Espargaro leads Moto2 field in wet and dry conditions, Pons steadily improves

It was supposed to rain all weekend at Silverstone for the British Grand Prix and the forecasts were at least half-right today with wet conditions in the first practice and the second session completely dry.

Pol Espargaró was the fastest Moto2 rider in both sessions, showing again that he’s one of the favourites for the title and that he’s prepared to return to the top of the standings after he lost the championship lead two weeks ago at the Catalunya Circuit.

Of note was also the 14th-fastest laptime of teammate Axel Pons who consistently made his way up throughout the day. Tito Rabat on the other hand still has some work ahead to try and repeat his fourth place from the last race in Montmeló.

1. POL ESPARGARÓ, 2.08.826
“The ankle bothers me at some points around the track, but it didn’t keep me from being fastest in both sessions today, the first one in the wet and the second one, contrary to the forecast, in the dry. Taking also into consideration that in the latter one the wind was really brutal and it was very hard to change direction. I’m happy, because I felt very good on the bike and I think we have a good setup to start with to be competitive in the race. Silverstone is a track I like a lot, it’s fast and a little bumpy which forces you to work hard and also very long. I think we have room for improvement, although in the end everything depends on the weather, both in the sessions tomorrow as well as in the race on Sunday.”

14. AXEL PONS, 2.10.789
“I’m happy with how this first practice day at Silverstone went, we’re competitive both in the wet and in the dry. In the morning I had a crash without consequences at the end of the practice, but I was always among the first 15. In the afternoon I went from little to more, trying to find a good pace and improve without depending on getting a tow and I did my laptimes with relative ease. The wind made the changes of direction very difficult and at the end my arms were completely shot, but still with the satisfaction of the 14th place and being only a second behind the second row. Tomorrow I hope to continue this way and improve my laptimes every time I go out on track.”

24. TITO RABAT, 2.12.048
“This first practice day is one to forget, I had many problems both in the wet and in the dry. I didn’t feel good at any moment and I felt like it wasn’t me who was riding the bike. I need to feel comfortable with the front to have the confidence to put the bike in the corners and I didn’t have that at all. Now we have to look at the telemetry with calm and make the appropriate changes to make a step forward tomorrow. I trust in my technical team and I’m confident that tomorrow we’ll be much further up.”

Source: Pons Racing Press Release