Qatar GP: Progress, Pressure, and Plenty to Take Away 🇶🇦
It’s been a busy few days out here in Doha for round four of the championship, and there’s a lot to take away from the weekend. After getting my first race of the season under my belt in Austin, I came into Qatar feeling more comfortable and ready to keep building.
The weekend started under the desert sun with Free Practice 1. I was feeling a lot more confident on the bike and managed to finish the session in P20. As night fell and we rolled into the second practice under the lights, the conditions were way better. I felt stronger with each lap and managed to push into a provisional Q2 spot with a 2'04.480, just three minutes before the end. Unfortunately, a few late improvements from other riders dropped me to P15, just 0.029 seconds short of the top 14. I was gutted. We put in a lot of work, and to miss Q2 at the last second stings. Still, I had to remind myself this is only my second round back, and the important thing is that the pace is improving and we’re heading in the right direction.
On Saturday, I was ready to fight for one of the four remaining Q2 spots. The speed in Free Practice was positive, and I started Q1 with a solid 2'04.696. We had a bit of a strategy mix-up which saw me come in a little earlier than planned. When I rejoined, there was only one flying lap left, and I just couldn’t improve. That meant I’d be starting from 22nd on the grid. Disappointed for sure, because I knew we had the speed to do more, but that’s how it goes sometimes. I just reset and focused on making the most of race day.
Starting from the last row, I knew I had to be aggressive early and that’s exactly what I did. I gained four positions straight away and got into a rhythm pretty quickly. The first few laps went well and I found myself in 16th after moving past a few riders, including my teammate. I even made a short appearance in the top 15 before getting shuffled back a bit. Still, I kept pushing.
There was a lot going on up ahead with crashes, penalties, and position changes, and I managed to work my way into 10th at one point after Esteban’s crash. I was in a good spot to fight for a top 10 finish, but in the final few laps I came under pressure and made a couple of small mistakes that cost me. My rear tyre had taken a beating after pushing so hard to come through the field, and with two laps to go, it was done. I just didn’t have much left to fight with.
I crossed the line in 14th, same as in Austin. Not exactly the result I was aiming for, but there are definitely positives to take. The pace is there, the feeling on the bike is improving, and we’re continuing to build with each session. I’ve still got work to do, but I’m confident that we’ll get back to where we want to be.
Big thanks to my Red Bull KTM Tech3 team for all their effort this weekend, and to everyone supporting me from back home.
Looking forward to carrying this momentum into the next one in Spain 🇪🇸
