The 1:55 barrier on a Moto2 machine at the Lusail International Circuit has finally fallen. Daniel Holgado of the CFMOTO Power Electronics Aspar Team did the damage during Friday practice at the Qatar Airways Grand Prix of Qatar, unleashing a stunning 1:55.897 lap to leave the rest of the field 0.199s adrift.
Filip Salač claimed second-quickest honours for the OnlyFans American Racing Team, while title-hunting Izan Guevara slotted into third for the BLU CRU Pramac Yamaha Moto2 squad. Guevara had to work for it, though, dragging his machine up into the top five late in the session after languishing down in P20 at one stage.
Under three tenths covered the entire top five in a wild, hyper-competitive stint. Championship leader Manuel Gonzalez of the Liqui Moly Dynavolt Intact GP team ended the evening fourth fastest, right behind his 2026 rival Guevara. Gonzalez actually lowered his own lap record first before Holgado arrived in the dying moments to turn the tables. Celestino Vietti of the BETA Tools SpeedRS Team rounded out the top five on Friday.
Further down the order, Senna Agius of Liqui Moly Dynavolt Intact GP and Malaysian GP winner David Alonso of the CFMOTO Power Electronics Aspar Team completed a top seven comprised entirely of previous Moto2 race winners.
Rounding out the top 10 were Collin Veijer for Red Bull KTM Ajo in P8, Alonso Lopez for ITALJET Gresini Moto2 in P9, and Barry Baltus for REDS Fantic Racing in P10. Now, we strap in for a massive qualifying Saturday in Moto2 at the Qatar Grand Prix.
Moto2
