The Moto3™ riders have attacked the Algarve International Circuit for the first time and coming out on top in an extended Grande Premio MEO de Portugal was Leopard Racing’s Jaume Masia. The Spaniard set a 1:48.896 to finish 0.158 seconds ahead of Romano Fenati (Sterilgarda Max Racing Team), who crashed at the final corner, with Championship leader Albert Arenas (Gaviota Aspar Team Moto3) completing the top three.
???? @jaume_masia edges out @RomanoFenati in FP1!
— MotoGP™???? (@MotoGP) November 20, 2020
Both suffered crashes, but they finish the morning ahead of @AlbertArenas75 in third! ????#PortugueseGP ???????? pic.twitter.com/Nb3Ht1bDvQ
Masia was the pacesetter in the extended 55-minute FP1 session, but it wasn’t plain sailing for the Honda man. Turn 14 caught Masia out just after the same corner had seen Stefan Nepa (Gaviota Aspar Team Moto3) crash in almost identical fashion. Title contender Ai Ogura (Honda Team Asia) had a huge moment coming around the final corner, an early scare for the Japanese rider.
That could've been nasty! ????@RomanoFenati is currently 1.2 seconds clear of the field, but a crash at Turn 15 has halted his progress! ????#PortugueseGP ???????? pic.twitter.com/uXmU3SMpXq
— MotoGP™???? (@MotoGP) November 20, 2020
Fenati was 1.2 seconds quicker than his competitors with just over 10 minutes to go before his final corner get-off but by the chequered flag, Masia was quickest. Fenati improved on his last lap to get within two tenths and behind Arenas was Sergio Garcia (Estrella Galicia 0,0) and Andrea Migno (SKY Racing Team VR46), with a second covering the top 13 riders.
Second in the Championship Ogura ended the opening Portimao session in P26, 1.8 seconds off P1. Third in the title race Tony Arbolino (Rivacold Snipers Team) was P11, 0.8 seconds away from Masia’s pace.
He could end the weekend as World Champion, but @AiOgura79 almost started it with a big highside! ????#PortugueseGP ???????? pic.twitter.com/dTwe4EXVIF
— MotoGP™???? (@MotoGP) November 20, 2020
Moto3™ FP2 kicks off at 12:50 local time (GMT+0).
Top 10:
1. Jaume Masia (Leopard Racing) – 1:48.896
2. Romano Fenati (Sterilgarda Max Racing Team) + 0.158
3. Albert Arenas (Gaviota Aspar Team) + 0.213
4. Sergio Garcia (Estrella Galicia 0,0) + 0.392
5. Andrea Migno (SKY Racing Team VR46) + 0.641
6. Raul Fernandez (Red Bull KTM Ajo) + 0.660
7. Deniz Öncü (Red Bull KTM Tech3) + 0.702
8. Jeremy Alcoba (Kömmerling Gresini Moto3) + 0.713
9. John McPhee (Petronas Sprinta Racing) + 0.770
10. Gabriel Rodrigo (Kömmerling Gresini Moto3) + 0.777
CLICK HERE FOR THE FULL RESULTS!