Italian rider adds two points to his tally after finishing 14th in the Red Bull Grand Prix of The Americas. Bo Bendsneyder crashes out of the American round.

The Red Bull Grand Prix of The Americas concluded with a fourteenth place finish for Niccolo Antonelli on raceday. The Red Bull KTM Ajo rider took further points for the overall standings, adding to those picked up in Qatar, in a race divided into two parts due to a red flag. Teammate Bo Bendsneyder suffered a crash on the second lap of the first start, and was unable to continue.

The Moto3 race was red flagged on Lap 3, and restarted with 12 laps ahead. However, the red flag had come just after Bo Bendsneyder has gone to ground, having lost the front end at Turn 8 of the second lap when riding in fourteenth position.

In the second part of the race, Niccolo Antonelli gained a position off the start that he conceded by the end of the first lap. The Red Bull KTM Ajo rider was not able to keep up with the pace of the leading riders, and finally dropped into the group fighting for eleventh place. A pass on the final corner allowed the Italian to claim fourteenth place.

With the first three races of the year already in the books, Niccolo Antonelli also occupies fourteenth place in the overall standings, with 11 points. Bo Bendsneyder is twenty-ninth. Following the only US round of the 2017 season, the Moto3 World Championship makes its first trip to Europe in a fortnight’s time, on May 7th in Jerez.

Results (Race)
1. Romano Fenati (Honda) 27:15.841
2. Jorge Martin (Honda) +4.504
3. Fabio Di Giannantonio (Honda) +4.527
4. Enea Bastianini (Honda) +4.673
5. Niccolo Bulega (KTM) +4.968
14. Niccolo Antonelli (Red Bull KTM Ajo) +13.412
DNF – Bendsneyder (Red Bull KTM Ajo)

Moto3 World Championship Standing 2017
1. Joan Mir (Honda) 58 points
2. Jorge Martin (Honda) 52 points
3. John McPhee (Honda) 40 points
4. Romano Fenati (Honda) 45 points
5. Andrea Migno (KTM) 25 points
14. Niccolo Antonelli (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 11 points
29. Bo Bendsneyder (Red Bull KTM Ajo) –

23 NICCOLO ANTONELLI
“I made a good start in today’s race. However, as the laps went by I didn’t feel comfortable under braking and lost many positions as a result, until I found myself inside a large group of riders. I couldn’t do any more. At the end I just tried to complete the race without crashing and continue gaining experience on the bike. We have to look at the telemetry and study what has happened, to improve and get a better result in Jerez.”

64 BO BENDSNEYDER
“Today’s race was a disaster after the crash I had. There was a bit more wind than this morning and I lost the front end. I’ve looked at the telemetry and I hadn’t done anything differently, but that’s racing.
It’s a great shame, so I’m already thinking about the next race. During our time here in Austin we have improved a lot and been strong when riding alone, and that is what we have to take away from this weekend. Apart from this sad outcome, the weekend had not been the best, but it had been positive. Now we have to turn our focus to Jerez and complete the race, fighting until the end.”

AKI AJO – TEAM MANAGER
“It’s clear that today things didn’t go as we wanted, and we cannot be happy with our performance in Moto3. After today’s race in Austin it is time to meet and analyse in depth what areas we have to focus on and improve so that, at the next race, we can take steps forward.”