David Alonso and Dani Holgado have maintained their high standards, finishing the first day at San Marino in third and fifth place respectively
The CFMOTO European Privilege team, just like in Moto3, has made an impressive start to the weekend with both riders in the top five. David Alonso has carried forward the positive momentum from the Aragón round and on Friday set the third-fastest time in the intermediate class. His team-mate Dani Holgado was also one of the most consistent riders on Friday, finishing in fifth place. Ahead of the Colombian, Senna Agius was the fastest, followed by his team-mate and Moto2 leader, Manu González.
The riders in the intermediate class enjoyed a great day of practice at the Misano – Marco Simoncelli circuit. Both David Alonso and Dani Holgado had a productive free practice session, during which they both remained among the top five. Following his podium finish at Aragón, David Alonso is feeling increasingly comfortable on the bike, and this was evident right from the start. The morning session served to fine-tune the strategy that would later allow them to fight for a place in Q2 this Saturday – a target they achieved with ease. In the afternoon, the Colombian was once again one of the standout riders, riding with great fluidity to set a time one second faster than in the morning session. He set his best time on the penultimate lap – a 1:34.275 – which placed him third, just one tenth off the day’s fastest time. Meanwhile, his team-mate Dani Holgado also thoroughly enjoyed riding on the Italian circuit, something that was reflected in his results. The Spaniard stood out for his consistency from start to finish, and his best time (1:34.471) was the fifth fastest, meaning he will join Alonso in the battle for pole position this Saturday.
3rd David Alonso 1:34.275 (+0.133): “The bike setup I used for the race in Aragón on Sunday was good, so today it was up to me. I wanted to see if I was riding like a pizza delivery guy or a Moto2 rider, and it turned out to be the latter. We were a bit lost in Silverstone, but in Aragón, we got back on the right track. Today’s goal was to ramp up the intensity right from the start—and I don’t mean just going faster, but riding the way a racing bike should be ridden. I really enjoyed myself today, and I feel better every time I go out on track. I’m able to play around with the bike more; I don’t need to do everything perfectly to ride smoothly—I have options to take different lines. Tomorrow morning, I want to be a bit more consistent, as that will help us on Sunday, too. In qualifying, it’ll be important to make the most of the tyres and put in clean laps without overshooting the braking points. The goal, as always, is to start from the front row.”
5th Dani Holgado 1:34.471 (+0.329): “I’m very happy with how the day went. We worked really well and I was very consistent, finishing in the top 5 in both sessions. We need to keep working to take another step forward. Tomorrow’s free practice will be very important, and we’ll make the most of it to work on our pace and see how to manage tyre wear during the race. I’m looking forward to continuing to enjoy myself; I’m having a great time here at Misano.”
