The Red KTM Ajo team put on a show on KTM land and offered a very good Grand Prix but was ultimately beaten. Nevertheless, with a podium and a top 6, he continues to lead the teams' championship.
Miguel Oliveira started the Austrian weekend in a rather discreet way, firstly with the sixteenth fastest time in FP1, then almost not driving in FP2 due to the rain, which meant he finished thirtieth. The next day, however, he returned to the forefront by finishing fourth in FP3 and qualifying in second position, his best qualification of the year.
After an excellent start, he took the lead at the first corner and remained in first place until the final lap. Chased by his rival in the Championship, Francesco Bagnaia, he did his best to win, but the Italian finally had the last word, relegating Oliveira to second position, both in the race, but also in the Championship. Obviously, even if it is an excellent result, the Portuguese was still disappointed: “I'm happy with this second place at the Red Bull Ring, even if it has a bitter taste because I didn't win. Overall, I had an excellent race. I made no mistakes and led every lap. I just lost a place on the last lap. I had to guess where Bagnaia was going to try to pass and thus close the doors. The last lap was a carbon copy of what happened last year in MotoGP. The Championship is very close and the races are very exciting. We are at the limit. This year the top drivers are not making mistakes, and both Bagnaia and I have always scored points. I'm very happy because things are going well and I'm sure we will win another race. »
For its part, Brad Binder was once again a little far behind during practice before coming back to the front in qualifying. Indeed, he finished seventeenth in FP1, twenty-second in FP2 and fifteenth in FP3 before qualifying eighth. Author of a very good start, he had a good race and could hope to fight for the podium, but he was penalized for going outside the limits of the track, and thus had to give up a position four laps at the end, which spoiled his race. He finally finished sixth, for the seventh time this season: “Once again we finished sixth. To be honest, we were unlucky. The key moment of the race was when I was penalized and had to give up a place. This cost me time with only four laps remaining and ended my chances of fighting for a better result. Before that, I felt like I could fight for the podium. The important thing is that we finally took points and that we are getting stronger and stronger. »
