The heat took center stage in Brno

Friaday, June 19th

As usual, the race weekend got underway with Free Practice 1, this time at the historic and demanding Brno Circuit, one of the longest and most technical tracks on the entire calendar.
The session started positively for Nicola Carraro, who remained among the frontrunners in the opening laps and immediately showed a strong feeling with the Czech circuit. The Italian rider completed six laps during his first outing and another five in his second run, setting his fastest lap of the session during this latter stint.
It was an excellent debut at Brno for Jesus Rios, who once again confirmed his impressive ability to adapt to new circuits. Early in the session, the young Spaniard posted a highly competitive lap time that moved him up to fourth position, with a significant gap over the rider directly behind him. After returning to the pits, Rios continued his work and remained consistently close to the top ten until the checkered flag, once again demonstrating strong pace and rapid confidence with the circuit from the very first laps of the weekend.

Following the work carried out by the technicians based on the data collected during FP1, the Snipers riders returned to the track for the afternoon Practice session with the goal of securing direct access to Q2.
Nicola Carraro immediately proved highly competitive, lowering his morning benchmark by more than one second on his very first flying lap. After a tyre change, the Italian rider completed three further consecutive time-attack attempts but was unable to improve on the lap time set during his opening run. Nevertheless, the signs remained very positive, further confirmed by the third-highest top speed recorded on track, giving Carraro confidence heading into qualifying.
A different approach was taken by Jesus Rios, who made two pit stops during the session to continue refining the bike’s setup and maximize his feeling with the circuit. The strategy paid off, as the young Spaniard set his best lap in the closing minutes of the session, securing eighth place overall and direct qualification for Q2.
The result once again highlighted Rios’ remarkable adaptability, as he continues to perform at a high level even on circuits he has never raced before.

Saturday, June 20th

High temperatures continue to define the second day at the Brno Circuit, which begins with the Free Practice 2 session.
Nicola Carraro starts the session with two time-attack attempts before returning to the pits. He later goes back out to complete another eight consecutive laps, progressively improving his lap times and confirming the positive feeling from Friday.
However, the Italian rider’s fastest lap is deleted in the third sector of the circuit, meaning his second-best lap of the session stands as his official reference.
A more complicated session for Jesus Rios. After posting competitive lap times from the very first runs, the young Spaniard crashes on his sixth lap. The incident forces him to end his track work early, with no further consequences.

Qualifying day begins with Q1 for Nicola Carraro, who approaches the session in a solid and methodical way. In his first run, the Italian rider immediately sets a strong flying lap, establishing a competitive benchmark before returning to the pits for a tyre change.
In his second outing, Carraro manages to officially set his fastest time at the crucial moment of qualifying. However, despite confirming the strong potential shown throughout the weekend, the performance is not enough to secure a place in Q2.
The Snipers rider is therefore set for a recovery race, with the goal of climbing back through the field on Sunday.

A particularly eventful Q2 for Jesus Rios and the team: during his first time-attack attempt, the young Spaniard suffers a crash while pushing to the limit in search of the best lap time.
Despite the setback, Rios manages to bring the bike back to the garage, allowing the mechanics to react swiftly. Thanks to an outstanding effort from the team, the bike is repaired and returned to track-ready condition in record time, enabling the rider to make use of the final minutes of the session.
With a reduced number of laps and limited preparation time for his final push, Rios still delivers a strong performance, confirming the competitiveness shown throughout the weekend. The Spanish rider secures 15th position on the starting grid, leaving open interesting prospects for Sunday’s race.

Sunday, June 21st

The starting grid undergoes some changes following penalties handed to other riders: Jesus Rios gains three positions and starts from 12th on the grid, while Nicola Carraro moves up one place to line up 25th.

Rios tackles the opening stages of the race with determination. After a not-easy start, the young Spaniard quickly finds his way through the traffic and climbs up to 8th position within the first few laps, once again confirming the competitiveness shown throughout the weekend.
Carraro also immediately tries to build his comeback, gaining several positions in the opening stages and maintaining a strong pace while battling with the group ahead.

Despite competitive pace, Jesus Rios struggles to find the ideal feeling with the bike, also affected by the confidence inevitably impacted by the crashes earlier in the weekend. The Spanish rider loses ground in the second part of the race, dropping just outside the points. Even so, he stays attached to the group ahead and manages the final stages maturely, maintaining solid pace all the way to the chequered flag.
A more unfortunate Sunday for Nicola Carraro. After recovering several positions and showing good competitiveness in the middle part of the race, the Italian rider is forced to retire in the closing stages due to a physical issue that prevents him from finishing the Grand Prix.

Despite the difficulties faced in the race, Team Snipers leaves Brno with encouraging signs in terms of competitiveness, confirming the steady growth seen in recent rounds and collecting valuable data ahead of the upcoming races of the season.

Comments

Nicola Carraro is already focused on the next Grand Prix:
"Unfortunately, towards the end of the race I had to return to the box due to a physical issue. I’m looking forward to flying to the Netherlands for the next race weekend."

Jesus Rios remains determined despite a difficult race performance:
"The weekend wasn’t bad, but the crashes in the previous days affected the feeling for the race. We’re not discouraged, because we know we are competitive and that we’re doing a good job with the bike at every track."