FIFTH ROW FOR TEAM DEL CONCA GRESINI IN CHESTE QUALIFYING
A more clement weather was expected today at Valencia: last night’s heavy rain and a few drops today, instead, have made the last qualifying practice of the Moto3 season a lot more of a challenge for teams and riders involved. At the chequered flag, Jorge Martin was 13th, two positions ahead of his team mate Fabio Di Giannantonio.
The starting grid was decided in the very last second, when more than a rider opted for the use of slick tyres, despite track conditions still being far from perfect. Both riders will then be forced to a comeback if they want to make their way back to the front. If Martin wants to finish his incredible title year on the podium, Di Giannantonio will need a strong result if he wants to have a chance to edge Bezzecchi for the runner-up spot.
The final race of the 2018 Moto3 World Championship will get underway at 11:00 local time (GMT +1), with rain expected to join the party.
13th– JORGE MARTIN #88
“It was a bit of a strange day: this morning I was feeling excellent in wet conditions, while working on my race pace and fine tuning the bike set-up. In the afternoon, though, track conditions were quite tough as some parts were dry and some others weren’t. When time came to decide the tyre to use, we chose the rain option; we did improve in the last lap, but it wasn’t easy. It’s been a long time since I last started that far back on the grid, but we still want to finish the season on a high and there’s only one way to do it.”
15th– FABIO DI GIANNANTONIO #21
“We didn’t perform the way we wanted in qualifying today. In the wet I was feeling strong and I know we can put together a good comeback, but still it would have been better to start closer to the front; maybe we should have taken a risk in qualifying. Anything can happen with rain, so we’ll stay focused and do our best tomorrow.”
