Back to the max! Maximo Quiles delivered a fine victory for the CFMOTO Gaviota Aspar Team, returning to the top step of the podium and extending his advantage as the Championship leader at Balaton Park. It marks two years running that Quiles has taken the Hungarian GP in Moto3, this time dodging a late battle thanks to a dramatic finish. Polesitter David Almansa settled for second with the LIQUI MOLY Dynavolt Intact GP machine, returning to the podium for the first time since his Buriram win, whilst Alvaro Carpe completed a stunning comeback from the sixth row to take third for Red Bull KTM Ajo.
Almansa blasted off from pole position and grabbed the holeshot to lead the opening lap ahead of Quiles, mirroring the opening two GPs of the year. Behind them, chaos erupted at Turn 2 when Guido Pini came to grief after contact with Matteo Bertelle, pushing the #94 machine into Bertelle’s teammate Joel Esteban. More drama struck at Turn 5 as Ruche Moodley clattered into Hakim Danish. Moodley was forced to retire, while Danish managed to rejoin after a trip to the pits.
The race eventually settled with Almansa and Quiles leading the charge, chased by the Red Bull KTM Tech3 duo of Perrone and teammate Rico Salmela in third and fourth. Rookie Salmela snatched P3 at Turn 5 on Lap 4, setting off after the leaders. Meanwhile, incredible charges through the pack were well underway as Alvaro Carpe and David Muñoz surged from the sixth row into P5 and P7 respectively. On Lap 7, Quiles made his move for the lead at Turn 9, leaving the gap back to Salmela at just 0.7s. Lap 9 proved pivotal as Quiles fired in a 1'45.872 for the fastest lap of the Grand Prix, while Almansa dropped three tenths after making an error at Turn 5.
Into the second half of the GP, Almansa dug deep to stay on Quiles' shirt tails as the gap back to the chasing pack grew to over three seconds. Perrone sat third ahead of Salmela, Muñoz, and Carpe. Almansa did respond by setting the fastest lap at the end of Lap 12, but the gap hovered stubbornly at around half a second. In the scrap for the final podium spot, Carpe climbed to third, completing a mega fightback from P18 on the grid.
With five laps to go, Quiles stretched his advantage over Almansa to over a second, once again demonstrating his championship strength. The battle for third intensified as Carpe was joined by teammate Brian Uriarte to form a 10-wheeler scrap. Onto the last lap, the #51 wrestled P4 off his teammate before contact on the exit of Turn 11 between Carpe and Muñoz sparked a multiple rider incident involving Muñoz, Perrone, and Uriarte. The red flag waved just half a lap from full distance.
Thankfully, we turn to the serious side of racing, and we drop the energy entirely for this: David Muñoz was taken to a local hospital for full checks, and it was later confirmed by the team that the #64 had sustained fractures to his pelvis and was undergoing surgery on Sunday evening. We wish Muñoz a speedy recovery.
With the results counted, Quiles eased to victory ahead of Almansa, while Carpe held on for third despite the late racing incident. Uriarte was classified fourth ahead of Salmela, who claimed a career-best fifth to secure Finland’s best Moto3 result since Niklas Ajo took P5 at Mugello in 2014. Adrian Cruces rode brilliantly from his career-best qualifying to take sixth for CIP GreenPower, followed by Marco Morelli, top Honda rider Jesus Rios, Casey O'Gorman, and Adrian Fernandez rounding out the top ten.
