Alvaro goes straight into Q2 for Qualifying at the season finale, whilst Brian will have to go through Q1 on Saturday.

The Moto3 World Championship season finale kicked off on Friday with a successful day for Red Bull KTM Ajo, who secured a place in Q2 thanks to Alvaro Carpe. The Spanish rider finished sixth in Practice, and was previously quickest in Free Practice 1. Brian Uriarte will have to go through Q1, after missing out on a spot in the Top 14 by 0.090 seconds.

Weather conditions were chilly at the Circuit Ricardo Tormo, with overcast skies and a track temperature of 15ºC for FP1. The humidity level reached the unusually high figure of 86%.

Carpe made a good start, riding alone and trying to get a feel for the bike without using other riders as a reference. He remained consistently in the Top 5 during his first run, then on his second stint took the top spot and further lowered his lap time. With a best lap of 1:38.357 from his 17 completed, the Red Bull KTM Ajo rider topped the timesheets in the first session of the weekend for the first time since the return from the summer break. Uriarte, standing in once again for Jose Antonio Rueda, was riding a Moto3 bike at the track for the first time. Aiming to accumulate as many kilometres as possible, he began well, keeping a place in the Top 15 during his first run. After a pit stop to adjust the base setup for the weekend, the Spaniard came back out and comfortably slotted into the Top 10. However, with several riders improving their times, his 1:39.646 left him in 11th place. Uriarte completed 18 laps -more than anyone else in the class.

The Red Bull KTM Ajo pair enjoyed optimal conditions in Practice, with track temperatures of 22°C and 52% humidity.

Carpe remained among the fastest riders in the class in the session, putting himself in a strong position to secure a place in Q2. Whilst he had been slightly slower than in FP1 before his Time Attack, with a switch to soft tyres he lowered his time on his first flying lap, climbing to fifth with a 1:38.019 and locking down his place in Q2. Carpe eventually finished sixth, after putting in 16 laps. Uriarte dedicated the first part of the session to continuing to work on his pace and adapting to the track, which prevented him from securing a direct spot in Q2. However, he did manage to shave 3 tenths off his morning time. After a pit stop and tyre change, the Red Bull KTM Ajo rookie sought to make it into Q2 as quickly as possible and set a lap in the 1:38s for the first time, placing him 13th. Unfortunately, improvements by his rivals in the final part of the session dropped Uriarte to 16th place, with his 1:38.539 lap just 0.090s from making the cut. Sixteenth place came after he once again completed the most laps in the session, with 18.

In conclusion, it was a positive first day for the Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto3 pair, with Carpe achieving his goal for the day and Uriarte coming close to qualifying directly for Q2 on his first ever day riding a Moto3 bike at Ricardo Tormo. The two Spanish riders will try to have a good FP2 on Saturday (8:40 a.m. local time), before Uriarte takes part in Q1 from 12:45 p.m. That will be followed by Q2 from 1:10 p.m.

Practice Results
1. David Almansa (Honda) | 1:37.333
2. Adrian Fernandez (Honda) | 1:37.643 (+0.310)
3. Valentin Perrone (KTM) | 1:37.822 (+0.489)
4. Guido Pini (KTM) | 1:37.856 (+0.523) 
5. Taiyo Furusato (Honda) | 1:37.912 (+0.579)
6. Alvaro Carpe (Red Bull KTM Ajo) | 1:38.019 (+0.686)
16. Brian Uriarte (Red Bull KTM Ajo) | 1:38.539 (+1.206)

#83 ALVARO CARPE

“We’re happy. We made solid progress today, so we’ll just have to fine-tune the details over the rest of the weekend to be able to give 100% on Sunday. This is a circuit I really like, and it’s the final round of the season, so we’ll fight as hard as we can. We need to focus on our work, as I’m convinced we still have room for improvement and I’m sure we can lower our lap time tomorrow to get a good grid position. The track was a bit tricky this morning, so we need some more time to work under optimal conditions.”

#51 BRIAN URIARTE

“It was a good first day, as we improved our times every time we went out on track. However, we still have room to lower our times, and I’m sure we can take another step forward tomorrow. FP2 will be important to understand what aspects we can improve, especially for Q1, in which we want to make it into Q2. Our pace isn’t bad, but I’m convinced we can keep improving, especially for Sunday. I’m eager to continue progressing and motivated to put on a good show in front of these fans who always support us.”