David Almansa (1./IntactGP-KTM): “Yes, Here’s incredible. I had confidence in myself today, I believed in myself and it felt like a dream. I worked very hard in the winter to be here. Thank you to my team for the incredible function, to my family and friends for always being by my side.”
Maximo Quiles (2./Aspar-KTM): “It feels really good. It was really difficult here in Thailand, it was extremely hot. And yes, I tried to stay behind Almansa and rest a bit. But he put a lot of pressure on. Then before the last lap, the motorcycle slipped quite strongly and I had to go far out. And I thought: Wow, now I have to push. Otherwise, I won’t catch him anymore. And yes, I was able to close the gap again.”
“And in the last corner, I said: I’m going to attempt to overtake him. He surprised me because he almost pushed me into the grass. But I said: I’m going to go through with this. I more or less did the block pass maneuver. And then I accelerated, but he got me again. I’m a little angry about that, but I’m still really happy.”
Valentin Perrone (3./Tech3-KTM): “I really don’t know. I was at the limit, sliding like crazy, and that from starting position 14. It was completely crazy at the beginning. I saw the group pull away. And I said to myself: Either I push now, or they’ll pull away from me. And I pushed like crazy every lap to get into the top 3, top 4. But they were super fast and super strong when overtaking. So I had a bit of a struggle to stay in third place all the time. And in the last corner, I closed my eyes. I tried everything with it. If I lose the position, it’s okay. But in the end P3, I’m mega happy.”
David Almansa of the IntactGP-KTM team delivered a stunning performance at Buriram, securing pole position and setting a fresh lap record in the Moto3 World Championship qualifying session on February 27, 2026. Almansa’s blistering time of 1:40.088 shattered Jose Antonio Rueda’s previous record of 1:40.350, establishing a significant advantage heading into Sunday’s race.
The qualifying session saw a thrilling battle for the top spots, with Alvaro Carpe (Red Bull KTM Ajo) finishing second with a time of 1:40.518 and Adrian Fernandez (Leopard Racing) rounding out the front row in third at 1:40.693. The tight competition underscored the high stakes of the opening race of the season.
Maximo Quiles (CFMoto Gaviota Aspar Team) initially led the session but ultimately settled for fourth place, reflecting on a challenging race against Almansa. “It feels really good,” Quiles said. “It was really difficult here in Thailand, it was extremely hot.” He described a late-race maneuver where he nearly overtook Almansa, but ultimately fell just short.
Indonesian rider Veda Pratama (Honda Team Asia) also made a remarkable debut, securing fifth place. Valentin Perrone (Tech3-KTM) completed the top five, expressing his disbelief at his performance after starting from 14th position. “I really don’t know,” Perrone admitted. “I was at the limit, sliding like crazy….”
Almansa’s dominant qualifying performance positions him as the clear favorite for the race, but the close times of the top riders suggest a competitive battle is expected. The Moto3 race at Buriram promises to be an exciting start to the 2026 season.
