The rookie is one of the fastest in wet conditions despite suffering two crashes at the start of the race. Carpe crashes out while running fifth.

An unpredictable Sunday at Le Mans saw rain appear at the end of an otherwise ideal weekend. A downpour overnight left the track wet for the Moto3 French Grand Prix, and the treacherous conditions led to 11 crashes in just 13 laps. Brian Uriarte, who crashed twice at the start of the race, finished fifteenth after being the fastest rider on the last three laps. On the other hand, Alvaro Carpe was unable to finish the race after crashing at Turn 10 when he was doing a good race in 5th.

With the race declared wet, the Moto3 riders were able to complete a series of extra laps before the Grand Prix began, with the race distance also reduced to 13 laps as a precautionary measure due to the track conditions. The ambient temperature was 14°C, with 81% humidity.

Uriarte got off the line excellently, moving from seventh to fourth on the main straight. However, the rookie’s overeagerness led to a crash at the first corner. Nevertheless, he was able to remount and, from 26th place, began his comeback, riding with composure and a solid pace. By the end of the first third of the race, he had already climbed to 18th. In a cruel twist, Uriarte crashed again at Turn 3. He was once again able to rejoin the race, in 20th position, and set about closing the gap to the riders ahead, reaching the Top 15 with three laps to go. He was the fastest rider on track during the last three laps, and took the chequered flag just one second behind those in 13th and 14th. Despite this setback, he maintains his perfect record of Top 15 finishes this season, and remains 9th in the overall standings with 29 points.

Carpe started cautiously, looking to avoid making mistakes, and was able to gain several positions whilst in the middle of the pack. Seeing seven crashes around him in just three laps, he did not want to take any unnecessary risks, and held fourth position after the first third of the race. All of this hard work was undone, however, as unfortunately a crash at the exit of Turn 10 took him out of the race. The Spaniard managed to return to the pits, but after analysing the condition of his machine with the team, the option of going back out on track was ruled out. The DNF ends Carpe’s streak of eight consecutive Top 5 finishes, and he drops to third place in the standings with 53 points.

All in all, it was a tough and demanding Sunday at Le Mans for the Spanish Moto3 duo. Although both had a chance to put in a strong performance, luck wasn’t on their side, and they were only able to score one point for Red Bull KTM Ajo, which remain third in the Team standings with 82 points. The Moto3 World Championship now moves on to the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya for the Catalan Grand Prix, held on May 15-17th.

Race Results
1. Maximo Quiles (KTM) | 24:41.640
2. Adrian Fernandez (Honda) | +1.888
3. Matteo Bertelle (KTM) | +4.227
4. Veda Pratama (Honda) | +7.659
5. Joel Esteban (KTM) | +10.916
15. Brian Uriarte (Red Bull KTM Ajo) | +34.968
DNF. Alvaro Carpe (Red Bull KTM Ajo) | +9 laps

Moto3 World Championship Standing 2026
1. Maximo Quiles (KTM) | 115 points
2. Adrian Fernandez (Honda | 69 points
3. Alvaro Carpe (Red Bull KTM Ajo) | 53 points
4. Valentin Perrone (KTM) | 52 points
5. Veda Pratama (Honda) | 50 points
9. Brian Uriarte (Red Bull KTM Ajo) | 29 points

Moto3 Teams World Championship Standing 2026
1. CFMOTO Gaviota Aspar Team | 163 points
2. Leopard Racing | 115 points
3. Red Bull KTM Ajo | 82 points
4. Red Bull KTM Tech3 | 73 points
5. Liqui Moly Dynavolt Intact GP | 65 points

NIKLAS AJO – Team Manager

“It was a difficult Sunday today with the weather being how it was. We all know that Le Mans is very tricky in wet conditions, and unfortunately both of our riders were victims of that today. Overall, the weekend and our performance in the dry was very promising, so we just have to look forward and bounce back in Barcelona next week.”

#83 ALVARO CARPE

“It had been a good weekend until the crash. We weren’t entirely comfortable with the rear grip, but at least I was near the front and not taking too many risks. I escaped unharmed, which is the important thing, but today the big thing was to stay on the bike for the entire race and score valuable points. We have to focus on the positives, which were everything that happened until that incident, and we’re already thinking about next week, where we have another big challenge ahead in Barcelona -our second home race of the year.”

#51 BRIAN URIARTE

“The race was tough. I had a few scares on the formation lap, but I knew I could do well in these conditions. However, my initial eagerness got the better of me, and I’ll take that experience with me for the future. Luckily, I was able to pick the bike up and continue -not only there, but also after the second crash. It’s a shame because I was going really fast, but with the bars slightly broken, it made things more difficult. I’m proud to have fought hard, to have gotten back up both times, and to have had a good feeling in the rain. We got a point that we might need in the future”.