FIM Moto3 World Championship Losail Circuit Doha, Qatar April 4, 2013 Free Practice Two Results (all on Dunlop tires): 1. Luis SALOM, Spain (KTM), 2:07.3412 2. Jonas FOLGER, Germany (KALEX KTM), 2:07.633 3. Alex RINS, Spain (KTM), 2:07.968 4. Alex MARQUEZ, Spain (KTM), 2:08.351 5. Niccolò ANTONELLI, Italy (FTR HONDA), 2:08.543 6. Efren VAZQUEZ, Spain (MAHINDRA), 2:08.546 7. Brad BINDER, South Africa (SUTER HONDA), 2:08.580 8. Niklas AJO, Finland (KTM), 2:08.581 9. Maverick VIÑALES, Spain (KTM), 2:08.602 10. Jakub KORNFEIL, Czech Republic (KALEX KTM), 2:08.611 11. Danny WEBB, UK (SUTER HONDA), 2:08.766 12. Alan TECHER, France (TSR HONDA), 2:08.820 13. Miguel OLIVEIRA, Portugal (MAHINDRA), 2:08.977 14. Zulfahmi KHAIRUDDIN, Malaysia (KTM), 2:09.073 15. Isaac VIÑALES, Spain (FTR HONDA), 2:09.147 16. Jack MILLER, Australia (FTR HONDA), 2:09.205 17. Romano FENATI, Italy (FTR HONDA), 2:09.482 18. John McPHEE, UK (FTR HONDA), 2:09.566 19. Alexis MASBOU, France (FTR HONDA), 2:09.627 20. Jasper IWEMA, Netherlands (KALEX KTM), 2:09.824 More, from a press release issued by San Carlo Team Italia: MotoGP Moto3 – Tough start for San Carlo Team Italia FMI in Qatar Fenati is seventeenth, Bagnaia twenty-seventh The first Moto3 free practice sessions in Qatar did not yield the expected results for the San Carlo Team Italia riders. Romano Fenati (San Carlo Team Italia FMI FTR Honda#5), who took second place last year, suffered a few setup problems and posted the 17th time (2’09.482), 2.141 behind Salom, who was fastest today on KTM. Francesco Bagnaia (San Carlo Team Italia FMI FTR Honda#4) finished further back, mostly due to his lack of experience on the Losail track and a far from perfect physical condition after fracturing his arm two weeks ago. Romano Fenati, 17º, 2’09.482 (download HD photo ) “We lose too much time, especially in the last sector, and we need to improve with the setup. I was slower than last year, but it’s just the beginning. We have until Sunday to get better, and hopefully we can play our cards during the race.” Francesco Bagnaia, 27º, 2’11.886 (download HD photo ) “I did many laps and fortunately my arm is ok. The track is wonderful and very technical. We are working well even though the results are not showing, if we keep it up we can surely make big progress.” Roberto Locatelli (Team Manager San Carlo Team Italia FMI) “We struggled throughout the winter and we are still looking for a good base. Despite having data from last year and technical upgrades, we faced a uphill practice today. We have plenty of time to discuss the situation and brainstorm solutions before our next practice. Hopefully we will improve.” More, from a press release issued by MAPFRE Aspar Team: FOLGER FINDS FORM IN FIRST FREE PRACTICE MAPFRE Aspar rider clocks second fastest time on opening night of 2013, with team-mate Granado 21st The 2013 Moto3 World Championship finally got underway at 6pm this evening under the floodlights of Losail, where 32 young riders had two free practice sessions in which to establish an early feeling for the slippery conditions. As usual the Qatar Grand Prix started on a dirty and dusty track but the fastest lap of the night, a 2’07.341 set by Luis Salom, is already close to last year’s circuit record of 2’07.276. It wasn’t just the floodlights that lit up Losail tonight, MAPFRE Aspar rider Jonas Folger establishing a lightening pace in the opening session before ending the evening second fastest to Salom due to an oil leak that ended his track action ahead of time. His rookie team-mate Eric Granado completed his first laps of the track tonight and finished up in 21st position but with plenty of room for improvement tomorrow. 2nd Jonas Folger 2.07.633 (21 laps): “I am really happy because normally here at Losail it is difficult to get a feeling on the first day but I felt comfortable tonight. We set some fast times from the start and continued to improve in the second session although we were losing oil and had to finish early. If we’d have stayed out on track I’m sure we would have improved further and probably set the fastest time of the night but second fastest is a good start, especially because we have room to improve. We’re happy with our performance and we’ll keep working in the same way tomorrow night.” 21st Eric Granado 2.10.024 (27 laps): “My first impressions of Losail are good. It is varied and has some fast corners. It was a tough first session because I didn’t have any references so I tried to follow some more experienced riders around and work out my braking markers. We took a big step forward in the second session and improved by a couple of seconds. We’re still some way off the top times but that is to be expected until we know the track. The positive thing is we have made progress from the first session to the second and we know how to keep improving. We have to keep making small steps in the right direction.”