Moto3 Qatar P2: Jaume Masiá in the spotlight but the returning Romano Fenati is not far away

Here it is, the tightest championship of 2023. After 18 rounds, nothing has yet been decided in Moto3, and that is why every second counts, including in this P2 in Qatar. Barely a week ago, we were treated to an excellent representation of the young guns which ended in the first victory of rookie Collin Veijer (Liqui Moly Husqvarna Intact GP). If he is not in the race for the title, the other tenors of the championship experienced different outcomes. Jaume Masia (Honda Leopard Racing), current leader of the general standings, can already be titled at Losail, but he will have to have a sufficient gap with Ayumu Sasaki (Liqui Moly Husqvarna Intact GP). For reference, if the Spaniard wins, then Sasaki cannot afford to finish fifth.

David Alonso (GasGas Aspar Team), rookie of the year, and Daniel Holgado (Red Bull KTM Tech3) were both victims of a collective fall, and left Malaysia with zero points. Still third in the championship tie, they are ahead Deniz Oncu (Red Bull KTM Garlic), also hit by his teammate Jose Antonio Rueda in Sepang. This morning, it was the Turk Deniz Öncü who was in front after a P1 that was as slow as it was flat.

Even if you already know the outcome of this session, come relive it with us! But before we begin, here is a table which presents the known facts:

Qatar Moto3™	2022	2023
P1	2'05.414 Dennis Foggia	2'09.404 Deniz Öncü
P2	2'04.920 Izan Guevara	2'06.794 Jaume Masia
P3	2'05.370 Dennis Foggia
Q1	2'05.481 Ayumu Sasaki
Q2	2'04.811 Izan Guevara
Warm Up	2'05.624 Dennis Foggia	XXXXX
Course	Migno, Garcia, Toba (See here)
All time lap record	2'04.075 Darryn Binder 2021

 

The weather is still very good near Losail, everything is going well. Let's hope for a session that's a little more rhythmic than this morning. But now it's night! The only race in these conditions of the season has all its charm.

 

 

Immediately, everyone is at least as fast as this morning. Deniz Oncu plays in front, as expected, like James Masia. But still, it's good Stefano Nepa (KTM Angeluss MTA Team) who took first position, already in 2'08. Even if we imagine great improvements, we have a hard time believing that we will go down to 2'04 like Darryn binder in 2021.

A few moments later, James Masia improves the best brand. Deniz Oncu follows him closely. Do we already have the duel announced for this weekend? In any case, Roman Fenati (Honda Snipers Team) does not need to be asked and goes second, while Deniz Oncu shoots wide.

 

 

James Masia only improves, here it is now roughly 2'07. David Alonso (GasGas Aspar Moto3), already the author of four falls at Sepang, falls again. Be careful with Romano Fenati who comes first! Clearly, the Italian ate lion. Remember that he does not have handlebars for next year, and that he will be too old for Moto3.

 

 

With 10 minutes to go, Roman Fenati further increases its lead! Where does he come from, when he has been discreet all season! But Jaume Masia has not said his last word. In the final moments, the pilots push. Some fall, like Collin Veijer ! The two pilots Red Bull KTM Ajo Deniz Oncu et Jose Antonio Rueda are under investigation. Scott Ogden (Honda VisionTrack Racing) also crashed, which disrupted the lap times. Traffic increases, tempers heat up...

 

 

In turn, Ryusei Yamanaka (GasGas Aspar Team) tastes like Qatari asphalt. Eventually, James Masia remains untouched until the end of the session. Roman Fenati is second, while Collin Veijer finished third. It must be said that the time has improved considerably, we are three seconds faster than this morning.

 

 

Qatar Moto2 Grand Prix P3 result:

Classification credit: MotoGP.com

Cover photo: Honda Leopard Racing