Deniz Öncü was the fastest in the first practice session of the Moto3 Qatar GP. The session witnessed an exciting duel between the Turkish rider and Jaume Masiá, who traded the lead in a series of fast laps in the final phase.
Initially, Diogo Moreira (MT Helmets-MSi/KTM) led the session, ahead of Xavier Artigas (CFMoto Racing PrüstelGP) by over a second. The Brazilian held onto his position but was then pursued by Öncü (Red Bull KTM Ajo), with Kaito Toba (SIC58 Squadra Corsa/Honda) in third.
While Moreira stayed at the top, positions behind him were changing. Joel Kelso (CFMoto Racing PrüstelGP) came close, trailing Moreira by just three thousandths. Toba displaced Moreira but was soon overtaken by Masiá (Leopard Racing/Honda), who, in turn, was surpassed by Öncü. There were 22 minutes left.
In the last ten minutes, Masiá and Öncü alternated the lead several times, clocking laps in the 2m10s and 2m09s range. Öncü ultimately set the fastest time, beating Masiá by 0.413s. Moreira improved to take third, with Toba in fourth. Syarifuddin Azman (MT Helmets-MSi/KTM) surprised with the fifth fastest time. Ayumu Sasaki (Liqui Moly Husqvarna Intact GP), Masiá’s main rival in the championship, finished only 26th, 3.411s off the top.
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