After two years, MotoGP™ finally roared again at the Circuit Ricardo Tormo, with Friday’s action at the Grand Prix of Valencia giving the whistle for the last game of the season. Red Bull KTM Tech3 was honoured to finally welcome back Maverick Viñales returning to competing after missing out the last three rounds. The Spaniard closed his first day back in the office in 18th, and teammate Enea Bastianini followed in 19th, as both Tech3 riders will face Q1 on the final qualifying day of 2025.

Grand Prix of Valencia

Red Bull KTM Tech3’s full line-up was then ready to go on Friday morning, with both Enea Bastianini and Maverick Viñales hitting the track for FP1 with a slightly delayed start following a red-flagged Moto2™ FP1. Both got their first taste of the RC16 on the Valencian layout, as we saw Bastianini close the opening session 0.944 seconds off the top, yet in 17th, and Viñales’ pace saw Top Gun end just 1 second from early pace setter, Jack Miller. The main class hit back the track at 15:00 sharp in the afternoon for the final Practice of the season, and the time attacks promised sparklings, with 21 riders less than one second of each other, with just under 20 minutes left on the clock. Pedro Acosta was at the top with a 1’29.790, Viñales’ best in 1’30.623 had him in P17 before the final time attacks, and teammate Bastianini was not far behind with a 1’30.706, in 20th. As all riders began pushing to make the final top 10 cut of the year, we saw Bastianini sneak into the top 10 for a few seconds with a first attack in 1’30.237, but the others followed, and he dropped to 13th. He continued to push, but somehow he could not put it all together to improve his lap time, and we saw him finish the session in 19th. Viñales could improve to a 1’30.147, but that was just 0.474 seconds short of Q2! The Spaniard will face Q1 on Saturday, alongside his teammate, in the final qualifying session of 2025, starting at 10:50 local time, shortly after FP2. Then, lights of the Tissot Sprint will go out at 15:00 local time (UTC+1), for 13 laps.

MAVERICK VIÑALES: "I had not been on that bike for a few weeks, so of course it was tough today, but the goal at the moment is to feel comfortable again on the bike, before being able to push. I am still missing some flexibility, so we just need to make a few twists on my position, and then it will be good! It has been positive to see that my shoulder has improved a lot, we are no longer feeling pain, which is good. The bike is good otherwise, it is super fast, and we just have work to catch up on my side, since I have not been able to push since my injury! Good feeling heading to Saturday!"

ENEA BASTIANINI: "Similar story to usual of course, but the start of the day was not so bad to be honest. We struggled again as soon as we switched tires, which is an ongoing issue we are trying to solve from our end. Also, the feeling when I put the soft rear changed, I could not, once again, turn the bike like I wanted, the rear was pushing the front a lot, and I am really waiting for Tuesday's test, because it is a very important issue we need to address. Let's continue working, and see if we can make some improvements for tomorrow."

PRACTICE SESSION RESULTS

1. Pedro Acosta (SPA), Red Bull KTM Factory Racing, 1'29.240
2. Marco Bezzecchi (ITA), Aprilia Racing, +0.053
3. Franco Morbidelli (ITA), VR46 Racing Team, +0.185
18. Maverick Viñales (SPA), Red Bull KTM Tech3, +0.907
19. Enea Bastianini (ITA), Red Bull KTM Tech3, +0.997

TRACK RECORDS

All Time Record: 2023 - M. Viñales (SPA) - 1'28.931 - 162.1 km/h
Best Race Lap: 2023 - B. Binder (RSA) - 1'30.145 - 159.9 km/h
Best Pole: 2023 - M. Viñales (SPA) - 1'28.931 - 162.1 km/h
Top Speed: 2025 - B. Binder (RSA) - 340.3 km/h