Moto3 returned over the weekend to deliver another dramatic Grand Prix weekend at the Austrian GP. There was a lot to celebrate in the Frinsa – MT Helmets – MSI garage, with Ángel Piqueras and Ryusei Yamanaka taking a one-two finish. David Muñoz kept an impressive pace to reach the leading pack to secure third. It was a close race, with only six-tenths of a second between the top six race finishers. Read on to hear what happened across the weekend, as well as the final Moto3 race results at the Red Bull Ring.
Muñoz Puts in the First Crash of the Weekend
On Friday, it was announced that Cormac Buchanan, Ruché Moodley, Vicente Pérez, and Joel Kelso had all been declared fit to take part in the weekend’s events. There were some other points of order regarding rider changes for the Austrian GP. Arbi Aditama replaced Tatchakorn Buasri, who is still recovering from major shoulder surgery. Casey O’Gorman made his Moto3 debut to replace Luca Lunetta, and Marcos Uriarte replaced Matteo Bertelle.
David Muñoz was the first to come off his bike in Free Practice 1, crashing out after coming into contact with the back of David Almansa. The #64 nearly caught his hand in the wheel, and thankfully, he walked away without serious injury. There was very little drama for the rest of the session, with Ángel Piqueras fastest on track.
Piqueras Continues to Stay On Top
Ten minutes had already gone by before the current championship leader, José Antonio Rueda, was able to crack the top fourteen. His teammate, Álvaro Carpe, skirted the edge in Turn 4, bringing some gravel onto the track. With twenty minutes to go, Buchanan slid down in Turn 10, holding the clutch to keep the bike running and bring it back to the garage.
It wasn’t long before a couple of incidents had a few people shaking their heads. Eddie O’Shea and Taiyo Furusato came off in the first turn in separate incidents. Pérez, who also crashed, was penalised for doing so under yellow flag conditions during the Furusato and O’Shea incidents. Five minutes to go, and the heat was on for final lap times. Piqueras set the first lap time in the 1:39s, setting a new all-time lap record. Our top fourteen Q2 advancers were decided down to the wire, with Moodley pushed out by Scott Ogden.
Cooler Conditions and Impressive Saves
Cooler temperatures were a welcome change in Austria on Saturday morning after Friday’s heat. Twenty minutes for Free Practice 2 got underway with Máximo Quiles setting a new all-time lap record straight away. The time proved unbeatable, placing him first for the morning’s session.
Piqueras and Muñoz got a little too close for comfort coming into Turn 1, the #64 shaking a finger at the #36. A little way down the circuit, Muñoz went off-roading but managed to rejoin the track without incident. Adrián Fernández went wide, effectively deleting his time but remaining in the top ten fastest on track.
The yellow flags came out in Sector 1 for the last minute, as Pérez’s Honda pulled off the track with technical difficulties. Valentín Perrone looked very strong, despite having an incident coming up to Turn 1. With his hand on the tarmac pushing him and his bike back up, the #73 delivered one of the most incredible saves of the 2025 season.
Clean Run into Pole Position for Perrone
With only the top four advancing into Q2, the contenders in Q1 wasted no time making their way out of the pit lane. A few minutes into the allotted fifteen, Uriate, Roulstone, Moodley, and O’Gorman were the first to take the desired spots.
Nicola Carraro set a flying lap to push Moodley out of Q2 advancement, taking the top spot on the timesheet. Buchanan was the next to perform, pushing out O’Gorman to take the fourth coveted spot to advance into Q2.
Piqueras, Perrone, Pérez, Ryusei Yamanaka, Quiles, Muñoz, Rueda, Guido Pini, Furusato, Ogden, Fernández, Kelso, Almansa, and Carpe were joined in the Q2 session by Carraro, Buchanan, Uriarte, and Roulstone. The riders bunched up at the pitlane exit as the green light switched on and fifteen minutes appeared on the clock.
As riders came out for the second run, teammates Piqueras and Yamanka were one-two on the timesheet, making them the team to beat. But other riders cut it incredibly fine, coming back out with only two minutes before session completion. They all made it across the line beforehand to start their final flying lap, giving us our closest finish in Moto3 qualifying to date. Perrone managed to jump to pole position, moving Piqueras and Yamanaka down to second and third.
Piqueras Reigns Supreme on Sunday
In his first pole start in Moto3, Perrone was joined on the front row by Piqueras and Yamanaka. Pérez, unfortunately, started from the back of the grid. He also had to serve a double long lap penalty for the incident on Friday. Another double long lap penalty was handed to Uriate for his second offence for being slow on the racing line during qualifying.
Fernandez had a horrific start, falling back to eleventh, while Piqueras, Quiles, and Perrone battled it out in the top three. Buchanan crashed for the third time this weekend, coming down on the opening lap. Pérez came into the pit lane after a few laps, looking to retire from the race. However, he was told to resume and serve the second lap of his double long lap penalty. The #32 finished up his race a few laps later.
As the halfway point was reached, track limits warnings started appearing. Carraro was caught out a second time and was served a long lap penalty, pushing him from sixteenth to twentieth. Dennis Foggia also exceeded track limits, giving Rueda another position and more points towards his championship lead. Meanwhile, the leading rider of the race changed several times, with some amazing overtakes from Quiles. Several forced mistakes cost him and Perrone a spot on the podium. It all came down to the final corner of the race, as the top six battled it out. In the end, it was Piqueras who came out on top.
Top 15
Here are the fifteen Moto3 riders who scored points at the Austrian GP:
We go racing again this weekend at the Michelin Grand Prix of Hungary, our first back-to-back after the summer break. With Pirqueras’ win in Austria, he is slowly closing the gap between him and the current championship leader, Rueda. However, there are still seventy-one points between them. Who will muscle it out and gain the advantage in Hungary?