In KTM’s press release, Ian Harrison revealed that Tom Vialle chose to sit out the second moto due to a lack of confidence in his bike setup—an astonishing statement, considering Vialle has spent years with KTM and was leading the first race before a crash.
With Vialle reportedly heading to HRC Honda and the MXGP next season, and Chase Sexton—rumored to be moving to Kawasaki—missing more outdoor races for the second time this summer, it’s been a rough season for KTM and their marquee riders.
Ian Harrison, Red Bull KTM Factory Racing Team Manager, said: “The morning qualifying started pretty well for us at Budds Creek. It was nice to see Julien maintain the pace he had at Unadilla, while Tom seemed to find a groove as the laptimes of the top 10 were super-close. Tom pulled two fantastic starts to Moto 1 after the first race was red-flagged, and was running out front before he made a mistake and fell down. From there, as the moto went on, he seemed to lose pace, while Julien was the opposite as he gained speed towards the end. After the race, Julien requested a couple of bike changes, while Tom decided he would sit out race two after lacking confidence in his setup, so he called it a day.
In the second race, Julien ended up having a big wreck right in front of the mechanics’ area, and unfortunately was concussed. All-in-all, it wasn’t a great day for us, although at least everyone is in one piece and I am grateful for that.”
