Pole position and race-day drama mark Thai Moto3 Grand Prix
Italy’s Dennis Foggia, riding a Honda, claimed pole and set a new Moto3 record during the day’s fastest laps. The Thai Grand Prix is staged this Sunday at the Chang International circuit in Buriram, with the field led by Spaniard Jaume Masiá on a KTM and Japanese rider Ayumu Sasaki on a Husqvarna, both eyeing a strong result on home soil and beyond.
World championship leader Izan Guevara from Spain, aboard a GasGas, faced a challenging qualifying path. He had to advance through the first session and then reach the second, where he could not secure a stepping stone forward and finished eleventh. His teammate Sergio García Dols stood in the shadows of the title race, ending up twentieth on the grid, forcing a climb from the rear of the pack. The dynamic between the two GasGas riders became a talking point as they aimed to carve through the field with tempo and precision, while the rider lineup around them pressed hard to overturn the weekend’s momentum.
In this event, the two top spots in the championship belong to the GasGas duo of Jorge Martínez Aspar, with Guevara and García Dols flying the flag for Spain. The Thai track, known for its speed and technical corners, posed a stern test for the Spaniards who typically thrive in different sensibilities of circuit layout.
Guevara, pushing solo as is often the case, moved through a late position into second place. He acknowledged the challenge of the session, aware that the top running wheel of the overall leader was strong, and that several riders were nipping at his heels, making clean laps a difficult proposition.
Meanwhile, the world runner-up García Dols did not enjoy a favorable end to the final minutes of the session and found himself outside the top twenty, forcing a row from the back when the lights went out for the race. Adrián Fernández, riding a KTM, also faced a difficult afternoon and could not advance into the second segment, adding to the list of riders who would line up behind the field at the start.
Other riders who failed to break into the second segment included Lorenzo Fellon from France on a Honda, Izan Guevara, Taiyo Furusato from Japan on a Honda, and David Muñoz from Spain on a KTM. Behind them, the list extended to Carlos Tatay on a CFMoto, Xavier Artigas on a CFMoto, Iván Ortolá on a KTM, Vicente Pérez on a Honda, and Ana Carrasco on a KTM, all left waiting for a better opportunity in the later sessions.
As the second segment began, the initial pace-setter was Daniel Holgado of Spain on a KTM. He was soon overtaken by Ayumu Sasaki of Japan on a Husqvarna and David Muñoz of Spain on a KTM, with Guevara continuing to press from behind, intent on a plan to erase the earlier misstep. The Spaniard moved into a position to seek a comeback during the race, pushing to trim the gap with the leaders.
Guevara capitalized on a pit-stop window to change the rear tire, rejoining with fresh grip. Only Sasaki remained ahead after this strategic move, with Rysusei Yamanaka of Japan on a KTM also heading toward the front, creating a compact group in the mid-pack. Guevara rose to sixth as the lap times improved and he began chipping away at the top contenders.
Foggia, who had already set a blistering pace in free practice by breaking the absolute category record, delivered another stunning pass in the fight to control the front. He crossed the line with a time of 1:42.466, edging Sasaki by a margin of just twenty thousandths of a second to assume the lead heading into the later stages of the session.
In the final four minutes, the race for pole tightened further as Guevara and Yamanaka clung to competitive positions while others fell away. It became a strategic battle over which wheel to follow, with the Japanese rider climbing to fourth on the board in the next lap and Guevara moving up to sixth, always chasing the Spaniard ahead of him.
The last lap proved decisive once again. The field sought optimal airflow, and a surprising shift occurred when Jaume Masiá surged to the front, signaling a dramatic turn in the pole fight. Just when victory seemed assured for the early leader, Dennis Foggia struck back with a flawless lap and a new circuit record, stopping the clocks at 1:42.077 to claim pole position in dramatic fashion.
Masiá and Sasaki finished behind Foggia, with Stefano Nepa, Diogo Moreira, and Daniel Holgado rounding out the top five for the session. The world championship leaders were left disappointed, recording eleventh and fourth places overall, alongside David Muñoz and Australia’s Joel Kelso on a Honda.