Moto2 Portugal Portimao P2: Manuel Gonzalez gets in front

The weekend kicks off in Portimao (Portugal), and also marks the return of the competition to Europe. After a well-contested Qatar Grand Prix in Moto2, some must confirm their good form, while others wish to bounce back after an unsuccessful start to the season. Two weeks ago, Alonso Lopez won the event ahead of Barry Baltus and Sergio Garcia, while Tony Arbolino and Fermin Aldeguer both missed the top 10.

Before we begin, here is a table which summarizes the known facts:

Moto2™ Portimao	2023	2024
P1	1'43.046 Jake Dixon	1'44.900 Manuel Gonzalez
P2	1'42.391 Pedro Acosta	1'42.362 Alonso Lopez
P3	1'42.003 Arón Canet
Q1	1'42.965 Tony Arbolino
Q2	1'42.323 Filip Salač
Course	Acosta, Canet, Arbolino (See here)
All time lap record	1'42.003 Arón Canet 2023

As a reminder, P2 presents itself as the last chance for drivers to record a lap in the top 14 in order to directly reach Q2.

At the start of the session, the benchmark set by Alonso Lopez in 1:42.362 fell quite quickly. It was Aron Canet who first dislodged the SpeedUP driver with a time 26 thousandths faster.

Number 44 is looking very quick 🔥

Aron Canet jumps up to first place 👊#PortugueseGP 🇵🇹 pic.twitter.com/NbUQD6h7Fd

- MotoGP @ 🏁 (@MotoGP) March 23, 2024

If the top 5, then completed by Alonso Lopez, Joe Roberts and Manuel Gonzalez thanks to their time yesterday, remains frozen during most of the session, behind them the evolution is constant as the gaps are tight.

With seven minutes left, Alonso Lopez set a superb time of 1:41.883, the result of his ninth attempt. He is the first driver of the weekend to lap under 42 minutes and crushes the reference mark by more than 4 tenths.

Subsequently, the pace displayed by the entire grid will be more sustained, and names like Fermin Aldeguer, Barry Baltus and Celestino Vietti will appear at the top of the timesheet.

Three minutes before the end of the countdown, Alonso Canet crashed at turn 5 while trying to improve. If he was able to leave, he will no longer play for first place. Canet ends the session with 9th position.

Before the checkered flag, Manuel Gonzalez will have the last word with a time of 1:41.716. Author of a late awakening, Tony Arbolino set the second best time at 115 thousandths, before his last effort the driver Marc VDS was in 15th place. Alonso Lopez is right on their heels, while Fermin Aldeguer and Celestino Vietti complete the top 5.