2025 Jerez Moto3 Test Review

The official Moto2 and Moto3 tests commenced on Tuesday, 18th February 2025, under the Spanish sun at the Circuito de Jerez. Coming into the test, Joel Esteban had been confirmed to replace Jacob Roulstone at the Red Bull KTM Tech 3 squad due to Roulstone’s pre-season injury ruling him out.

Day 1 of the Jerez moto3 test was topped by the unanimous championship favourite Angel Piqueras, as he was able to perfect his set-up early and achieve a 1'44.442 lap time. Ahead of the test, the official Jerez Moto3 lap records stood at a best lap of 1’43.710 by David Alonso and best race lap of 1’45.105 by Ryusei Yamanaka, both in 2024. Other contenders who came close on day 1 included rookies Maximo Quiles and Alvaro Carpe, as well as Jose Antonio Rueda and Adrian Fernandez rounding out the top 5.

Day 2 commenced with Angel Piqueras and Adrian Fernandez reaching the 1’43s in the morning session, but it was only until later in the afternoon that David Munoz could defeat Alonso's 2024 best lap. Munoz ended the day as the fastest rider after setting an incredibly quick 1'43.604. Meanwhile, Noah Detwiller suffered a crash and injured his left wrist, with Spaniard Adrian Cruces being swiftly drafted in to replace Detwiller for the rest of the test and for the first two rounds of the 2025 season. 

Day 3 saw the fastest lap times from the Jerez test, with Jose Antonio Rueda pushing the limits even further. Rueda was able to achieve a 1’43.357 just ahead of Aussie Joel Kelso and top Honda Adrian Fernandez. For the Moto3 riders to be able to reach the 1’43s creates a fantastic precedent for the 22 rounds coming our way this season. As almost all lap records were destroyed in the 2024 season due to the new Pirelli tyres, so far the test suggests we will be following a similar pathway this year with all our riders improving their times to last year. 

We leave the test with our championship contenders being solidified but also with anomalies now in the mix - as usual in test conditions. As Scott Ogden makes the switch from Honda to KTM, his name has shot up on the timesheets as he predicts himself to be a regular top 10 runner. Last of all, a test is not complete without its fallers as the Mlav Racing riders suffered major crashes over the 3 test days, writing off a number of bikes as their two rookie riders Eddie O’Shea and Marcos Uriarte got to grips with the Honda machinery. 

Now the test is complete, it’s time to head to the Chang International Circuit for round 1 of the 2025 Moto3 World Championship.