Another podium for Acosta in sunny Phillip Island MotoGP Sprint

MotoGP ventured to the Bass Strait setting of Phillip Island for the 35th Australian Grand Prix and to the awe-inspiring site of the inaugural Aussie GP in 1989. The 4.4km exposed and weather-beaten course carries one of the highest average speeds on the calendar thanks to its natural setting and lack of hard braking zones. Phillip Island was a free-flowing, pacey provision of thrills and demanded the utmost concentration to control the changing weather, some bumpy sections of asphalt and invasive wildlife!

Red Bull KTM relied on their own ‘beasts’ of performance as lap-record speeds were set on Friday. Direct Q2 entry was achieved by Pedro Acosta and Pol Espargaro, the latter appearing on Grand Prix duty for the third time this season in a replacement capacity for countryman Maverick Viñales.

On Saturday morning Phillip Island was chilly and breezy and both Brad Binder and Enea Bastiainini could not force their way out of Q1: meaning the South African went to the grid in 13th and the Italian in 20th. Binder was later handed a penalty for inadvertently blocking another rider and will start Sunday’s race from P16. After Q2 Acosta found his markers for the 5th best lap-time and just 0.4 from Pole Position, putting him squarely in the middle of the second row. Espargaro, impressively, was just a tenth of a second from his brandmate and notched 8th.

The Sprint occurred in slightly warmer air and flew around the course for 13 laps. Acosta took part in a gripping three-way fight for 3rd place and defended his podium berth from intense interest on the final circulation. Pedro earned his medal by just six-hundredths of a second. Espargaro had his own multi-rider joust and confirmed P9 by the flag with a rampaging Bastianini only half a second adrift. Binder slid out of the running on the second lap.

The Grand Prix will start at 15.00 local time and 06.00 CET with a 27-lap distance ahead.

Pedro Acosta, 5th in qualification, 3rd in the Sprint: “Super-happy. It was looking like this wasn’t going to be our weekend but we managed to qualify in a good position and the race was just a fight! We took the maximum that we can.We managed to be on the podium using the tools that we have. The team is making a super job, even on this type of track where we tend to suffer. Our bike normally works better with a harder tyre and with less grip. So, let’s see what’s going on tomorrow. Let’s try to improve a bit.”

Pol Espargaro, 8th in qualification, 9th in the Sprint: “The Sprint didn’t go as I planned, I was missing like two tenths,so people were catching me and I was trying to block the line. It was fun. But yeah, I was not as fast as I wanted. To fight with the best riders in the world, in the fastest championship of road racing motorcycles in the world, it’s just insane. It’s an opportunity that I have to enjoy to the maximum when I can! I think tomorrow I can be a bit more competitive. Let’s see.”

Enea Bastianini, 20th in qualification, 10th in the Sprint: “I didn’t find the chance to do a good lap-time in the Quali but during the race we improved, and I could stop the bike better. I improved my pace lap-by-lap and sometimes it was close or the same as the top five and this was the main positive from today. Starting from 20th isn’t ideal but we made modifications and made good progress.”

Brad Binder, 13th in qualification, DNF in the Sprint: “Nothing serious. I got a good start, passed a few dudes early on and then at the start of the second flying lap in turn 2 when I cracked the throttle it started understeering and I dipped the front. I didn’t expect that. It would have been nice to do the Sprint distance today to get some laps under our belt but, other than that, everything else is OK and I feel pretty good on the bike. Tomorrow will be OK.”

Aki Ajo, Red Bull KTM Factory Racing Team Manager: “A positive Sprint race for us at a beautiful Phillip Island. This place can be a challenge for us because the weather conditions can change very quickly and dry track time is shorter than other weekends. In any case, we have to be happy with the results of having three riders in the top ten and, of course, Pedro’s entertaining fight for the podium. We feel we have a good pace for tomorrow and it will be interesting to see how far we can go in the long race. Unfortunately Brad did not make the finish today but we know he also has the pace to reach the top positions on Sunday.”

1. Fabio Quartararo (FRA) Yamaha 1:26.465

2. Marco Bezzecchi (ITA) Aprilia +0.031

3. Jack Miller (AUS) Yamaha +0.243

1. Marco Bezzecchi (ITA) Aprilia 19:03.971

3. Raul Fernandez (ESP) Aprilia +3.149

Moto3 Pole Position went to Joel Kelso through decent weather for the Q1 and Q2 sessions on Saturday. The fast trajectory and the wind meant strategy and caution were key ingredients for performance for the Moto3 pack and the KTM GP Academy stars. World Champion Jose Antonio Rueda maintained his perfect 2025 record of making every Q2 session and Red Bull KTM Ajo teammate Alvaro Carpe also rode well on Friday for his first taste of ‘PI’ when the field encountered a wet track and cool sea air. The pair translated this promise into 2nd and 6th places on the grid through an improved climate on Saturday with less than one second dividing the top 16 riders. Home hero Jacob Roulstone was 13th fastest after Q2 and slotted his Red Bull KTM Tech3 KTM RC4 onto the fifth row. Valentin Perrone ranked 22nd.

Collin Veijer qualified in 15th position for Moto2™ as Red Bull KTM Ajo teammate Daniel Muñoz, standing in for Deniz Öncü for the eighth time this season set the 17th quickest time on his first visit to the ‘Island’. The Dutchman and Spaniard, both rookies to the Moto2 class in 2025, did well in tricky mixed conditions on Friday (across wet and then drying asphalt) to mark chronos good enough for direct Q2 entry. On a sunny Saturday, Veijer and Muñoz made sure of fifth and sixth row starts. Moto2 will dash around the 12-turn layout for 23 laps tomorrow.

1. Joel Kelso (AUS) KTM 1:34.056

2. Luca Lunetta (ITA) Honda +0.225

9. Maximo Quiles (ESP) CFMOTO Aspar Team +0.647

1. Diogo Moreira (BRA) 1:29.817

2. Senna Agius (AUS) +0.011

3. Manuel Gonzalez (ESP) +0.076

5. Daniel Holgado (ESP) CFMOTO Inde Aspar Team +0.178

6. David Alonso (COL) CFMOTO Inde Aspar Team +0.290