Gardner scores points for the second time in Portimao

Remy Gardner finished in the points for the second time this season after a successful race in Portimao that still left the Australian disappointed.

The Tech3 KTM Factory Racing team’s hopes for a strong weekend were left to Gardner after his teammate Raul Fernandez was declared unfit to race due to a crash in qualifying.

Although Gardner had never finished higher than P14 in the MotoGP™ class, he still felt he could have done more if it wasn’t for a poor start.

“The race was the first time of the weekend we were able to ride in the dry, because this morning was still a bit humid. I did not get a good start and found myself last at the first corner, but I managed to recover quickly,” Gardner reflected.

“It is unfortunate because once I passed both Marco Bezzecchi and Fabio Di Giannantonio, I started to have a decent pace, but by that time the group ahead had made a consequent gap already.”

“It is a bit of a shame because halfway through the race, we had a decent pace so I think that I could have aimed for a top 10.”

“I feel positive about today. I scored two points, although some riders crashed, but it is still two points in the bag after a hectic weekend here in Portugal.”

“It has been my best race so far this season, and I feel like if we would have had more dry time, I would have had more chances on my side, but I am happy overall anyway.”

Remy crossed the line as the first rookie and second KTM rider.

A strong ride from Remy Gardner today 💪

The Aussie finished the #PortugueseGP in 14th 🇦🇺#MotoGP pic.twitter.com/TYrHhjHjLp

— Australian MotoGP™ (@ausmotogp) April 24, 2022