Bautista qualifies for second row in home Grand Prix but still looking for a little bit more

The close contest for top qualifying honours at the Jerez Grand Prix promises a thrilling race for the Spanish fans,
who reliably flock to the Andalucian circuit for what has become the traditional opening round of the European season. Fine weather is forecast for the race, after two sunny days of practice.

Spaniard Alvaro Bautista (Team GO&FUN Honda Gresini RC213V) finished the qualifying in sixth and will start the race from the second row of the grid. Bautista is the only rider using Showa suspension, combining racing with a testing and development role, and gained time and positions after finishing tenth in free practice to guarantee himself a place in final qualifying. Under the new system, only the top ten automatically run in the intense final 15 minutes, to decide the front four rows of the grid.

Alvaro Bautista, 1m 39.509s “It wasn’t an easy session today and we had to work really hard to find a solution to the problems we had with the rear yesterday. We didn’t completely solve everything, but we will try to find a solution in the warmup tomorrow morning. I tried my best in qualifying, but the track conditions were difficult, which made it hard on the front tyre, especially when we put the softer rear on. I think that’s why we saw so many crashes. I was close to crashing a few times, but luckily I stayed on the bike. Overall the second row is a positive result and I am confident we can stay with the second group tomorrow, even though the front three are out of reach. I have to say thanks to the guys in the team for a great job today and hopefully we can finish the weekend off with a good result.”

Source: Honda Motor Sports
Photo: Gresini Racing/Milagor