Miguel Oliveira wins in Australia

Sunday at the Australian GP could not have gone better for the Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto2 team. An historic day for the team, the Austrian factory and for Portugal saw Miguel Oliveira take his first victory in the class, becoming the first Portuguese rider to do so and, above all, giving KTM their first win in their maiden year in Moto2. This great success was capped off by the first podium for Brad Binder, a rookie this year, in second place.

Just like he did two seasons ago in Moto3, Miguel Oliveira stood tall on the highest step of the Phillip Island podium today. The Portuguese dominated the race from start to finish. A great start allowed him to take the holeshot, and he held the lead for the remaining 25 laps. With an unmatched pace, Oliveira escaped from teammate Binder and from Franco Morbidelli on the eighth lap, finally crossing the finish line with an almost 3 second advantage.

Both Oliveira and Binder riders gain positions in the overall standings as a result of their historic Australian GP. With just two rounds of the season remaining, Miguel Oliveira has regained third position -191 points- and Brad Binder enters the Top 10 in his first year in Moto2 -89 points. Both riders will try to keep their form going next week at the Malaysian Grand Prix.

44 Miguel Oliveria:

“I’m very happy; I just feel happiness. I could not be more grateful for this victory because when it started to rain I struggled a little. I already had a certain advantage and was aware that the distance I had from the pursuing riders had been reduced, which created a little stress. As you can imagine, it has been the longest race of my life. I’m very happy with the team and with my first victory in the class, the first for KTM and hopefully not the last.”