Raul Fernandez and Kaito Toba provisionally qualify for Q2, after placing in the Top 7 on the combined timesheets.

Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto3 confirmed the good feeling they had in Wednesday’s test with two solid Free Practice sessions on the opening day of the Spanish Grand Prix. Raul Fernandez and Kaito Toba set very competitive times, despite the intense heat at Jerez today. Both riders earned a provisional place in tomorrow’s Q2 session, after finishing Friday in second and seventh, respectively.

Fernandez was one of the fastest riders in the morning, spending much of FP1 at the top of the timesheets. The Spaniard improved his times with every stint, eventually setting the second fastest lap with a 1:46.093. Raul completed a total of 15 laps in the first session of the day, just like teammate Toba. The Japanese was seventh with a 1:46.299 personal best.

In the afternoon, the sweltering heat made it difficult to lower lap times. Fernandez rode a further 10 laps, and it was on his last attempt that he set his best time of FP2: 1:47.188. The Spaniard closed the session in eighth. Kaito Toba was 13th with a 1:47.344, from 12 laps. Both are very satisfied with the work done and are positive ahead of tomorrow’s qualifying practices.

The Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto3 team will have a last practice session tomorrow morning, before the grid for the Spanish GP is decided in Q1 and Q2, at 12:35 pm and 1 pm CEST, respectively.

Results – FP1 & FP2
1. Gabriel Rodrigo (Honda) 1:45.663
2. Raul Fernandez (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 1:46.093 +0.430
3. John McPhee (Honda) 1:46.102 +0.439
4. Andrea Migno (KTM) 1:46.165 +0.502
5. Jeremy Alcoba (Honda) 1:46.189 +0.526
7. Kaito Toba (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 1:46.299 +0.636

25 RAUL FERNANDEZ

“The first two Free Practice sessions were positive. I am very happy because I rode alone throughout the day, which is very important for the race. However, in the last session we tried out something that didn’t work completely well. I want to thank the team for how they has worked, as they did their best to go back to the setup that we had this morning. Tomorrow we will try to improve our pace a little more, with Sunday in mind.”

27 KAITO TOBA
“It was a positive first day. In the morning, we set a strong pace and we finished the session with a good lap. In FP2, I concentrated on improving some aspects of my riding, especially under braking. It seems that we have taken a step forward, but there is still a lot of work to do – so we have to stay focused for tomorrow.”