Dani Holgado will start from second position in Misano, while Jaume Masia qualifies eleventh

Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto3 faced a difficult qualifying day in Misano on Saturday. Rain affected the work of Jaume Masia and Dani Holgado, and both riders achieved their best times on their final attempts, for second and eleventh, respectively.

Masia and Holgado started the day with the last Free Practice. The Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto3 duo worked hard to make it directly into Q2. Masia, who had already been amongst the quicker riders on Friday, remained in the Top 10 throughout the session. He saved his best until the end, setting the fourth fastest time of 1:41.883 on his final lap. He was fifth overall. Holgado’s attempt to break into Q2 began in earnest after a pit stop, following which he improved his times and on his last lap clocked a 1:42.070, which placed him seventh – eighth on the combined timesheets.

Rain had an impact on qualifying at Misano, as the riders started Q2 cautiously so as not to make any mistakes. Holgado maintained a good pace and looked for the best opportunity to set a fast lap. In the closing moments he put in the second best time of the session, with his 1:42.471 leaving him just 0.023 off pole. His second place marks his fourth appearance on the front row this season. Masia worked hard to get a good feeling with his bike. He suffered a setback as a lap was cancelled for exceeding the track limits, but on his last lap he set the eleventh fastest time with 1:42.860. He will start the race from the fourth row of the grid.

The 23-lap Moto3 San Marino GP race takes place on Sunday at 11:00 AM local time.

Results (Qualifying session)
1. Deniz Öncü (KTM) 1:42:448
2. Daniel Holgado (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 1:42.471 +0.023
3. Diogo Moreira (KTM) 1:42.472 +0.024
4. Ryusei Yamanka (KTM) 1:42.488 +0.040
5. Izan Guevara (GasGas) 1:42.609 +0.161
11. Jaume Masia (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 1:42.860 +0.412

#5 JAUME MASIA

“I’m happy with today’s result. The track conditions were very tricky and we ran the risk of crashing due to the rain. We salvaged a time on the last lap and tomorrow we’ll try to start as best we can to fight for a good result.”

#96 DANI HOLGADO

“We came very close to pole, but the important thing is that we are starting from the front row. Saturdays are going well for me, and now we need to finetune our pace on the last laps. We have been working quite well with the team throughout the weekend and tomorrow we will be strong in order to fight for victory.”