Red Bull KTM Ajo rider achieves third place at the San Marino and Riviera di Rimini Grand Prix and maintains lead in the overall standings. Hanika DNFs after a crash.

After two races off the rostrum, Jack Miller returned to the Moto3 podium at Misano this Sunday. The Red Bull KTM Ajo rider crossed the finish line in third place to score his seventh podium of the year and maintain the leadership of the overall standings with a 9-point advantage in the process. Karel Hanika crashed on lap nine when in the fight for the points.

Miller got an excellent start from pole position, taking the lead and pushing hard to complete the opening lap over half a second ahead of his nearest rival. After leading the race for the first three times around, a scare on lap four saw him drop out of the lead group and go down to sixth. Despite this, the Australian did not throw in the towel and once again set a strong pace –escaping the chasing pack and clinching third place at his 50th Grand Prix.

Karel Hanika also had a good start, gaining 5 places in the first section of the race. The Red Bull KTM Ajo rookie was part of a large group fighting for thirteenth place, until on the second corner of lap nine he lost the front and crashed out. Hanika had been on a run of three races in the points.

After this result at the Misano World Circuit Marco Simonelli, Jack Miller leads the overall standings with 195 points. He holds a 9-point advantage over second placed Alex Marquez. Hanika, with a total of 24 points, lies eighteenth. The next round is the Aragon GP on Septemberr 28th, the third Spanish race of the year and the last event before the flyaways.

Results – Race
1. Alex Rins (Honda) 39:50.694
2. Alex Marquez (Honda) +0.042
3. Jack Miller (Red Bull KTM Ajo) +3.403
4. Isaac Viñales (KTM) +4.459
5. Enea Bastianini (KTM) +4.485
DNF – Karel Hanika (Red Bull KTM Ajo)

Moto3 World Championship Standing 2014
1. Jack Miller (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 195 points
2. Alex Marquez (Honda) 186 points
3. Alex Rins (Honda) 175 points
4. Efren Vazquez (Honda) 151 points
5. Romano Fenati (KTM) 140 points
18. Karel Hanika (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 24 points

Jack Miller >> Audio (solely for radio use)

“I am happy to have been able to get on the podium, especially after the little mistake I made on the fourth lap. I was having a good race, I felt comfortable and luckily I was able to stay on the bike. When Efren [Vazquez] and Isaac [Viñales] passed me, I had to work very hard to reduce the small advantage that they had. I went step-by-step, but it was not enough to get the win. I pushed hard and with 5 laps to go I tried to keep up the pace, but the tyres were shot by then. We have to be satisfied with the final result of this race.”

Karel Hanika >> Audio (solely for radio use)

“My start was not bad –I would even say that it went much better than I had expected. However, I never had the same feeling as I had this morning in the warmup, when I was able to ride very fast and by myself. I tried to keep on the back wheel of other riders, especially exiting the corners, and that is why later I pushed too hard out of Turn 2 and lost the front. That’s why I could not finish this race. I hope that this does not happen again.”

Aki Ajo >> Audio (solely for radio use)

“We must be content, because the last two races hadn’t been too good for us. We have improved this weekend and have returned to the podium with Jack [Miller]. In the end, we managed to take a good handful of points that allow us to continue to lead the series and keep fighting for the Moto3 World Championship.

As for Karel [Hanika], we have to analyse exactly why the weekend has been so difficult for him. He hasn’t felt good for three days and could not finish the race. He has to keep working as he has done so far and we’ll find areas in which we can improve.”