Heavy rainfall overnight left the track still wet in the morning. The Moto3 riders went out for FP1 with cut slicks, putting in laps in mixed conditions that made drawing conclusions difficult. With 8 minutes remaining in the session, Bendsneyder and Antonelli both came into the garage to fit slicks for the first time, putting in 5 laps apiece thereafter. Bendsneyder was fifteenth, with a 1:48.917 best lap, and Antonelli twenty-first with a 1:49.617. Sunshine in the afternoon dried out the track completely, and the Red Bull KTM Ajo riders were able to lower their times on their very first attempt. Bendsneyder suffered an unexplained crash at Turn 4, after his first stop in the pits, but escaped unhurt. Concerned by a lack of grip, the Dutchman was only been able to complete one fast lap: A 1:43.705 that put him thirteenth. Antonelli had a very good pace throughout FP2, clocking his best time on his final attempt. His 1:43.453 lap placed him ninth.
Results (Combined practice times FP1-FP2)
1. Fabio Di Giannantonio (Honda) 1:42.620
2. Jorge Martin (Honda) 1:42.691 +0.071
3. Enea Bastianini (Honda) 1:42.789 +0.169
4. Gabriel Rodrigo (KTM) 1:42.924 +0.304
5. Romano Fenati (Honda) 1:43.096 +0.476
9. Niccolo Antonelli (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 1:43.453 +0.833
13. Bo Bendsneyder (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 1:43.705 +1.085
64 BO BENDSNEYDER
“It was a shame about the crash in FP2, because we had planned to put in a lot of laps to prepare for tomorrow, but in the end we couldn’t do that. I still don’t know why I went down and why, additionally, on my last stint I lacked a lot of grip. We’re missing something, but I know we’re close to finding it. After the crash I only put in one more fast lap, without pushing my hardest because I didn’t feel comfortable with the tyres, and yet we were only a second away from the fastest rider. I’m sure we can reduce that difference tomorrow, and we will try to get more grip -especially with the front. We will work hard to improve.”
Source: ajo.fi
