21/08/2022

Schrötter & Alcoba both score in the top 10 at the Red Bull Ring

In dry conditions, the Moto2 class delivered an exciting 25-lap race in Styria, in which the two LIQUI MOLY Intact GP riders Marcel Schrötter and Jeremy Alcoba successfully finished with P8 and P10 in the top 10.

However, after a solid start in which Marcel Schrötter only lost one position, a gap to the leading group opened up within a few laps. For the 29-year-old, the planned attacking race turned into an administrative act in which he tried with all his might to keep his opponents at bay. Even though the gap to Augusto Fernandez grew to more than four seconds and pressure was put on the German from behind, his experience helped him to keep a cool head despite losing positions. Especially when Tony Arbolino and Lorenzo Dalla Porto collided in front of him on lap 18 while he was in 10th position. The German eventually inherited his original starting position and finished the Austrian Grand Prix in eighth position, also strengthening his eighth World Championship position. Currently only 12 points separate Schrötter from the top 5 in the World Championship.

Close behind, rookie Jeremy Alocba, who started in P19, crossed the finish line of the 4.3 km Red Bull Ring in tenth place after the young Spaniard had gradually worked his way forward. Throughout the weekend, Alcoba praised the development work he and his team had done in recent weeks. His feeling for the Kalex is getting better with every race weekend, which he also proved at the Austrian Grand Prix. At the end of the 13th round of the season, the 20-year-old collected six more World Championship points with a strong Top 10 result.

The Gran Premio Gryfyn di San Marino e della Riviera di Rimini sets the stage for the next showdown in the Moto2 class from 02 - 04 September.

Results

Warm-UP
1. Fermín ALDEGUER/ SOA/ BOSCOSCURO – 1'34.684
2. Jake DIXON/ GBR/ KALEX – 1'34.719 (+0.035)
3. Aron CANET/ SPA/ KALEX – 1'34.778 (+0.094)
4. Augusto FERNANDEZ/ SPA/ KALEX – 1'34.801 (+0.117)
5. Somkiat CHANTRA/ THA/ KALEX – 1'34.826 (+0.142)
13. Marcel SCHRÖTTER/ GER/ KALEX – 1'35.218 (+0.534)
27. Jeremy ALCOBA/ SPA/ KALEX – 1'35.882 (+1.198)

Race
1. Ai OGURA/ JAP/ KALEX
2. Somkiat CHANTRA/ THA/ KALEX – (+0.173)
3. Jake DIXON/ GBR/ KALEX – (+7.854)
4. Pedro ACOSTA/ SPA/ KALEX – (+7.960)
5. Augusto FERNANDEZ/ SPA/ KALEX – (+8.037)
8. Marcel SCHRÖTTER/ GER/ KALEX – (+18.254)
10. Jeremy ALCOBA/ SPA/ KALEX – (+22.227)

Championship
1. OGURA Ai / JPN / 183
2. FERNANDEZ Augusto / SPA / 182
3. VIETTI Celestino / ITA / 156
4. CANET Aron / SPA / 137
5. ROBERTS Joe / USA / 108
6. ARBOLINO Tony / ITA / 108
7. DIXON Jake/ GBR/ 108
8. SCHRÖTTER Marcel / GER / 96
9. CHANTRA Somkiat / THA / 92
10. ACOSTA Pedro / SPA / 88
18. ALCOBA Jeremy/ SPA/ 41

Team classification
1. IDEMITSU HONDA TEAM ASIA / 275
2. RED BULL KTM AJO / 270
3. FLEXBOX HP40 / 212
4. ZINIA GASGAS ASPAR TEAM / 160
5. ELF MARC VDS RACING TEAM / 159
6. MOONEY VR46 RACING TEAM / 156
7. LIQUI MOLY INTACT GP / 137
8. ITALTRANS RACING TEAM / 118
9. CAG SPEED UP/ 109
10.PERTAMINA MANDALIKA SAG TEAM / 68

Marcel Schrötter

P8 - (+18.254)
Moto2 World Championship 2022 - P8 - 96 Points

"Eighth place is certainly not a disaster, but my tendency in the races so far this season has always been to go further forward. My race pace is usually stronger, but we didn't have an easy weekend, although we did well in qualifying. We had good times in both sessions and a strong rhythm, but this morning it was tough again. The feeling was just missing, especially towards the front and now in the race, it was unfortunately identical. I really struggled to keep up from the beginning. I also didn't have the necessary speed for just a few laps, which of course makes it difficult. It got a bit better towards the end. I was able to set quite solid times in comparison, but in the end, 18 seconds on the winner is simply too much. Considering that we have finished races this year between two and five seconds behind P1 and some of them coming from further back, today's performance is clearly not the best. We now have to see what the problem is. I did my best but it was just not possible to do better today. But after the last two crashes, it was very important to finish the race. We will now take a close look so that we can get closer to the top again in the next races. Shortly before the end, there was a tricky situation in front of me where Arbolino and Dalla Porta crashed. Fortunately, I had a small gap so that I could react. However, this made me fear that the guys behind me would be able to accelerate better, but I was still able to complete the last laps well under the circumstances. In general, unfortunately, three or four-tenths were missing today and we have to work on that now."

Jeremy Alcoba

P10 - (+22.227)
Moto2 World Championship 2022 - P18 - 41 Points

"I am really happy with how the weekend went. Straight from FP1, we changed a few things on the bike, and with every turn and lap, I felt better. Also, my mentality seems to be stronger after the summer break. I feel much more confident because I really understand the changes we do on the bike. I feel like I can take more risks, I feel the entire bike which makes me go faster. I was really focused on a good start which worked out well. I passed some guys but I think, if we could have had a better starting position, we might have fought for the top 7 or so. In the end, I am still happy because my pace alone was as strong as behind others. In the last laps, I was one of the fastest riders on one track, which gives me a lot of confidence for the next races. The upcoming tracks are two that I really like and enjoy so I can't wait to get started in Misano again."

Jürgen Lingg

Teammanager

"That was a mega performance by Jeremy today. He overtook many people right at the beginning, had a great pace, and led his group again at the end. It was a really strong race from him. It's his first top 10 result since Portimao, so big congratulations to everyone for the great work.
With Marcel, unfortunately, it was foreseeable that he would struggle today and that he would miss quite a bit. But I also think he managed the race well and a P8 is still something to be proud of. Of course, we always want more, but at this point, we have to be satisfied and look forward."

Pictures – Austrian Grand Prix

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