Red Bull Rookies: An incredible 20 KTM battle was resolved in the last 2 corners of Spielberg with Brian Uriarte matching his Saturday Red Bull MRookies Cup victory over an equally impressive Veda Pratama, with Marco Morelli a very close 3rd.
Uriarte and Pratama had shot into an early lead, but this time an intense 16-lap battle ensued, and mid-race it was a huge group snaking their way round the Red Bull Ring with no one able to break away.
Morelli led onto the final lap, but the 18-year-old Argentine was too deep on the brakes into the tight right-hand turn 3 and lost the drive onto the back straight. Pratama and Uriarte flashed past and made it their duel for the last half lap. Uriarte took the lead on the run to the penultimate corner, the Spanish 17-year-old gained a bike length’s lead there and held on to win by 0.087 seconds over the 16-year-old Indonesian.
Brian Uriarte 1st
“Finally, a double. The track was quite slippery because in the night there was some damp, what do you call it? Yes, dew, it was a bit slippery at the beginning, but then after the sighting lap, the sun came out and it soon dried. Then at the end of the race, the tyres dropped off, so it was back to being slippery again.”
“I enjoyed it, it was a fun race. In the end, I just went very late on the brakes into that second-to-last corner and made a block pass, that was enough. There’s a damp patch there sometimes, so it can be risky, and I wasn’t sure if someone would be able to get inside at the last corner, but they didn’t.”
Veda Pratama 2nd
“I’m happy. And the track was a bit slippery in the beginning, I remember it being like that last year with the early start on Sunday. I just concentrated on being focused. It was a big group, and a lot of riders were trying to pass, but I concentrated on staying at the front of the group.”
“On the last lap, I tried to close the line where Brian passed me yesterday, but he was able to do it even more and got ahead. Still, it was 2nd again and I have to evaluate the race and prepare for Misano.”
Marco Morelli 3rd
“Super tricky conditions. The drive was not good in the first laps, too many moments on the rear. I tried to win as always and tried to stay in the first positions. It worked, but I’m a bit disappointed because in the middle of the race, I made some mistakes and I dropped back some positions, and this can not happen.”
“I have to be more clever in the middle of the race, not be so tense and make mistakes. In the last laps, I managed to get into first position, I tried to stay there. On the last lap, I did one mistake in corner 3. I braked so late, and I went wide and lost everything there.”
In the corner before the last, I tried to pass, but it was so difficult; also, I had a chatter and almost crashed. But I’m happy for the show. But I want to win. Yeah, winning in Misano, let’s see.”
David González 4th
“A good race, it was difficult,” explained the Spanish 17-year-old. “Slippery in the beginning, and the other riders were pushing to pass everywhere. It was crazy, so much overtaking in the group. I knew that the best place to be was in front, so I pushed and managed to make it to the front of the group.”
“For a couple of laps, I was battling for first but couldn’t stay there. So 4th. That’s not too mad, I will try for more in Misano.”
Kristian Daniel Jr. 5th
“I’m super happy with the performance,” grinned the 16-year-old American. “I felt super strong. To be honest, I feel like me, Vada and Brian were probably the strongest of the race. At the end, I think I should have made the pass on Morelli into turn 4. He went super defensive, but I think that was the moment where I should have clicked and just gone for it even if it meant a bit of rubbin’.”
“It was a super tight race, the track was also super tricky, lots of sliding and stuff because the track was still a bit moist. But the sun came out, super lucky for that. It was a fun weekend, a wet and a dry race. I enjoyed this one a bit more than yesterday, just because there’s a lot more battling. I’m ready for Misano.”
Hakim Danish 13th
“I had to push right to the limit in the dry today. I feel that I was doing well, but of course I lost a lot with the long lap penalty,” explained the Malaysian 18-year-old who dropped from 3rd to 16th when making his long lap penalty for exceeding track limits. “Before that, I was in the front and I will keep learning and try to push hard in Misano.”
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