Jaume Masia and Dani Holgado enjoy a solid opening day of the Indonesian Grand Prix, completing the first two Free Practice sessions of the weekend.

The Mandalika International Circuit hosted Free Practice for the Moto3 World Championship for the first time on Friday, the opening day of the Indonesian Grand Prix. Red Bull KTM Ajo had their first experience of the track, riding in wet in the morning and in dry conditions in the afternoon. Jaume Masia finished eighth on the combined FP1 and FP2 timesheets, with Dani Holgado 20th.

The first session of the day was held on a wet surface, due to heavy rain that had fallen early in the morning and stopped minutes before the FP1 got underway. Holgado adapted well and, after heading the timesheets at various points, finished fourth with a time of 1:51.119, just 0.069s off the top spot. The Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto3 rookie completed 13 laps. Putting in 16 was teammate Masia, who had a positive practice that he ended in sixth place, after stopping the clock in 1:51.522.

The track dried out for FP2 and the Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto3 duo made the most of the session to gather as much data as possible. Masia completed a solid practice, finishing in eighth thanks to a personal best of 1:41.558 – achieved on his penultimate attempt of a total of 13. Holgado continued to accumulate experience by undertaking 17 laps, in a session in which he was 20th with a 1:42.067.

The Red Bull KTM Ajo riders will enjoy one last Free Practice session on Saturday morning, to prepare for qualifying. Moto3 Q1 for the Indonesian Grand Prix will start at 12:25 PM local time, followed by Q2 at 12:50 PM.

Results (Combined practice times FP1-FP2)
1. Andrea Migno (Honda) 1:40.960
2. Carlos Tatay (CFMoto) 1:41.233 +0.273
3. Dennis Foggia (Honda) 1:41.259 +0.299
4. Ayumu Sasaki (Husqvarna) 1:41.322 +0.362
5. Izan Guevara (GASGAS) 1:41.385 +0.425
8. Jaume Masia (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 1:41.558 +0.598
20. Dani Holgado (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 1:42.067 +1.107

#5 JAUME MASIA

“I’m very happy with the work we carried out today. We didn’t know how this circuit would turn out for us, as it was new, and I liked it a lot. I want to thank the team because they are doing a great job to find the best setup for our bike at this track. I’m really looking forward to qualifying, in which – as always – we’ll do our best to try to ensure a good starting position on the grid.”

#96 DANI HOLGADO

“It has been a positive first day in Indonesia. We have ridden on this track for the first time and I quite like it. I am satisfied with the work we have done together with the team today. Tomorrow we will have to work hard to improve some points, but I think we are on the right path. I am very motivated for the rest of the weekend, in which we will try to continue taking steps forward and enjoying ourselves.”