Successful First Test for Red Bull KTM Ajo Team

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The Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto3 Factory Team came away from the first official Moto3 tests in Valencia, Spain well satisfied with their performance and that of the new 2013 KTM Moto3 bike.

Team manager Aki Ajo who also had his riders at the Almeria circuit in Spain last week for private tests and what he described as the team roll out said he was pleased with his three riders in the three days of tests just concluded.

“I am very happy with the first tests and I’m really impressed with the bike,” Ajo said. “Our lap times were not the main thing. We were here to try many different things, to find the right direction and to get a feeling for the new bike. Already we have the impression that it is much improved on the 2012 bike.”

Ajo said he was pleased with the performance of his three riders. Luis Salom, who has replaced Sandro Cortese, Moto3 World Champion in 2012 in the team, put in fast lap times on all three days. Zulfahmi Khairuddin of Malaysia was both fast and consistent and Ajo also said he was positively surprised by the good performances of his junior team member, Australia’s Arthur Sissis.

Apart from the official factory team, riders on other KTM-driven bikes were also impressive on the Valencia circuit. Overall fastest over the three days was Spanish talent Maverick Vinales who clocked a lap time of 1.39.299 on Day Three in the second session. Alex Rins of Spain was second fastest at 1.39.585 with Salom third overall fastest with 1.39.669.

Ajo’s son, Niklas Ajo, who this year rides a KTM for the Avant Tecno Team did well to be on the bike completing all three days of tests despite very recent surgery following a skiing accident. Ajo said Niklas was not expected to be on the bike for several months but had toughed it out despite still being in pain from his injury. 

Red Bull KTM Ajo Press Release

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Arthur Sissis Red Bull's Interview, Life on the Road

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An interview from Red Bull to Arthur Sissis, young Australian Moto3 rider. This interview was conducted after Le Mans race

Arthur, how has your introduction to the Moto3 World Championship gone so far?

It's been my dream since I was a kid to be here, so it has been amazing! When I was riding in the Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup at the World Championship circuits I would always watch the 125cc races, and the times we did in the Rookies Cup were not that far off the GP times. Then when I did that Malaysia race I knew it was going to be hard! But this year, in Moto3, I have a very good bike in the KTM and it's all going well so far.

Your background is quite interesting, as you were a late starter in road racing...

Yeah, I was racing speedway in Australia before. The first time I rode a road bike was in 2009, and that was my first year in the Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup. In fact, my first race was in the Rookies Cup! The speedway definitely gave me some good experience and a solid grounding.

What was your experience in the Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup like?

It was really good. I didn't think it was going to be so hard, the first year I was in there, and it was great. To learn Grand Prix tracks and to get three years in the Rookies Cup was excellent, I learned so much about the circuits we went to and now there are only a few on the Moto3 calendar I haven't been to yet.

How have you found the Moto3 bikes?

Not that bad to adjust to, because in speedway I was racing on four-stroke bikes. Anyway, this is new for everybody so it has been quite a level playing field so far.

Were you expecting such good results so early on?

Probably not, especially in Qatar because I didn't know that track. I was expecting 15th, or something around that spot, but that first race went really well. I'm not going to complain about the race in Portugal (Sissis finished 13th) but I had a little bit of pain in my neck from the crash I had the week before at Jerez. At the start of the race I was going really well until the pain started to kick, then it was really sore. I think I can go with the front guys, for sure.

You're in a team which has won two titles in the past four seasons, and have two more experienced team-mates in Sandro Cortese and Danny Kent in the same garage. How has that all helped?

It's great because they're all so experienced, they can teach me a lot. If I'm at a new track I can look at their data and they're completely fine with that. Everyone helps out in the team and it's really good. Sometimes I'll say [to Cortese or Kent] 'Take me out for a few laps!' and they'll say 'No problem', so that's helped with learning some of the new tracks.

And finally, what do you think about life in the paddock?

I love it here! When I go back home, that's when it gets boring!

source: RedBull

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Cortese heads up final Moto3 practice

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Sandro Cortese was the quickest rider in the third and final practice at the Commercialbank Grand Prix of Qatar, with Romano Fenati and Luis Salom completing the top three. The German was unable to better Maverick Viñales' FP2 time however which remains the fastest so far, as the Spaniard placed fourth in the last session.

Sandro Cortese (Red Bull KTM Ajo) was the fastest rider in the third and final practice in Qatar on Friday, as the Moto3™ class ran its final preparations before Saturday's qualifying session. The German rider posted a best time of 2'08.342 to top the timesheet in the 40-minute run, and then pulled off a great save at the end to avoid tarnishing his session with a late crash.

Despite being the best of the session Cortese's time was still not the fastest of the three practices combined. That lap remains Maverick Viñales' (Blusens Avintia) effort from FP2 (2'08.160) which the young Spaniard set on Friday.

Second to Cortese in FP3 was Italian rookie Romano Fenati (Team Italia FMI), who continued to generate excitement about his World Championship debut with a lap of 2'08.376, just 0.034s off top spot. Luis Salom (RW Racing GP) completed the top three at a tenth-of-a-second off Cortese, with Viñales fourth in the final session and just 0.135s off P1.

Miguel Oliveira (Estrella Galicia 0'0), Danny Kent (Red Bull KTM Ajo) and Alex Rins (Estrella Galicia 0'0) were the final three riders within a second of the top time in the practice, and Héctor Faubel (Bankia Aspar Team), Alexis Masbou (Caretta Technology) and another newcomer Niccolò Antonelli (San Carlo Honda Gresini Moto3) completed the top 10.

Louis Rossi (Racing Team Germany) and Zulfahmi Khairuddin (Airasia-SIC-Ajo) occupied 11th and 12th positions respectively, and both

source: MotoGP Official

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