Veda Ega Pratama Makes Impressive Start in Moto3 Qatar, but Session Marred by Quiles Incident

Young Indonesian rider Veda Ega Pratama opened the 2026 Moto3 Qatar round with an encouraging result. In the first free practice session (FP1) at Lusail Circuit on Friday (6/11/2026), he took fifth place, marking a competitive start for the Honda Team Asia rider.

Veda showed promising pace by leading the timesheets early in the session. However, consistency proved a challenge when he slipped to seventh before recovering and locking in a top-five position at the end of FP1. The result is a positive signal for a rider working to break into the front-running group of the lightweight class.

Meanwhile, 2026 world champion Maximo Quiles of CFMoto Aspar Team was fastest with a time of 2 minutes 04.143 seconds. Even so, Quiles' session was not entirely smooth. At the end of FP1, he suffered a highside that sent him to the ground. Fortunately, the Spanish rider escaped serious injury and was able to leave the track area without a stretcher.

The real battle begins on Friday night local time, when the riders take part in the practice session to fight for automatic tickets to the second qualifying session (Q2) held a day later. Regulations stipulate that only the 14 riders with the best times go straight to Q2, while the rest must go through the tighter Q1 route.

For Veda, fifth place in FP1 is no guarantee, but it at least provides a confidence boost. He needs to maintain consistency and perhaps increase his aggression in crucial sectors to secure a place in Q2. Competition in Moto3 is known to be tight, with gaps between riders often very small.

"The first free practice session shows that Veda has competitive speed, but his biggest challenge is maintaining performance throughout the session," said a racing observer.

On the other hand, the incident involving Quiles is a reminder that Lusail Circuit carries high risk, especially for riders pushing their bikes to the limit. Even so, Quiles proved that his speed remains hard to match, even when he had to fight to control the bike after the highside.

For the Indonesian public, Veda's performance in Qatar is an oasis amid the country's scarce representation in world racing. Every positive result he achieves not only raises the nation's name but also serves as a barometer of Indonesian young riders' development on the international stage. Moral support from home is expected to give Veda extra energy to perform better in the coming sessions.

The question is, can Veda maintain momentum and break into Q2 directly? Or will he have to go through the more winding Q1 route? All will be answered in Friday night's practice session.