The Red Bull KTM Ajo duo kick off the final stretch of the season at Misano.

Celestino Vietti and Deniz Öncü return to Italy this weekend to contest another Grand Prix at the Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli. A week on from their last visit, the Red Bull KTM Ajo duo have a new opportunity to return to the front after a disappointing ending at the San Marino GP, where Vietti crashed while fighting for the podium and Öncü could only manage nineteenth.

Vietti was one of the strongest riders at his home Grand Prix, fighting for pole and starting the race from the front row. He did not have the best feeling in the race and was forced to recover positions and close the gap to the Top 3 in the class. With 4 laps to go, he had a chance of securing a podium spot, but a crash brought his race to a premature conclusion. The Red Bull KTM Ajo rider has 102 points and is ninth in the overall standings.

Deniz Öncü faced a more difficult weekend than expected at the last Grand Prix. The physical demands of the Misano track made things tougher for a rider recently back from injury. He went from strength to strength during the weekend and worked very hard to perform at his best, but could only manage nineteenth. Öncü returns to the Italian circuit with clearer ideas and focused on being more consistent and competitive from the first session. Öncü has 27 points and is 19th in the standings.

Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto2 are seventh in the Teams standings with 129 points. Last year Pedro Acosta took the win at Misano, while in 2022 Augusto Fernandez was third. In 2021 Remy Gardner and Raul Fernandez took first and second place, respectively. The Moto2 race will take place on Sunday from 11:15am local time.
 

Circuit information – Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli
Length: 4.2km / 2.626 miles
Width: 12m / 39.37 ft.
Left corners: 6
Right corners: 10
Longest straight: 0.5km / 0.329 miles
Built: 1969

#13 CELESTINO VIETTI

“Of course, the first race at Misano didn’t finish as we wanted or expected. However, we were quite competitive and fast, so we will start again with this feeling. We will try to improve some things that maybe we missed a fortnight ago. The objective is to continue working and improve the feeling with the bike. We keep working to try to perform better and achieve better results from now until the end of the season.”

#53 DENIZ ÖNCÜ

“We are here at Misano for a second weekend. This time I am more optimistic, because we have already done some laps on this circuit with the Moto2 bike. This time I will start with some data and hopefully be stronger. This week I want to be more competitive, while always enjoying myself, which is the most important thing. I will try to get the best results that I can, but of course the objective is to get experience and enjoy it.”