The Colombian rider starts the Catalan Grand Prix in eighth place. Ryusei Yamanaka closes the first day eighteenth

Jaume Masià is not going to give up in the fight for the World Championship and has closed the first day of action in Barcelona as the fastest rider in Moto3. The Spanish has proved to be one of the strongest riders at the beginning of the weekends this season: of the eleven Grand Prix held so far, he has led the first practice sessions five times. On a day in which the first fourteen riders have finished within a second of each other, Masià has stopped the clock in the first session in 1:48.300, a time that nobody has been able to beat in the afternoon. Iván Ortolá, another of the main pursuers of the Championship leader, has finished second, four tenths off Masià's time. Collin Veijer, who has come back to the track with more confidence after his first pole position in Austria, has completed the first top 3 of the weekend. Dani Holgado, who has arrived in Barcelona with a lead of more than 25 points in the overall standings, has finished ninth, more than eight tenths behind the leader.

Gaviota GASGAS Aspar rider David Alonso has got off to a good start at the Catalan Grand Prix. The Colombian has ridden on his own for most of the sessions and has worked on his pace looking for Sunday's race. Alonso has closed the first practice session in sixteenth place, but in the afternoon, he has improved his time by seven tenths and has finished eighth. His teammate in the Gaviota GASGAS Aspar, Ryusei Yamanaka, has closed the first day in Barcelona eighteenth position. The Japanese rider was in the provisional places for Q2, but he has not been able to improve his time in the afternoon and has been relegated to eighteenth place. Despite this, Yamanaka is still confident of getting directly into Q2 tomorrow.

8th David Alonso 1:49.107 (+0.807): “It's a track where we've struggled in the past. We knew it was going to be difficult, but we have done a good job and have managed to get into the provisional positions for Q2. I have had to follow a group to get my lap time, so we have to keep working on our pace. Tomorrow I need to try harder and I will give my best.”

18th Ryusei Yamanaka 1:49.546 (+1.246): “I am happy with my work today and the set-up of the bike. I have tried to ride on my own and find my pace. In the second practice I haven't been able to get a better time, but I have felt confident. In tomorrow's practice there will be better track conditions and we will try to improve my lap time.”