The Red Bull KTM Ajo rider is unable to finish the two Moto3 Junior World Championship races held on Sunday, despite having led both contests.

The Ricardo Tormo Circuit hosted the second round of the FIM CEV season this weekend*, with two races for the Moto3 Junior World Championship. Deniz Öncü had a solid performance on track: *weekend, he was always among the fastest riders and claimed second place in qualifying. However, on race day he has experienced misfortune on two occasions, retiring from the first race due to* a mechanical problem, when up into second place, and failing to finish the second contest *due to because of a crash whilst in the lead.

In Race 1, Deniz Öncü made a great start from second on the grid, getting to the front of the pack. The young Turkish rider imposed a fast pace and only one rider was able to accompany him on his escape, as they left behind the remainder of the field. With 5 laps to go, a mechanical problem forced him to retire when chasing down the race leader.

The Red Bull KTM Ajo rider went into the second race with a desire to make up for his earlier disappointment. Deniz Öncü grabbed the lead from the start and began to open a gap between himself and the group behind him, but at the start of the second lap he suffered a crash. Despite his efforts to remount, the 15-year-old rider was forced to retire.

Deniz Öncü will return to action on May 18th at the legendary Le Mans circuit, when where the FIM CEV series shares the stage with the MotoGP World Championship.

Results – Race 1
1. Yuki Kunii (Honda) 30:10.913
2. Jeremy Alcoba (Husqvarna) +8.342
3. Davide Pizzoli (Honda) +8.369
4. Daniel Holgado (Honda) +8.436
5. Xavier Artigas (Honda) +8.606
DNF. Deniz Öncü (Red Bull KTM Ajo)

Results – Race 2
1. Ryusei Yamanaka (Honda) 30:20.294
2. Yuki Kunii (Honda) +0.252
3. Daniel Holgado (Honda) +3.868
4. Xavier Artigas (Honda) +3.910
5. Aleix Viu (KTM) +4.207
DNF. Deniz Öncü (Red Bull KTM Ajo)

Moto3 Junior World Championship Standing
1. Yuki Kunii (Honda) 45 points
2. Xavier Artigas (Honda) 44 points
3. Barry Baltus (KTM) 41 points
4. Jeremy Alcoba (Husqvarna) 41 points
5. Ryusei Yamanaka (Honda) 37 points
-. Deniz Öncü (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 0 points

53 DENIZ ÖNCÜ

“It was a tough day for us. The first race went well, even though we couldn’t finish. My goal was to open up a gap ahead of the chasing pack, and I did that, as only Yuki Kunii was able to follow me. We escaped and then he passed me, so I thought of slotting in behind him to overtake at the end. However, with five laps to go we had a mechanical problem that forced me to retire.
The team worked very hard to prepare the bike for the second race, but I couldn’t save the crash on Lap 2, when I was leading the race. The important thing is that we have learned a lot this weekend. At the next race we will try to do our best to get a good final position.”