MIGUEL OLIVEIRA TAKES AN IMPRESSIVE MOTO3 VICTORY AT MUGELLO
Posted: Sat Jun 06, 2015 5:27 pm
MIGUEL #OLIVEIRA TAKES AN IMPRESSIVE #MOTO3 VICTORY AT #MUGELLO
Miguel Oliveira of @RedBull @KTM Ajo rode a tactically clever and a superbly fought race on Sunday to win the Moto3 GP of Italy on the sweeping Mugello circuit. It was his first career win and the first ever for a Portuguese rider.
Danny Kent of the UK was second and Romano Fenati of Italy took third place to give KTM two of the three podiums.
The race, one of the closest ever in Moto3, saw the first six riders cross the line within one second of each other with a following pack of another 10 in hot pursuit.
Oliveira was running at ninth place in Lap 6 but immediately jumped to the front and stayed in the top group throughout the rest of the 20-lap race. He showed admirable corner speed and was very strong on the brakes on the circuit that is carved out of the natural landscape.
Going into the final lap was still anyone’s race and Oliveira let Fenati briefly have the lead. But under threat from at least another five riders he immediately took charge again.
Miguel Oliveira: “I practiced the move for the last corner many times during the race. I didn’t want to be in the lead in the final lap but in the end I didn’t have any choice. I knew I was very strong in the final corner.”
Romano Fenati: “This was a very close race and I had to fight a lot. It was very difficult and my tire dropped down very quickly. But its good to be on the podium and that is always important.”
Following Sunday’s race Oliveira moves up to fourth in the standings and sits just one point behind Fenati. Championship leader is still Danny Kent of the UK.
Red Bull KTM Ajo’s South African rider Brad Binder was also a major player in the race and maintained a top five place for the first two thirds of the race. Another strong KTM rider was Jakub Kornfeil of the Czech Republic and like Binder he was up with the leaders right up to lap 15. Both riders lost out however in the final dash to the line in this closely contested round.
Undoubtedly the most disappointed rider of the day was Red Bull KTM Ajo’s Karel Hanika. The Czech rider started from the front row for the first time in his career and stuck with the leaders right through to the final lap. He then had a close encounter with Efren Vazquez and went off the track. Hanika rejoined the race to finish near the back of the field.
Riders now have a two-week break before the next round, the GP of Catalunya.
Moto GP of Italy – Autodromo del Mugello - Round 6
Moto3 Results
1, Miquel Oliveira, POR, KTM, 39:39.510
2, Danny Kent, GBR, Honda, 39:39.581
3, Romano Fenati, ITA, KTM, 39:39.637
4, Francesco Bagnaia, ITA, Mahindra, 39:39.640
5, Enea Bastianini, ITA, Honda, 39:39.710
6, Niccolo Antonelli, ITA, Honda, 39:39.891
7, Jorge Navarro, ESP, Honda, 39:41.008
8, Isaac Viñales, ESP, Husqvarna, 39:41.086
9, Alex Masbou, FRA, Honda, 39:41.495
10, Brad Binder, RSA, KTM, 39:41.649
Other KTM
12, Niklas Ajo, FIN, KTM, 39:44.652
15, Andrea Migno ITA, KTM, 39:45.160
16, Jakub Kornfeil, CZE, KTM, 39:46.760
22, Philipp Oettl, GER, KTM, 40:05.958
25, Ana Carrasco, ESP, KTM, 40:07.686
26, Zulfahmi Khairuddin, MAL, KTM, 40:07.732
28, Karel Hanika, CZE, KTM, 40:14.135
DNF, Gabriel Rodrigo, ARG, KTM, 20:06.288
Moto3 Standings after Round 6
1, Kent, 124
2, Bastianini, 78
3, Fenati, 67
4, Oliveira, 66
5, Efren Vazquez, ESP, Honda, 60
6, Viñales, 55
7, Fabio Quartararo, FRA, Honda, 52
8, Bagnaia, 50
9, Brad Binder, 50
10, Masbou, 33
Other KTM
14, Hanika, 18
15, Kornfeil, 17
18, Migno, 12
19, Ajo, 12
21, Oettl, 11
25, Khairuddin, 2
Moto3 Manufacturers Standings after Round 6
1, Honda, 140
2, KTM, 100
3, Husqvarna, 55
Next Round: June 14 Catalunya, Spain
Miguel Oliveira of @RedBull @KTM Ajo rode a tactically clever and a superbly fought race on Sunday to win the Moto3 GP of Italy on the sweeping Mugello circuit. It was his first career win and the first ever for a Portuguese rider.
Danny Kent of the UK was second and Romano Fenati of Italy took third place to give KTM two of the three podiums.
The race, one of the closest ever in Moto3, saw the first six riders cross the line within one second of each other with a following pack of another 10 in hot pursuit.
Oliveira was running at ninth place in Lap 6 but immediately jumped to the front and stayed in the top group throughout the rest of the 20-lap race. He showed admirable corner speed and was very strong on the brakes on the circuit that is carved out of the natural landscape.
Going into the final lap was still anyone’s race and Oliveira let Fenati briefly have the lead. But under threat from at least another five riders he immediately took charge again.
Miguel Oliveira: “I practiced the move for the last corner many times during the race. I didn’t want to be in the lead in the final lap but in the end I didn’t have any choice. I knew I was very strong in the final corner.”
Romano Fenati: “This was a very close race and I had to fight a lot. It was very difficult and my tire dropped down very quickly. But its good to be on the podium and that is always important.”
Following Sunday’s race Oliveira moves up to fourth in the standings and sits just one point behind Fenati. Championship leader is still Danny Kent of the UK.
Red Bull KTM Ajo’s South African rider Brad Binder was also a major player in the race and maintained a top five place for the first two thirds of the race. Another strong KTM rider was Jakub Kornfeil of the Czech Republic and like Binder he was up with the leaders right up to lap 15. Both riders lost out however in the final dash to the line in this closely contested round.
Undoubtedly the most disappointed rider of the day was Red Bull KTM Ajo’s Karel Hanika. The Czech rider started from the front row for the first time in his career and stuck with the leaders right through to the final lap. He then had a close encounter with Efren Vazquez and went off the track. Hanika rejoined the race to finish near the back of the field.
Riders now have a two-week break before the next round, the GP of Catalunya.
Moto GP of Italy – Autodromo del Mugello - Round 6
Moto3 Results
1, Miquel Oliveira, POR, KTM, 39:39.510
2, Danny Kent, GBR, Honda, 39:39.581
3, Romano Fenati, ITA, KTM, 39:39.637
4, Francesco Bagnaia, ITA, Mahindra, 39:39.640
5, Enea Bastianini, ITA, Honda, 39:39.710
6, Niccolo Antonelli, ITA, Honda, 39:39.891
7, Jorge Navarro, ESP, Honda, 39:41.008
8, Isaac Viñales, ESP, Husqvarna, 39:41.086
9, Alex Masbou, FRA, Honda, 39:41.495
10, Brad Binder, RSA, KTM, 39:41.649
Other KTM
12, Niklas Ajo, FIN, KTM, 39:44.652
15, Andrea Migno ITA, KTM, 39:45.160
16, Jakub Kornfeil, CZE, KTM, 39:46.760
22, Philipp Oettl, GER, KTM, 40:05.958
25, Ana Carrasco, ESP, KTM, 40:07.686
26, Zulfahmi Khairuddin, MAL, KTM, 40:07.732
28, Karel Hanika, CZE, KTM, 40:14.135
DNF, Gabriel Rodrigo, ARG, KTM, 20:06.288
Moto3 Standings after Round 6
1, Kent, 124
2, Bastianini, 78
3, Fenati, 67
4, Oliveira, 66
5, Efren Vazquez, ESP, Honda, 60
6, Viñales, 55
7, Fabio Quartararo, FRA, Honda, 52
8, Bagnaia, 50
9, Brad Binder, 50
10, Masbou, 33
Other KTM
14, Hanika, 18
15, Kornfeil, 17
18, Migno, 12
19, Ajo, 12
21, Oettl, 11
25, Khairuddin, 2
Moto3 Manufacturers Standings after Round 6
1, Honda, 140
2, KTM, 100
3, Husqvarna, 55
Next Round: June 14 Catalunya, Spain