Marco Morelli produced a stunning last-lap surge to top the Moto3 Practice session at the Japanese Grand Prix 2026 at Motegi. The Aspar rider was languishing in 17th place as the chequered flag fell, but a blistering final effort of 1m 55.280s catapulted him to the top of the timesheets, securing a direct spot in Q2.
Ryusei Yamanaka, who had led FP1, was forced to settle for second, just 0.016s adrift on his MT Helmets machine, much to the delight of the home crowd. Brian Uriarte completed the top three for Red Bull KTM Ajo, underlining the team’s strong pace at the Japanese circuit.
The session was fraught with incidents. Alvaro Carpe, who had earlier led, ended up fourth after a crash, while his rookie teammate Valentin Perrone took fifth, making it a solid day for the Red Bull bikes. Championship leader Maximo Quiles, winner last time out in Austria, could only manage sixth after a fall, with David Munoz seventh, another rider to visit the gravel.
Rookie Veda Pratama impressed as the best Honda rider in eighth for Honda Team Asia. Matteo Bertelle and David Almansa rounded out the top ten, though Almansa suffered his third crash of the day. Adrian Fernandez climbed to 11th late on, ahead of Joel Esteban and Joel Kelso.
The battle for the final Q2 spot was intense. Scott Ogden had improved to 14th, but his CIP Green Power teammate Adrian Cruces went faster. Rico Salmela briefly held the position before his last lap was cancelled, handing Cruces the final Q2 berth. Grip was at a premium after earlier rain, catching out several riders including Hakim Danish, Jesus Rios, and Eddie O’shea.
Home rider Zen Mitani finished 18th, while two replacement riders took part: Ryota Ogiwara, the 2025 Asia Talent Cup champion, was 20th for CODE Motorsports, and Thai rider Kiattisak Singhapong (25th) filled in for Nicola Carraro at Rivacold Snipers. The stage is now set for a thrilling qualifying and race weekend.
Baca Juga
Tech3 resmi mengumumkan Adrian Fernandez dan Kristian Daniel Jr untuk Moto3 2027. Fernandez kembali setelah diskors, Daniel Jr siap jadi pembalap Amerika pertama.
Archie McDonald juara dunia Bagger World Cup 2026 di Red Bull Ring, persembahkan gelar untuk mendiang kakaknya, Toby, setelah musim penuh emosi dan konsistensi.
Marco Morelli masih memimpin klasemen Moto3 2026 usai Austria GP dengan 174 poin, unggul 28 poin atas Valentin Perrone. Hakim Danish dan Veda Pratama membayangi.
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