Pedro Acosta places in the Top3 at the start of the Australian Grand Prix, with Albert Arenas in 21st.

The Australian Grand Prix began this Friday for the Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto2 riders. The first Practice of the weekend took place with good track conditions, which allowed Pedro Acosta and Albert Arenas to improve their records, finishing third and twenty-first respectively.

The Phillip Island circuit provided a great backdrop for Practice 1. With good track conditions, Acosta was very competitive from the start, occupying the highest positions on the timesheets. He took second place and did not relinquish it until the chequered flag fell, clocking a time of 1:33.002 that was just 0.209s off the top spot. Arenas focused on finding a good feeling with his bike, although he struggled to achieve it. The Red Bull KTM Ajo rider completed a total of 19 laps, his best time coming on his final attempt. A 1:34.395 put him in fifteenth position.

Practice 2 closed the first day of the Australian GP. Acosta worked to find a comfortable pace for Sunday’s race and also improved his times on the combined timesheets. The Spaniard suffered a small crash at Turn 4, but it did not affect his position. Thanks to a 1:33.144 on his penultimate lap, he finished in fourth place. Arenas continued to try to feel comfortable with his KTM, putting in a total of 20 laps in which, despite improving on his morning times, he was unable to place in the Q2 positions. With a time of 1:34.185, he was 20th. With these results, Acosta and Arenas were third and 21st, respectively, on the combined timesheets.

Qualifying for the Australian Grand Prix will take place on Saturday at 1:45 PM local time.

Results (Combined practice sessions P1-P2)
1. Fermin Aldeguer (Kalex) 1:32.548
2. Aaron Canet (Kalex) 1:32.686 +0.138
3. Pedro Acosta (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 1:33.003 +0.455
4. Jake Dixon (Kalex) 1:33.098 +0.550
5. Manuel Gonzalez(Kalex) 1:33.180 +0.632
21. Albert Arenas(Red Bull KTM Ajo) 1:34.185 +1.637

#37 PEDRO ACOSTA

“The day went well, with nothing outside of what we expected. Our pace is not bad, although perhaps we take things a step further. We are working on improving my feeling on the bike, as we need to be able to maintain a high pace in an easier way, but we know which direction to take. Our goal for tomorrow is still to be on the front or second row, although we are also focused on Sunday’s race.”

#75 ALBERT ARENAS

“It was a first day with very good weather conditions, but unfortunately I wasn’t able to take advantage of them as I would have liked. We tried to find a way to be more competitive, but that wasn’t the case. This afternoon we will continue working hard to see what can we improve on, to allow me to have a better feeling than I had today.”