Daniel Holgado has returned to pole positions in Moto3, for the first time since last year’s Austrian Grand Prix. The rider was the strongest in the qualifying session for the Qatar GP this Saturday.
After the first flying laps, Matteo Bertelle (Rivacold Snipers Team/Honda) led with a 0.170s gap over Ivan Ortolá (Angeluss MTA Team/KTM), with Jaume Masiá (Leopard Racing/Honda) in third.
Despite not improving his time, Bertelle held onto the lead but came under pressure from Deniz Öncü (Red Bull KTM Ajo)… before the Turk took the lead six minutes before the checkered flag.
Later on, Ayumu Sasaki (Liqui Moly Husqvarna Intact GP) also overtook Bertelle to claim second place. There was still plenty of time left, and the standings could still change. Holgado (Red Bull KTM Tech3) and Diogo Moreira (MT Helmets-MSi/KTM) moved up to the top two positions, respectively.
Nothing changed until the end, with Holgado securing the pole position just three milliseconds ahead of Moreira. Öncü finished third, Sasaki in fourth, and Collin Veijer (Liqui Moly Husqvarna Intact GP) in fifth. The championship leader, Masiá, will start only in tenth place, putting him in a less favorable position to secure the title tomorrow.
Q2 results:
Overall results of the qualifying: