Romano Fenati (Sterilgarda Max Racing Team) remains unbeaten ahead of qualifying at the Monster Energy British Grand Prix after smashing his own lap record in Moto3™ FP3. The experienced Italian’s 2:10.619 – the first-ever 2:10 Moto3™ lap at Silverstone – was more than enough to fend off second place Ayumu Sasaki (Red Bull KTM Tech3) and third place Darryn Binder (Petronas Sprinta Racing).
The only mishap of @RomanoFenati's weekend! ????
— MotoGP™???? (@MotoGP) August 28, 2021
His bike has stopped after setting the first-ever 2:10 lap on a #Moto3 bike! ????#BritishGP ???????? pic.twitter.com/Iz8BXAnKwt
Fenati flying high at Silverstone, Acosta and Garcia in Q1
As the typical Moto3™ waiting game unfolded in the closing stages of FP3, with everyone trying to chase their fastest times to grab a top 14 spot, Fenati waited patiently in his garage before heading out on his own. And riding solo, the Friday pacesetter slammed in that 2:10.619 to obliterate the competition by 0.8s.
It wasn’t until the last laps of the session that we saw riders close the gap on Fenati, and even then, Sasaki is the only rider within 0.7s of Fenati’s unreal speed. Jeremy Alcoba (Indonesian Racing Gresini Moto3) climbed up to P4 on his last lap, the Spaniard sits behind Binder, with Niccolo Antonelli (Avintia VR46 Academy) rounding out the top five. Sixth place Dennis Foggia (Leopard Racing) is the only other rider within a second of Fenati.
Riccardo Rossi (BOE Owlride) is seventh just ahead of Jaume Masia (Red Bull KTM Ajo) in eighth, as home hero John McPhee (Petronas Sprinta Racing) – like many others – leaves it late to grab an automatic Q2 spot. Deniz Öncü (Red Bull KTM Tech3) – a crasher at Turn 14 in FP3 – closes out the top 10.
Everyone heading out looking for a tow ????@RomanoFenati shares his opinion ????#Moto3 | #BritishGP ???????? pic.twitter.com/VEpzrPgemB
— MotoGP™???? (@MotoGP) August 28, 2021
World Championship leader Pedro Acosta (Red Bull KTM Ajo) and his main title rival Sergio Garcia (Valresa GASGAS Aspar Team) are both outside the top 14 and will take part in Q1, as Garcia suffered a highside at Turn 9 on Saturday morning – rider ok.
Make sure you tune into Moto3™ qualifying at 12:35 local time (GMT+1)!
Top 10:
1. Romano Fenati (Sterilgarda max Racing Team) – 2:10.619
2. Ayumu Sasaki (Red Bull KTM Tech3) + 0.484
3. Darryn Binder (Petronas Sprinta Racing) + 0.796
4. Jeremy Alcoba (Indonesian Racing Gresini Moto3) + 0.870
5. Dennis Foggia (Leopard Racing) + 0.990
6. Jaume Masia (Red Bull KTM Ajo) + 1.135
7. John McPhee (Petronas Sprinta Racing) + 1.359
8. Tatsuki Suzuki (SIC58 Squadra Corse) + 1.445
9. Andrea Migno (Rivacold Snipers Team) + 1.504
10. Deniz Öncü (Red Bull KTM Tech3) + 1.528