2024 Dutch Moto3 Grand Prix, Assen - Qualifying Results

A last minute lap brought pole position to Angel Piqueras in qualifying for round eight, the Moto3 Dutch Grand Prix.

The Leopard rider had given a hint towards his pace around the TT track, taking second in the final practice and moving straight to Q2 despite starting that session with a broken chain hanging from his bike.

The rookie was 13th and had just seen his teammate crash out, so was not able to gain from any tow teamwork.

Undeterred, the Spaniard worked hard to position himself in the group on track and pulled out a late fast lap, registering a best of 1m 39.746s as the chequered flag waved to claim his first Moto3 pole position.
 

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• 2024 Dutch MotoGP, Assen - Full Qualifying Results

Another Honda rider, Taiyo Furusato, was running solo and on the limit as he pushed forward. The Honda Team Asia rider looked ragged but still improved on his final run. Second for the Japanese rider marks his first time starting on the front row after finishing Q2 just 0.074s slower than the pole time.

Collin Veijer was powered by a loud home crowd and had just topped the timesheets for Liqui Moly Intact GP on his Husqvarna when his front tyre left the ground and when it returned to the track it did so with enough force to cause a flat in the rear, sending the rider from the Netherlands skywards in a huge highside.

With nowhere near enough time to fix his bike, the 19 year old could only sit and wait, and given the circumstances, was relativity happy to hold on to a front row start.

The morning session given an idea of what Veijer could have achieved when he coolly returned to track after working on race settings to run alone and return to the top of the timesheets with a new lap record (1m 39.703s). It was a highly competitive time on track with the top seven all moving on to a time under the 1m 40s benchmark.

In qualifying the MT Helmets - MSi riders continued to work together out on track, taking it in turns to lead each other around. That saw Ivan Ortola claim a fourth place start with Ryusei Yamanaka joining him on the second row in fifth.

Sitting next door on Sunday will be Stefano Nepa, who put a lacklustre practice behind him to secure sixth for LevelUP- MTA with a lap when it mattered most.

Jose Antonio Rueda was the best of the riders to move through Q1. Arriving with the best time in that session, the KTM rider placed seventh.

Adrian Fernandez slipped back to eighth on the second Leopard after his late fall.

Joel Esteban made the most of his time in Q1 to move onto ninth, just ahead of Luca Lunetta in tenth, a good showing from the rookie riders in the class.

Last seasons polesitter David Munoz was eleventh, one of many riders to need to roll out of their last runs, in traffic after the yellow flags.

It was a day to forget and consolidate for the riders leading the championship - something hinted at in practice, with neither seeing significant improvements.

David Alonso fared the better of the pair. The Aspar rider missed out on his best chance of moving up, caught in the yellow flags after Fernandez fell. The Colombian got around in time for one more run, but ran wide and bailed out - leaving him 13th on the grid.

Daniel Holgado will be two places further back in 15th for Red Bull GasGas Tech3, after he too timed his final run all wrong, dropping back as he again struggled in qualifying.

It was also a session to forget for British MLav rider Scott Ogden, who was 17th and over a second off the pole time.

Q1 - Success for Suzuki after fall, no way out for Roulstone

Tatsuki Suzuki (12th) came off his Husqvarna half way through the session, while sitting in third. His mechanics got him back out on track to go faster and come through to progress, along with Rueda, Bertelle (16th) and Esteban ahead of him.

The first half of qualifying was marred by slow riding, so Jacob Roulstone tried to buck the trend by completing his last lap solo. It moved him into the top four but the Tech3 rider was just shuffled out in the final seconds for a 20th place start.

It is the first time the Australian rookie has not featured in a Q2 session.

Xabi Zurutuza also came close, but after helping his teammate Rueda to the top of the timesheets, he did not see the favour returned after Esteban moved to slot in behind instead. That left the Red Bull KTM Ajo rider 21st.

Crashes, injuries and replacements

Riccardo Rossi was stretchered off after his fast fall in P2 in the morning, crashing simultaneously with Filippo Farioli, in separate accidents. Both riders made it back for Q1 Rossi just missed out in 19th, while Farioli was a little more off the pace, finishing the session ninth for 23rd on the grid