GRAND PRIX OF ENGLAND SECOND PLACE FOR MIKA KALLIO IN DONINGTON
05 July 2006 - KTM-Sportmotorcycles AG

RR WCH 125 Round 9: (02.07.2006)

Following the success of his 250cc colleagues, Mika Kallio added another second place to his account at Donington. The Red Bull KTM GP 125 rider led from the start but soon had to give way to pressure from Pasini and then also Bautista. Pasini then let his team colleague pass and battle it out with Kallio over the 25 laps right up to the finish. The 23-year-old Finn fended off his opponent who was very strong on the brakes until the “Flying Finn” took the lead after a characteristic attack in the final corner. The trophy for second place finally went to Finland.

Randy Krummenacher from Switzerland, riding for the injured Julian Simon, added his first ever Grand Prix experience to his resume. At the end of the 100km race distance on a challenging course he was a creditable 20th going over the finish line.

Red Bull KTM Junior Michael Ranseder put in a lightning fast start but fell back during the race and crossed the line at place 18. Stefan Bradl also put in a perfect start and was able to push forward to place 28 during the first lap. Lying at 26th two rounds later he had to retire due to a technical problem.

Mika Kallio # 36 Red Bull KTM GP 125 – 2nd Place
“I had the feeling that I was able to go faster to stick with Bautista but Pasini regularly held me back. He went in front of me going into the corners and blocked me in the middle. This battle held us both up and I was no longer able to catch the leader. Certainly second place is a great result, my motorcycle was really fast the entire weekend and I had a good feeling. But the race itself was more like a one-on-one battle and not a race so I am not exactly feeling euphoric right now.“

Randy Krummenacher # 54 Red Bull KTM GP 125 – 20th Place
“That was hard! I overtook a few in the first lap but then they were braking so crazy in the first corners and were so brutally bumping into my fearing that I had to let them past, otherwise I would have gone out myself. Things settled down in the third lap, I was in a group of six and could zigzag my way to the front of the group. Then I gradually tried to catch up with the next group, got to pass one more guy and finally finished in 20th place, which was my goal. I learnt a lot here in Donington that I can take with me to the Sachsenring where I will try to improve on my performance. “

Michael Ranseder # 9 Red Bull KTM Junior Team – 18th Place
“The qualifying was good and I had a very good start. I went well in the first few laps and everything was under control. Then I made a couple of mistakes that cost me a couple of places. I kind of lost the feel for the bike during the race somehow and because of that I couldn’t find the right tempo. Just at the moment I can’t really say why.“

Stefan Bradl # 17 Red Bull KTM Junior Team – technical problem
“I had a good start, I immediately put on the pressure and overtook a few. Other than that I was rather weak in the first three laps. Today I was able to put up a bit of resistance and did get past some of my opponents. Then in the third lap right after the start-finish line, I braked and the engine cut out. We are now looking at the problem and trying to figure out what caused it.

Circuit: dry /31°C
Air Temperature: 20°C

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