Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/1506118
ROUND 10 / AUGUST 18-20, 2023 RED BULL RING / SPIELBERG, AUSTRIA MOTOGP I FIM MOTOGP WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP P90 Martin's performance was in stark contrast to Jack Miller's. The Aussie's familiar rear- tire issues once again reared its head, and the second Red Bull KTM would com - plete lap one in third place but drop like the proverbial stone back through the order to finish a despondent 14th at the flag. The Sunday GP was one of the better ones for former World Champion Fabio Quartararo so far in 2023 as the Frenchman took eighth ahead of Aleix Es - pargaro and Bastianini rounding out the top 10. Martin's race was compromised as he had to complete a long- lap penalty for his bowling-ball exhibition at turn one of the Sprint race. He chose to take the penalty as early in the race as he could, dropping back to 13th place but a superb fightback garnered a seventh-place finish on the Alma Pramac Ducati. to figure out how many rid - ers could stay at that pace in the low 30s, and I tried to be a little slower than what was possible. The last few laps were very diffi - cult for the rear tire because it no longer had any traction and was spinning a lot. We managed to do an incredible job all week - end, the engineers and my team gave me everything I asked for, and this was the result." The main battles were held a bit further down the order as Alex Marquez continued his good form to take fifth, just ahead of Vinales in sixth. said. "[Despite] doing these good results for three years with the Pramac team, it has been tough to sign again now. There are many competitive Ducatis, many young guys, so it seems it was tough to have another signature, and even then it was not sure if we were going to be with Pramac or another team in Ducati. So, the offer and discussion with Honda and Lucio Cecchinello were pretty interesting. I get the opportunity to have a proj- ect for two years at 33 years old. It's quite good to project yourself and, as a sportsman, do the best you can. I know myself when I'm on the bike, I give a lot, and I can give also good information." POL VS. AUGUSTO After KTM frantically sought a way to find another grid slot for 2024 to solve its current rider cri- sis (five riders have contracts to race in MotoGP next year, even if they only have four spots for the RC16s), it now appears to have arrived at a new compromise. Pe- dro Acosta will step up to ride for the GasGas Tech 3 Racing Team, and current riders Pol Espargaro and Augusto Fernandez will fight it out over the coming months for the second seat. So said KTM management to German publica- tion Speedweek on Saturday. On this development, Espargaro, who was a brilliant sixth in the Sprint, said, "You know Mr. [Stefan] Pierer [KTM CEO], he is a shark, and he wants the best guys, and I fully understand. For sure, I will try to be the best Pol possible, even if with my limitations. I have a contract for two years. But anyway, I will try to be as fast as I was today in every race, and, in a couple of races, Misano is com- ing where I am very fast, so let's see if we can end up in a good position." Fernandez added, "I'm not the person to ask this. I will continue with the same team, the same bike, the same people. It is good for me to continue another year and arrive to the top that is the main thing." Briefly... Sprint Race