Pinoy standout Alfonsi Daquigan is set to lead the charge for the Philippines as the Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup kicks off its 20th season at the Circuito de Jerez-Ángel Nieto.

Daquigan secured 13th on the grid (Row 5) after clocking a 1'49.036 during yesterday’s qualifying session. In a field defined by razor-thin margins, Daquigan’s best lap was only 0.735s off the pole time, placing him right in the thick of the mid-pack battle for the opening races.

Qualifying Highlights

The session was dominated by Carlos Cano, who snatched pole position with a 1'48.301. The intensity of the 2026 roster was on full display, with the top 21 riders all qualifying within one second of each other.

• Pole Position: Carlos Cano (SPA) – 1'48.301
• Front Row: Fernando Bujosa (P2) and David Da Costa (P3)
• The Field: A total of 26 riders representing nations from Kyrgyzstan to Colombia took to the track, all competing on identical KTM machinery.

Race 1 kicks off today at 16:10 CET (22:10 MNL), followed by Race 2 on Sunday morning. Stay tuned to News Moto for the full race reports.