Poncharal: Oliveira top 10 “like a dream come true”

Red Bull KTM Tech 3’s Miguel Oliveira took his already impressive rookie MotoGP™ campaign to new heights at the myWorld Motorrad Grand Prix von Österreich.

The Portuguese rider looked strong all weekend and managed to produce the goods on Sunday, crossing the line in a season-best P8 to claim Tech 3’s first top 10 with KTM machinery. Understandably, Red Bull KTM Tech 3 Team Manager Herve Poncharal was full of praise for Oliveira, with the Frenchman describing the result as “a dream come true.”

“Sometimes you see the light at the end of the tunnel and today clearly there was some good sunshine at the end of our tunnel,” began Poncharal. “We have been working hard for a top 10 result and at the end, we could maybe have had this result a bit earlier, but today was just like a dream come true. This is the first time, Miguel got some upgraded parts that he can use in the race.

“This is the home Grand Prix for both, Red Bull and KTM and this is by far our best result of the season. We are very proud of what Miguel did. We are very thankful to KTM, because they never give up, they never stop working, they never stop supporting us and bringing new things and to be with a manufacturer like that is something that warms your heart. I think the whole team understands that.

“Clearly, the next step is to try to have a bit better Qualifying position, because we could see that from lap three, four, when the race started to establish itself, we had the pace of the group behind the first two. We almost did identical lap times like the guys from third to sixth position. I’m not saying we are going to be on the podium soon, but the next target is to try to qualify better in order to be with them and with the pace we have and the expertise Miguel is having in the race, I think we can be optimistic about the future. Clearly, the hard front tyre was a very good choice. It was a bit of a gamble, but great. All in all, I’m very proud of what Miguel did and what the whole crew did. Thanks to everybody, congratulations to Miguel, great result and great job from KTM! We keep on working!”

The work continues for Oliveira at Silverstone at the end of August. Can the 12-time Grand Prix race winner challenge the top 10 once more on British soil?