The Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto3 riders move directly into Q2 after a good start in the Indonesian Grand Prix

A hot Friday at Mandalika brought with it positive developments for Jose Antonio Rueda and Alvaro Carpe. The two Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto3 riders advanced directly into Q2 for the Indonesian Grand Prix, in third and ninth places, respectively. Earlier in the morning, the overall leader finished fourth, with Carpe in eighteenth place.

For Free Practice 1, temperatures on track were over 40°C, with humidity over 70%, making the morning session a test of endurance.

Rueda employed his typical strategy of riding alone to gather as much information as possible about the Indonesian track. The Moto3 World Championship leader quickly moved into the Top 5, leading the session for several minutes before heading into the pits. When he reemerged, he improved slightly to eventually move into fourth place, with a best time of 1:37.828 -just over a tenth of a second off the top spot. It was already 3 tenths faster than his fastest laps at the 2023 and 2024 editions of the Indonesian Grand Prix. Carpe took a similar approach to his teammate, trying to get to know Mandalika’s characteristics quickly to speed up his adaptation process. After a difficult start, the Red Bull KTM Ajo rookie also changed tyres and was more competitive on his second outing, rising several more positions before taking the chequered flag in 17th place. His best time was a 1:39.249 -1.6 seconds off the pacesetter-, and he put in 16 laps -one less than his teammate.

In the afternoon, with even more extreme track temperatures of up to 58°C, the Moto3 riders took part in Practice to close out the first day of the Indonesian Grand Prix.

Rueda once again went it alone at the start of the session, although this time other riders used the opportunity to follow in his wake. In sixth place until his second run, the Spaniard went out for the final ten minutes of the session in Time Attack mode. Although one of his flying laps was cancelled out due to yellow flags, he ultimately finished third with a best time of 1:37.616, 2 tenths faster than in the morning. The Spaniard completed 18 laps in the session, and made it through to Q2. Carpe did a significant leap in performance, shaving almost a second off his best morning time immediately. Joining the group of riders that also included Rueda, the series rookie alternated lap times on the tail of his rivals with solo laps, to continue making progress in all circumstances. On his second stint, Carpe started out fifth, but crashed on one of his final laps after accidentally making contact with another rider at Turn 16. Whilst he escaped uninjured, he had to settle for a 1:38.216 -set on his third lap- for ninth place. This time around, he was just 7 tenths off the top spot.

In conclusion, it was a good opening day for Rueda and Carpe, who will be fighting for a good position on the grid on a big weekend for the team, in which Rueda could be crowned Moto3 World Champion and Red Bull KTM Ajo move closer to the Teams title. Free Practice 2 takes place on Saturday from 8:40 a.m. (local time), whilst Q2 gets underway from 1:10 p.m.

Practice Results
1. Angel Piqueras (KTM) | 1:37.503
2. Maximo Quiles (KTM) | 1:37.601 (+0.098)
3. Jose Antonio Rueda (Red Bull KTM Ajo) | 1:37.616 (+0.113)
4. Adrian Fernandez (Honda) | 1:37.635 (+0.132)
5. David Muñoz (KTM) | 1:37.788 (+0.285)
9. Alvaro Carpe (Red Bull KTM Ajo) | 1:38.239 (+0.713)

#99 JOSE ANTONIO RUEDA

“It was very hot on this first day of the weekend. The initial feeling is very good, but we have to keep working to be able to make further progress tomorrow. We have to give our all over the remaining two days and achieve our objective, which is to try to fight for the win, just as we do at every Grand Prix. We’re feeling calm at the moment, so we’re going to continue in the same way on Saturday to keep the line we’re following now.”

#83 ALVARO CARPE

“Today was a good Friday overall. In the morning we went out to test a few things, but in the afternoon we felt much better and took a good step forward to stick with the fast riders. In Practice, I was able to ride with my teammate, and it went very well. In the final minutes, I had a slight coming-together with another rider, but these things happen. Tomorrow we’ll go out on track motivated and confident of being able to repeat what we did in today’s session. We’re focused on tomorrow, where it will be important to fine-tune some details to achieve a good time and a good grid position.”