Red Bull GASGAS Tech3’s Daniel Holgado and Jacob Roulstone were back on track early on Saturday morning at 8:30 local time in Phillip Island, still under a chilly light rain. Holgado made it directly to Q2 while Roulstone needed to go through Q1 after failing to improve in FP2. Finally the sun returned, offering a dry track for the qualifying session to the lightweight class. Local boy Roulstone qualified 13th on the grid after ending fastest of Q1, and teammate Holgado will start the Qatar Airways Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix from P14.
Aussie Jacob Roulstone had to face the difficult track conditions in Australia, not an easy task when you are a Moto3™ rookie! The #12 continued to learn the 4.448 km layout with the adjustments made overnight in the morning's Practice 2. He could not improve his lap from yesterday, but he most importantly gathered good information before the qualifying. His lap in 1’48.973 from Friday meant that he had to go through the pre-qualifying stage later on in the afternoon. In Q1, the rookie started with a 1’37.863 to edge the top 4 by 0.003 secs. Eager to get to that Q2, the home boy continued to push as the feeling looked better and better on his GASGAS Tech3 bike. There was then a 1’37.740 on lap 6 to enter the provisional Q2 spots, followed by a 1'37.307 to move up 2nd. Finally Roulstone gave it his all to beat Adrian Fernandez with a 1’36.688 on the final lap, as he set a new benchmark to head to the next session! Shortly after, as he joined the top 14, Roulstone continued to remain motivated to do well, and he started with a strong 1'37.693 on lap 3, and then the next lap it was a 1'36.974 lap which placed him provisionally in 5th. The #12 did not stop and got on with his strategy, but he wasn’t able to improve more. His time will place him in P13 on the grid, as the rookie will race for the first time on home turf. Special day incoming for the Red Bull GASGAS Tech3 rider!
17th after a tricky first day on the island spent in mixed conditions, Daniel Holgado needed better lap times on Saturday morning to qualify directly to Q2. The light rain and the wind weren’t easy to manage, but the #96 took his time to adapt to the conditions. For most of the session, the Spaniard was in that ‘at risk’ zone, until he clocked in a 1’45.638 on his 16th and final lap, one that powered him up to P5 in the combined standings. In Q2, the fight for pole number 17 was on at 13:15 LT. Dani got his first strong lap on lap 4 with a 1'37.101, one that had him in P7 before heading back to the pit box. In his second run, the Spaniard could not find a way to get his time further down. With many opponents having improved in the final seconds, Holgado was retrograted to P14, as he will start just behind his teammate, Roulstone.
The Moto3™ boys are ready to race on the island, tune in on Sunday at 11:00 local time (GMT+11), for the 17th race of the 2024 season!