Kate Adams

A sensational start to the 2026 season with a thrilling race that came right down to the finish line.

David Almansa (LIQUI MOLY Dynavolt Intact GP) claimed a maiden Grand Prix victory in a breathtaking final-corner showdown with Maximo Quiles (CFMOTO Gaviota Aspar Team), the pair separated by just 0.003 seconds at the line. The finish was so tight it required a video review confirmation. The last time the class produced a margin this small was in 2013 at Phillip Island, when Alex Rins edged Maverick Viñales in Australia. Behind the leading duo, Valentin Perrone (Red Bull KTM Tech3) secured his first podium in third.

Polesitter Almansa grabbed the holeshot and controlled the early exchanges, resisting Quiles in a drag race into Turn 3 to lead the opening lap. We had some early fallers with Cormac Buchannan (CODE Motorsports) and Matteo Bertelle (Level Up – MTA) crashing out early. They were followed by Ryusei Yamanaka (AEON Credit – MT Helmets – MSI) crashed at Turn 5 on Lap 2, while Guido Pini (Leopard Racing) also hit trouble at Turn 12 a lap later on his debut with the team, eventually recovering to 20th.

What initially appeared to be a four-rider escape group — Almansa, Quiles, Alvaro Carpe (Red Bull KTM Ajo) and Adrian Fernandez (Leopard Racing) — was soon swallowed back up. Rookie Veda Pratama (Honda Team Asia) and Perrone joined the fight, with just one second covering the top six in the opening phase. As the race developed, Almansa and Quiles turned the screw. By mid-distance, they had broken clear — and by the closing stages, the Spaniards were a remarkable nine seconds up the road from the chasing pack. It became a straight duel for victory, both riders circulating in the 1’41s and matching each other corner for corner.

Quiles briefly seized the lead on Lap 11 at Turn 12, only to hand it back after running wide at Turn 1. From there, it was a tactical chess match.

On the final lap, a small mistake from Quiles at Turn 12 handed Almansa half a second of breathing room. But the #28 responded with an outstanding final sector, closing rapidly and launching one last attack at the final corner. Almansa defended firmly, forcing Quiles to adjust mid-corner — and it looked settled. Yet on the drag to the line, Almansa found superior drive, inching ahead by 0.003 seconds.

Behind the runaway leaders, Perrone executed a decisive last-corner move on Carpe to clinch third and open his podium account in style. Pratama impressed hugely in fifth, top Honda on debut, ahead of Fernandez in what had been a brilliant four rider battle for the last podium place.

Just behind the lead group, Brian Uriarte (Red Bull KTM Ajo) claimed seventh, followed by Marco Morelli (CFMOTO Gaviota Aspar Team), Joel Esteban (LEVEL UP – MTA) and David Muñoz (LIQUI MOLY Dynavolt Intact GP) completing the top ten. Rookie Casey O’Gorman (SIC58 Squadra Corse) narrowly missed out, finishing 11th.

Scott Ogden (CIP Green Power) took 12th followed by teammate Adrian Cruces. They lead both GRYD – MLav Racing riders Joel Kelso and Eddie O’Shea who picked up 14th and 15th in a rare double points for the Honda team.

After 85 previous attempts and countless close calls, Adrian Fernandez (Leopard Racing) finally stood on the top step of a Moto3™ podium. In Valencia, on his 86th Grand Prix start, he delivered a calm, calculated, and beautifully controlled ride to take an emotional maiden victory. Alvaro Carpe (Red Bull KTM Ajo) and Taiyo Furusato (Honda Team Asia) joined him in parc fermé, while Angel Piqueras (FRINSA – MT Helmets – MSI) secured second in the Championship thanks to a measured run to P6.

The race kicked off with fireworks. Maximo Quiles (CFMOTO Valresa Aspar Team) muscled ahead into Turn 1, but Fernandez immediately snatched the lead back at Turn 2. David Almansa (Leopard Racing) briefly hit the front at the end of Lap 1, only to be pushed wide at Turn 14 a lap later, dropping him into the teeth of the chasing pack.

Fernandez kept things steady at the front while chaos erupted behind. Luca Lunetta (SIC58 Squadra Corse) capitalised on the early jostling to climb into podium contention, and the leading eight became a tightly packed group with Piqueras trying to latch on from ninth. Almansa fought back to fourth by Lap 8, but another shuffle saw Furusato, Lunetta, Carpe and Guido Pini (LIQUI MOLY Dynavolt Intact GP) all surge past, leaving the #22 back in the queue.

Up front, Fernandez and Quiles remained locked together until the Leopard rider turned up the heat. A new fastest lap stretched the elastic, thinning the group to a five-rider showdown: Fernandez, Furusato, Quiles, Carpe and Pini. Behind them, Lunetta and Almansa led the chase, with Piqueras and Morelli swapping paint for P7.

The final lap arrived with the top five still glued together. Carpe and Quiles clashed for position through Turns 6–8, but Fernandez kept his lines tidy and his nerves ice-cold. Furusato threw everything at him into the last corner but but it wasn’t enough. Carpe up to a career-matching P2. Pini muscled through to fourth in the final metres, while Quiles ended his season with P5.

Piqueras crossed the line in sixth to seal runner-up honours in the Championship. Lunetta, Almansa, Jesus Rios (Rivacold Snipers Team) and Valentin Perrone (Red Bull KTM Tech3) locked down the top ten.

An overdue triumph for Fernandez. A hard-fought podium for Carpe. A breakthrough season-ender for Furusato. And a finale that served up exactly the kind of Moto3 madness we’ve come to expect.

Further down the order, the battle for the final points was anything but quiet. Valentin Perrone claimed 10th after edging out Jesús Rios in a tight midfield shuffle, with Stefano Nepa close behind in 11th as the SIC58 rider wrapped up his season with another steady finish. Marco Morelli secured 12th for GRYD–MLav Racing, holding off a late charge from Casey O’Gorman, who crossed the line 13th after a gritty recovery ride. Malaysian favourite Hakim Danish brought the FRINSA – MT Helmets – MSI machine home in 14th, just seven thousandths ahead of Adrian Cruces, who grabbed the final point in 15th for CIP Green Power after a photo-finish scrap to the line.

*Furusato crossed the line second but was demoted to P3 for exceeding track limits on the final lap.

The Malaysian Grand Prix began under sombre circumstances following a serious incident on the sighting lap involving José Antonio Rueda (Red Bull KTM Ajo) and Noah Dettwiler (CIP Green Power). The collision brought out the red flag before the race had even begun, with both riders receiving immediate medical attention. Updates have been provided by both teams as follows:

“Following the impact at the exit of Turn 3 between Jose Antonio Rueda and Noah Dettwiler during the Sighting Lap, the Red Bull KTM Ajo rider has a fracture in his hand. At this moment, Rueda is awake and conscious in the hospital.
The Spaniard was assessed as having no serious injuries to his head or torso, albeit with a severe concussion from the impact. He remains under observation, awaiting further tests on his hand and arm.”
– Red Bull KTM Ajo

“This morning, during the sighting lap at Sepang, our rider Noah Dettwiler was involved in a serious accident. He was taken to the hospital in Kuala Lumpur and will need to undergo multiple surgeries.
He is in good hands, and we kindly as you to respect his privacy. We will not be sharing further updates at this time.
Noah is a true fighter, and the entire CIP Green Power team is right behind him. We will keep you updated as soon as possible”
– CIP Green Power

My thoughts, and the thoughts of the fans and paddock are with both riders and we wish them a speedy recovery.

In a controversial decision I personally disagree with, officials decided that the Moto3 race would continue over a shorter distance.

When racing eventually resumed, Taiyo Furusato (Honda Team Asia) delivered a faultless performance to claim his first Moto3 Grand Prix victory — a moment of joy on an otherwise difficult day for the Moto3 community. The Japanese rider took the holeshot and never relinquished control, showing poise and precision under the sweltering Sepang heat.

From pole position, David Almansa (Leopard Racing) initially fought back to briefly lead on Lap 3, but Furusato quickly reclaimed the top spot with a confident move. Behind them, Maximo Quiles (CFMOTO Power Electronics Aspar Team), Adrian Fernandez (Leopard Racing), and Guido Pini (Liqui Moly Dynavolt Intact GP) were locked in an intense scrap for the podium. Pini managed to climb to second midway through the race, only for Quiles to strike back as Fernandez carved his way forward from the fourth row.

Furusato, meanwhile, remained untouchable. His Honda RC250RW looked perfectly balanced as he kept a one-second buffer while chaos unfolded behind. There were close calls aplenty — Quiles miraculously saved a near-crash at Turn 2, and both Almansa and Pini later ran into trouble as the race wore on.

With two laps to go, the battle for second saw Fernandez slide wide, allowing Angel Piqueras (FRINSA – MT Helmets – MSI) to slip through. Up front, Furusato was long gone, cruising across the line to take a hugely emotional first win — and Honda’s first of the 2025 season. Piqueras claimed P2, while Fernandez completed the podium to make it three Hondas in the top three.

Almansa recovered to finish fourth, followed by Ryusei Yamanaka (FRINSA – MT Helmets – MSI) in fifth and Alvaro Carpe (Red Bull KTM Ajo) in sixth. Quiles came home seventh and, with that result, secured the Rookie of the Year title after a consistent and impressive debut campaign. Scott Ogden (CIP Green Power) earned his best result since Assen in eighth, Brian Uriarte (Liqui Moly Dynavolt Intact GP) was ninth, and Valentin Perrone (Red Bull KTM Tech3) rounded out the top ten.

The points were rounded out by Luca Lunetta (SIC58 Squadra Corse) in eleventh, Joel Kelso (LevelUP – MTA) in twelth, Maco Morelli (GRYD – MLAV Racing) who is continuing to impress as a last minitue switch in for the team as he crossed the line in thirteenth. Nicola Carraro (Rivacold Snipers Team) took fourteenth and a single point went the way of Eddie O’Shea (GRYD – MLAV Racing) who came home in fifteenth.

Malaysian wildcard Hakim Danish (AEON Credit SIC Racing MSI) deserves an honorable mention as he gave the local fans something to cheer with the fastest lap of the race before retiring due to a technical issue.

It was a day that reminded everyone of both the joy and fragility of racing. While Furusato celebrated a long-awaited victory, the thoughts of the entire MotoGP paddock remained with Dettwiler, Rueda, and their families.

After a season of relentless pace, poise, and precision, José Antonio Rueda has been crowned the 2025 Moto3 World Champion at the Pertamina Grand Prix of Indonesia, sealing the title with races to spare after a brilliant run of form that left his rivals without an answer. The Red Bull KTM Ajo rider’s journey to glory has been one of quiet consistency and fierce determination — the kind that doesn’t always make headlines lap-by-lap, but defines champions over a season.

Rueda’s campaign has been a masterclass in balance — starting the season with a win he races with equal parts aggression and control. From the very first round, he showed the hallmarks of a rider ready to step out from under the “next big thing” label and into genuine championship contention. His blend of speed and race intelligence meant he was almost always in the fight, no matter the circuit.

The Spanish rider’s title was effectively sealed after a hard-fought second-place finish at the Motul Grand Prix of Japan, where he once again showed his trademark patience under pressure.  Rueda kept his composure to bring home the points that put the championship at his doorstep. It was a fitting way to crown a campaign defined by maturity beyond his years. He sealed the deal this weekend after a red flagged race saw him emerge from the race in the top spot and seal the championship

From his victory charge in Mugello to his late-race duels in Austria and Aragon, Rueda has been a constant presence at the front. But perhaps his greatest weapon this season wasn’t raw speed — it was precision. Few mistakes, fewer crashes, and an uncanny ability to manage the chaos of Moto3 racing, where a thousandth of a second can separate glory from heartbreak.

In parc fermé, emotion spilled over as Rueda celebrated with his team. It’s a world title that also cements Aki Ajo’s team as a dynasty in the lightweight class, adding another jewel to a crown already glittering with names like Brad Binder and Pedro Acosta – Rueda now joins that elite list, continuing Spain’s remarkable production line of world champions — and doing so with a riding style that whispers promise for the classes above.

His closest rivals — Ángel Piqueras, David Muñoz, and Máximo Quiles — all had their moments in the sun, but none could match Rueda’s consistency across the continents. Even when the battles got fierce, the #99 kept his head down and let his results do the talking.

As Moto3 prepares to head to Australia, the pressure now shifts to the rest of the grid — the title may be wrapped up, but the fight for pride, podiums, and factory futures rages on. For José Antonio Rueda, however, the future already looks golden. A calm, calculated champion in a class known for chaos — and a rider who will be moving to Moto2 in the 2026 season as the world champion in Moto3.

Eyes now move to Piqueraz, Munoz and Quiles to see who can pick up second and third in the title fight.