The Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto3 duo completes the first day of the official test, in which both riders carry out fruitful work.

Almost straight after their private test at Jerez, the Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto3 team began their last pre-season event at the Circuito International do Algarve in Portugal. On the first of three days of official testing, Jaume Masia and his team continued with the work plan that began at the start of the week, finishing Saturday 11th on the combined timesheets. Dani Holgado, who placed 15th, continued gaining experience and assessing his recovery from the injury.

The Moto3 riders enjoyed three sessions on Saturday, in which they had to contend with strong gusts of wind across the Portuguese track. Despite the conditions, Masia was able to lower his times in each practice, showing a clear improvement at the end of the day. He concluded the afternoon with a total of 50 laps completed and a fastest time of 1:49.291, which placed him 11th overall.

Holgado overcame discomfort in his left leg and was back on the bike to continue his adaptation to the Red Bull KTM Ajo’s Moto3 machine. In the morning, the Spaniard focused on checking his feeling, and it was at noon that he set his best time on Saturday, stopping the clock at 1:49.501. Holgado finished the day in 15th place on the combined timesheets for the three sessions and completed a total of 38 laps.

Jaume Masia and Dani Holgado still have two days of testing in Portimao to come, in which to further set up their KTM bikes for the start of the 2022 World Championship.

Results (Combined practice times Day 1)
1. Tatsuki Suzuki (Honda) 1:48.575
2. Izan Guevara (GASGAS) 1:48.706 +0.131
3. David Muñoz (KTM) 1:48.858 +0.283
4. Deniz Öncü (KTM) 1:48.911 +0.336
5. Diogo Moreira (KTM) 1:48.928 +0.353
11. Jaume Masia (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 1:49.291 +0.716
15. Daniel Holgado (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 1:49.501 +0.926

5 JAUME MASIA

“I am very happy, because we have improved after Jerez. In addition, I am satisfied with the lap times and the pace that we have set on this first day of testing in Portimao. In these remaining days, we will try to find our best feeling and arrive as well prepared as possible to Qatar.”

96 DANI HOLGADO

“It has been a very positive day, because I felt much better than at Jerez, especially in terms of my left leg. I am very happy because we have been able to finish less than a second behind the pacesetter. Being in the Top 15 is what I was aiming for, because I didn’t know if I could make it to the final session. We’ve worked very well today and tomorrow we’ll keep pushing hard to improve.”