IndonesianGP: Hakim Danish Takes 6th row Grid After Q2 Struggles
Hakim Danish's Saturday at the Pertamina Grand Prix of Indonesia swung from one extreme to the other. The AEON Credit - MT Helmets - MSI rider produced one of the standout laps of Qualifying 1 to secure his place in Q2, only to find himself at the bottom of the Q2 timesheet, 18th of 18, after a session in which he managed just two timed laps.
Danish's morning was a quiet one. In Free Practice 2, in dry conditions with 28°C air and 41°C on the track, he stayed out for a single 18-lap run without returning to the pits. His pace built through the opening laps, from a 1'39.331 down to a best of 1'38.180 on lap 8, before he settled into the 1'39s for the rest of the run.
That left him 25th, 1.490 seconds behind Maximo Quiles, whose 1'36.690 was a new all-time lap record at Mandalika, beating Adrian Fernandez's 2025 mark of 1'37.022. The field behind Quiles was tightly packed: fifteen riders, from 11th to Danish in 25th, were covered by just 0.320 seconds, and he was only 0.013 seconds behind Ruche Moodley in 24th.
With the track surface up at 65°C for the afternoon, Danish started the Q1 group as expected and made it count. His first run produced back-to-back laps of 1'37.980, his best, and a 1'38.055. That put him second in the 12-rider group, 0.244 seconds behind Scott Ogden's session-topping 1'37.736 and 0.122 seconds clear of David Muñoz in third. It was also nearly two-tenths quicker than his FP2 benchmark from the morning, 1'38.180.
Only the fastest four in Q1 advance to Q2, and Danish comfortably made it, joining Ogden, Muñoz and Leo Rammerstorfer, who took the last spot by just 0.003 seconds from Valentin Perrone.
Qualifying 2 did not follow the same script. Danish managed only two timed laps across two runs: a 1'39.619 on his first run, then a 1'40.605 on the second, which began after a long stop in the pits (the out-lap alone took 8'36). His best was 1.639 seconds slower than his Q1 lap, even though conditions were unchanged, and a time like his Q1 1'37.980 would have placed him around 15th on the Q2 sheet.
Instead he was last of the 18 runners, 2.758 seconds behind Brian Uriarte's pole-winning 1'36.861 and 0.784 seconds behind Rammerstorfer in 17th. Uriarte led David Almansa by 0.087 seconds, with Alvaro Carpe third. His teammate Ryusei Yamanaka, who went directly into Q2, qualified 11th with a 1'37.613.
Danish ends the day 18th on the Q2 order, with the Grid 18 on 6th row in official starting grid ahead Sunday race in Mandalika.
Sunday Race of Moto3 will start on 12pm. (Malaysian time).
Credit Photo : ZK Racing
