The talk about the TV series about Miguel Oliveira’s future in the World Speed Championship continues at MotoGP and now has a new episode. Stephane Perrier, CEO of Pierer Mobility, the group that owns KTM, but also chairman of the executive board of KTM AG, has become “happy” with the fact that the Portuguese has committed to Aprilia, but now he tells Speedweek there is still hope for Oliveira to stay in the country. The team, for which he was offered a three-year contract at GASGAS. Perrier explains that a new proposal has been made and that “the ball is in Miguel’s hands”. The Portuguese refused to commit to Tech3, believing he would take a step back, but the KTM manager says Miguel and his father did not realize that the team, which he would call GASGAS, “would be a second team of constructors”. “I don’t think Miguel will race with us in 2023 because he signed a letter of intent with Aprilia,” Stephane Perrier began explaining. “We assure him now that Tech3 is going to be a real second factory team in the future, he didn’t know that when we offered him a move to Tech3 in May. If he knew at the time how the team would be structured in the future, he might have taken a bit of a beating when we signed Jack Miller. But that’s it. Now let’s wait and see what Miguel says. If he wants there’s a place in Tech3. The ball is now in his hands, we’ve made a new bid.”
KTM put a three-year contract on the table and actually explained everything to pilot father and manager Paulo Oliveira. “We made it clear to Paolo in a very good and constructive conversation that Hervé Poncharal’s GASGAS would be the second factory team,” KTM CEO Hubert Trunkenpolz told Speedweek. “He could have miscommunicated or he just didn’t want to listen. As far as we know, Miguel Oliveira has yet to sign a definitive contract with anyone. We also agreed that even if the separation was effective, we would still be friends. Now father and son have to take action. A decision on the next few days. We will have an answer by the end of this week.”
KTM has Jack Miller and Brad Bender on its “mother team,” while Paul Espargaro is insured at GASGAS. If Miguel Oliveira does not accept the call to work with Poncharal again, the place should be taken by Augusto Fernández, who this year was a candidate for the title in the Moto2 World Championship.
“Now it’s Miguel’s turn. We offered him a three-year contract so he could settle down and build the GASGAS project with Pol [Espargaró]. The ball is in his hands,” explains Stephane Perrier.
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