The Red Bull KTM Ajo team wheeled out their Moto2 challenger in public for the first time on Wednesday at the Jerez pre-season test, as they prepare for their intermediate class debut in 2017 with Brad Binder and Miguel Oliveira.
KTM announced back in 2014 that they would be entering the MotoGP World Championship as a full works effort in 2017, and confirmed their plans earlier this year to contest the Moto2 World Championship as well. With KTM moving into the intermediate class next season, they will be able to nurture talent from the Red Bull Rookies Cup all the way through to the premier class of Grand Prix racing.
Binder will make his Moto2 bow next season as the reigning Moto3 World Champion. He completed 70 laps of the Spanish circuit as he got to grips with the 600cc machine. The South African may have finished well down the order with a best lap of 1m48.9s, almost seven seconds off the pace, but improved and further adapted to the bike every time he left pit lane.
“We had a good day today at the Jerez Circuit. I enjoyed my first experience of the KTM Moto2 bike a lot. I’ve spent many years in Moto3 and it’s a strange feeling to switch to a new bike,” said Binder.
“However, I am definitely happy with how everything has gone; basically I tried to adapt to the new conditions, and this takes time. Every time I went out on track I managed to go faster, and feel more comfortable. It all looks good for now and I can’t wait to get back testing tomorrow.”
Oliveira made his Moto2 debut this season with the Leopard Racing Team after finishing runner-up in the Moto3 class in 2015 with Red Bull KTM Ajo. The Portuguese rider endured a tough year, taking a best result of eighth in Barcelona. Having ridden on a Kalex chassis all season, today was simply about acclimatising to the new bike for Oliveira.
Though not looking for a fast lap time, Oliveira managed a 1m43.6s and this put him just 1.4s off the pace. As the day wore on, the Portuguese rider grew more comfortable on the KTM and managed to complete 84 laps of the Jerez Circuit.
“It’s been a very positive day with the KTM bike, with which we were able to put in a lot of laps. It was an important day for us, to compare the feeling between the bike I had ridden all season and this one, as I have things fresh in my mind,” explained Oliveira.
“We rode without problems and tried a few things to test the reaction of the bike. We took things calmly, without focusing on being fast and instead looking to transmit how the bike worked to the team. Above all, I am very happy to be working with the Red Bull KTM Ajo again and enjoying myself.”
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