The preseason is coming to an end for the Red Bull KTM Tech3 team after completing three days of testing in Portimao, in addition to two private sessions held in Valencia and Jerez earlier this month. Both Deniz Oncu and Adrian Fernandez were able to finalize their preparations for the 2022 season, set to start in Qatar on March 6.

Following his crash during the second session yesterday, Deniz was declared fit to ride this morning for the final day. Although his left ankle has been painful, he was brave enough to be willing to get on the bike this morning and finish the testing programme started with his crew. With excellent track conditions today, the Turkish rider, who is entering the new season as a championship contender, significantly improved his lap-time this morning to 1’47.659. Over the last three days, the team tested different bike settings in order to find a perfect fit to the rider’s style, and Deniz is confident that some positive information came out of it. It is now time to go home and rest before starting his third season in the Moto3 class.

Our new recruit, Adrian Fernandez, leaves Portugal feeling very positive and happy about his new environnement. Indeed, Pitito seems to be settling well with his new team and his new bike. Over the last three days, he registered 139 laps and we saw improvement day after day. Together with his crew, the aim was to find a good set-up for Adrian to feel comfortable in order to reach his potential, do fast laps and get a good race pace. This morning, he got very close to 1’47, reaching his best-lap time in 1’48.074. Just like his teammate, it is now time to go home and get some rest before starting his first season with the Red Bull KTM Tech3 family.


Deniz Öncü - Best-Lap Time: 1’47.659

Cumulated Day 1 + Day 2 + Day 3 Laps: 111

"We finished three days of testing here in Portimao before the first race in Qatar. We have tried a lot of different things on the bike with the team, and have found some really good set-ups to fit my riding style. However, these last three days have been tough for me but my injury is not so bad. I will now go home to recover in order to get ready for Qatar next week."

Adrian Fernandez - Best-Lap Time: 1’48.074

Cumulated Day 1 + Day 2 + Day 3 Laps: 139

"These three days in Portimao have been very good. I feel good on the bike, with the team, and I am looking forward to starting racing in Qatar. Today was a good day, in particular because I was able to improve my pace, but what is important is the race pace, and we will see what I can do in Qatar. Time to go home to rest before heading to Qatar."

Hervé Poncharal - Team Manager

"It has been an intense three days of testing here in Portimao for the Red Bull KTM Tech3 team. The weather was good to us and we were able to get good track conditions, although Day 1 was a bit windy. I think that both Deniz and Adrian worked really hard and I believe that we are ready for Qatar. We wanted to leave Portugal with a good amount of laps under our belt, a good feeling from both riders with their crews and their bikes.

Unfortunately for Deniz, he had a quite heavy crash during the second session of Day 2. Luckily, no big damage, but he has twisted his left ankle and is currently in a lot of pain. He decided very bravely to continue to ride on Day 3 and significantly improved his lap-time without pushing to the limits too much. Deniz is feeling really good on the bike, he made some clear improvements over the winter both on himself and on his riding style, and I believe that he is set to have an amazing 2022 season. He will now fly back home to treat his foot, get some rest, and go to Qatar fully fit and ready to go.

From Adrian’s side, it feels that he is now feeling comfortable with his new environnement. His riding style and technical feedback improved everyday, as well as the lap times, and we feel that there is plenty more to come. He has a big smile on his face and is looking forward to the start of the new season, and I am really happy about this because I want him to feel at home with us.

Our team will now have a few days off to rest and reflect on the preseason, before traveling to Qatar to start a very long, but exciting, new season."