Buasri, O’Shea, Aditama and Ezawa are raring to go as the JuniorGP™ paddock prepares for Round 1 in Estoril
The excitement is building in the Junior Talent Team ranks as Round 1 of the 2023 Finetwork FIM JuniorGP™ World Championship arrives, with the classic Circuito do Estoril again playing host to the season opener.
After finishing P9 in the overall standings last year, Tatchakorn Buasri will be aiming to make podiums a regular occurrence in 2023 – and there’s no better place to start. The Thai rider won the JuniorGP™ race in Estoril in 2022, so a perfect start this weekend in his fourth JuniorGP™ campaign will do just nicely once more.
After a promising debut JuniorGP™ season in 2022 that saw him claim a top 10 finish, Arbi Aditama is also back for more. The Indonesian will be aiming to build on his solid results and make 2023 a year where points and top 10 appearances are regular, as well as forays into the top five – as a minimum.
Eddie O’Shea, meanwhile, returns to the JTT fold – but he is continuing his recovery from surgery on his leg. He’ll try and ride though, and after making a great step forward last season with a podium finish in Jerez as the highlight, he’s eager to get back in the saddle.
Unfortunately, Danial Shahril won’t be racing in Round 1 after picking up a broken ankle during the Rookies round at Jerez. The Malaysian will be replaced in Estoril by Shinya Ezawa, who gets set for his first JTT outing off the back of claiming second overall in the 2022 Idemitsu Asia Talent Cup. The Japanese rider claimed six podiums and two wins in last year’s ATC, and links up with the team full of enthusiasm.
The JuniorGP™ race will start at 13:00 local time in Estoril on Sunday the 7th of May, as the JTT hope to make a great start to 2023 in Portugal! Join us there!