 43 points and lies in third position in the overall standings. Brad Binder is sixteenth with 7 points and Ricky Cardus 21st with 2. The Red Bull Grand Prix of Spain is next up in two weeks’ time, on May 7th at the Jerez Circuit.

Results (Race)
1. Franco Morbidelli (Kalex) 41:20.078
2. Thomas Luthi (Kalex) +2.633
3. Takaaki Nakagami (Kalex) +6.809
4. Alex Marquez (Kalex) +9.852
5. Dominique Aegerter (Suter) +10.927
6. Miguel Oliveira (Red Bull KTM Ajo) +13.029
14. Ricky Cardus (Red Bull KTM Ajo) +24.245

Moto2 World Championship Standing 2017
1. Franco Morbidelli (Kalex) 75 points
2. Thomas Luthi (Kalex) 56 points
3. Miguel Oliveira (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 43 points
4. Takaaki Nakagami (Kalex) 32 points
5. Xavi Vierge (Tech3) 25 points
16. Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 7 points
21. Ricky Cardus (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 2 points

44 MIGUEL OLIVEIRA
“It was a tough race. We knew from yesterday that our pace was not the best -at least to fight for victory. I started quite well and was able to get close to the front of the race. But the truth is that I was not fast enough. I couldn’t catch them, I had my pace in the high 2:10s, but couldn’t keep in the low 2:10s. When I realised that, I was content to defend the fifth position. Unfortunately, I skipped a gear going into the first corner and Aegerter passed me. I tried to hold out a little but was not close enough to overtake him.
Overall, this was an important weekend for gathering data about the bike and discovering points that we need to improve. We continue to work hard. Now we are off to Europe, and tracks for which we have more data and have ridden more. We need to keep our chins up, as the work that the team are doing is very good.”

88 RICKY CARDUS
“We took off from tenth, a good starting position. On the first few laps I took things with a little more calm, not trying to win everything at the beginning. In the first half of the race I had a few more problems and I had trouble keeping up the pace. In the second half of the race I started to use my head a little more. I felt a little more comfortable and when I was caught by some other riders, I started to fight with them. At first they got away, but later on I caught them again. With three laps remaining I was able to fight for tenth or eleventh place, but I made a mistake. I put the bike in a false gear and went wide. These things happen, and we have to work so that they don’t happen again.
I want to thank the team at Ajo Motorsport, KTM and Red Bull, for giving me this great opportunity. I also want to give a lot of encouragement to Brad Binder who is a great rider and is missed here.”

AKI AJO – TEAM MANAGER
“Finally, it has been a positive weekend for our Moto2 structure. The performance was not like what we had in Argentina, and we have to accept this, but it is normal, because this is a very different and new track for us, at which we debuted with the KTM. The results have been positive: Both the sixth position for Miguel [Oliveira] and the points for Ricky [Cardus]; We have to be happy. It has not been an easy weekend but it is necessary to have these difficult times to learn, understand and improve this project.”