The Spanish rider completes the Top 5 on the first day at MotorLand. Brian Uriarte recovers from a heavy crash in the morning and is 17th in the afternoon.

Alvaro Carpe finished fifth in Practice for the Aragon Grand Prix on Friday, with fourth place in the morning’s Free Practice 1. Brian Uriarte started the day well, but would take 17th place in Practice after suffering a heavy crash during the final part of FP1.

Slightly cool temperatures at MotorLand -a welcome change from the intense heat expected for the weekend- and clear skies greeted the Moto3 grid for FP1. Track temperature was 25°C for the morning session.

There was a strong start for Uriarte, who showed great speed from his first flying lap onwards. He comfortably took the top spot, building a gap of almost a second in the early stages of FP1. After his pit stop, the rookie made some adjustments to his setup, before heading back out on track. Unfortunately, shortly after, he suffered a heavy crash at the exit of Turn 3, forcing him to end the session prematurely. With a time of 1:58.830 and 10 laps completed, Uriarte placed second. A visit to the Medical Centre showed no injuries had been suffered, and the Spaniard was able to participate in the afternoon session. Carpe had a more conservative start, gradually improving throughout his two runs. In the Top 10 from the early going, he ultimately climbed to fourth place in the closing stages with a best time of 1:59.010, after riding 14 laps at MotorLand Aragon.

In Practice, conditions were much hotter than in the morning, as track temperatures reached 44°C. Both Red Bull KTM Ajo riders took to the track immediately, in search of a fast time.

Carpe demonstrated consistency during his first run, settling into sixth position and riding mostly alone during his initial stint. After his pit stop, he rejoined the group for a Time Attack with just six minutes remaining, using his first flying lap to climb to third place. On the final two laps, two rivals improved on his time, leaving him in 5th place overall -with a best time of 1:57.945 after 14 laps. Uriarte struggled slightly more to reach the top positions, having to settle for thirteenth at the end of his first stint. After adjusting some important setup details, he went back out -initially looking to follow other riders, but then going it alone due to heavy traffic. He found himself without any chance of improvement to his time, due to the strong wind on the back straight. His 1:58.465, set on the fifth of his 13 laps, left him in 17th place, meaning he will have to go through Q1. In addition, the Spaniard received a Long Lap penalty for Sunday after riding slowly during the afternoon session.

All in all, it’s been a mixed bag for Red Bull KTM Ajo on their arrival at MotorLand. With Carpe right in the battle for Pole Position, the team will be looking to push Uriarte tomorrow to ensure the Spanish duo make it through to Q2. On Saturday, Q1 for the Aragon Grand Prix will take place at 12:45 p.m., followed by Q2 at 1:10 p.m. Before that, both riders will participate in Free Practice 2 at 8:40 a.m.

Practice Results
1. David Almansa (KTM) | 1:57.473
2. Rico Salmela (KTM) | 1:57.552 (+0.079)
3. Valentin Perrone (KTM) | 1:57.927 (+0.454)
4. Adrian Fernandez (Honda) | 1:57.938 (+0.465)
5. Alvaro Carpe (Red Bull KTM Ajo) | 1:57.945 (+0.472)
17. Brian Uriarte (Red Bull KTM Ajo) | 1:58.465 (+0.992)

#83 ALVARO CARPE

“It’s been a good Friday. This morning we encountered a lot of dirt on the track, which made it a bit difficult to work on our race pace, so we had to adapt. In the afternoon we were able to work better and put in some higher-quality laps, so we’ll take that away for tomorrow. There are still some aspects to fine-tune, but we’re on the right path. If we just adjust the details, I’m sure we can put on a good performance for the rest of the weekend in front of the home fans.”

#51 BRIAN URIARTE

“The day didn’t go badly overall. This morning I had a nasty crash. We were going very fast from the start and a bit of overconfidence led to me crashing. Luckily, it was just a knock, so I’m sure I’ll be in perfect condition tomorrow. In Practice, I didn’t want to take too many risks and focused on regaining my feel for the track and getting some miles in. Now it’s time to rest and prepare for Saturday, which will be a very important day -in which we will have to take more risks if we want to get a good grid position.”