Collin Veijer finishes his first Moto2 race inside the Top 20

The opening Grand Prix of the season was completed by Collin Veijer and his Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto2 Team. Veijer finished his first race in the intermediate class in 20th place with good lap times under very difficult and demanding track conditions.

Amidst the hot temperatures that had been present throughout the weekend, the Moto2 contest had a frantic start. Veijer was cautious at the start and stuck in the group with his teammate Deniz Öncü. He managed to progress up the field to slot into 20th position, overcoming some more experienced riders and fighting with the other newcomers to the class. By the end, he was setting times like those of Öncü. Finally, he crossed the line in 20th, less than four seconds off the Top 15 and the points.

Collin Veijer: “We have improved a bit more again, so I’m happy. We had a consistent race, and we nailed the times on most of the laps, which was one of the objectives for today. We preferred to be patient and not push from the start, in order to preserve the tyres, and it worked well for us. Maybe we were too conservative, as we needed a few laps to recover some more positions, but in general it was a good race. Being in the Top 20 is good news, as it hasn’t been an easy weekend, so we close the first Grand Prix with positive feelings and now we will think about Argentina.”

Veijer and Red Bull KTM Ajo will try to continue their progress in a fortnight at the Argentinian Grand Prix at Termas de Río Hondo, from March 14-16th.