The KTM GP Academy throttles into action this weekend for the Thai Grand Prix and the first of 22 rounds in 2025 MotoGP. The Buriram International Circuit will be the stage for the six riders in the Moto3™ and Moto2™ classes to continue their career development and fight for center stage in Red Bull KTM colors.
Argentine, Australian, Dutch, Spanish and Turkish talent form the sextet of racers that will represent the Red Bull KTM Ajo and Red Bull KTM Tech3 teams in both Moto3 (with the KTM RC4) and Moto2. 50% of the line-up already has Grand Prix winning experience. The searing heat of Buriram is the venue chosen to accelerate the longest season on record up to pace, and then with trips to Argentina, the USA and Qatar next on the slate before the European stint of the calendar begins.
In Moto3 Red Bull KTM Ajo will depend on Jose Antonio Rueda’s blossoming speed and racecraft for a third successive year. The 19-year-old took his first podium finish in his debut term in 2023 and then scored his first win in 2024. He was among the fastest on track at the recent Jerez test. The Spaniard is joined in the team by 17-year-old rookie Alvaro Carpe who will make his Moto3 bow after winning both the 2024 Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup and the FIM JuniorGP series: the feeder contests for the world championship.
Also on the KTM RC4 is another debutant – Valentin Perrone – who excelled in the 2024 European Talent Cup and also shone in the Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup, claiming P3 in the standings. The 17-year-old Argentine was signed by the Red Bull KTM Tech3 squad to be teammate to Jacob Roulstone. The Australian is currently rehabbing from a winter training accident that led to a fractured vertebra. The 20-year-old’s place on the grid will be taken by Joel Esteban until he is ready to return to action for his second Moto3 outing.
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