The CFMOTO Inde Aspar Team rider has finished the day with the seventh fastest time

The Portuguese Grand Prix has got underway with the first day of free practice at the Autódromo Internacional do Algarve. In Moto2, the fastest rider has been the Spanish Alonso López, who has clocked a best time of 1:42.362. The World Championship leader started the season with an exhibition in Qatar and wants to continue in the same line in Portimao, where he has left his best lap almost until the end of the session. Second has finished Aron Canet, just thirteen thousandths behind, and third has ended Joe Roberts, with a difference of one tenth. The best lap times of the day have been achieved in the afternoon session, as the first practice has been marked by difficult track conditions due to overnight rain and sand accumulated on the asphalt. 

CFMOTO Inde Aspar Team rider Jake Dixon has returned to competition in Portugal after suffering a heavy crash in practice at the Qatar Grand Prix, which forced him to sit out the first race of the year. The Briton has passed medical checks and has been back on the bike for the opening day of the Portuguese Grand Prix. In the morning, Dixon has completed a total of 13 laps and in the afternoon, he has done a further 15 laps, clocking a best time of 1:42.859 to finish seventh. Despite finishing less than half a second off López's best time, Dixon remains cautious and will continue to work session by session, with no big targets this weekend. 

On the other side of the garage, Izan Guevara has finished the first day in twenty-sixth position with a time of 1:44.677, 2.3 seconds off the best time of the day. The Spanish rider has not had an easy day in Portugal, although he has reduced the gap with the front runners by more than a second from one session to the next. Guevara is confident about the margin of improvement he has and hopes to make a step forward tomorrow that would allow him to go straight into Q2.

7th Jake Dixon 1:42.859 (+0.497): "I have had better days, but compared to where I was just a week ago, I am getting better every day. I am really happy because I didn't know if I was going to be able to be here, it was one of the worst crashes I have ever had. This weekend I'm going to take it easy, thinking session by session, without big expectations. I'm happy just to be back on the bike."

26th Izan Guevara 1:44.677 (+2.315): "We have work to do tomorrow and we will try to make the most of the day to try to get into Q2 in the morning practice. We have started today like in testing, with almost no laps. In the morning, we have done 18 laps in difficult conditions and we have not enjoyed it as much, because for example we couldn't get the best out of the tyre. In the afternoon we have started a long run, which is what we lacked in Qatar, but we couldn't complete it. Tomorrow we will continue working."