Intact GP’s infirmary: Team Principal Öttl speaks exclusively about the precarious situation

David Munoz broke his hip in a crash on 7 June at the Moto3 Grand Prix in Hungary; in a second operation, the radius in his left forearm was set. The Intact rider has been working hard on his recovery ever since; on 8 July, he updated the public on his very difficult weeks. “I’m feeling better day by day,” the 20-year-old said at the time. “Now it’s a matter of being patient and continuing to stick to the required recovery periods so that my pelvis heals properly. I’ll do my best to get back on the motorbike as soon as possible.”

David Muñoz sidelined for an indefinite period

MotoGP has been on its summer break since the German Grand Prix on 12 July; the Moto3 World Championship resumes at Silverstone in England over the weekend of 7–9 August. It is unlikely that Muñoz will be back in action by then. “He’s making very good progress and has high hopes of a comeback soon,” Intact team manager Peter Öttl told SPEEDWEEK.com. “But I can’t say when that will be. I’d rather he recovers fully enough to look confident on the bike than comes back too soon and isn’t able to perform. It’s not about the World Championship; it’s about him getting well and then riding at a good level.”

Peter Öttl hatte in den vergangenen Wochen nicht viel zu jubeln

Foto: gold & goose

At the Sachsenring, the Memmingen-based Intact team had to do without both riders, as, alongside the injured Muñoz, David Almansa – then third in the World Championship – was forced to pull out on Saturday due to a recurrence of a sore throat. Öttl describes him as “ready to go and, for the moment, recovered”.

The Liqui Moly Dynavolt Intact GP team set out in 2026 to finish the Moto3 World Championship with Almansa and Munoz in the top three; at the summer break, they are in 5th and 10th place overall. Marcos Uriarte has recently been called upon several times as a replacement.

Unfortunately, that dream has been dashed, but we have nothing to blame ourselves for.

Intact team manager Peter Öttl

“We always try to make the best of the situation and find the best possible replacement rider,” emphasised Öttl. “But all the good riders are, of course, under contract with a team. And the young riders are either unavailable due to scheduling clashes with the Red Bull Rookies’ Cup or because they haven’t reached the minimum age of 18. There are two races in August that don’t clash with the Rookies’ Cup. Marcos Uriarte did a decent job, but we’re limited when it comes to results. That’s why I’m thinking of possibly giving a chance to a Rookies Cup rider who is 18 years old and has a track record of success. That’s the route I’ll be pursuing.”

That was not in the team’s hands

“Keeping motivation alive is an important part of it,” remarked the team manager from Ainring near Salzburg. “The situation that arose – an injured or ill rider – was beyond our control. Of course, we went into the season knowing that we had two riders, each of whom could become world champion. That this could turn out to be a season like the one we’ve had in our Moto2 team, with both riders in the top three (Manuel Gonzalez and Senna Agius – the author). Unfortunately, that dream has been dashed, but we have nothing to blame ourselves for. So we have to say that we must seek out and find the best possible replacement rider and give him our full support. That is our motivation. The next step to keep that motivation high is to give a young rider a chance and see what we can achieve with him. Of course, this isn’t comparable to fighting for Grand Prix victories. We have to scale back our expectations, because with an 18-year-old Rookies’ Cup driver, we can’t aim for GP wins. Our sponsors know this and are always kept well informed. In any sport, a rider can get injured, fall ill or be forced to withdraw. That’s why there are no guarantees when it comes to results; many things are beyond your control. All you can do is create the conditions for good results.”