OGURA PRAISES SPIELBERG RETURN AFTER HAND INJURY

Ai Ogura returned to Spielberg with confidence after a hand injury and a few weeks away from MotoGP machinery, and he proved it with a strong Sunday race at the Red Bull Ring. Starting from fifth, the Trackhouse rider made a quick getaway and was able to jump ahead of Pedro Acosta (KTM) and Marc Marquez (Ducati) alongside Aprilia teammate Marco Bezzecchi. The early advantage didn’t last for long: Acosta fought back in lap two to regain third, leaving Ogura fourth. On lap nine, Ogura also had to let Marquez pass again, but a lap later the world champion made a mistake in Turn 1, allowing Ogura to slip through and reclaim position.

From there, the front group of Acosta, Martin, Bezzecchi and Ogura pulled clear of the rest of the field. After 28 laps, Ogura crossed the line with a little over two seconds to Acosta and a comfortable five-second buffer over Marquez. Asked if it had been a good race, Ogura answered simply: “Yes.”

Ogura pointed to the key factor behind his pace: getting through the weekend without problems after his injury layoff. “The most important thing about this weekend was that after my hand injury and some weeks without a MotoGP bike, I didn’t have any problems,” he said. He added that Friday morning still felt “a bit strange,” but quickly returned to normal once he was back in rhythm, praising both his sessions and the overall flow of the event.

He also explained why Spielberg suited him during his comeback. “Luckily I made my comeback on this track, because it’s not so complicated. Braking, turn-in and acceleration—here it’s pretty easy. That helped me a lot,” Ogura said.

With the Japanese Grand Prix next in two weeks, Ogura will race at Motegi for his home event. He described the venue as similar in character to Spielberg, but when asked about winning, he waved off the idea: “No, no. I don’t want to put pressure on myself. I want to stay calm and do my job.”