The Barcelona story for Moto3

Friday, September 5th

A positive first approach to the Catalan track for Team Snipers. In FP1, Riccardo Rossi consistently confirmed himself in the Top 10, while Nicola Carraro remained slightly behind, working to find the right feeling ahead of the following sessions.

In the afternoon, Carraro got off to a flying start, immediately climbing to 2nd place and holding a solid 7th position for most of the session. However, contact with a slower rider cost him precious minutes in the garage, forcing him to rejoin only at the very end and narrowly missing direct access to Q2 by just 60 thousandths of a second.
Different outcome for Riccardo Rossi, who, after a more difficult first part of the session, found his rhythm and set a time good enough for 9th place, securing direct entry to Q2 on Saturday afternoon.

Saturday, September 6th

In the build-up to qualifying, FP2 delivered encouraging signs for the team: in the final minutes, both riders managed to take a step forward, with Riccardo Rossi consolidating his spot inside the Top 10 and Nicola Carraro, though just outside, recovering several positions compared to Friday.

In Q1, heavy traffic on track complicated Nicola Carraro’s session, preventing him from securing access to Q2 despite an initial strong lap that had placed him among the top four. That left Riccardo Rossi as the team’s sole contender in qualifying. After an early attempt, his strategy was to return to the box and prepare for a decisive second run. On his final flying lap, Rossi closed the session in 16th place, which will be his starting grid position for the Catalan Grand Prix.

Sunday, September 7th

The Snipers riders lined up for the race with the clear goal of fighting their way back, with Nicola Carraro also having to serve a long lap penalty imposed during Friday’s practice. A strong start allowed him to immediately recover several positions on the opening lap, trying to build a gap ahead of the penalty. Riccardo Rossi also got off the line well, managing to stay close to the leading group in the early stages.

After serving the penalty, Carraro rejoined from the back but quickly climbed through the field, getting back on the tail of his teammate within just a few laps. In the second half of the race, Rossi fought inside the leading pack, but in the closing stages his pace wasn’t enough to stay with the front runners.
At the finish line, both riders ended up just outside the points after a hard-fought race, which also provided valuable data for the final part of the season.

Comments

Nicola Carraro’s race, compromised by the long lap penalty:
“It’s a shame about the GP, we started from the back and also had a long lap to serve. In the race, though, the pace was good — I caught up with the groups ahead of me without too much difficulty. Now we stay motivated and get ready for next week in Misano.”

Riccardo Rossi reflects on his performance:
“It was a very particular weekend, which started well with top 10 in every session and direct access to Q2 on Friday. Qualifying still remains a bit of our weak point, where we’re working to improve. Starting from 16th made the race a bit uphill. My start wasn’t bad, but halfway through I made a mistake that cost me the lead group — and I think I had the pace to stay there and fight for the race. But we’ll take the positives: next week we’ll be in Misano, ready to bounce back at our best.”