Great start for Carpe and Rueda at Jerez Test
18/02/2025The two Moto3 Red Bull KTM Ajo riders finish the first day in third and fourth position, respectively.
The two Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto3 riders started strongly and decisively at the Circuito de Jerez – Angel Nieto this week, in the last appointment of the 2025 preseason. Both Alvaro Carpe and Jose Antonio Rueda were very active throughout the morning on Tuesday, and managed to finish third and fourth on the combined timesheets.
Carpe was the surprise package, as the rookie Red Bull KTM Ajo rider was able to round off the Top 3. He completed a total of 47 laps across the first two sessions available to him. In the first of them, he demonstrated his good form with the sixth best time. In the second session, he was second with a best time of 1:44.912, which earned him third place overall for the day. Both Carpe and his team decided not to take part in FP3 in the afternoon, due to the somewhat adverse weather conditions.
Rueda was not far behind his teammate. He was also very competitive at his home circuit and was able to set times that practically matched Carpe. He put in 52 laps on the first day of the test, and was directly behind his teammate in both sessions -in seventh and third. With the fourth best time overall, and a best lap of 1:44.960, Rueda also sat out FP3 and saved his strength for the two remaining days of testing.
The second day at the Circuito de Jerez – Angel Nieto gets underway on Wednesday from 10:00 AM local time.
Combined Results (Day 1)
1. Angel Piqueras (KTM) 1:44.442
2. Maximo Quiles (CF Moto) 1:44.896 +0.454
3. Alvaro Carpe (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 1:44.912 +0.470
4. Jose Antonio Rueda (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 1:44.961 +0.510
5. Adrian Fernandez (Honda) 1:45.085 +0.643
#83 ALVARO CARPE
“The first day in Jerez went very well. The work we did has been good and the results very positive, so tomorrow we will have to try to continue in the same way. We focused a lot on working with the team to follow all their instructions, and I think that has paid off. I’m much more comfortable with the bike, as we have managed to improve the setup a lot, so we are very satisfied with the first day. Tomorrow we will have to go for more.”
#99 JOSE ANTONIO RUEDA
“The first day at Jerez has finished with a good feeling for us. Today, in theory, was the day with the worst weather forecast, and that was due to the wind. Even so, we managed to get the bike ready for these types of conditions and we managed to do a good job. In short, I’m very happy with this first ride at Jerez, and eager to continue progressing to stay in the top positions and improve our race pace as much as possible.”