Liqui Moly Intact GP’s Marcel Schrötter held on to top spot at the Tissot Grand Prix of Portugal but only just as conditions rapidly improved late on in FP3. An earlier red flag for torrential rain had seemingly brought an early end to the morning, however, the rain stopped and the German was forced to sweat.
As we wait for the session to get back underway ✅
— MotoGP™???? (@MotoGP) April 23, 2022
Enjoy some lovely slow motion shots of the riders tackling the wet conditions! ????#Moto2 | #PortugueseGP ???????? pic.twitter.com/81BT01DPD2
Championship leader Celestino Vietti (Mooney VR46 Racing) got closest to the German, his final lap leaving him a tenth adrift of the German. Late laps from Lightech Speed Up’s Fermin Aldeguer and Elf Marc VDS’ Sam Lowes saw them jump up to third and fourth.
Autosolar GasGas Aspar’s Jake Dixon didn’t improve but ended up fifth, ahead of arguably the performance of the day by VR46 Yamaha MasterCamp’s Keminth Kubo. The Thai rider finished sixth and will fight for pole in Q2 later for the first time in his rookie campaign.
The two biggest names set to fight it out of Q1 are Americas GP winner Tony Arbolino (Elf Marc VDS) and Pedro Acosta (Red Bull KTM Ajo), who faces an uphill challenges to continue his 100% Portimao record.
WHAT A SAVE!!! ????@cameronbeaubier gets a round of applause for staying upright but a change of leathers might be needed! ????#Moto2 | #PortugueseGP ???????? pic.twitter.com/y83bMgYeI2
— MotoGP™???? (@MotoGP) April 23, 2022
Moto2™ Top 10:
1. Marcel Schrötter (Liqui Moly IntactGP) – 2:00.678
2. Celestino Vietti (Mooney VR46 Racing Team) + 0.132
3. Fermin Aldeguer (Lightech Speed Up) + 0.312
4. Sam Lowes (Elf Marc VDS Racing Team) + 0.349
5. Jake Dixon (Autosolar GASGAS Aspar Team) + 0.501
6. Kenmith Kubo (Yamaha VR46 Master Camp Team) + 0.573
7. Lorenzo Dalla Porta (Italtrans Racing Team) + 0.615
8. Albert Arenas (Autosolar GASGAS Aspar Team) + 0.675
9. Cameron Beaubier (American Racing) + 0.713
10. Joe Roberts (Italtrans Racing) + 0.731