RRI.CO.ID, Le Mans - Rising Indonesian star Veda Ega Pratama is poised for a competitive showing at the Bugatti Circuit after securing a formidable sixth-place start for the French Moto3 Grand Prix. His performance during Saturday’s qualifying session in Le Mans signals a strong momentum for the Indonesian rider as he continues to make his mark on the international stage.

While the session began with its fair share of challenges, Veda’s composure in the high-stakes Q2 environment proved decisive. The Gunungkidul, Yogyakarta-born rider initially found himself struggling for pace, momentarily slipping to 14th as a flurry of competitors improved their lap times.

However, as the clock ticked down to the final two minutes, Veda mounted a brilliant late-charge, at one point even holding the session's provisional fastest lap before the final rankings settled.

Veda ultimately clocked a personal best of 1 minute 40.304 seconds, a time that places him comfortably on the second row of the grid. This result sees him outperforming notable rivals, including Brian Uriarte, who secured seventh with a time of 1 minute 40.341 seconds, and Malaysia’s Hakim Danish, who will start from 12th after recording a 1 minute 40.761-second lap.

The fight for the front of the pack was dominated by Adrian Fernandez, the younger brother of MotoGP’s Raul Fernandez. Adrian snatched pole position with a blistering time of 1 minute 40.044 seconds, narrowly edging out Maximo Quiles, who took second with a 1 minute 40.184. The top five was rounded out by Joel Kelso, Marco Morelli, and David Munoz, the latter finishing just 0.024 seconds ahead of Veda.

With a starting position in the top six, Veda has placed himself in an ideal position to challenge for a podium in Sunday’s main event. The 20-lap race is scheduled to commence on May 10 at 4.00 p.m. Jakarta time. (Naura Sofia/EN)