The Moto3 leader felt comfortable in both wet and dry conditions. His teammate Carpe, despite leading FP1, could only finish 18th in Practice and will have to go through Q1.

Moto3 World Championship leader Jose Antonio Rueda took fourth in Practice for the Dutch TT, securing his tenth involvement in Q2 this season. In FP1, in wet conditions, the Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto3 rider took no chances and rounded out the Top 10. Alvaro Carpe got off to a strong start on Friday, leading a session for the second time this season. Unfortunately, after a strange end of Practice and a run off the track that prevented him from a clean and smooth Time Attack, the rookie finished 18th and will have to go through Q1 for the second time this year.

A downpour until just before the start of the morning FP1 session left the asphalt completely wet and temperatures down to 17°C. 

Carpe was very competitive from the start, among the fastest riders after the first few flying laps. The series’ top rookie combined riding alone with working in a group, proving very comfortable in both situations. In the final part of the session, he managed to move into first place, just before suffering a fast crash at Turn 3 -his second fall of the season. Unscathed, the Red Bull KTM Ajo rider was able to top a Moto3 session for the second time this season having done so previously in Silverstone Practice. He set a time of 1:46.078 and put in 16 laps. Rueda employed a cautious approach, as he started from the bottom of the timesheets, but gradually climbed up the order to close in on the lead, eventually occupying the final position in the Top 10. Rueda completed 19 laps, the most in the class, with a best time of 1:47.515.

By the afternoon, temperatures rose some 11°C, and the track remained dry, although clouds and rain loomed throughout the session.

Rueda was in the Q2 positions from the off, and placed first after his Time Attack attempt. With a spot in the Top 14 already secured, he couldn’t improve further due to traffic, so had to settle for fourth at the end of the session. His 1:40.455, after 17 laps, took him into Q2 directly for the tenth time this year. Carpe took things more calmly, starting by working on his race pace. On his first run he was only 19th, so he went out for a Time Attack aiming for a direct place in Q2. Quickly, on his first flying lap, he rose to fourth, although he then lost a lap due to the yellow flags on the track. On his second attempt, Carpe encountered traffic in the third sector, sending him into the gravel to avoid a collision. Having had to abort his flying lap, he took gamble on his final run, and although he improved his time, his 1:40.850 wasn’t enough to break into the Top 14. He will have to go through Q1 after qualifying directly for Q2 at eight consecutive Grands Prix.

With the first day of work in Assen done, Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto3 team will be aiming for a competitive Qualifying tomorrow in order to achieve good grid positions. On Saturday morning, both riders will take part in FP2 starting at 8:40 a.m. (local time). In the afternoon, Carpe will be first on track, at 12:50 p.m., for Q1, and would try to join his teammate Rueda, who will contest Q2 at 13:15 p.m.

Practice Results
1. Luca Lunetta (Honda) | 1:40.053
2. David Muñoz (KTM) | 1:40.262 (+0.209)
3. Joel Kelso (KTM) | 1.40.445 (+0.392)
4. Jose Antonio Rueda (Red Bull KTM Ajo) | 1:40.455 (+0.402)
5. Valentin Perrone (KTM) | 1:40.462 (+0.409)
18. Alvaro Carpe (Red Bull KTM Ajo) | 1:40.850 (+0.797)

#99 JOSE ANTONIO RUEDA

“This morning’s session was wet, which made setting up the bike a bit difficult, but things went well in the afternoon. It’s true that we didn’t do a huge amount of laps, but it helped us draw initial conclusions and identify where we can improve. The feeling from Practice was good, so we have to keep working to take another step forward tomorrow. We’ll have to see what track conditions we encounter on Saturday, but we’ll try to keep everything under control so that external factors surprise us as little as possible.”

#83 ALVARO CARPE

“We had some bad luck this afternoon. We looked for a clean lap, but we didn’t find it. The first attempt we had was taken away due to yellow flags on the track, and on the second, I ran into traffic, so I had to go into the gravel to avoid a collision. We know where we can improve and we’re confident we’ll have a great Q1 tomorrow, so we’re going to work on that to improve during Saturday and arrive at Sunday’s race as close to the front as possible. It hasn’t been the best Friday for us, but I’m sure we’ll take a step forward tomorrow.”