Third podium in three 250 cc GPs for KTM's Kallio
Red Bull KTM 250 factory rider raced to third in the 250cc
Grand Prix of Portugal on the Estoril racing circuit to secure
his third podium in three races and a 12-point lead in the
world championship.
"I thought before the season that if all goes well, we
could be leading the points now," the Finnish rider said.
"A podium is always good but second would have been better."
Tactical race
Kallio started fourth on the grid and was lying in a comfortable
third place in the second half of the race only to be denied
second place by just 0.13 seconds going across the line in
44.41.320.
Kallio: "At the beginning I had some
problems with the hard front tyre but then I started to catch
up. I saw that Simoncelli was beginning to have tyre problems
and in the last lap I was waiting for an opportunity to pass
him. But I wasn't able to do it the just before we crossed
the line we touched, otherwise we could have been second,"
Kallio said of an incident with second placed Marco Simoncelli
right on the finish line. The Finn however was philosophical,
saying that such incidents were a part of racing.
Aoyama solid fifth
Kallio's teammate at Red Bull KTM 250 Hiroshi Aoyama finished
in a solid fifth place. "I had a good start but I wasn't
able to stick with the front group. I had some problems with
my back tyre but then I started to get better and better but
in the end the Aprilias were too fast for us today."
Red Bull KTM Director Harald Bartol: "Kallio
raced a good race today and he was concentrating on the world
championship." While underlining that he was not speaking
specifically of the final stages of the 250 cc race, Bartol
said it was his general opinion that when such an incident
happens on the home straight he thought it was matter for
the race direction.
Rounding for a good day for KTM Julian Simon of Repsol KTM
250 cc crossed the line in seventh place.
Results
1. Alvaro Bautista, Spain, Aprilia, 44:34.257
2. Marco Simoncelli, Gilera, 44:41,307
3. Mika Kallio, Finland, KTM, 44.41.320
4. Thomas Luthi, Switzerland, Aprilia, 44:47.265
5. Hiroshi Aoyama, KTM, 44:48.923
6. Yuki Takahashi, Honda, 44:52.755
7. Julian Simon, Spain, KTM, 45:01.069
13.04.2008
Grand Prix of Portugal a learning experience for KTM 125 cc
riders
With Red Bull KTM 125 team factory rider Randy Krummenacher
still recovering from an emergency operation for a ruptured
spleen, the Grand Prix of Portugal evolved into a learning
experience for the remaining six riders of the KTM supported
teams.
Tomoyoshi Koyama of the ISPA KTM Aran Team was unable to translate
his pre-race optimism into a top result. He started at grid
slot 11 and finished in sixteenth place. Marc Marquez, the
very young rider in Repsol KTM 125 cc Team did finish his
first Grand Prix after having had to sit out the first two
with a wrist injury from pre-season training.
The other four KTM riders - Lorenzo Zanetti, Italy, ISPA KTM
Aran; Pablo Nieto, Spain, Onde 2000 KTM; Esteve Rabat, Spain,
Repsol KTM 125 cc and Raffaele De Rosa, Italy, Onde 2000 KTM
all retired during the race.
Increased KTM activity in the 125 cc class in supporting additional
team is an integral part of the company's development program
and its policy of supporting talented young riders.
Results
1. Simone Corsi, Italy, Aprilia
2. Joan Olive, Spain, Derbi
3. Nicolas Terol, Spain, Aprilia
4. Stevie Bonsey, USA, Aprilia
5. Danny Webb, Britain, Aprilia
16. Tomoyoshi Koyama, Japan, ISPA KTM Aran
18. Marc Marquez, Spain, Repsol KTM 125 cc
13.04.2008
 Hiemer
snatches second in opening SM1 Grand Prix
KTM factory rider Bernd Hiemer started the Supermoto S1 season
in style on Sunday with a 1-2 victory in the two races for
overall second place in the opening Grand Prix of Italy to
share top points with leader Thierry van den Bosch of France.
Nevertheless the German rider allowed himself to be a little
disappointed not to be on the top of the podium. In the case
of shared points the rider who wins the second race is declared
the overall winner. The race was held under sunny skies after
rain on Saturday had prevented an competition on the offroad
section of the track.
Great start to the season
"It was a great start to the season and much better than
last year," Hiemer said. "My lap times and speed
were super. In the first race I had a perfect start and at
the halfway mark I had seven-second lead. I didn't get away
so well in the second race. I was in second place but I just
wasn't able to find an opportunity to overtake."
Perfect control by Hiemer
It was Van der Bosch that made a perfect start in the second
race had while Hiemer was not able to overtake him he masterfully
controlled Thomas Chareyre and Italian Ivan Lazzarini, indicating
that he now has an excellent feeling for his KTM machine.
Bernd is aiming high this season and wants to improve on his
forth place finish in the S1 World Championship in 2007. The
good result in the first Grand Prix is a major confidence
booster for him, he said.
Busy program
Hiemer has plenty on his program before the next GP with tests
plus starts in the Italian and German national championship
to keep his riding skills at razor's edge. The next Grand
Prix is the Grand prix of Europe scheduled for May 25.
Overall Results and championship points
1. Thierry van den Bosch, France, Aprilia (Race One 2; Race
two 1) 47 points
2. Bernd Hiemer, Germany, KTM (Race one 1; Race two 2) 47
points
3. Thomas Chareyre, France, Husqvarna 36
4. Ivan Lazzarini, Italy, Aprilia 36
5. Matthew Winstanley, Britain, KTM 36
13.04.2008
Third place for Pignotti in opening Supermoto 2 Grand Prix
in Turin
Italian Attilio Pignotti launched his challenge in the 2008
Supermoto 2 class in style at the Grand Prix of Italy in Turin
on Sunday piloting his KTM to third overall in the season's
opening race.
The Italian was third and fourth for his podium place picking
up a handy 38 points behind Davide Gozzini (Italy) and Adrien
Chareyre (France) in first and second but with equal championship
points. The result was very promising for Pignotti who is
not yet completely fit after surgery to his left shoulder,
which has hampered his physical training preparation.
Difficult conditions
The races were also difficult. Although the sun came out on
Sunday, rain disrupted the program on Saturday and riders
were not able to ride the offroad section of the track. Given
the circumstances, Pignotti and the KTM Italy team were well
satisfied with the positive start to the season for both rider
and machine. The SMR performed well and had no problem with
the settings.
Impressive performance
On Sunday Pignotti was able to gain a good position at the
start of each heat and looked impressive on the track. His
performance indicated that he will be one of the favourites
for this year's title.
Overall Results and championship points
1. Davide Gozzini, Italy, TM, 47 points (Race one 2; Race
two 1) 47 points
2. Adrien Chareyre, France, Husqvarna, 47 points (Race one
1; Race two 2) 47 points
3. Attilo Pignotti, Italy, KTM (Race one 3; Race two 4) 38
points
4. Luca Minutilli, Italy, Aprilia 36 points
5. Massimo Beltrami, Italy, Aprilia 32 points
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