The action of the final round of 2025 got underway on Friday at the Circuit Ricardo Tormo, with the Moto3™ World Championship making its awaited return to Valencia for the first time in two years, as the dramatic flooding from 2024 forced the cancellation of the traditional season closer, the Valencia Grand Prix. Jacob Roulstone made his return following his hand injury just in time for his last race with the Red Bull KTM Tech3 team, while Valentin Perrone began his last weekend as a rookie.
Grand Prix of Valencia
Aiming to close the championship in the top 10, Valentin Perrone was eager to already have another opportunity to turn things around, just a few days after the Portuguese Grand Prix, which he unfortunately ended with a DNF. A foggy morning awaited the lightweight class for FP1, but the young Argentinian was quick to find his marks through the haze on the 4.055 km layout, as we saw him close the opening session in P5, just half a second away from early pace setter Alvaro Carpe. As the sun was out for Practice, the rookie confirmed his late good form as he rounded up Practice with the 3rd fastest time in a 1'37.822, 0.489 seconds from David Almansa. Job done for Valentin, as he will aim to place his KTM on the first rows tomorrow in qualifying.
Forced to withdraw from the Malaysian Grand Prix after fracturing his left-hand, and to sit out the Portuguese Grand Prix last week, Jacob Roulstone was excited to be back with the team in Valencia for his final race in KTM Tech3 colours. The Aussie had passed the medical check on Thursday and was to be re-evaluated after FP1 this morning, a second evaluation he successfully passed. The first session was about getting back the feeling with the bike, as the number 12 had not ridden his KTM since Sepang, and the sensations were quite positive heading to Practice. Roulstone showed encouraging pace in the afternoon’s session, with the Aussie improving his lap time to a 1'38.518, one which saw him finish the session just at the doors of the top 14. He narrowly missed out on the direct Q2 tickets by 0.069 seconds, but it is encouraging for the Australian heading to the remainder of the weekend. The Moto3™ class will be back on track on Saturday at 8:40 LT, followed by the qualifying sessions kicking off at 12:50.
VALENTIN PERRONE: "I am feeling super good here, which is so nice. From the first lap this morning, I was fast, so it gave me a lot of confidence for the rest of the day. In Practice, I tried to catch a good group to do a good lap. We did a really positive session, with consistent laps, and I improved a lot. I am really happy, and excited to continue enjoying the rest of the weekend!"
JACOB ROULSTONE: "This morning was about getting back the feeling on the bike, and adjusting my riding with my hand condition. I felt good though, it is nice to be back riding with the team. We narrowly missed Q2 today, but we’ll do our best to go through tomorrow. I am confident that we can pick things up quickly and get back to the level where I was before my injury."
PRACTICE SESSION RESULTS
1. David Almansa (SPA), Leopard Racing, 1'37.333
2. Adrian Fernandez (SPA), Leopard Racing, +0.310
3. Valentin Perrone (ARG), Red Bull KTM Tech3, +0.489
15. Jacob Roulstone (AUS), Red Bull KTM Tech3, +1.185
TRACK RECORDS
All Time Record: 2025 - D. Almansa (SPA) - 1'37.333 - 148.1 km/h
Best Race Lap: 2023 - D. Alonso (COL) - 1'38.438 - 146.4 km/h
Best Pole: 2021 - D. Binder (RSA) - 1'38.286 - 146.6 km/h
Top Speed: 2025 - A. Piqueras (SPA) - 237.1 km/h
