FRONT ROW FOR KTM “HERO” HIROSHI AOYAMA
23 September 2006 - KTM-Sportmotorcycles AG

Round 15 - Grand Prix Japan/ Motegi - 2nd Qualifying

KTM Newsletter - ROAD RACING

Hiroshi Aoyama, from Team Red Bull KTM GP 250, will start in the first row for the 15th round Grand Prix of the 250cc Motorcycle World Championship.

With a front row start position on the grid, anticipations are high for a good result for the 24-year-old Japanese rider with a second home base in Barcelona, Spain. Aoyama is confident that he can deliver an exciting race in front of his home crowd on Sunday.
Teammate Manuel Poggiali from San Marino was two seconds slower in qualifying than strong Aoyama and starts the 23-lap race from 16th grid position.

KTM’s “Hero” Hiroshi Aoyama, with his Red Bull KTM GP 250 Team, has received a very hearty welcome for his home town race on Japan’s Motegi circuit. He is greeted everywhere he goes by enthusiastic motorcycle racing fans who are impressed by his performance in his first year at KTM.

As well as the extremely quickly propelled development, he has also managed to be on the podium five times so far. (First ever KTM FRR 250 victory in Istanbul/Turkey and four third places in China, England, Czech Republic and Australia.)

Hiroshi Aoyama #4 Red Bull KTM GP 250 – 4th Position – 1’52.032
“Today I finished fourth. This means I start from the front row on the right side. What I wanted was to go from the left side into the race. I expected to be able to do a better lap time than I did. Anyway the front row position is fine for a good race result, as there is a big difference between a qualifying session and a race. I hope for a good race that will give us another good result. The race here in Japan is naturally something special for me and not only because so many people have come to see me and to cheer me on. I want to give my best, as always, and if I manage to do it, so much the better that I will be doing it at home in Japan.

My second home if I’m in Europe is in Barcelona/Spain, where, in the meantime, I have made some of my own friends. Europe was very foreign for me when I raced in my first Grand Prix season in 2004 and at the beginning I hardly spoke any English. That was quite difficult at times. But now it’s my third year and I feel very well in the Red Bull KTM team. We work very hard. The KTM FRR was first developed in 2005 and has not yet had a lot of race experience. But it is impressive just how quickly our information is used and how we get our new parts. That’s because the KTM factory is small compared to the others. It is only a short distance from Harald Bartol, the Technical and Race Director to the CEO Stefan Pierer and the cooperation between them is very close. We receive every possible support. Because of this, it is a lot of fun developing the KTM and being able to underline that we are doing a good job by getting good results.”

Track: dry /33°C
Air Temperature: 20°C
Humidity: 34 %

GP 250 Race Sunday, 24th September 12:15 local time
Time difference: Motegi = GMT +9 / CET +7

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