Vostatek in the points – Top ten for Tuuli

Czech rider Ondrej Vostatek scored his first Championship point since joining the PTR Triumph team today in the 2023 FIM Supersport World Championship race one at Aragon.

After a disastrous Superpole session in the morning when a technical issue whilst in P12 meant Vostatek dropped down the starting grid to P24.  The youngster rode an intelligent and focused 15-laps to cross the line in P15 and secure his first Championship point with the PTR Triumph team.

Ondrej Vostatek: “After not such a good qualification I think from P24 to P15 is a really good job, I feel really good on the bike and I’m ready for tomorrow.”

The result of Superpole was also disappointing for Niki Tuuli and he started the race from P12 on the fourth row of the grid.  The Finn got off the line well, making up two places straight away, but after he ran a little wide on lap three, he struggled to regain his rhythm for the remainder of the race and finally took ninth at the flag.

Niki Tuuli: “The first part of the race I felt quite good, I tried to overtake but only tried. I felt I had the speed to go faster but there were riders in front of me and when I went off the track at turn one, I lost some time and position and maybe the mind also went down. I couldn’t concentrate really and the end of the race trying to catch the guys in front of me but it was difficult. It just felt difficult to ride after my mistake.  The result was not really good, it’s not what we want but I’m just struggling at the moment, I need to find something more from myself for tomorrow and try again.”

PTR Triumph Team Manager Simon Buckmaster: “Today was a good day for Ondrej his first points with us in World Supersport.  He’s learned from the races in Most and Magny-Cours and when he got to the front of a group he changed his concentration and his lap time, his last lap time was really good.  We can build from this, this is what this is about, a learning experience.  He is growing all the time so well done to him and the team for getting his first point with us.  Niki’s start was ok and he was there fighting. When he passed Navarro, he went wide at turn one, then it was like he lost concentration but he stuck with it and towards the end of the race he’d nearly caught them but by then it’s too late.  He’s not happy with ninth, both he and the bike are a lot better than ninth and the team are doing a great job for him. We’ll talk to him now and we need to work together for the best possible result tomorrow.”

More points for Vostatek, and a huge crash for Tuuli

In an incredible fight for sixth place and starting the final lap of today’s 2023 FIM Supersport World Championship Race Two at Aragon, PTR Triumph’s Niki Tuuli crashed at high-speed at the exit of turn four in spectacular fashion.  Tuuli was conscious throughout and was taken to the medical centre, later being transferred to the local hospital for further scans as a precaution.  The race was red-flagged and declared due to the incident.

Teammate Ondrej Vostatek again showed his potential with another convincing points scoring finish in today’s race.  Starting from the eighth row of the grid, 19-year-old Vostatek got off the line well and immediately started to cut his way through the field with a measured and methodical approach.  The Czech rider also scored his fastest lap of the weekend on lap five and finished P12 when the red flag came out.

Ondrej Vostatek: “I’m really happy with the race, we showed again that our pace is really good and I felt good on the bike. I overtook eleven people and I am happy that we showed we are capable of doing a good result, also I like the five points for the overall weekend score. All the team works really good and I’m starting to understand the bike and myself more.  I really need to thank the team for a really good job today.  What I really care about now is that Niki is ok and that he is alright for Portimão.”

PTR Triumph Team Manager Simon Buckmaster: “Today Niki was much stronger than yesterday, he was fighting with Navarro to start the last lap then he made a mistake I suppose.  It was a big crash.  He’s gone to hospital to be checked out, for sure it’s not a serious problem but at this stage we don’t know if he will be fit to ride in Portimão. It’s such a shame, he was riding much better in race two and it ended not so good.  All we can do is hope he is ok and that he will be ok for next weekend to show us the real Niki Tuuli.  Ondrej made a really big step this weekend, even from race one to race two, another step up. You can see him growing in confidence and working well with the team. I’m really pleased for him because I know he’s so passionate and really wants it bad, sometimes too much!  Today he was much calmer, he rode a really good race so a great job by him and the team.  Let’s look forward to Portimão with him and some more points. Hoping that Niki is ok and that Ondrej can move forward again.”