The Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto3 riders will start the race from the fourth and ninth rows, respectively.

Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto3 had a difficult Saturday at the Pertamina Mandalika Circuit. Jose Antonio Rueda and Xabi Zurutuza were both forced to go through Q1, although only the former was able to make the cut for Q2. They will start the race tenth and 27th, respectively.

Practice 2 began with high temperatures, requiring extra caution. Despite this, Rueda tried to set his best time from the first laps and get a good feeling riding his KTM. The Red Bull KTM Ajo rider made steady progress and had seemingly clocked his fastest time on his final attempt, but this lap was cancelled out and he finished in 20th position with a 1:38.585. Zurutuza was still searching for a positive feeling with his bike, and was not able to improve on his Friday times. The Moto3 rookie, who continues to work on adapting to the new circuit and the tough conditions, set his best time at the start of the session. Finally, Zurutuza posted a 1:39.727 which put him 25th.

Temperatures had increased further for Q1. Rueda quickly made his way into the Top 4, and the Red Bull KTM Ajo rider set the second best time thanks to his 1:38.532, earning a spot in Q2. In that session, he registered his fastest lap of the day, with a 1:38.190 from his sixth attempt. He will take off from tenth place, on the fourth row of the grid. Zurutuza had difficulty being more competitive and, whilst he tried to close the gap to his rivals, after 8 laps, his 1:39.854 proved to be his definitive time in Q1. He took 27th overall.

The 20-lap Moto3 Indonesian Grand Prix will start at 12:00 pm local time on Sunday 29th September.

Results Qualifying
1. Ivan Ortola (KTM) 1:37.332
2. Collin Veijer (Husqvarna) 1:37.589 +0.257
3. Taiyo Furusato (Honda) 1:37.701 +0.369
4. Adrian Fernandez (Honda) 1:37.726 +0.394
5. David Alonso (CFMOTO) 1:37.845 +0.513
10. Jose Antonio Rueda (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 1:38.190 +0.858
27. Xabi Zurutuza (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 1:39.854 +1.559 *Q1 Time

#99 JOSE ANTONIO RUEDA

“We aren’t finishing Saturday with the best feeling yet, but there is room for improvement. Tomorrow we start from tenth, on the fourth row, so we will have to fight back, as well as us having to do a long lap. We will do our best to get a good result, as this GP is a bit of a struggle for us. We have to work and give it our all in the race.”

#85 XABI ZURUTUZA

“We have finished the second day here. It was a day that was quite difficult for us and we didn’t get the results we wanted. We will continue working so that tomorrow we can serve the double long lap penalty as soon as possible tomorrow, try to gain the maximum number of positions we can on the opening laps and get the result we deserve.”