Front row start for Mika Kallio and Julian Simon
 In
a thrilling final qualifying session for tomorrow's Chinese
Grand Prix, Repsol KTM 250 rider Julian Simon moved up to
fourth place, celebrating his first ever front row starting
position with his new machine.
The 21-year-old Spanish hero, who graduated as a top GP contender
in the official KTM 125 team two years ago, and returned to
the Austrian brand after gaining his first year of 250 cc
experience in another team, will start alongside star in third
position. The 25-year-old Finn, current world championship
leader with one victory and three podium finishes in the opening
three races of the season, established himself firmly within
the top riders in China on the first day of practice, but
missed out on an even better practice time when the slid off
the track on his last run on softer tyres in today's final
qualifying session.
In the 125 cc category, celebrates the early comeback ofThe
Swiss teenager had undergone surgery at the Spanish Grand
Prix end of March due to a spleen injury, and was not expected
to be back on his bike that early. But thanks to many years
of hard triathlon training and an exceptional level of fitness,
the 18-year-old bounced back from his operation in remarkably
short time, and had no physical problems in the four practice
sessions for the Chinese Grand Prix. Only a certain lack of
track time after missing two races, and a complicated search
for the right set-up of his slowed him on his way to 33rd
position on the starting grid. Fastest KTM 125 rider was Spanish
star in 13th position, followed by his Italian team-mate in
15th place, who walked away bruised and battered from a painful
crash in the last practice session. Japanese ace , normally
a firm top ten contender, also crashed in the last session
and had to settle for 25th place.
Mika Kallio (Red Bull KTM 250 - 3rd in 2.04,402)
"We found a good base very early on here in Shanghai,
and were able to concentrate entirely on a race set-up that
would enable us to run the entire distance at a fast and consistent
pace. Only for my last run in final practice, we mounted softer
tyres and tried to further improve our lap times. Obviously,
our race set-up didn't match these tyres, because as soon
as I tried to push, I lost the front and crashed. It was a
harmless fall, nothing much to report, but it stopped me from
improving my lap time, which of course I can't be too happy
about. As far as the race goes, this little incident shouldn't
make any difference - I am on front row, and whatever the
weather conditions will be, I will fight tooth and nails for
another good result!"
Julian Simon (Repsol KTM 250 - 4th in 2.05,651)
"Like Mika, we concentrated on improving our race set-up
rather than going for individual fast laps, and we've made
good progress. We tried many different tyres and about 1000
things on chassis and suspension, and at the end, the lap
time came in. Of course it is difficult to match Alvaro Bautista's
rhythm, but in very few races with KTM, we have achieved a
lot, and my first front row start with KTM is certainly a
milestone to be happy about. The only damper at the moment
is the weather forecast, as it looks as if it's going to rain
tomorrow. On a wet tarmac and a track as long as this one,
staying fully concentrated for the entire race will be crucial.
But I'm confident about our speed and our chances to score
a good result!"
Hiroshi Aoyama (Red Bull KTM - 11th in 2.06,276)
"This morning, we managed to improve our set-up and our
lap times, and I expected to be able to continue this way
and do even better in the afternoon. We made some more changes
to the bike and had high hopes, but the result wasn't as positive
as expected - I even ran off the track on one occasion. Now,
we have to look again how to improve turning, and how to carry
more corner speed. It won't make a big difference to me if
it is wet or dry in the race tomorrow, because whatever the
conditions will be, my goal is clear: To improve on my position
and ride a good race!"
Randy Krummenacher (Red Bull KTM 125 - 33rd in 2.17,034)
"I spent a week at the Red Bull training centre in the
Austrian town of Fuschl at the beginning of April, and my
progress was so good that I knew that I was going to be up
to the task, and ready to race here in China. During the Portuguese
Grand Prix, I gave my team the green light to ship the cargo
with my bikes to Shanghai, and now I'm really glad to be here.
It feels good to be back with my team and back on the bike,
and I have no pain or other physical side-effects which is
the good news. The bad news is that I definitely need more
track time to make up for missing the last two races. I feel
as if I am right on the limit, with the bike sliding on front
and rear, and I just can't explain the gap of four seconds
to the fastest riders out there - their times seem like witchcraft
to me!"
Harald Bartol (Technical Director)
"Congratulations to Julian Simon - I always knew about
his talent and his speed, it was just a matter of where and
when things would come together. I am sure that this front
row starting position is a great experience for him and will
boost his confidence for the races to come. We are also very
happy to see Randy Krummenacher back in action. At the moment,
he is trying to regain his speed with long runs and lots of
track time, but this will help him only so much - step two
is finding back to the aggression and fighting spirit on the
race track that made him a world championship racer. Once
this sort of adrenalin rush kicks in again, Randy will be
back within the top contenders!"
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