Moto2 Gonzalez triumphs after two restarts victory in Moto3

· The races of the 2026 Grand Prix of Thailand were characterised by beautiful battles on the track and very high temperatures. Winner of the Moto2™ race, interrupted twice by the red flag and then restarted with seven laps to go, was Manuel Gonzalez (Kalex), who got the better of Izan Guevara (Boscoscuro), second, and Daniel Holgado (Kalex), third. All the riders, both in the first start and in the subsequent restarts, used soft SC1 and soft SC0 rear tyres, in some cases fitting new ones between one start and another. Gonzalez also set a new race record lap of 1’35.379, improving on the one he set in 2025.

· David Almansa (KTM) won the Moto3™ race by beating Máximo Quiles (KTM) by just 3 thousandths, a photo finish gap not seen in this class since the 2013 Australian GP where Rins got the better of Viñales. Valentin Perrone (KTM), who started 14th, finished third and set the fastest lap of the race in 1’41.228 on lap three. Almost all the riders chose soft SC1 rear tyres, except for Danish and Rammerstorfer who opted for the medium SC2; at the front, Almansa was on soft SC1, while the other two riders on the podium were on medium SC2.

· During the three days of the Thai Grand Prix, temperatures varied considerably and there were intense downpours, both day and night, which affected the conditions and evolution of the track. Sunday was the hottest day, with 35 degrees Celsius in the air and peaks of up to 60 on the asphalt.

The tyres performed well even in very high temperatures
 
“Today was the hottest day of the weekend and the races took place with very high air and track temperatures, peaking at 35 degrees Celsius in ambient temperature and 60 degrees Celsius on track. Buriram is a circuit that offers little grip, and the heat only reduces it further. This is why the soft solutions, which best compensate for the lack of grip offered by the track, were by far the most used. In particular, the new soft SC0 rear, chosen by all the riders for the Moto2™ race in combination with the soft SC1 front, convinced both for the performance demonstrated on the flying lap, with a new all-time lap record and new fastest race lap, and for the ability to maintain constant performance, as demonstrated by those who used them for two restarts without changing tyres. Also in Moto3™ the soft solutions were virtually the only ones used as regards the rear axle, while the choice of the front, as always in this class, depends above all on the riding style of each rider and his preferences. Both options were successfully adopted in the race as evidenced by the heart-stopping finale that had Almansa and Quiles as protagonists, one on SC1 and the other on SC2 front. The balance of this first Grand Prix of the year is therefore positive for Pirelli, also with regard to the races of the Moto4 Asia Cup, which held its first round of the season here in Thailand. The next GP is in three weeks’ time in Brazil, at the Goiânia circuit where the World Championship will race for the first time.”