Moto3 Barcelona FP3: Tony Arbolino in the cool of the morning

Raúl Fernández (KTM, Red Bull KTM Ajo) struck a big blow during FP1 with no less than four tenths ahead of his closest competitor, a comfortable lead that no one will have managed to achieve on this Friday after- noon, not even Jaume Masia (Honda, Leopard Racing).

The Madrilenian thus retained the leadership at the end of this first day. His compatriot, on the other hand, passed in front of the two Italians who preceded him, namely: Romano Fenati (Husqvarna, Sterilgarda Max Racing Team) and Tony Arbolino (Honda, Rivacold Snipers Team), who was also the victim of a highside in turn 10.

Friday afternoon, the wind posed many problems for the Moto3 category, and we noted numerous passages in the gravel traps, particularly in turns 3 and 10. James Masia was the exception by crashing at turn 7, but the Leopard driver continued to take the lead in the final sprint, being one of the few drivers to improve on their FP1 times, while Darryn binder (KTM, CIP-Green Power) also improved to finish less than three tenths of a second behind the Spaniard. Carlos Tatay (KTM, Reale Avintia Arizona 77), who plays at home, climbs into the top 3, being the last rider to achieve a time less than half a second from first place.

A notable absence was that of Celestino Vietti (KTM, Sky Racing Team VR46), the Italian rider crashed at turn 3 and the repairs were too long for him to rejoin the session, which caused him to drop in the standings.

What will this FP3 session give? Before answering this question, here is the table that refreshes our memory…

Catalunya-Barcelona Moto3	2019	2020
FP1	1'49.167 Alonso Lopez	1'48.853 Raúl Fernández
FP2	1'49.213 Lorenzo Dalla Porta	1′.49.134 Jaume Masia
FP3	1'48.433 Aron Canet	1'48.635 Tony Arbolino
Q1	1'48.970 Tatsuki Suzuki
Q2	1'48.450 Gabriel Rodrigo
Warm Up	1'49.134 Lorenzo Dalla Porta
Course	Ramirez, Canet, Vietti
All time lap record	1'48.433 Aron Canet 2019

 

On this Saturday morning, the air temperature was 12°C and the track temperature was 14°C. It's the freshest testing session of the season!

With the freshness of the morning, the drivers slowly enter the track. It must be said that yesterday's falls undoubtedly cooled them down, and that a fresh track does not help the tires warm up or improve their grip. It was a long night for many teams, who had to repair their bikes following the numerous crashes we witnessed yesterday.

Red Bull KTM teammates Ajo, Raúl Fernández et Kaito Toba come out of the boxes together to work as a team on the track. The Spanish driver completed his first lap in 1'52.019. Ai Ogura (Honda, Honda Team Asia), currently 2nd in the Championship, is only 23rd in the cumulative standings, and must improve to go directly to Q2.

Alonso lopez (Husqvarna, Sterilgarda Max Racing Team) is the first rider to fall this morning, losing the lead at turn 2, after barely 5 minutes on the track. The tire has cooled down because it has been around 20 seconds since the last left turn of the circuit since it was in contact with the tarmac, which is turn 10.

Davide Pizzoli (KTM, BOE Skull Rider Facile.Energy) followed suit 5 minutes later at the same turn. Same reason, same punishment. as for Sergio Garcia (Honda, Estrella Galicia 0,0), he falls at turn 5. This is the first corner where the braking is supported on the angle. As for Ayumu Sasaki (KTM, Red Bull KTM Tech3), he crashed at turn 9.

After 10 minutes on the track, Tony Arbolino (Honda, Rivacold Snipers Team) currently leads the session in 1'49.883 ahead Roman Fenati (Husqvarna, Sterilgarda Max Racing Team) and Jaume Masia (Honda, Leopard Racing).

The objective of the third session this morning is to climb among the 14 fastest in free practice to go directly to Q2. gabriel rodrigo (Honda, Kömmerling Gresini Moto3) and Albert Arenas (KTM, Aspar Team Gaviota) are already putting on a show!

Halfway through the session, Raul Fernandez (KTM, Red Bull KTM Ajo) is the fastest, in 1'49.073, ahead of Tony Arbolino (Honda, Rivacold Snipers Team) and Kaito Toba (Honda, Red Bull KTM Ajo), who achieved his best time of the weekend this morning. Teamwork pays off within the Red Bull KTM Ajo team.

Andrea Migno et Celestino Vietti, teammates from Sky Racing Team VR46, use the same strategy and work together on the track.

Between the cold track and the fact that the Misano track had a lot of grip after 2 weeks on site, unlike Catalunya, the falls kept coming. Raul Fernandez (KTM, Red Bull KTM Ajo) lost the front at turn 5. He nevertheless took his bike back to the pits via the track, so that his technical team could repair his bike.

Despite his fall, the Madrilenian driver remains at the top of the standings 10 minutes from the checkered flag, with a time of 1'49.073. Jaume Masia (Honda, Leopard Racing) and Kaito Toba (Honda, Red Bull KTM Ajo) complete the provisional top 3.

Jose Julian Garcia, replacing Tatsuki suzuki within the SIC58 Squadra Corse team, is in turn the victim of a fall, at turn 9. The mechanics will have work this Saturday, before qualifying!

It's surprisingly calm at the end of the session, for Moto3: 7 minutes from the checkered flag, everyone is in the pits. It's time to return to the track for the last run! Raúl Fernández (KTM, Red Bull KTM Ajo) – whose bike was repaired – and his teammate Kaito Toba are the first to set off for the last 5 minutes on the track.

Despite the risk of penalties, the drivers are waiting on the track. The cat and mouse game is on! Romano Fenati (Husqvarna, Sterilgarda Max Racing Team) then achieves a 1'48.778, and he still has time to complete a 2nd flying lap.

In the end, it is Tony Arbolino (Honda, Rivacold Snipers Team) who improved during the last lap and achieved a 1'48.635. He leads the morning session in front of Romano Fenati (Husqvarna, Sterilgarda Max Racing Team) and Raul Fernandez (KTM, Red Bull KTM Ajo).

John mcphee (Honda, Petronas Sprinta Racing) is out of the top 14, as is Albert Arenas (KTM, Aspar Team Gaviota) and Ai Ogura (Honda, Honda Team Asia), the first 3 in the Championship. Q1 promises to be spectacular.

FP3 Ranking Moto3 Catalan Grand Prix in Barcelona:

Classification credit: MotoGP.com