Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto3 wildcard finishes 17th in a demanding race at the Red Bull Ring, whilst brother Can Öncü crashes out.

The Red Bull KTM Ajo team enjoyed mixed fortunes at the Austrian Grand Prix. The wildcard Deniz Öncü ended his second race in the Moto3 World Championship in 17th place, whilst brother Can overcame a crash but retired, due to a second fall later in the contest.

Deniz Öncü started from 26th position on the grid, getting away well and moving up six places on the opening lap. The wildcard was able to successfully navigate a race in which there were numerous crashes, and was up into 14th just a few laps before the end. After a hard battle in a large group of riders, the Turkish youngster eventually crossed the line 17th.

Can Öncü leaves Austria empty-handed, despite a solid performance throughout the weekend. The Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto3 rider, who took off from the 9th row of the grid, suffered a crash in a collision with another rider at Turn 3 of Lap 10, promptly remounting to rejoin the race. However, the 16-year-old would crash again at Turn 9 with 11 laps remaining, bringing his race to a premature conclusion.

The next round for the Red Bull KTM Ajo team will be the British GP, held at Silverstone from August 23rd to 25th.

Results (Moto3 Race)
1. Romano Fenati (Honda) 37:50.135
2. Tony Arbolino (Honda) +1.097
3. John McPhee (Honda) +1.105
4. Celestino Vietti (KTM) +1.120
5. Marcos Ramirez (Honda) +6.789
17. Deniz Öncü (Red Bull KTM Ajo) +28.156
DNF. Can Öncü (Red Bull KTM Ajo)

Moto3 World Championship Standing 2019
1. Lorenzo Dalla Porta (Honda) 155 points
2. Aron Canet (KTM) 154 points
3. Tony Arbolino (Honda) 113 points
4. Niccolo Antonelli (Honda) 105 points
5. Marcos Ramirez (Honda) 89 points
28. Can Öncü (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 4 points
-. Deniz Öncü (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 0 points

Aki Ajo – Team manager

“It was a challenging day in Moto3, with all of the riders switching to slick tyres at the last moment on the grid. It was difficult starting the contest with those tyres. Deniz [Öncü] had a very good race, finishing very close to the points. Unfortunately, Can [Öncü] fell twice when fighting with other riders.”

61 CAN ÖNCÜ

“I’m not satisfied with how things went today. I know we could have done much better but, overall, we didn’t have very good luck this weekend. Despite the result, we must be positive as we have learned a lot at this Grand Prix. We have to continue working as we have been up to now, in order to be fighting for the points at the upcoming races.”

53 DENIZ ÖNCÜ

“On the formation lap I had wet tyres on, however we realised that the racing line was very dry, so on the grid we decided to change to slicks and the dry setup. Once we got off the line, I tried to move up the order quickly. On the first corner I was able to pass several riders, but on the second turn I made a mistake and lost some of those positions. At the end ,I was in a battle with a group and I finished 17th. I’m happy because we were able to see how we measure up with the fastest riders on the grid. Now we have to continue working this way.”