Red Bull KTM Ajo’s Augusto Fernandez is the fast man after the completion of FP3 for the Moto2™ field at the Motul TT Assen. Six days after his victory in the German Grand Prix, the Spaniard clocked a 1:37.115 around the TT Circuit Assen in the third Free Practice session of the weekend, with compatriot Albert Arenas claiming second on his Inde GASGAS Aspar Team entry and Dutchman Bo Bendsneyder (Pertamina Mandalika SAG Team) third at his home event. For World Championship contender Aron Canet (Flexbox HP40), the saga of his broken nose continued until he finally decided to pull out of the Grand Prix.
After a rain-affected Friday at Assen, the pace was up in the intermediate class on Saturday morning. Fernandez was already fastest when he improved further with around 15 minutes remaining, and that lap would turn out to be the very best of the session – a good showing at the circuit where he got his first Grand Prix win, in 2019, and a podium last year. Arenas booked his place in Q2 with an even earlier 1:37.180, while Bendsneyder claimed third thanks to a 1:37.226 during the final time attacks.
The form continues in Assen ????@Afernandez37 leads the #Moto2 charge into Q2 from P1 ????#DutchGP ???????? pic.twitter.com/Vt9fO0qmCT
— MotoGP™???? (@MotoGP) June 25, 2022
Ai Ogura (Idemitsu Honda Team Asia), who is only eight points off the World Championship lead, finished the session in fourth on a 1:37.247 and Tony Arbolino (Elf Marc VDS Racing Team) took fifth on a 1:37.526. Jake Dixon (Inde GASGAS Aspar Team) looked vulnerable in terms of having to go into Q1 until he jumped from 12th to sixth thanks to the 1:37.282 he set with the chequered flag out. Joe Roberts (Italtrans Racing Team) had been fastest on Friday and, while he found no improvement on that 1:37.393 in FP3, the American was still seventh-quickest on combined times.
Filip Salac (Gresini Racing Moto2™) was personal-best to the third sector when he lost the front on the way into the Geert Timmer Chicane inside the final two minutes of the session, but the 1:37.435 which he had already banked was good enough for eighth-fastest. Marcel Schrötter was briefly classified second-quickest but the 1:37.164 which he set with the chequered flag out was scrubbed off due to breaching track limits and the German would find himself ninth all-told on a 1:37.472.
Triumph for the home hero ????@bobendsneyder finds himself in P3 with 5 minutes to go ????#DutchGP ???????? pic.twitter.com/5uSzHqINC3
— MotoGP™???? (@MotoGP) June 25, 2022
Alonso Lopez (MB Conveyors Speed Up) rounded out the top 10 and Championship leader Celestino Vietti (Mooney VR46 Racing Team) eventually did enough to make it directly into Q2 with a 1:37.533 which put him into 11th. Sam Lowes (Elf Marc VDS Racing Team) also got in despite a late crash at the Timmer Chicane, with Somkiat Chantra (Idemitsu Honda Team Asia) and Cameron Beaubier (American Racing) to join them in that second stanza of qualifying. Canet, however, is out of the event after being unable to have a procedure to stop his nose beeling when he visited the hospital overnight. He tried to ride in FP3 but had to throw in the towel – a big blow for the Spaniard’s title hopes given he is only 17 points behind Vietti at present.
The margins are tight and the pace is up. Who takes pole? Q1 kicks off later on Saturday at 15:10, then Q2 at 15:35 (GMT +2).
Moto2™ Top 10:
1. Augusto Fernandez (Red Bull KTM Ajo) – 1:37.115
2. Albert Arenas (Inde GASGAS Aspar Team) + 0.065
3. Bo Bendsneyder (Pertamina Mandalika SAG Team) + 0.111
4. Ai Ogura (Idemitsu Honda Team Asia) + 0.132
5. Tony Arbolino (Elf Marc VDS Racing Team) + 0.141
6. Jake Dixon (Inde GASGAS Aspar Team) + 0.267
7. Joe Roberts (Italtrans Racing Team) + 0.278
8. Filip Salac (Gresini Racing Moto2) + 0.320
9. Marcel Schrotter (Liqui Moly Intact GP) + 0.357
10. Alonso Lopez (MB Conveyors Speed Up) + 0.393