Category: Crew On Two

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Moto3: Ramirez Takes First GP Win

The 2019 Moto3 World Championship had its seventh race of the season in Barcelona. Despite the race taking place before noon, the track temperature was exceptionally high.

Tony Arbolino (VNE Snipers) took the early lead with the holeshot from Aron Canet (Sterilgarda Max Racing Team) and Tatsuki Suzuki (Sic58 Squadra Corse), although Suzuki was down at turn ten on the first lap with contact with Albert Arenas (Sama Qatar Angel Nieto Team).

Tony Arbolino leading the 2019 Moto3 race – Round Seven – Catalunya, Barcelona. Image courtesy of HondaNews.Eu

By the end of the first lap, it was Lorenzo Dalla Porta (Leopard Racing) who was able to come to the front, ahead of Canet and Arbolino. By this point, there was already something of a breakaway group of eleven riders.

This was reduced to ten, however, when Dalla Porta’s Honda expired at the end of lap three. Dalla Porta’s bike let go on the exit of turn thirteen, and the pack behind was lucky to avoid the luckless Italian.

There was then a pileup in turn four, involving both Sama Qatar Angel Nieto Team riders, Albert Arenas and Raul Fernandez, as well as Can Oncu (Red Bull KTM Ajo), Filip Salac (Redox PruestelGP), Vicente Perez (Reale Avintia Arizona 77) and Sergio Garcia (Estrella Galicia 0,0). This didn’t change the leading order too much, but it created some gaps in the field, with the front group now a distinctive thirteen, with Niccolo Antonelli (Sic58 Squadra Corse) and Ryusei Yamanaka (Estrella Galicia 0,0) just off the back.

Tony Arbolino hit the front with eleven laps to go. He then gave up the lead immediately as he ran out wide in turn three. It was a strange moment, as he sat up in the middle of turn three, and cruised round the outside of it. It looked like a bike problem, but he was back in the race moments later, although behind his teammate, Romano Fenati (VNE Snipers). One lap later, though, Arbolino was out.

Gabriel Rodrigo at the Moto3 2019: Round Seven – Catalunya, Barcelona. Image courtesy of HondaNews.eu

Gabriel Rodrigo (Kommerling Gresini Moto3) and Darryn Binder (CIP Green Power) had looked strong throughout the race, especially Rodrigo who started from pole position. However, they were both out at turn ten on the penultimate lap when they made contact.

Onto the final lap, it was all to play for, but Kaito Toba (Honda Team Asia) had the advantage. He crashed, though, at turn ten, and almost immediately after John McPhee (Petronas SRT) gave up his chance at the podium as he made an attempt to impersonate Randy Mamola, being high-sided by his Honda, but holding onto it. Toba was out, but McPhee’s incredible effort to stay on the bike earned him three points.

In the remaining four corners, no one was able to challenge Marcos Ramirez (Leopard Racing) who inherited the lead after Toba’s crash. Aron Canet had a go a passing Ramirez into the final corner, but Ramirez’ entry speed was too much for the #44, who remained second. Ramirez’ first win comes at one of his home Grands Prix. Although an Andalusian, to take his first victory in Spain will be a special point in the #42’s career. It has not been a stunning season so far from Ramirez who re-joined the team with whom he fought for the 2016 CEV Moto3 Junior World Championship, but this could prove an important moment in his season, as he became the twelfth winner in as many races in the lightweight class.

Whilst Canet was unable to make the move into the final corner, he was able to finish second and extend his championship lead, taking profit from the misfortune of his rivals, Jaume Masia (Bester Capital Dubai) who crashed in an incident with Darryn Binder; Lorenzo Dalla Porta and Tony Arbolino, all of whom did not score.

Aron Canet KTM RC250 GP Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya 2019 . Image courtesy of Gold and Goose/KTM

Although the lead did not change in the final corner, Celestino Vietti (Sky Racing Team VR46) was able to pass Alonso Lopez (Estrella Galicia 0,0) in turn fourteen. This gave Vietti his second podium of 2019 and the third of his career. Unfortunately for Lopez, it came at the cost of a home race rostrum for the #21. After having his podium in Jerez last season taken away thanks to a post-race penalty, Lopez’ emotional response in the garage after the race to losing third place in the 2019 Catalan GP was understandable. However, it was a strong ride from the Spaniard, who led for much of the race and had some strong pace – arguably the strongest of the field.

Dennis Foggia (Sky Racing Team VR46) was able to recover from thirtieth on the grid to finish fifth which equals his best result of the season of last time out in Mugello.

Ai Ogura made a bad start from the front row of the grid, but was able to recover and finished sixth, which is the best result in the World Championship for the rookie. Romano Fenati took seventh place, his best result of the season, ahead of Ayumu Sasaki (Petronas SRT), wildcard Ryusei Yamanaka and Jakub Kornfeil (Redox PruestelGP) who came from twenty-second on the grid to round out the top ten.

Niccolo Antonelli spent much of the final portion of the race contesting the lead, but a mistake at turn one with three laps to go dropped the Italian down the order. He was recovering, and was inside the top ten halfway round the final lap, but at turn seven made a mistake which once again dropped him back. In the end, Antonelli took eleventh place, ahead of the wildcard Carlos Tatay (Fundacion Andreas Perez 77) who took his first GP points in twelfth; the aforementioned John McPhee; Tom Booth-Amos (CIP Green Power) who took his first points in the World Championship and Darryn Binder who got back on after his crash with Rodrigo for the final point in fifteenth.

Kazuki Masaki (BOE Skull Rider Mugen Race) was unlucky, as he clipped the rear wheel of Ramirez in the closing the stages at turn ten. Ramirez had contact with another rider, and Masaki had nowhere to go when the Spaniard backed out of the throttle. Eventually, Masaki came back for sixteenth, ahead of Riccardo Rossi (Kommerling Gresini Moto3), Vicente Perez and Tatsuki Suzuki.

Such a crazy race had a number of retirements, the first being Dalla Porta. He was followed out by the riders involved in the turn four pileup: Arenas, Garcia, Fernandez, Oncu, Migno and Salac, although the latter three all got back on before retiring later on. Arbolino was the next to go, before Masia dropped out. Then it was Makar Yurchenko (BOE Skull Rider Mugen Race) to fall, before Rodrigo’s incident with Binder took him out, and Toba’s final lap crash.

Featured image courtesy of Hondanews.eu

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Moto2: Marquez Takes Third Successive Win, Points Lead

The sun had been beating down on the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya for six hours by the time the Moto2 race started. The track temperature was excessive and the grip was low, so tyre management would be crucial.

The holeshot went to Tom Luthi (Dynavolt Intact GP) from pole sitter Augusto Fernandez (Flexbox HP 40) and Sam Lowes (Federal Oil Gresini Moto2).

Tom Luthi at the 2019 Moto2 barcelona-catalunya race. Image courtesy of RacePixs.de/ IntatctGp

Things were going bad for championship leader Lorenzo Baldssarri (Flexbox HP 40), who was wide in turn four and then clipped Remy Gardner (ONEXOX TKKR SAG Team) who went down as a result.

But at the front at the end of the first lap, Luthi and Fernandez were pulling away from Lowes behind, who was under pressure from Fabio Di Giannantonio (HDR Heidrun Speed Up), Alex Marquez (EG 0,0 Marc VDS), Enea Bastianini (Italtrans Racing Team) and Jorge Navarro (HDR Heidrun Speed Up).

Soon, Marquez and Di Giannantonio were able to pass Lowes, which was especially important for Marquez who had his sights set on his third consecutive victory.

As soon as Marquez had some clear track for a lap, he was able to be the fastest rider on the track, and he began closing down the leading two.

Meanwhile, Bastianini had been able to pass Lowes. With Di Giannantonio being pulled along by Marquez, it was important for Bastianini to jump onto the back of his compatriot’s Speed Up before Marquez dragged him away.

A small mistake from Tom Luthi in turn ten with eighteen laps to go, allowed Fernandez a chance at the lead. The Spaniard didn’t need asking twice, and he moved ahead. This was a much needed move for Fernandez, with Marquez and the two Italians of Di Giannantonio and Bastianini closing behind.

Fernandez, though, was unable to make a break from Luthi, who re-passed the Spaniard a lap after he hit the front. Marquez was now on the back of the leading pair, with Di Giannantonio not too far away. Bastianini, on the other hand, had been dropped by the front four and had Jorge Navarro for close company.

As the leaders hit fifteen laps to go, Lorenzo Baldassarri crashed at turn ten. He was unable to re-join, and the Italian waved goodbye to the championship lead he had held since Qatar.

Seconds later, Marquez was past Fernandez on the pit straight, as Luthi dropped the hammer. One lap later, Jorge Navarro passed Bastianini for fifth, as his teammate, Di Giannantonio, was pressuring Fernandez for third place.

Di Giannantonio made the move on Fernandez at turn one with thirteen laps to go, which was an important one to make for the Italian, with the Speed Up’s tendency to look after the tyres. However, at turn ten on the next lap it was all over for Di Giannantonio, as he crashed out of what was turning into a strong ride for the rookie.

Out front, though, it was still Luthi leading from Marquez. With Baldassarri out, this was not just the battle for the lead of the race, but also for the lead of the championship. As they entered the final ten laps, Marquez was starting to apply more pressure to the Swiss rider. One lap later, the Spaniard was through, and looked to have more pace.

Simultaneously, Navarro passed Fernandez for third, although it seemed that would be as far as he could get, such was the gap to Luthi in second.
With six laps to go, Marquez started to stretch his advantage. A moment for Luthi in turn ten six laps from the flag was a sign for the Swiss that his front tyre was giving up on him.

For the final five laps, it was plain sailing for Marquez, who had a comfortable run to the flag to claim his third win of the season, and to move into the front of the championship. Three dominant wins in a row will have Marquez’ rivals worried, and this championship could soon start getting out of reach of the others should Marquez continue this form.

Behind Marquez, though, things were heating up in the final three laps, as Navarro was closing in on Luthi for second place. The Spaniard was not fast enough, though, and Luthi maintained second ahead of Navarro. It was not a bad race for the Swiss, but he will know that to take the fight to Marquez he needs to make a step, because the gap Marquez has in race pace is too much.

Luthi, Alex Marquez, Navarro, Moto2 race, Catalunya MotoGP 2019

Navarro made a welcome return to the podium in his home race after missing it in Mugello. With third place – Navarro’s fourth rostrum in five races – the Spaniard moves ahead of Baldassarri in the standings and into third.

Fourth place went to the pole sitter, Augusto Fernandez, who dropped back after a strong start, whilst the top five was rounded out by Bastianini, who once more took the top rookie spot and equalled his best 2019 result of fifth place.

A tough battle behind Bastianini went on in the final stages of the race, one which Luca Marini (Sky Racing Team VR46) came out on top of for sixth place, ahead of Marcel Schrotter (Dynavolt Intact GP) and Xavi Vierge (EG 0,0 Marc VDS). Sam Lowes took ninth spot, whilst Tetsuta Nagashima (ONEXOX TKKR SAG Team) completed the top ten.

Eleventh place went to Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Ajo) who was the top KTM, twenty seconds off the lead. Andrea Locatelli (Italtrans Racing Team) was twelfth, ahead of Nicolo Bulega (Sky Racing Team VR46), Simone Corsi (Tasca Racing Scuderia Moto2) and Jorge Martin (Red Bull KTM Ajo) who completed the points.

Dominique Aegerter (MV Agusta Idealavoro Forward) finished sixteenth, ahead of Somkiat Chantra (IDEMITSU Honda Team Asia), Bo Bendsneyder (NTS RW Racing GP), Jonas Folger (Petronas Sprinta Racing) and Joe Roberts (American Racing) who completed the top twenty.

Dimas Ekky (IDEMITSU Honda Team Asia) was twenty-first, ahead of Steven Odendaal (NTS RW Racing GP), Marco Bezzecchi (Red Bull KTM Tech3), Lukas Tulovic (Kiefer Racing) and Xavi Cardelus (Sama Qatar Angel Nieto Team) who was the twenty-fifth and last finisher.

The aforementioned Remy Gardner was the first rider to retire, on lap one after the incident with Baldassarri. Iker Lecuona (American Racing) was the next rider to drop out, as he retired down pit lane with twenty laps to go. Baldassarri then crashed out four laps later, before Di Giannantonio crashed. Stefano Manzi (MV Agusta Idealavoro) crashed out with six to go, before Jake Dixon (Sama Qatar Angel Nieto Team) fell on the final lap.

Featured Image courtesy of David Goldman/Marc VDS

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WorldSBK: Rea Defeats Razgatlioglu as Bautista Crashes in Misano Race 2

The second race of round seven of the 2019 Superbike World Championship saw trends of recent rounds continue, as the title battle grew closer in Misano.

Alvaro Bautista (ARUBA.IT Racing – Ducati) made the holeshot from the pole position he won in the morning’s Superpole Race. It seemed as though he would be able to get away and escape at the front for another comfortable victory in 2019. However, the Spaniard did as in Jerez, and dropped the Panigale V4R – this time on the second lap, at Rio corner. It was a costly mistake from the Spaniard, and came after a dominant sprint race victory which pointed towards him being able to draw out his points lead once more. Instead, it would be dramatically reduced over the course of the weekend.

Leon Haslam (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) inherited the lead when Bautista crashed after he made a good start from the front row, although he was under pressure from Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) right on his tail who in turn had Toprak Razgatlioglu (Turkish Puccetti Racing) on his tail.

Razgatlioglu was on the attack, and soon passed Rea, and wasted no time in taking the lead from Haslam either. It didn’t take long for the Turk to start escaping at the front, and Rea knew he couldn’t allow the gap to become too big if he wanted victory and to take the most advantage of Bautista’s fall. Once he passed his teammate, Haslam, Rea started to hunt down Razgatlioglu.

There was no hurry for Rea to take the lead, though, once he arrived on the back of the satellite Kawasaki rider. Instead, the reigning World Champion studied his stablemate until the very closing stages, as the pressure from behind did not exist thanks to the leading pair’s superior pace.

It was a fascinating portion of the race, thanks to the opposite riding styles of the duelling Kawasaki riders, with Rea’s style being far smoother than his younger rival – Razgatlioglu using minimum corner speed, hammering the front tyre in the initial braking phase and being exceedingly aggressive in standing up the bike to try to hold onto the tyre.

In the end, though, it seemed that it was tyre which held Razgatlioglu back in his battle against four-times World Champion Rea, who seemed to have more edge grip compared to the #54 rider who was notably struggling compared to the factory rider on the exit of turns three and six.

When Rea came past Razgatlioglu with four laps to go, there was no reply from the Turk with the exception of an unsuccessful lunge on the final lap at turn eight. Rea squared him off on the exit, and Razgatlioglu couldn’t carry the same speed as Rea through the fast rights to pass in turn fourteen.

With Bautista out, it was an important win for Rea, who was able to take his fourth win of the season and was able to cut his deficit in the title chase to Bautista down to sixteen points, as the Spaniard salvaged fourteenth place and two points. The short straights and hard braking zones of Donington park could provide another opportunity for the Northern Irishman.

Razgatlioglu’s second place was the result of a masterful ride, bested only by the greatest rider in the history of the Superbike World Championship, and his third podium in as many rounds. With rumours about competition for the second factory Kawasaki circling, and the Suzuka 8 Hour on the horizon, the best race of his career came at a good moment. Donington was the scene of Razgatlioglu’s first WSBK podium back in 2018, and could be another opportunity for him to achieve his first win.

Leon Haslam ensured the podium was an all-Kawasaki affair for his first rostrum since Phillip Island in February after he beat Alex Lowes (Pata Yamaha WorldSBK) in what proved to be a race-long battle between the two BSB champions.

Michael Ruben Rinaldi (BARNI Racing Team) completed the top five for the best result of his career in WSBK ahead of Tom Sykes (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK) who made a good race from eleventh on the grid (courtesy of a breakdown in the Superpole Race). Chaz Davies (ARUBA.IT Racing – Ducati) could only manage seventh place ahead of Michele Pirro (BARNI Racing Team) and Lorenzo Zanetti (Team Goeleven) who completed the top ten.

Markus Reiterberger (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK) took eleventh place, ahead of Loris Baz (Ten Kate Racing – Yamaha), Samuele Cavalieri (Motocorsa Racing), Bautista after his crash, and Sandro Cortese (GRT Yamaha WorldSBK) who, as Bautista, remounted after a crash and took the final point with it.

Ryuichi Kiyonari at WorldSBK 2019: Round Seven – Misano, Italy. Image courtesy of Honda Pro Racing.

Marco Melandri (GRT Yamaha WorldSBK) was another rider who crashed and remounted, although the Italian was unable to score points and finished down in sixteenth. Ryuichi Kiyonari (Moriwaki Althea Honda Team) was the last rider to finish, in seventeenth.

Alessandro Delbianco (Althea Mie Racing Team) suffered his second retirement of the day, and was joined on the side-lines by Yuki Takahashi (Moriwaki Althea Honda Team) and Leandro Mercado (Orelac Racing VerdNatura).

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MotoGP: Dominant Marquez Extends Points Lead with Barcelona Win

The seventh round of the 2019 MotoGP World Championship took place in Barcelona, as misfortune for his main championship rivals saw Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team) greatly extend his points lead.

The race started out promisingly, with Andrea Dovizioso (Mission Winnow Ducati) taking the holeshot. The Italian led the first lap-and-a-half, closely followed by Marquez and Maverick Vinales (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) who made a good start from the second row. Jorge Lorenzo (Repsol Honda Team), too, had made a good start from row four. A look behind from Marquez on the opening lap caused Fabio Quartararo (Petronas Yamaha SRT), Valentino Rossi (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) and Danilo Petrucci (Mission Winnow Ducati) to check up, and Lorenzo was able to take advantage and move up to fourth behind Vinales.

Maverick Vinales slicing through the pack at the 2019 Catalunya MotoGP Race. Image courtesy of Yamaha Racing

Vinales’ corner speed in turn nine on the second lap was far better than that of Marquez and Dovizioso ahead of him, and had to back out of the throttle on the exit to avoid the Honda rider. Lorenzo behind, riding at the front of a race for the first time in Repsol Honda colours, tried to take advantage. Lorenzo out-braked Vinales into the dead-stop turn ten, but as he did so Marquez dived to the inside of Dovizioso. The #04 Ducati rider checked up to try and square off turn ten, since Marquez had taken his line away. As Dovizioso slowed, Lorenzo closed in on his former teammate more rapidly than he was expecting. To try to avoid Dovizioso, Lorenzo squeezed the front brake a little harder, which caused him to fold the front. Out of control, Lorenzo’s #99 Honda hit Dovizioso’s #04 Ducati, whilst Vinales had nowhere to go and was also caught up in the mess.

Behind, Valentino Rossi was trying to pass Danilo Petrucci. To pass a Ducati on a slower bike, you have to push past the limit, and Rossi did just that, into turn ten to pass the #9 Desmosedici. He was going long, and was also unable to avoid his teammate’s YZR-M1. Four riders were out in one corner, and with Marquez out of the incident clean, he already had the victory in sight.

In second place was Danilo Petrucci, and behind him was Quartararo and Alex Rins (Team Suzuki Ecstar). The speed disadvantage of Quartararo’s M1 meant that it was not until Rins passed the Frenchman that Petrucci came under real pressure. However, the Suzuki was not quite fast enough on the main straight for a pass into turn one, nor could it accelerate out of turn nine quick enough to put the Spaniard alongside Petrucci to pass into turn ten. So, instead of moving past Petrucci and setting his sights on Marquez early on, Rins was forced to sit behind the slow-to-turn Ducati until lap fourteen, when he forced his way through in the middle of turn four. It was a tough move, and there was plenty of contact, but it was fair enough from the pilot of the nimble Suzuki.

Rins’ advantage over Petrucci was short-lived though. Although he had seemed to have a strong pace throughout the weekend, Rins was unable to drop Petrucci and close Marquez down once he had some clear track. Instead, after three laps of leading Petrucci, Rins watched as the Italian came back through. In trying to reclaim second place for himself at turn one on lap eighteen, Rins lost the rear end, made some small contact with Petrucci’s bike, and did well to stay on. He dropped to seventh, and now started a fightback through the pack to try to regain a position on the Catalan GP podium.

As soon as Rins ran wide, Quartararo sensed an opportunity, and he moved past Petrucci in turn three. Unlike Rins, the Frenchman was able to get away, and was the fastest rider on the track for most of the final seven laps, although he was not able to put Marquez under any considerable pressure.

Marc Marquez leading the 2019 Barcelona MotoGP race. Image courtesy of Box Repsol

The reigning World Champion was untouchable in Barcelona for the final twenty-three laps. In fact, such was his eagerness to get to the front on lap two when he passed Dovizioso, it is possible to say that Marquez’ pace would have been good enough to win fairly comfortably even without Lorenzo, Dovizioso and the two factory Yamaha riders dropping out on the second lap. The race bore similarities to Assen 2016, when Marquez finished second knowing that his rivals for that year, Jorge Lorenzo and Valentino Rossi, were not scoring big points (Lorenzo in a crisis of confidence and Rossi in the gravel). After that race, Marquez’ championship advantage was twenty-four points. After the 2019 Catalan Grand Prix, Marquez’ points lead stands at thirty-seven points over Andrea Dovizioso. With Assen next up and Sachsenring also on the horizon, it is hard to see that advantage decreasing by the summer.

Whilst mechanical problems cost Quartararo a debut rostrum in his fourth MotoGP race back in Jerez, in Barcelona it was a different story. At the site of his first Grand Prix win – in 2018 in the Moto2 race for Speed Up – Quartararo brought both himself and Petronas Yamaha SRT their first premier class podium. In Assen – being a circuit with almost no straights – victory will be the target for the young French rookie. Quartararo’s pass on Petrucci was fantastic, and the lap he put together after that to leave the Italian with no option to pass the Frenchman once they arrived at the straight was superb as well. The #20’s ability to capitalise on the YZR-M1’s advantages is what brought him this debut podium, and is what could see him win a race this year.

Danilo Petrucci was able to use the advantages of the Ducati to defend his podium, to make it three podiums on the bounce for the Mugello winner. Quartararo had too much pace for the Italian once he came through, but Petrucci’s calmness when under such immense pressure from Rins in the first half of the race was impressive. Petrucci did not have the pace for third, but he made it anyway, and that is a testament to the level of his riding at the moment.

Alex Rins at the 2019 Barcelona MotoGP Race. Image courtesy of Suzuki Racing

Fourth place will be a disappointment for Alex Rins, who was simply frustrated by Petrucci’s non-existent corner speed. The Suzuki can punch off corners quite well from low-speed, but Petrucci’s defensive riding meant that the GSX-RR’s main positive point – its mid-corner speed – was nullified.

It was a strong race for Jack Miller (Pramac Racing), who came from fourteenth on the grid to finish fifth, ahead of Joan Mir (Team Suzuki Ecstar) who had his best ride since Qatar with sixth place. Pol Espargaro (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) had another strong ride on the factory RC16 with seventh place, in front of Takaaki Nakagami (LCR Honda IDEMITSU) who was visibly struggling with grip when he was on the live world feed in the latter part of the race. Tito Rabat (Reale Avintia Racing) took his first top ten since his leg was destroyed in Silverstone last year, whilst Johann Zarco (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) took his first top ten in orange.

Eleventh place went to Andrea Iannone (Aprilia Racing Team Gresini) which is the Italian’s best result for Aprilia. Miguel Oliveira (Red Bull KTM Tech3) was twelfth, whilst Team Suzuki Ecstar test rider Sylvain Guintoli was the final finisher in thirteenth.

Karel Abraham (Reale Avintia Racing) crashed out on the first lap, whilst Bradley Smith (Aprilia Racing Team) took out Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia Racing Team Gresini) whose left leg was injured in the crash. That happened one lap before Jorge Lorenzo took himself out of the race along with Dovizioso, Vinales and Rossi. One lap after the four-bike incident at the front, Hafizh Syahrin (Red Bull KTM Tech3) dropped out, before Francesco Bagnaia (Pramac Racing) saw his Catalan GP come to an early end. Franco Morbidelli (Petronas Yamaha SRT) crashed at turn seven when he missed the braking point, slid out off-line and lost the front when he touched the throttle. Cal Crutchlow (LCR Honda CASTROL) was the final retirement when he lost the rear going into turn four trying to pass Jack Miller.

Featured Image courtesy of Box Repsol

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WorldSBK: Rea Wins, Bautista Third in Torrential Misano

The sunny conditions of Superpole were replaced with the rain of Saturday morning for race one of the seventh round of the Superbike World Championship in Misano.

Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) made the holeshot from pole position, whilst Alex Lowes (Pata Yamaha WorldSBK) made good progress from row two and was second as the field hit the back straight out of turn six for the first time.

Lowes soon took the lead, but one lap later the race was red flagged. This red flag was the second of the day after the start was delayed on the first warm up lap.

The rain soon cleared and the track dried quickly. Lowes started from pole position but it was once again Rea who made the holeshot. Lowes dropped back to third place behind Tom Sykes (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK), but was able to move back up to second place.

Whilst Lowes was behind Rea, the pair were able to move away from the field quite considerably. No one could get much within one second of their pace. Additionally, the proximity of the two on track gave a good indication of their contrasting riding styles, and the contrasting characteristics of their bikes, as Rea and the Kawasaki were faster in the middle of the lap, which is quite stop-start, whereas Lowes had a significant advantage in the first part of the lap which is all about corner speed and flow.

Once Lowes got past Rea with a move done at turn seven as the race approached half distance, he was able to stretch the World Champion and pull clear. However, just as the Yamaha rider’s advantage edged out to 1.5 seconds, he crashed at the fastest corner of the year – Curvone – and his chance of a race win was over. After losing Michael van der Mark to injury yesterday, all of the hopes of the Pata Yamaha WorldSBK squad were pinned on Lowes, and now he too was out.

That left Rea in a fairly comfortable position, with Sykes far behind on the BMW, and no faster than the four-times WSBK champion.

Sykes, too, was lapping alone, but behind things were getting interesting for the final podium spot.

Chaz Davies (ARUBA.IT Racing – Ducati) held fourth place for much of the race, and this became third when Lowes crashed. The Welshman struggled to match the pace of Sykes, but was able to keep the riders behind him at bay.

Leon Haslam (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) was able to pass the #7 rider eventually, though. But the reigning BSB champion’s podium hopes were ended when he crashed in turn eight, allowing Davies back into third.
Davies gave up the final rostrum position soon after, though, when he let teammate Alvaro Bautista (ARUBA.IT Racing – Ducati) through at turn five.

This was followed by some significant time loss for Davies, who also dropped behind Loris Baz (Ten Kate Racing – Yamaha) and into fifth. Davies’ pace picked up again towards the end of the race, but it was not enough to improve from his fifth position.

At the front, Rea was untouchable after the crash of Lowes, and recorded his third win of the season and cut his deficit in the points standings to Bautista to thirty-two points. It was a remarkable performance from Rea who, although known for his prowess in damp conditions, had not ridden in the morning’s FP3 session, which was the only wet track time of the weekend for the WSBK riders before the race, after a dry Friday and scorching Superpole. To win by such a margin with little experience of the track in those conditions compared to his rivals was both impressive and important, as the Northern Irishman needed to take advantage of his title rival’s lack of pace.

Alvaro Bautista and Chaz Davies. Image courtesy of Ducati

Indeed, Bautista was able to take third place, meaning that of the races he has finished in WorldSBK Bautista has visited the podium after each one of them. Bautista had dropped as low as sixth in the race, but took advantage of others’ falls and misfortune to arrive on the podium and complete a quite strong damage limitation job. The Spaniard will be hoping for dry conditions on Sunday, ones in which he will hope to have the potential to take the fight to Rea.

Between the two title rivals were 7.756 seconds and Tom Sykes, who took his first podium of 2019 and the first for BMW, since their full-time return at the beginning of the year. It was a lonely race for Sykes, who was not strong enough to go with Rea and Lowes at the start, but was faster and more consistent than those behind him. In conditions where the other bikes cannot make use of their power advantage compared to the BMW, the S1000RR’s chassis can negate its motor disadvantage, and Sykes was able to make the most of that for this third place.

Loris Baz – Ten Kate Yamaha Supported WorldSBK. Image courtesy of Yamaha racing

Loris Baz was the top ‘independent’ rider for Ten Kate, who were able to finish fourth in their fourth race with Yamaha, and their fourth of the season. Before Bautista got into third place, Baz was closing on the championship leader, but towards the end the Spaniard’s pace picked up. With the retirement of Lowes and the absence of van der Mark, this fourth place was also an important one for Yamaha in the constructor standings.

Chaz Davies finished fifth in what was a strange race for the Ducati rider, with his pace dropping off strangely in the middle of the race. But, with Haslam crashing out, Davies’ fifth in conjunction with Bautista’s third place means that the ARUBA.IT Racing – Ducati team extends its lead at the top of the Teams’ Championship over KRT by two points.

Marco Melandri (GRT Yamaha WorldSBK) has a six-place grid penalty for the Superpole Race on Sunday morning, so he had to maximise this first race of the weekend. Unfortunately for the Italian, he ran on in turn eight early on, and his recovery only got him as far as sixth place, ahead of teammate Sandro Cortese (GRT Yamaha WorldSBK). Yuki Takahashi (Moriwaki Althea Honda Team) took Honda’s best result of the year in eighth, ahead of Eugene Laverty’s new replacement at Team Goeleven, Lorenzo Zanetti. Leandro Mercado (Orelac Racing VerdNatura) completed the top ten.

Alessandro Delbianco (Althea Mie Racing Team) was in seventh place with five laps to go but ended up eleventh ahead of Jordi Torres (Team Pedercini Racing), wildcard Samuele Cavalieri (Motocorsa Racing), Ryuichi Kiyonari (Moriwaki Althea Honda Team) and Markus Reiterberger (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK) who was the final finisher in fifteenth and took the final point.

Wildcard Dominic Schmitter (IXS Racing powered by YART) was the first retirement on lap eight, the same lap as Lowes crashed out of the lead. Moments after Lowes went down at turn eleven, wildcard Michele Pirro (BARNI Racing Team) crashed out at the same point. Michael Ruben Rinaldi dropped his BARNI Racing Team Ducati two laps after Lowes, Schmitter and Pirro went down and two laps before Haslam crashed the factory Kawasaki. Toprak Razgatlioglu (Turkish Puccetti Racing) went down on the final lap out of eighth place.

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WorldSBK: Back to Italy for Round Seven

Two weeks on from an action-packed sixth round of the Superbike World Championship, the series moves to Misano this weekend for the eighth round of 2019.

Alvaro Bautista (ARUBA.IT Racing – Ducati) shocked everyone by crashing his Ducati Panigale V4R in a race for the first time in race two back in Jerez, letting Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) off the proverbial hook in a weekend in which it looked certain that Bautista would greatly extend his championship advantage.

Alvaro Bautista at Jerez WSBK 2019. Image courtesy of Ducati

Instead, Rea clawed back two points over the course of the Jerez weekend. The gap between the two title rivals stands at forty-one points in Bautista’s favour. On paper, it still seems unlikely that Rea will be able to overcome his deficit, but Misano could prove a positive round for the reigning World Champion. The Adriatic circuit was the scene of Rea’s first ever WorldSBK win back in 2009. In total, Rea has six WorldSBK wins in Misano, as well as four other podium finishes, which compares to Bautista’s solitary Grand Prix victory back in 2008 in the 250cc race, a third place in the 2009 250 race and a third place in the 2012 MotoGP race. In fact, in that 2012 premier class outing, Rea was also present on the second Repsol Honda. The Northern Irishman was replacing the injured Casey Stoner, and finished eighth. So, strictly speaking, for the first time this season we go to a track where Bautista and Rea have faced each other, albeit in particular circumstances which are unrepresentative of those this weekend and were in no way fair to Rea.

This weekend presents a good opportunity for Yamaha. Their bike has traditionally gone well in Misano – who can forget Michael van der Mark’s tyre letting go on his way to victory for Pata Yamaha WorldSBK back in 2017? Additionally, van der Mark was on the rostrum last season in the second race, ahead of Marco Melandri – then on Ducati, now riding GRT Yamaha WorldSBK’s YZF-R1. Furthermore, Melandri won at Misano in 2017, adding to his double rostrums in 2014, and his third place in the first race in 2011, also on a Yamaha.

Moreover, the Ten Kate Racing – Yamaha team have already been to Misano with the R1, albeit mostly in wet conditions. This should give them a chance of a good result this weekend, and an improvement over their first outing of the year last time out in Jerez where Loris Baz went 12-9 in the two full-length races, but was unable to start the Superpole race of bike problems.

Jerez proved a strong round for Toprak Razgatlioglu (Turkish Puccetti Racing) who took his second podium of the season – and second in two rounds – with third place in race two. The Turkish rider will need more of the same this weekend to edge closer to securing a factory Kawasaki seat for next year, as Moto2’s Xavi Vierge is rumoured to be a possible teammate for Jonathan Rea in 2020.

Michele Pirro is also in action this weekend, the Ducati stalwart riding the BARNI Panigale V4R this weekend. The Italian has featured inside the top ten in several MotoGP races at Misano in the past for the Italian factory. In 2012, Pirro was tenth in Misano on the Gresini FTR Honda CRT machine, and the year after was tenth once more for Pramac. In 2016, as a wildcard, Pirro finished seventh after qualifying on the second row of the grid, whilst in 2017 he finished fifth in the wet. Pirro’s latest MotoGP appearance was at the Italian GP in Mugello earlier this month where he finished seventh, thirteen seconds off the win. Similarly, his latest WorldSBK appearance at Misano came in 2015, when he was eighth in both races. Additionally, Pirro won both races at the CIV round at Misano earlier this year, so could present a problem for some of the championship regulars.

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MotoGP: Quartararo from Gravel to Pole in Montmelo

Track temperature is often the limiting factor in Barcelona, and it seemed to be the case for qualifying for the seventh round of the 2019 MotoGP World Championship.

Q1 saw Franco Morbidelli (Petronas Yamaha SRT) recover from his huge high-side in FP3 to top the session from Joan Mir (Team Suzuki Ecstar), who both advanced to Q2.

In Q2, Fabio Quartararo (Petronas Yamaha SRT) took his second MotoGP pole position in response to his first crash on a MotoGP machine in FP3. It was a crucial result for Quartararo because he has had a strong race pace all weekend. If he gets to turn one first it could be bad news for the others.

Marc Marquez at Montmelo Circuito de Montmelo, Cataluña, 2019 MotoGP. Image courtesy of Box Repsol

Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team) has struggled, by his standards, this weekend in Montmelo. Nonetheless, he positioned himself well on the track for his second run in Q2, and with the assistance of a Valentino Rossi (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) tow he managed to take second place, and put himself in a good position for tomorrow. He might not have the outright pace of Quartararo or Alex Rins (Team Suzuki Ecstar), but he might not need it, such is the expectation of high tyre wear in the race and the speed of the Honda.

Franco Morbidelli took third place on the grid, which was quite remarkable considering the size of his crash in the morning. With Valentino Rossi taking his best qualifying since Texas as he took fourth. The circuit is a good one for Yamaha thanks to the long, flowing corners, which allow it to negate its disadvantage in the half-mile straight. Between Quartararo, Maverick Vinales (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP), Morbidelli and Rossi, Yamaha has a good chance to take its first victory of the season tomorrow.

In the middle of the second row is Andrea Dovizioso (Mission Winnow Ducati). The #04 has also looked strong this weekend, and seems to be in the frame for the podium fight. The nature of the tyres could see Dovizioso take his favoured strategy to hit the front and control the pace for the first part of the race to save his tyres. If his main rivals are Yamaha riders and the Suzuki of Alex Rins, Dovizioso has a strong chance to do just this in the 2019 Catalan GP, a race he won in a similar way from Marc Marquez in 2017.

Danilo Petrucci in the Barcelona- Catalunya MotoGP Qualifying 2019. Image courtesy of Ducati

Danilo Petrucci (Mission Winnow Ducati) will start from the back of row two. For both Petrucci and Dovizioso, the start could be crucial to allow the Ducati’s to control the race in the early part to try and save some tyre for what will surely be a battle at the end.

Maverick Vinales’ weekend has been a quiet one. The Spaniard was out of Q2 overnight but made a step in the morning. Third place in qualifying would have been his best since Argentina when he was second on the grid, but a three place penalty for blocking Quartararo leaves him in sixth for the start, which will be a crucial one for the #12.

Alex Rins perhaps has the strongest race pace, and it looked like for once he would be able to qualify well and be able to use that pace to escape at the front on Sunday, but a crash in turn ten on his second run whilst following Maverick Vinales cost him the front row. Instead, Rins will start eighth – not ideal, but better than he has endured in the past. There is still a good chance for Rins in the race to take his second MotoGP victory.

Cal Crutchlow (LCR Honda CASTROL) will go from the back of the third row in ninth place after making a step overnight from a difficult Friday.

Jorge Lorenzo (Repsol Honda Team) had one of his best days of the season on qualifying day for the Catalan Grand Prix. He qualified directly to Q2 and will start tenth on the grid, joined by Joan Mir and Pol Espargaro (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing).

Jorge Lorenzo at the Barcelona-Catalunya circuit MotoGP 2019. Image courtesy of Box Repsol

It has been a good weekend for Francesco Bagnaia (Pramac Racing), who was fifth overnight. A crash in FP3 saw him go to Q1, which he was unable to advance from. Instead, Bagnaia qualified thirteenth, ahead of his teammate Jack Miller (Pramac Racing) who crashed in the Q1 session, but was unaffected. The two Pramac riders will be joined by Karel Abraham (Reale Avintia Racing) in what is an all-Ducati fifth row.

Takaaki Nakagami (LCR Honda IDEMITSU) is another rider who has looked strong this weekend, but was unable to deliver on his free practice promise come qualifying, when he ended up qualifying sixteenth. Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia Racing Team Gresini) and Johann Zarco (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) join the Japanese rider on row six.

Tito Rabat (Reale Avintia Racing) will head up the seventh row, from the Red Bull KTM Tec3 pairing of Miguel Oliveira and Hafizh Syahrin; whilst the two wildcarding test riders, Bradley Smith (Aprilia Racing Team) and Sylvain Guintoli (Team Suzuki Ecstar), join Andrea Iannone (Aprilia Racing Team Gresini) – who qualified last for the third consecutive race, thanks to mechanical issues with his number one bike – on the last row.

Featured Image courtesy of Yamaha Racing

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Moto2: Fernandez Takes First GP Pole

The Moto2 qualifying session for the seventh round of the 2019 Moto2 World Championship took place on a sun-baked Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya.

In Q1, it was Bo Bendsneyder (NTS RW Racing GP) who topped the session from Jorge Martin (Red Bull KTM Ajo), Iker Lecuona (American Racing) and Nicolo Bulega (Sky Racing Team, VR46), with those four advancing to Q2.

In the Q2 session, it was Augusto Fernandez (Flexbox HP 40) who took his first Grand Prix pole position in his home race. Perhaps the fact that this is the first track at which Fernandez has raced a Kalex, as he first replaced Hector Barbera in the Pons squad in Barcelona last year, says a lot. Fernandez has been strong this weekend, and will be eager to seize a first victory this weekend.

Tom Luthi (Dynavolt Intact GP) had a strong session, finishing Q2 in second place, whilst a late lap from Sam Lowes (Federal Oil Gresini Moto2) propelled the Briton onto the front row in third place.

The second row is headed up by Jorge Navarro (HDR Heidrun Speed Up) who is in search of his first win on Sunday, one year on from Fabio Quartararo’s win on the Speed Up last year and in the Spaniard’s home race. Joining Navarro on row two are HDR Heidrun Speed Up teammate, Fabio Di Giannantonio, and the winner of the previous two Moto2 races, Alex Marquez (EG 0,0 Marc VDS).

Lorenzo Baldassarri (Flexbox HP 40) had the final spot on the second row before Lowes’ late lap for third place. Instead, the championship leader will start seventh – better than Mugello but not where he would want to be.

Fortunately for the Italian, his closest challenger in the championship, Marquez, is only one place ahead of him at the start. Baldassarri’s pace is often stronger in the race than in qualifying, so it will be interesting to see what progress he can make in the race. Joining Baldassarri on row three are compatriot and fellow VR46 Riders Academy rider, Nicolo Bulega (Sky Racing Team VR46) and Andrea Locatelli (Italtrans Racing Team) who ensures row three is an all-Italian affair.

Enea Bastianini (Italtrans Racing Team) will make it four successive Italians on the grid from the front of row three to the front of row four tomorrow. Although Bastianini has had a strong rookie season so far, tenth in Q2 in Barcelona is in fact his best qualifying of the year. La Bestia has looked good this weekend, and could still be a feature in the battle for the podium tomorrow. Remy Gardner (ONEXOX TKKR SAG Team) suffered a crash in Q2, and will start alongside Bastianini on the fourth row as the Aussie starts eleventh. Marcel Schrotter (Dynavolt Intact GP) completes row four.

Luca Marini (Sky Racing Team VR46) will start the Catalan Moto2 Grand prix from thirteenth, ahead of Bo Bendsneyder and Iker Lecuona on row five; whilst Tetsuta Nagashima (ONEXOX TKKR SAG Team), Jorge Martin (Red Bull KTM Ajo) and Simone Corsi (Tasca Racing Team) – who crashed early on and whose only time was 2.792 seconds off the pace – make up row six.

Iker Lecuona, Moto2, Catalunya MotoGP 2019. Image courtesy of Gold and Goose/KTM

Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Ajo) was the fastest rider in Q1 to not make Q2 and will therefore head up row seven. The South African will be joined on the seventh row by Xavi Vierge (EG 0,0 Marc VDS) and Dominique Aegerter (MV Aguta Idealavoro Forward); whilst Stefano Manzi (MV Agusta Idealavoro Forward), Jonas Folger (Petronas SRT) and Dimas Ekky (IDEMITSU Honda Team Asia) make up row eight.

Row nine sees Somkiat Chantra (IDEMITSU Honda Team Asia) ahead of Jake Dixon (Sama Qatar Angel Nieto Team) and Steven Odendaal (NTS RW Racing GP); whilst row ten consists of Lukas Tulovic (Kiefer Racing), Joe Roberts (American Racing) and Xavi Cardelus (Sama Qatar Angel Nieto Team).

Red Bull KTM Tech3 take both places on the back row, with Marco Bezzecchi ahead of Philipp Oettl who didn’t set a time.

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Moto3: Rodrigo Takes Barcelona Pole

The qualifying session for the seventh round of the 2019 Moto3 World Championship took place in Montmelo in perfect conditions.

In Q1, it was Tatsuki Suzuki (Sic58 Squadra Corse) who topped the session to move through to Q2 after a crash in FP3 limited his chances to qualify for the pole position shootout directly. Joining Suzuki in advancing from Q1 were Andrea Migno (Bester Capital Dubai), Albert Arenas (Sama Qatar Angel Nieto Team) and the returning Ai Ogura (Honda Team Asia).

The action in Q2 started early on, as a crash by the wildcard Carlos Tatay (Fundacion Andreas Perez 77) caught out Niccolo Antonelli (Sic58 Squadra Corse) who was out wide in T3 and had nowhere to go when Tatay lost the front.

There was a big lull in the middle of the session, before the entire eighteen-rider field headed back out for the final two minutes or so.

https://www.instagram.com/p/ByvM0KqCMYZ/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

Despite missing the flag by one second or so on his final run, Gabriel Rodrigo’s first lap in Q2 was fast enough for the Argentinian to take his first pole position for the Kommerling Gresini Moto3 squad. As a rider who lives in Barcelona and has for some time, pole for the Catalan GP will be a special one for Rodrigo, who will be hoping to take his first Moto3 win, and become the twelfth different winner in as many races in the lightweight class.

Ai Ogura resumed his form from before his injury in Le Mans, when he crashed out of the front group on the opening lap of the French Grand Prix. Second place for the Japanese represents his best World Championship qualifying result, beating his Le Mans grid slot by one place.

Mugello pole sitter and winner, Tony Arbolino (VNE Snipers) completes the front row for the 2019 Catalan Moto3 Grand Prix, after his final lap was beaten by Ogura moments after it was set. If Arbolino were to win tomorrow it would be the first time there has been a back-to-back winner in Moto3 since Jorge Martin won Assen and Sachsenring in succession almost one year ago.

Tatsuki Suzuki was able to come from Q1 to qualify fourth, which was an important result for the Sic58 Squadra Corse team with the poor session of Antonelli. Championship leader Aron Canet (Sterilgarda Max Racing Team) will start from the middle of the second row, whilst Albert Arenas completes row two.

Both Estrella Galicia 0,0 riders have looked strong during the weekend, and their tactic of sending both riders out together has mostly worked. However, Alonso Lopez could only manage seventh fastest in Q2. The Spaniard will be joined by Jaume Masia (Bester Capital Dubai) and Lorenzo Dalla Porta (Leopard Racing) who was caught up in Antonelli’s second incident of the session at turn five which limited the #48 to ninth on the grid.

John McPhee (Petronas SRT) had a better qualifying this time compared to Mugello, with tenth place. Andrea Migno and Marcos Ramirez (Leopard Racing) will join him on row four; whilst the second Estrella Galicia 0,0 rider, Sergio Garcia, will head up row five from Makar Yurchenko (BOE Skull Rider Mugen Race) and Raul Fernandez (Sama Qatar Angel Nieto Team) who won a Junior World Championship race in Barcelona last year.

Dennis Foggia, Moto3, Catalunya MotoGP 2019. Image courtesy of Gold and Goose/KTM

Row six will see Darryn Binder (CIP Green Power) in front of the two riders with no time: Antonelli and Tatay.

Kazuki Masaki (BOE Skull Rider Mugen Race) was the fastest of the riders to not make Q2, and heads up row seven from Can Oncu (Red Bull KTM Ajo) and wildcard Ryusei Yamanaka (Estrella Galicia 0,0) who was blocked, somewhat, by Dennis Foggia (Sky Racing Team VR46) in the final corner on his final lap, for which Foggia could well see a penalty coming his way.

Romano Fenati (VNE Snipers) disappointed, and will start a lowly twenty-second, ahead of Ayumu Sasaki (Petronas SRT) and, provisionally, the aforementioned Foggia.

Celestino Vietti (Sky Racing Team VR46) was taken out by Jakub Kornfeil (Redox PruestelGP) on his final lap, and could only manage twenty-fifth, ahead of, ironically, Kornfeil and Kaito Toba (Honda Team Asia) on the ninth row; whilst Riccardo Rossi (Kommerling Gresini Moto3) starts ahead of Vicente Perez (Reale Avintia Arizona 77) and Filip Salac (Redox PruestelGP) on row ten. Tom Booth-Amos (CIP Green Power) will line up at the back of the grid in thirty-first.

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BSB: Redding Beats Brookes to Brands Hatch Pole

Qualifying for the fourth round of the 2019 British Superbike Championship at Brands Hatch saw the riders met with almost ideal conditions on track.

Scott Redding took pole position by 0.007 seconds from Be Wiser Ducati teammate, Josh Brookes. The Ducati pairing have been the fastest riders all weekend, and quite well-matched. The battle between them in Sunday’s races should be an interesting one, as the winners of the last five races try to take the momentum away from Brands Hatch.

Jason O’Halloran (McAMS Yamaha) will join the two Be Wiser Ducati’s on the front row after a strong session for the Aussie. In fact, the weekend as a whole has been a good one for O’Halloran who seems to have rediscovered some of the feeling and form that he has missed in the two rounds since Silverstone. He might be the only rider capable of taking the fight to the two Be Wiser Ducati riders tomorrow.

Tommy Bridewell (Oxford Racing) will hope to be there as well, and put himself in a good position to do so, as he will start from the front of the second row in fourth place. Dan Linfoot (Santander Salt TAG Yamaha) and Christian Iddon (Tyco BMW Motorrad) will join Bridewell on the second row.

Peter Hickman (Smiths Racing) came to Brands Hatch fresh from the TT,  in  good form, and qualified seventh. Bradley Ray (Buildbase Suzuki) showed his best of the year with an eighth place qualifying, ahead of Tarran Mackenzie (McAMS Yamaha). Mackenzie crashed at Clearways on his first flying lap in Q3, and so did not set a time. The #95 was knocked unconscious in the crash, and so will be unable to line up tomorrow. Therefore, Danny Buchan (FS-3 Racing Kawasaki) will line up in ninth for race one.

In turn, Luke Mossey (OMG Racing Suzuki) is promoted to the head of row four, and will be joined by Keith Farmer (Tyco BMW Motorrad) and Andrew Irwin (Honda Racing).

Glenn Irwin (Quattro Plant JG Speedfit Kawasaki) will start thirteenth ahead of Luke Stapleford (Buildbase Suzuki) who crashed in Q1 and prohibited his progress from Q2. Josh Elliott (OMG Racing Suzuki) will start from the back of the fifth row in fifteenth.

David Allingham (EHA Yamaha) will start sixteenth, and will be joined on row six by James Ellison (Smiths Racing) and Xavi Fores (Honda Racing); whilst Claudio Corti (Team WD-40) is joined on row seven by Sylvain Barrier (Brixx Ducati) and Matt Truelove (Raceways Yamaha); and Hector Barbera (Quattro Plant JG Speedfit Kawasaki) is in front of Joe Francis (Lloyd & Jones Bowker Motorrad) and Shaun Winfield (Santander Salt TAG Yamaha) on row eight. Finally, the final row sees Sam Coventry (Team 64 Motorsports) ahead of Dean Hipwell (CDH Racing).

Featured Image courtesy of Ducati

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