Aleix Espargaro lines up 12th, after going straight through to Q2

One of the most intriguing things about MotoGP is its capacity to produce constant surprises and after the Yamaha riders dominated this morning and yesterday it was eventually Pedrosa with his last lap of Q2 on a Honda who took pole at Mugello. Lorenzo had set down a marker half way through Q2 by beating the pole record from last year and would perhaps have been surprised to see Pedrosa’s dramatic late charge to pole.

Once again the new qualifying format rewarded the most alert riders on track and caught a few others off guard. Looking at the grid positions, the race pace of various riders and the Mugello records of certain riders there are plenty of candidates for a podium finish.

POWER ELECTRONICS Aspar’s Aleix Espargaró continues his success story every weekend such is his brilliant consistency this season. His very last free practice lap put him directly into Q2 where he of course competed with the very best of MotoGP. His best time of 1.48.765 left him just 1.6s off pole, particularly given the length of the Mugello straight. He ended up 12th, the best CRT rider and therefore on the fourth row.

12th Aleix Espargaró (1.48.765):
“I’m very pleased with how it’s going here at Mugello. I love this track but it’s challenging for the CRT riders especially. Our team, Aprilia and I are squeezing out whatever advantage we can every day and that’s putting us close to the prototypes. Every race we’re trying something new and it’s working so well, so we keep moving forward. Tomorrow we’ll try to keep that going. The race will be tough, they are many laps and the concentration levels required are very high. I hope the temperaturas don’t keep increasing. I have a good race pace, so I need to make a good start and stick to the group in front of me”.

Source: Aspar Media