The announcement from Stefan Pierer, CEO of KTM, has the effect of a bombshell: the Austrian firm is leaving Moto2 and focusing on MotoGP and Moto3.
Stefan pierer : “We have taken the proactive decision to renew our presence in MotoGP and commit to five more years of competition. This is part of a wider strategic vision and we now have seven years to rise to the top of the MotoGP category, the same period of time it took us to conquer the Dakar Rally. We know that we are on the right track and that we have already made good steps in less than three years.”
“It is with this in mind that we want to boost Moto3: it is the foundation and basis of road racing for us. This is where we started and where we are one of the leading brands. We see a very good opportunity here in bringing Husqvarna back with a vengeance; there will be a new motorcycle and special direction with this project. This whole movement means that we will pool our resources and our energy and, therefore, we will come out of Moto2.”
Pete Beirer, director of KTM Motorsport: “First of all, it’s fantastic for us to stay “all in” in MotoGP and to be able to keep pushing to achieve our goals. With our knowledge of over three hundred FIM World Championships in so many categories, we know the ingredients for racing success and we are determined not to stray from our goal. I would like to thank Mr. Pierer and the KTM AG Board of Directors for the additional vote of confidence and for all the hard work and faith that every person who touches this project has shown so far.”
“Secondly, we looked at the whole program and we know that our effort has to be well placed, and we believe that MotoGP and Moto3 are the main platforms on which we move forward. Thanks to Aki's work and experience we can maintain a link with Moto2, and perhaps what is the final preparation needed for the jump to MotoGP. We strongly believe that we can have this advantage even though we will significantly reduce our presence as a chassis supplier. We can feel the passion for MotoGP in places like the Red Bull Ring this weekend and it allows us to feed off that energy. We believe there are exciting times ahead for us as a racing department and as a company.”
This is the major announcement.
The press release is more detailed, the matter more complex and the consequences non-negligible, in particular for the team Tech3 by Hervé Poncharal from next year.
We will therefore come back to this major change with our own information as soon as possible…
