Moto3 Was Nearly a Minute Faster At Silverstone This Year

Both the Moto3 and Moto2 races saw the overall lap times completely smashed last weekend at Silverstone.

Moto3 saw a whopping 53-second improvement in the overall race time as Ivan Ortola took victory. The average time over one lap was 3.5 seconds per lap, resulting in nearly a minute being chalked off the race time in 2023.

Jake Dixon, who was victorious after a battle with Aron Canet that went down to the wire, won on home soil in Moto2 for the first time.

And while his victory was impressive, the overall race time stood out once again. The Moto2 race was 12.5 seconds faster than that of 2023, which equates to seven tenths of a second per lap.

Previously running Dunlop tyres, Moto2 and Moto3 changed to Pirelli this season which has not only led to quicker races, but more competitive racing across both classes. So far in 40 races across Moto2 and Moto3 in 2024, 38 race time’s have been quicker than in the Dunlop era.

“Since this is Pirelli’s first season as sole supplier for the Moto2 and Moto3 championships, we do not have our own data from the past to compare,” said Pirelli Motorcycle Racing Director, Giorgio Barbier.

“This means that our references are the results achieved up to last year when, however, there was a different tyre supplier. As always, we based our judgement on the numbers, which is objective and irrefutable data. The races last year were held on a dry track and in rather similar conditions to the ones this year in terms of asphalt and air temperatures.

“The Moto2 race this year was 12 and a half seconds faster than 2023, which translates into an average improvement per lap of over seven tenths. On its own, this is already a significant result, but the Moto3 is truly impressive.

“The race was an amazing 53 seconds faster than last year’s and the riders were an average of 3.5 seconds faster per lap. And, from the time these two categories have existed and considering the ratio of the overall race length and number of laps which have changed over the years, the races this year were the absolute fastest Moto2 and Moto3 ever here at Silverstone.”

But it wasn’t just the overall race times that saw records tumble, as new all-time lap records were set in addition. And with this being Pirelli’s first season as the tyre supplier to both championships, further improvements in the coming years appear to be shoe-in, given the data that is being amassed.

Barbier added: “In addition to this, new lap and all-time records were set in both categories, breaking the previous ones by more than one second, and the races were extremely thrilling and close.

“This GP marks the mid-season point of the year and the overall results so far are undoubtedly positive.

“In the 10 GP rounds held thus far, in Moto3 we have consistently set both the new all-time lap record and the race lap record, whereas in Moto2 we have set nine all-time lap records and 9 race lap records for a total of 38 records set out of the 40 up for grabs - numbers which are undoubtedly indicative of a clear improvement compared with the past.

“We still have half the championship ahead of us but we are accumulating data and feedback that will allow us to face the second part of the season and 2025 even better.”