Red Bull KTM Ajo rider finishes runner-up at the German GP, just 0.066s behind the race winner. Brad Binder makes a great fightback to place 7th -his best result in the Moto2 class.

The Red Bull KTM Ajo team rounded off the first half of the Moto2 season in Germany with their best weekend of the year to date. Miguel Oliveira fought for KTM’s first victory in the intermediate class, leading the race one lap from the end and eventually finishing second. Brad Binder made another magnificent comeback: He moved up from 19th to 7th, taking his best result so far in Moto2.

The beginning of the race wasn’t easy for Oliveira, as he lost contact with the front three. He gradually upped his pace, setting a new circuit record of 1:24.483 in the process, and could catch the leaders with 13 laps remaining. Alongside Franco Morbidelli for the rest of the race, Oliveira led the way coming into the final lap, although he would finally conclude the contest in second.

Brad Binder also had a positive Sunday, after suffering during practice. He took a step forward in the race, after starting 19th on the grid. The South African rider worked his way up to 9th place in the space of just five laps. He would finish 7th after dicing with another rider in 6th place, taking his best result in Moto2 so far.

Halfway through the season, Oliveira is 3rd overall with 114 points and three podiums, while Binder is 17th with 25 points. The Moto2 World Championship now takes a one-month break, before returning to action on August 4th-6th with the Czech Republic GP.

Aki Ajo – Team Manager
“We have to be very happy with this weekend in Moto2; overall it has gone very well. We have the feeling that we have taken another step forward, and even in wet conditions we have learned a lot, in addition to what we have already improved from Assen. Miguel [Oliveira] has been very consistent throughout the weekend, always fighting amongst the fastest riders. In the race he didn’t start too well, but then his pace was incredibly good. Maybe we can improve a little in braking, but I am very satisfied with the weekend and how step by step we are improving our riding and getting closer to the front.

Brad [Binder] also had an incredible race. During practice he didn’t find things easy, but he showed that on the first few laps he can be very good and very aggressive; I’m really happy for him.”

Results (Race)
1. Franco Morbidelli (Kalex) 41:05.137
2. Miguel Oliveira (Red Bull KTM Ajo) +0.066
3. Francesco Bagnaia (Kalex) +0.574
4. Simone Corsi (Speed Up) +0.749
5. Mattia Pasini (Kalex) +1.300
7. Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Ajo) +9.204

Moto2 World Championship Standing 2017
1. Franco Morbidelli (Kalex) 173 points
2. Thomas Luthi (Kalex) 136 points
3. Miguel Oliveira (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 114 points
4. Alex Marquez (Kalex) 113 points
5. Mattia Pasini (Kalex) 93 points
17. Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 25 points

41 BRAD BINDER
“Today went very well. I came into the race with great confidence after the warmup and I thought ‘today could be a great day.’ I pushed my hardest and I took advantage of having a good feeling. At first I found it a little hard, because I was a bit far back, but it’s great to see that I’m also capable of making good comebacks in Moto2 -even if we have to do better in qualifying. I’m happy because at the end of the race my pace was very good; I just have to work a little on my riding to continue taking steps forward. It’s the closest I’ve finished to the front, so I want to thank my team. The bike was perfect. We will continue to work hard during the break and try to get even stronger.”

44 MIGUEL OLIVEIRA
“Today Franco [Morbidelli] was very strong under braking. I tried to overtake him on the downhill section a couple of times and also during the last lap, but it wasn’t to be. In any case, we are very strong and have already taken many Top 5 finishes this year. I had been wanting to return to the podium for the last two races, and here we have taken another small step forward towards the top positions. The whole weekend has been amazing; I am very happy for the whole team and for myself. Now we will use the holidays to rest and to analyse what we have done so far. It is incredible that we are third in the World Championship; it is something we weren’t expecting and we will try to continue with this positive dynamic to continue to take good results.”