Pol Espargaro takes 9th in Brno

KTM Motorsport Director Pit Beirer had a target for the Red Bull KTM Factory Racing MotoGP team to get a top ten finish in the second half of the 2017 season, and that was achieved today at Brno with Pol Espargaro gaining a brilliant ninth position. All riders had to change motorcycles as the race had started under wet conditions but the strength of the summer sun soon made a dry line appear. Once on the a bike with dry settings and slick tyres, he bravely pushed on and but for a run off-track lost him around six seconds, he may well have been even higher at the flag, but before the team go into their home race on the Red Bull Ring in Spielberg next weekend today has been a great result. Espargaro also set his fastest lap time just 0.9 secs off the fastest lap of the race. All these results have lifted the team enormously as on going technical progress is made and the KTM RC16motorcycle edge further up the results sheets.

Pol Espargaro:

“I am super happy for the team and everyone involved in this MotoGP project. Remember we started our first race in Qatar ten races ago and we finished; then we got points in Argentina and now we get a top ten in August at Brno. It’s real today! After I changed bikes I made a mistake and lost six seconds going through the gravel, but away from that we’ve done a super job this weekend. I’m happy that I rode well this weekend but the team have done such an outstanding job. The bike is so good on the brakes but we’re still missing something on the cornering but here today with what we have after ten races it was working very well. After the recent tests we can all feel the difference and upward direction in the level of the bike. In fact, we thought that after the test Mika (Kallio) had here we thought we would struggle a bit here but with what we did at Aragon it’s meant the bike is so much better already. I’m riding the bike differently and more effectively and that is making the combination a tighter package. Now to Austria: Can’t wait.”