It was Diogo Moreira (MT Helmets - MSI) who topped the first session of the year for the Moto3™ 2023 season with a 1:48.006. The Grande Prémio TISSOT de Portugal got well and truly underway and it was the Moto3™ riders who were the first to take the rollercoaster Portimao circuit. It was Moreira who took first blood, leading the way ahead of Daniel Holgado (Red Bull KTM Ajo) and a stellar rookie performance from David Alonso (GASGAS Aspar Team).
Holgado sat at the top of the timesheets for the majority of the session, but it was a late charge of fast laps from the Brazilian Moreira that put the 18-year-old fastest in P1. Deniz Öncü (Red Bull KTM Ajo) also had a strong session consistently towards the top of timesheets finishing the session in P4 ahead of Xavier Artigas (CFMOTO Racing PruestelGP).
The Moto3™ runners and riders managed to keep it clean all session long, but as it came to crunch time in the closing stages of the session there were a few riders who hit the deck. Riccardo Rossi (SIC58 Squadra Corse) was the first rider to go down, shortly followed by Fillipo Farioli (Red Bull KTM Tech3), and Matteo Bertelle (Rivacold Snipers Team).
Top 10:
1. Diogo Moreira (MT Helmets – MSI) – 1:48.006
2. Daniel Holgado (Red Bull KTM Tech3) + 0.299
3. David Alonso (Autosolar GASGAS Aspar Team) + 0.394
4. Deniz Öncü (Red Bull KTM Ajo) + 0.578
5. Xavier Artigas (CFMoto Pruestel GP) + 0.585
6. Jose Antonio Rueda (Red Bull KTM Ajo) + 0.741
7. Joel Kelso (CFMoto Pruestel GP) + 0.795
8. Stefano Nepa (Angeluss MTA Team) + 0.891
9. Riccard Rossi (SIC58 Squadra Corse) + 0.893
10. Ryusei Yamanaka (Autosolar GASGAS Aspar Team) + 0.931