The Moto2 qualifying session for the sixth round of the 2019 World Championship at Mugello, the Italian Grand Prix, got underway under the Tuscan sun and the riders who were unable to qualify for Q2 in free practice tried to advance through Q1.
The four riders who made it to Q2 from Q1 were: Xavi Vierge (EG 0,0 Marc VDS); Jorge Martin (Red Bull KTM Ajo); championship leader Lorenzo Baldassarri (Flexbox HP 40) and Nicolo Bulega (Sky Racing Team VR46).
In Q2, it was Marcel Schrotter (Dynavolt Intact GP) who took pole position, one which he will be hoping to convert to his first GP win tomorrow. Schrotter took pole position from Tom Luthi (Dynavolt Intact GP) who held P1 for much of the session, but ended up second behind his German teammate, whilst Alex Marquez (EG 0,0 Marc VDS) completes the front row fresh off the back of his win in Le Mans.
Nicolo Bulega had his best performance since moving to Moto2, as the rookie qualified fourth, ahead of Jorge Navarro (MB Conveyors Speed Up) and Sky Racing Team VR46 teammate Luca Marini, who seems to have recovered some form this weekend after a difficult couple of races in Spain and France.
Tetsuta Nagashima (ONEXOX TKKR SAG Team) heads up row three tomorrow, from Sam Lowes (Federal Oil Gresini Moto2) and Augusto Fernandez (Flexbox HP 40); while Remy Gardner (ONEXOX TKKR SAG Team) completes the top ten and is joined on row four by Enea Bastianini (Italtrans Racing Team) and Jorge Martin, who out-qualified his Red Bull KTM Ajo teammate, Brad Binder, for the first time this season.
Simone Corsi (Tasca Racing Scuderia Moto2) is joined on row five by Fabio Di Giannantonio (MB Conveyors Speed Up) and championship leader Lorenzo Baldassarri (Flexbox HP 40) to ensure the fifth row is an all-Italian affair; whilst Andrea Locatelli (Italtrans Racing Team) heads up row six and is joined by Xavi Vierge and a mysteriously slow Mattia Pasini (Petronas SRT), to ensure the #97 is the Spanish meat in the Italian sandwich on the sixth row.
Brad Binder was the fastest of those to not make Q2, and he starts nineteenth tomorrow ahead of Bo Bendsneyder (NTS RW Racing GP) and Dominique Aegerter (MV Agusta Idealavoro Forward) on row seven.
Row eight sees Stefano Manzi (MV Agusta Idealavoro Forward) ahead of Iker Lecuona (American Racing) and Lukas Tulovic (Kiefer Racing); whilst the ninth row has the Red Bull KTM Tech3 pairing of Marco Bezzecchi (25th) and Philipp Oettl (27th) sandwiching Joe Roberts (American Racing).
Steven Odendaal (NTS RW Racing GP) heads up row ten, from Dimas Ekky (IDEMITU Honda Team Asia) and Jake Dixon (Sama Qatar Angel Nieto Team); while Xavi Cardelus (Sama Qatar Angel Nieto Team) was faster than only Somkiat Chantra’s replacement at IDEMITSU Honda Team Asia, the GP newcomer and JSB1000 regular for the HARC-PRO Honda squad Teppei Nagoe who completes the grid.
Featured Image courtesy of Dynavolt Intact GP