Danny Kent | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Kent at the 2015 Catalan Grand Prix.
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Nationality | British | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Born |
Chippenham, Wiltshire, England |
25 November 1993 ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Current team | Kiefer Racing | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Bike number | 52 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Website | DannyKentRacing.com | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Danny Kent (born 25 November 1993) is a British motorcycle racer, best known for winning the 2015 Moto3 World Championship. In doing so, Kent became Great Britain's first Grand Prix motorcycle world champion since Barry Sheene in 1977, as well as the first British lightweight class champion since Dave Simmonds in 1969. He currently competes in Moto2, with Leopard Racing.
Born in Chippenham, Wiltshire, Kent like many others started out in Minimoto, before moving into the FAB-Racing MiniGP50 and MiniGP70 British Championships. Kent progressed through the Aprilia Superteens Championship earning success before being selected for the Red Bull MotoGP Academy and racing in Spain in the Spanish 125GP Championship. When the Academy closed Kent was switched to the Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup, where he finished runner-up in 2010. Kent also contested a wild card ride at Silverstone in 2010 aboard a 125cc Honda, earning him a late ride with Lambretta in the 125cc Grand Prix world championship that year.
Kent entered the 125cc world championship with Lambretta in 2010 at the Japanese Grand Prix at Motegi, qualifying in 16th place, a big improvement on 29th in which he qualified for the British round earlier that year – however he retired from the race. He took a best qualifying position of 10th at the Portuguese Grand Prix in Estoril and a best and only race finish of 21st at Phillip island during the Australian Grand Prix.
For 2011, Kent switched to the Red Bull Ajo Aprilia team to compete in his first full season in the 125cc world championship. Kent enjoyed a successful first season scoring 82 points with a best finish of fourth place, on the way to 11th in the championship standings.
2012 was the start of the Moto3 class. The new formula would use four-stroke 250cc engines apposed to the two-stroke 125cc engines of the class it was replacing. Kent remained with the Red Bull Ajo team however the team switched to running KTM motorcycles spearheading the factory's assault on the tiitle. The team had a fantastic year with Kent's team mate Sandro Cortese taking the world championship along with Kent himself taking fourth in the championship. Kent earned his first podium at Assen in the Dutch TT, and he took his first win at the Japanese Grand Prix at Twin Ring Motegi with a great last lap a result he followed up in similar fashion just four rounds later at the final Grand Prix of the season in Valencia with a brave last corner overtake on Cortese earning him his second Grand Prix victory.