In a particularly challenging weekend at Phillip Island, Miguel Oliveira concluded the MotoGP Australian GP with a 13th-place finish in the main race, after being unable to compete for top positions during practice and qualifying. Nonetheless, it wasn’t all forgettable for the CryptoDATA RNF MotoGP Team rider.

The #88 explained to SportTV that it was primarily a learning round, getting a better understanding on certain aspects that have made him less competitive: ‘There have been a few weekends with slight difficulties in very specific areas, especially in the faster corners. That’s where I’m struggling the most with the bike. It also seems that the bike’s behavior in those situations, compared to the other three Aprilias, is slightly different. This weekend, we managed to figure out, with a setting modification we had never tried before, more or less what I need to feel on the bike. From that perspective, I consider it a positive weekend’.

Oliveira added: ‘Despite the result, which I honestly didn’t care much about, what I really wanted was to feel and be more competitive during the race. And that’s what happened’.

O conteúdo ‘The behaviour of the bike with me in certain situations it’s different from the other Aprilias’ – Miguel Oliveira aparece primeiro em Motorcycle Sports.

After the exchange of schedules of the sprint race with the long race, it was expected that the sprint race would be cancelled this sunday, after all forecasts pointed to very complicated conditions for the riders, and after a very complicated Moto2 race.

Still, the riders spoke to journalists and Raul Fernandez was one of the defenders of canceling today’s sprint, stating that the conditions were not met for the sprint to take place, despite the weather situation being stable in the warm up:

– In my case, I think they made the right decision, because this morning the track wasn’t so bad, the wind was stable. The problem was during the Moto2 race, the wind started to rise, it was too aggressive. You’ve seen a lot of crashes, so for me, they made a good decision.

The #25 of CryptoDATA RNF Aprilia also said that the change of schedules was unanimous between the riders, already anticipating that on sunday it would be impossible to race:

– That’s why (weather conditions) we tried everything to make the long race yesterday, because we knew there was a possibility that there wouldn’t be the sprint, it was in everybody’s mind, so it was a good decision.

O conteúdo ‘You saw a lot of crashes, so for me, they made a good decision’ – Raul Fernández aparece primeiro em Motorcycle Sports.

Miguel Oliveira has a contract with Aprilia to compete in MotoGP with CryptoDATA RNF MotoGP until the end of 2024. However, rumors have emerged about a possible move to Repsol Honda in the seat left vacant by Marc Márquez – and this is not distracting him from the task at hand.

In an interview with SportTV, the Portuguese rider assured that there are no updates regarding his future and that he is entirely concentrated on his current project. He refuses to comment on speculation until there is something concrete to discuss:

– There’s nothing. This weekend, I had a rather strange question about whether I was more distracted or less focused because of these rumors. What I can say is that I am 100 percent focused on my current project, which is Aprilia. I am focused with my RNF team on doing the best we can, even though we have a bike that’s a year behind the others. Our focus is to do the best we can with what we have and learn. So, all the things that are in the air, I can’t and never will comment on. Once something is on the table, we’ll have something to talk about. Until then, nothing.

O conteúdo ‘I’m 100% focused on my current project; I can’t comment on what’s in the air’ – Miguel Oliveira aparece primeiro em Motorcycle Sports.

Rumors continue to put Miguel Oliveira as a strong option for Repsol Honda in the next MotoGP season. Although he doesn’t rule out this possibility, the rider from CryptoDATA RNF MotoGP Team remains focused on his current project with the Malaysian team and Aprilia.

Speaking to SportTV, the Portuguese rider discussed his future as follows: ‘I keep focused on the same thing, which is what I have concretely in my career, which is Aprilia and RNF. I have an agreement with them until the end of 2024. It’s clear that when the world’s largest manufacturer approaches us for a possible factory seat, we never close that door – and that door logically remains open because they haven’t announced any riders yet. But until there are concrete things, I can’t say anything’.

When asked about whether contract duration and salary are factors separating him from an agreement with Honda, Oliveira declined to reveal details: ‘I won’t say anything; it would be quite unpleasant on my part to reveal that kind of information. My commitment is with Aprilia, with them, and that’s what I’m focused on dedicating myself to’.

O conteúdo ‘When the world’s largest manufacturer approaches us, we don’t close the door’ – Miguel Oliveira aparece primeiro em Motorcycle Sports.

When there were still a few minutes left before the scheduled start time, the sprint race of the Australian MotoGP Grand Prix was canceled. The decision was primarily due to the strong and increasing intensity of the wind at Phillip Island.

In Miguel Oliveira’s opinion (CryptoDATA RNF MotoGP), everything was done to try to ensure that the race would take place, but the rescheduling of the main race to Saturday already foresaw that it might be impossible to have any on-track action this Sunday.

– Obviously when the forecast was looking a bit dark for Sunday we all thought that we had a good chance of not race because of the wind and the change on the schedule that we did for Saturday was regarding that. It’s true that also Dorna made every effort to try and put us out there in a safe way today; it was just not possible. So I think all the efforts were done and when you do that you can’t ask for more. The weather also needs to help us a little bit and in this case it didn’t work out.

O conteúdo ‘Dorna made every effort to try and put us out there in a safe way’ – Miguel Oliveira aparece primeiro em Motorcycle Sports.

The MotoGP Australian Grand Prix sprint race, scheduled for this Sunday, was canceled due to strong winds at Phillip Island. Miguel Oliveira has already reacted to the situation.

In an interview with SportTV, the Portuguese rider from the CryptoDATA RNF MotoGP Team agreed with the decision to cancel, explaining that the strong winds made it impossible to compete safely:

– According to the forecasts, it was quite clear that the limiting factor would be the strong wind gusts, reaching up to 60-70 km/h. For the lower categories – Moto3, Moto2 – although it’s a problem, it’s not as limiting as it is for us because we have a lot of speed, especially approaching Turn 1. The wind was completely sideways across the entire track, especially on the straight, which is the most dangerous place for us. So the sensible decision was to cancel the sprint. The schedule change already anticipated this possibility.

O conteúdo ‘The wind gusts reach 60-70 km/h; the sensible decision was to cancel the sprint’– Miguel Oliveira aparece primeiro em Motorcycle Sports.

Miguel Oliveira consistently found himself at the lower positions in the practice sessions and qualifying for the MotoGP Australian GP, delivering a performance that was worse than expected at Phillip Island. However, in the race, he put in a solid performance without errors, ultimately finishing in 12th place.

Despite the challenges, the Portuguese rider from the CryptoDATA RNF MotoGP Team considered his goal achieved, given the conditions: ‘The story today? I guess you’ve heard already a few things about the grip and the tyre wear and it isn’t different for me. I managed to find a better pace today and I finished on the points – which was the target anyway. I don’t know if we could achieve much better giving the difficult of the weekend. Three points’.

This was a round where better performance was expected from Aprilia, but Oliveira couldn’t provide an explanation for falling short of the anticipated performance: ‘It’s true that looking at the track and the characteristics of the track we expected a bit better. But for some reason we couldn’t achieve the performance we were looking for’.

O conteúdo ‘We couldn’t achieve the performance we were looking for’ – Miguel Oliveira aparece primeiro em Motorcycle Sports.

Miguel Oliveira is reportedly one of the main candidates for the MotoGP seat with Repsol Honda in 2024, potentially filling the spot left by Marc Márquez. And he isn’t looking for a short term stay, as he demands a three-year contract.

The report is from Sky Sport Italia, also mentioning that the Portuguese rider is aiming for a ‘heavy’ salary. Whether Repsol Honda is willing to meet these demands remains to be seen, especially considering the challenge of contract obstacles with most of their potential options already signed for 2024.

Also Oliveira would have to solve his current contractual obligations. Even if he reaches an agreement with the Japanese manufacturer, he’ll need to negotiate with Aprilia to potentially be released prematurely from his existing contract with the CryptoDATA RNF MotoGP Team, which is valid through 2024 with the option to renew until 2026. Aprilia doesn’t appear inclined to let go of any of their riders easily, but financial penalties for early contract termination might influence a change of stance.

O conteúdo Miguel Oliveira reportedly seeks a three-year contract and a high salary with Repsol Honda, according to Italian press aparece primeiro em Motorcycle Sports.

Clear as water. Miguel Oliveira has confirmed that there is a real chance that he will change teams for the coming season. Honda or the official Aprilia team are very strong possibilities at the moment for the Portuguese rider.

‘Regarding the possibility of going to Honda, it’s real, it’s possible, but for now there’s nothing concrete, I can’t give any more information. My situation is quite clear, I have a contract with Aprilia for 2024, in the RNF team, it’s also true that if I have a proposal from a factory team we can, of course, talk to Aprilia and understand my future direction with them and eventually be able to break the contract,’ Oliveira began by saying in statements to Sport TV.

In addition to the Japanese manufacturer, a move to the official Aprilia team is on the table. This would mean one of two possibilities, either the departure of Maverick Viñales or Aleix Espargaró.

– ‘For now, a rider would have to leave, there are a lot of things up in the air, it’s true that Honda is looking for a top rider, it’s not clear whether you’ll find him in the Factory Team or another team,’ he said. The next few weeks promise to be intense and will reveal what the Almada rider’s future will be in the premier class of motorcycling.

O conteúdo ‘The possibility of going to Honda is real’ – Miguel Oliveira aparece primeiro em Motorcycle Sports.

It was announced this morning that, due to the forecast of bad weather on Sunday, the main race of the Australian MotoGP has been moved forward to Saturday, with Sunday set for the sprint race, if conditions allow it. This decision was well received by Miguel Oliveira.

The Portuguese rider from CryptoDATA RNF MotoGP Team agrees with the solution, as he said to the press: ‘It’s a good move for sure. For sure if we know already since a week ago that the weather on Sunday is gonna to be bad, it’s the best solution to play the big points when it’s possible to race’.

When asked if there is any disadvantage because he performs better in the rain, Oliveira denied: ‘It doesn’t matter for me. For me it will be the same. I think the most problematic element will be the wind’.

O conteúdo Miguel Oliveira agrees with the main race on Saturday at Phillip Island aparece primeiro em Motorcycle Sports.