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The Valencia MotoGP weekend was ‘a good way to end the year’ for outbound Tech3 KTM Factory Racing’s Remy Gardner who completed the final race of the season in P13.

Round 20 of the 2022 world championship at the Ricardo Tormo Circuit marked Gardner’s last in his current MotoGP stint, and the number 87 ultimately delivered his second-best race result of the season.

Starting from 20th on the grid, the former Moto2 World champion swiftly worked his way inside the points-scoring positions and finished the 27-lap outing just over a second from teammate Raul Fernandez.

“My start was so-so but after that I was on a mission and was picking them off,” Gardner recalled. “I got up to 14th and was about to pass Alex Marquez when he crashed and I had to pick up and almost crashed myself.

“I lost two positions there but, well, still finished in the points. The rear tire had dropped but I just kept my head down. I tried to fight as hard as possible, especially against Raul! It was quite fun and I had a decent burnout at the end! A good way to end the year. Onto the next.”

Gardner will switch to the Superbike World Championship (WorldSBK) next year after just a single season in MotoGP, joining GYTR GRT Yamaha after he was not provided with an opportunity to continue in the premier GP class.

The Australian’s best finish in his rookie MotoGP campaign came at Catalunya where he was 11th, with Garnder finishing 23rd in the championship standings at the conclusion of round 20.