Twelfth and fifteenth for Veijer and Rueda in Brno Q2
20/06/2026The Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto2 duo will occupy the fourth and fifth rows of the grid in the Czech Republic.
Colin Veijer and Jose Antonio Rueda will start twelfth and fifteenth in Brno, after a Q2 session that proved more challenging than expected. A hot Saturday in the Czech Republic saw the pair miss out on late improvements in their lap times.
The Automotodrom Brno was very hot for FP2, with an ambient temperature of 26°C and a track temperature of 34°C.
Rueda was very competitive for a third consecutive session at the Czech Grand Prix. Establishing himself among the pacesetters from the start, he remained near the top throughout the session, focused on consistency and completing a single run. During the first part of FP2, Rueda rode as part of a group, while in the final section he switched to working alone. Unfortunately, after a prior scare at Turn 10, the Spaniard suffered a small crash as he aborted his lap in order to avoid hitting the barriers -although he was able to remount to finish the session. With 14 laps completed, Rueda was ninth with a best time of 1:58.611, 2 tenths of a second quicker than on Friday. Veijer showed promise in FP2, completing only one run in order to focus on his race pace for Sunday. With a total of 15 laps completed -more than anyone else in the class- he finished 12th with a best time of 1:58.760, slightly improving on his Friday marker at Brno.
With temperatures more extreme than the rest of the weekend, the intermediate class riders had to contend with ambient temperatures of up to 32°C and track temperatures of up to 50°C in Q2.
Veijer set an early benchmark with the eleventh fastest time, only slightly slower than his previous best lap of the weekend. The Dutchman managed to improve further on his second run, but was unable to gain any more positions, having to settle for twelfth with a time of 1:58.771. In total, he completed 7 laps in Q2. After an initial hot lap, Rueda was also able to improve his previous time, but not enough to move up the grid, leaving him 15th. With a best time of 1:58.833, Rueda completed seven laps.
After a bittersweet Saturday, both Red Bull KTM Ajo riders are prepared for the last part of the weekend. Moto2 Czech Grand Prix will be an 18-lap race and will start at 12:15 p.m. (local time) on Sunday.
#95 COLLIN VEIJER
“This morning went pretty much ok. We tried a long run but we had a small problem with the rear tyre, so let’s see what happens over a long distance tomorrow. The pace is there, but we need to show it on Sunday. During Qualifying, we couldn’t show all of our potential, so we’re not very happy about the final result. We need to accept it, as it’s not a complete disaster, and see what we can do from the fourth row of the grid. We’re focused on the race and very motivated to achieve a good result here.”
#98 JOSE ANTONIO RUEDA
“Today didn’t go badly in terms of the things we tried out for the race. This morning we had a small crash, but luckily it wasn’t anything serious. This afternoon we changed a few things, and something similar to what happened in Hungary occurred again, so tomorrow we’ll need to get a good start. At least we were able to clear up any doubts with the setup we adjusted and are now focused on tomorrow. We’ll try to be strong in the first part of the race and give 100% to reach the positions we want to be in.”
