Red Bull KTM Tech3 settled down in Austin, Texas this week for round 3 of the 2025 Moto3™ World Championship. Amongst our headlines, there was Jacob Roulstone returning from his neck-injury, after missing out on all the pre-season testing and the first two rounds in Thailand and Argentina. The team would like to thank Joel Esteban, who was able to step in with us alongside Valentin Perrone, and with whom we spent two great rounds. Merci Joel!
Grand Prix of The Americas
After a very busy home round in Argentina, the pressure went down a bit for Moto3™ rookie Valentin Perrone. Eager to get over his last lap heartbreak from Termas, the young number 73 arrived in Texas with a fresh mindset, and ready to do it all over again. In the wet, the young rookie got his first 13 laps at COTA under the rain, and closed the opening session with a best lap in 2’27.620, in P23. The rain did not really stop in the afternoon’s practice, making it tricky for Perrone to learn the new track and all its tricks fast. Still, he continued to make some improvements, to finish the afternoon’s session with an improved 2’27.045, in P23. The rookie will look forward to the dry conditions forecast for Saturday, to continue the learning.
Making a comeback after missing out on the pre-season and the first two rounds was for sure not an easy thing, but making it at bumpy-COTA, and under the rain, took things to another level for returning Australian Jacob Roulstone. Without pressure, the morning’s Free Practice 1 was about getting back the sensations on his KTM and with the squad. The Aussie finished with a best lap in 2’30.173, 6.8 seconds from the fastest lap set by Angel Piqueras. In the afternoon, the feeling continued to improve for the Aussie’s first day back at school, with an improved 2’27.725 that saw him finish the day in 24th. The Australian will look forward to continuing progressing as Moto3™ action will resume on Saturday morning at 8:40 LT (UTC-5).
VALENTIN PERRONE: "We are learning a new track, so we have many things to understand and figure out, but I like this circuit a lot, it’s really fun. Our feeling in the wet conditions was not great today, but it looks like the sun will return for Saturday, so I am confident that we will continue improving."
JACOB ROULSTONE: "Overall, I am happy to be back. I am feeling comfortable on the bike, with no pain, which is really positive. Of course, track conditions were not really the best to come back after 3 months, but it was a positive day for us. I want to be at the front, but we need to be realistic and take it step by step. As track conditions are due to become better, I am heading to the rest of the weekend feeling confident that we can further improve on the dry, so I’m excited for that."
PRACTICE SESSION RESULTS
1. Matteo Bertelle (ITA), LevelUp-MTA, 2'23.704
2. Maximo Quiles (SPA), CFMoto Aspar Team, +0.477
3. Scott Ogden (GBR), CIP Green Power, +0.665
23. Valentin Perrone (ARG), Red Bull KTM Tech3, +3.341
24. Jacob Roulstone (AUS), Red Bull KTM Tech3, +4.021
TRACK RECORDS
All Time Record: 2024 - D. Alonso (COL) - 2'14.153 - 147.9 km/h
Best Race Lap: 2024 - D. Holgado (SPA) - 2'14.866 - 147.1 km/h
Best Pole: 2024 - D. Alonso (COL) - 2'14.292 - 147.7 km/h
Top Speed: 2023 - S. Azman (MAL) - 247.1 km/h
