Mika Kallio plays safe and scores points on damp Le Mans
circuit
 Red
Bull KTM 250 star Mika Kallio decided to play it safe in damp
and difficult conditions at the French 250 cc Grand Prix on
Sunday to finish fifth and consolidate his leading position
in the championship standings
On a day where fickle weather conditions prevailed at the
famous French racing circuit, Kallio started with cut slicks
and battled his way through the second group of riders when
the track started to dry out. He even looked set for his fifth
podium finish of the year when he swept past his opponents
Mattia Pasini and Yuki Takahashi with four laps to go. But
on a dry track in the final stages of the 26-lap race, the
Finnish rider had to pay respect to his choice of tyres and
slipped behind his rivals riding on full slicks. At the end
of the day, Kallio was relieved and happy with the result
and the defence of his lead in the standings. He now has 93
points, a 16-point lead from nearest rival Mattia Pasini of
Italy.
Mika Kallio satisfied with fifth place
"It was a good day for me and the team. We stayed on
the track, I managed to avoid a crash that could have easily
happened in the slippery, damp conditions, and we finished
in the position we had aimed at before the race. Fifth is
perfectly okay for me," Kallio said. The Finn said everything
worked well at the start of the race and he didn't experience
any major problems. As conditions improved he was able to
adjust his speed and push more. "I was even able to catch
up and think about another podium finish," Kallio said.
"But towards the end, third position slipped away from
me again, because I was on cut slicks, and Pasini and Takahashi
were on proper slick tyres and had a clear advantage when
the track dried out completely. My bike was sliding and moving
around a lot, also because our suspension settings were somewhere
for the middle between dry and wet. But even though I had
to back off a bit I'm still happy and the most important thing
today was to take as many safe p oints as possible!"
Aoyama not so lucky in choice of tyres
Red Bull team-mate Hiroshi Aoyama was less lucky. With only
minutes to go before the race start, the Japanese ace opted
for slick tyres on the starting grid, but it was too late
to make this choice available. Racing on intermediates, Aoyama
had a great start into the race and held second position for
five laps before he got into increasing difficulties as the
track dried up. He held on to finish in seventh place Aoyama
now has 53 championship points and is in sixth place overall.
"We made a mistake with the tyre choice," Aoyama
said. "Things were okay for a while with my intermediate
tyres but I started to lose positions as the track dried out.
I am a bit disappointed, but at least we finished the race!"
Repsol KTM rider Julian Simon, who held an impressive third
place for most of the race, ran into handling problems, and
dropped back to eighth place.
Congratulations from KTM CEO Stefan Pierer
"Congratulations to our riders who made the best of a
difficult situation. On a slippery track, in very tricky conditions,
Mika kept his cool and the world championship hopes of all
of us alive. Considering the circumstances, it was a perfect
day for our team!"
Results
1. Alex Debon, Spain, Aprilia, 47:27.406
2. Marco Simoncelli, Italy, Gilera, 47:32.222
3. Mattia Pasini, Italy, Aprilia, 47:32.404
4. Yuki Takahashi, Japan, Honda, 47:33.176
5. Mika Kallio, Finland, Red Bull KTM, 47.33.603
Other KTM
7. Hiroshi Aoyama, Japan, Red Bull KTM, 47:42.315
8. Julian Simon, Spain, Repsol KTM 250cc, 47:44.932
Standings
1. Mika Kallio Finland, Red Bull KTM 93 points
2. Mattia Pasini, Italy, Aprilia, 77
3. Alex Debon, Spain Aprilia, 59
4. Yuki Takahashi, Japan, Honda, 59
5. Marco Simoncelli, Italy, Gilera, 53
Other KTM
6. Hiroshi Aoyama, Japan, Red Bull KTM
10. Julian Simon, Spain, Repsol KTM 250cc
Wet weather turns 125 cc GP in France into a two
episode affair
Riders in the 125 cc French Grand Prix on Sunday had their
race scrapped in the final stages when rain started to fall
and stewards brought out the red flags.
The French Grand Prix for the small bikes was then re-run
as a five-lap dash and Red Bull KTM rider Randy Krummenacher
was able to make the best of the tricky, damp conditions to
score his first top ten finish of the year.
Last minute tyre change a good choice
The Swiss teenager, who had finished back in twentieth in
the first part of the race, the results of which were negated,
made a crucial last-minute tyre change on the starting grid.
This turned out to be just the right decision and the Swiss
rider, now fully recovered fro his recent spleen operation
hunted down a large number of his opponents. Krummenacher
even managed to close in on Onde 2000 KTM rider Raffaele de
Rosa. Lorenzo Zanetti of the KTM supported ISPA KTM Aran team
was the top 125 cc rider for the Austrian factory finishing
in seventh place.
Further progress for Red Bull KTM's Krummenacher
"Things go better and better. I made further progress
in this morning's warm-up session and even though my feeling
for the bike wasn't quite as good in the race, I managed to
catch up with a few riders. When I went out for the inspection
lap before the re-start, I had a massive slide and started
to worry. But we mounted a softer rear tyre on the starting
grid and I got back the feeling for the bike. I decided to
go straight for the maximum possible lean angle so I could
maintain the best grip level for my tyres. I was able to go
fast and consistent without any more scary moments. I am happy,"
Krummenacher said.
125 cc Results (Race over five laps only after rain
disruption)
1. Mike De Meglio, France, Derbi 10:08.574
2. Bradley Smith, Britain, Aprilia, 1:09.374
3. Nicolas Terol, Spain, Aprilia, 10:11.651
4. Pol Espargaro, Spain, Derbi, 10:18.981
5. Andrea Iannone, Italy, Aprilia, 10:20.455
Other KTM
7. Lorenzo Zanetti, Italy, ISPA KTM Aran, 10:24.946
9. Raffaele De Rosa, Italy, Onde 200 KTM, 10:27.737
10. Randy Krummenacher, Switzerland, Red Bull KTM, 10:30.965
17. Esteve Rabat, Spain, Repsol KTM 125cc, 10:34.985
Pablo Nieto, Spain, Onde 2000 KTM, DNF
Tomoyoshi Koyama, Japan, ISPA KTM Aran, DNF
Marc Marquez, Spain, Repsol KTM 125cc, DNF
Championship standings
1. Mike de Meglio, France, 74 points
2. Nicolas Terol, Spain Aprilia, 66
3. Simone Corsi, Italy, Aprilia, 62
4. Joan Olive, Spain, Derbi, 58
5. Stefan Bradl, Germany, Aprilia, 58
Other KTM
15. Raffaele de Rosa, Onde 2000 KTM, 19
19. Pablo Nieto, Spain Onde 2000 KTM, 11
20 Lorenzo Zanetti, Italy, ISPA KTM Aran, 9
21. Esteve Rabat, Spain, Repsol KTM 125cc, 9
22. Randy Krummenacher, Switzerland, Red Bull KTM, 6
23. Tomoyoshi Koyama, Japan, ISPA KTM Aran, 6
25. Marc Marquez, Spain, Repsol KTM 125cc, 4
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