Veda Ega Pratama Claims Indonesia's First Moto3 Pole at Phillip Island

A final lap puts Indonesia at the front

Veda Ega Pratama secured Indonesia's first Moto3 World Championship pole position at Phillip Island on Saturday, October 24, 2026, beating newly crowned champion Maximo Quiles by just 0.021 seconds. The 17-year-old Honda Team Asia rider completed his fastest lap in 1 minute 35.299 seconds to take the leading starting position for Sunday's Australian Grand Prix.

Pratama delivered the decisive time on his final attempt, ending a qualifying session in which rain returned and the lead changed during the closing moments. Australian rider Joel Kelso, who had led much of the session in front of his home crowd, finished third, only 0.067 seconds behind.

MotoGP, the championship's official platform, celebrated the Indonesian rider's achievement in an Instagram post:

Just made history for Indonesia

Pratama reached pole through the longer qualifying route. He finished fourth in the opening session, Q1, securing the last available place in Q2, where the leading starting positions were decided. From that narrow passage into the final session, he produced the fastest lap of the afternoon.

The result adds another milestone to his first Moto3 season, following a third place in Brazil that made him the first Indonesian rider to reach a Grand Prix racing podium. Sunday's race offers him a chance to improve on that finish.

The Australian Moto3 Grand Prix is scheduled for 21 laps on Sunday, October 25, starting at 7 a.m. Jakarta time. Viewers in Indonesia can watch on Vidio. Pratama arrives eighth in the championship with 111 points, nine behind seventh placed Valentin Perrone.

How Pratama turned fourth in Q1 into pole

Guido Pini set the fastest time in Q1, completing a lap in 1:36.261. Casey O'Gorman, Eddie O'Shea and Pratama also advanced, with the Indonesian rider taking fourth place.

Moto3 qualifying uses two sessions. Riders who have already earned direct entry compete in Q2 alongside four riders advancing from Q1. Pole position goes to the rider who records the fastest lap in Q2, giving that rider the first position on the starting grid.

Pratama therefore had to clear one competitive session before challenging for pole in another. His fourth place in Q1 was enough to keep him in contention, while his final Q2 lap put him ahead of every rider who had qualified directly.

Running fifth with time for one final lap, Pratama was at the back of the largest group on track. That position helped him avoid trouble and use the riders ahead as markers in the changing conditions. His earlier Q1 running also gave him valuable track time to judge the surface.

O'Shea also converted his Q1 appearance into a strong grid position, finishing fifth in Q2. Pini qualified eighth. Three of the four riders advancing from the opening session consequently secured places inside the top eight.

Rain and late attacks reshape the front row

Phillip Island had offered good conditions on Friday, when Alvaro Carpe set a benchmark of 1:35.292. Rain arrived on Saturday morning, although the circuit had dried by the start of Moto3 qualifying.

Kelso began Q2 strongly with a lap of 1:35.671, then improved to 1:35.366 around the middle of the session. Raindrops returned as riders continued their attempts, adding another challenge to a contest measured in thousandths of a second.

Joel Esteban came close to Kelso with about a minute remaining, finishing just 0.010 seconds short of the Australian's time. Quiles then moved ahead with 1:35.320, only for Pratama to take pole with his last lap.

Pratama's advantage over Quiles was 21 thousandths of a second. The entire first five, from Pratama to O'Shea, were separated by 0.148 seconds. Even Matteo Bertelle in tenth was only 0.613 seconds away from pole, showing how closely matched the leading qualifiers were.

A collision adds tension at Turn 4

Rico Salmela crashed after hitting the rear of Kelso's Honda at Turn 4 late in the session. Kelso stayed upright, continued riding and brought his motorcycle back to the area reserved for the leading finishers after qualifying. The contact ruined his final attempt to reclaim pole.

Turn 4 had already caused problems for other riders. David Almansa ran into the gravel but was able to pick up his KTM, while several competitors braked too late and went wide. Almansa had improved to fourth before crashing as the rain worsened, eventually dropping to 11th.

Esteban also survived contact on a fast lap when he encountered a slower Ryusei Yamanaka, whose outstretched leg struck him as Yamanaka prepared to turn. Esteban still improved his time on that lap and finished fourth.

Kelso still secured third on the grid, preserving a place on the front row for his home Grand Prix. His lap was only 0.046 seconds slower than Quiles in second, leaving him close to the champion despite losing the provisional pole he had held earlier.

Carpe, Friday's fastest rider and second in the championship, qualified 12th. Almansa finished 11th and David Munoz 16th. Those positions leave several established contenders with more riders to pass when Sunday's race begins.

The top ten on the starting grid

Honda Team Asia's Pratama will share the front row with Quiles of CFMOTO Gaviota Aspar Team and Kelso of GRYD Racing. Esteban, O'Shea and Adrian Fernandez occupy the second row.

• 1. Veda Ega Pratama, Honda Team Asia: 1:35.299.
• 2. Maximo Quiles, CFMOTO Gaviota Aspar Team: 1:35.320, 0.021 seconds behind.
• 3. Joel Kelso, GRYD Racing: 1:35.366, 0.067 seconds behind.
• 4. Joel Esteban, LEVEL UP-MTA: 1:35.376, 0.077 seconds behind.
• 5. Eddie O'Shea, GRYD Racing: 1:35.447, 0.148 seconds behind.
• 6. Adrian Fernandez, Leopard Racing: 1:35.618, 0.319 seconds behind.
• 7. Scott Ogden, CIP Green Power: 1:35.679, 0.380 seconds behind.
• 8. Guido Pini, Leopard Racing: 1:35.809, 0.510 seconds behind.
• 9. Kiattisak Singhapong, Rivacold Snipers Team: 1:35.841, 0.542 seconds behind.
• 10. Matteo Bertelle, LEVEL UP-MTA: 1:35.912, 0.613 seconds behind.

Pratama's position gives him an unobstructed starting place ahead of the field. Maintaining that advantage will require a strong launch and competitive pace across all 21 laps, with both riders beside him having qualified within seven hundredths of a second of his time.

What the result means for his season

Pratama has collected 111 championship points in his debut Moto3 campaign. Perrone, immediately ahead of him in seventh, has 120, making the gap between them nine points entering the Australian race.

Quiles has already secured the championship with 351 points. Carpe follows with 217, while Brian Uriarte is third on 198. Quiles holds a lead of 134 points over Carpe, and his place beside Pratama puts the Indonesian rookie directly alongside the season's champion at the start.

Brazil's Autodromo Internacional Ayrton Senna provided Pratama's breakthrough third place in March. The official MotoGP report confirms that he finished fourth at Le Mans on May 10, 2026. His exact podium total is therefore unclear.

Heavy rain shortened the Le Mans race to 13 laps, giving the Moto3 field its first wet session of the weekend. Pratama slipped from 11th to 14th early on before recovering to fourth by passing Guido Pini. Quiles won ahead of Adrian Fernandez and Matteo Bertelle, while Pratama returned to the championship's top five with 50 points.

A victory or second place in Australia would improve on the best finishing position consistently identified in his season record, third in Brazil. Pole gives him the best available starting position as he pursues that result.

From Gunungkidul to a Grand Prix milestone

Pratama was born on November 23, 2008, in Wonosari, Gunungkidul, in Indonesia's Yogyakarta region. He races with number 54 and is the son of Sudarmono, a former Indonesian national racer.

Motocross was his early introduction to competition. He later moved through development championships that offered experience racing against young riders from other countries, before joining Honda Team Asia in Moto3 through the Astra Honda Racing Team development programme.

His progress includes several steps before the Australian pole:

• 2022: Began his international breakthrough in the Asia Talent Cup.
• 2023: Won the Asia Talent Cup title.
• 2025: Took two victories at the Italian round of the Red Bull Rookies Cup.
• March 2026: Finished third in the Brazilian Moto3 Grand Prix.
• October 24, 2026: Claimed his first Moto3 pole position at Phillip Island.
• October 25, 2026: Scheduled to start the Australian Grand Prix from first place.

The Red Bull Rookies Cup helped him develop overtaking and slipstream skills. Slipstreaming means riding in the pocket of air behind another motorcycle, where reduced air resistance can help a rider gain speed before attempting a pass.

A different challenge over 21 laps

Pratama's racing profile describes a rider comfortable braking late into corners and competing closely with opponents. At Phillip Island, his immediate task is to turn the speed of one qualifying lap into a competitive race from start to finish.

Quiles starts second with the championship already settled. Kelso starts third at home after leading much of qualifying. Esteban and O'Shea are close behind, having finished within 0.148 seconds of Pratama, while Carpe must begin his challenge from 12th.

Sunday's race will bring those riders together over 21 laps rather than separate timed attempts. For Pratama, the concrete change is his starting place: the Indonesian rookie will lead the grid into the opening phase of a Grand Prix for the first time.

Key Points

• Veda Ega Pratama became the first Indonesian rider to secure Moto3 World Championship pole position.
• His fastest lap at Phillip Island was 1:35.299, beating Maximo Quiles by 0.021 seconds.
• Pratama advanced from fourth in Q1 before taking pole on his final Q2 attempt.
• Quiles and Australian rider Joel Kelso complete the front row.
• Pratama enters the race eighth in the championship with 111 points, nine behind Valentin Perrone.
• The Australian Moto3 Grand Prix is scheduled for 21 laps on Sunday, October 25, at 7 a.m. Jakarta time, with coverage on Vidio.