FIFTH AND SEVENTH ROW FOR ALEIX ESPARGARÓ AND ANDREA IANNONE
The good result from Friday, with Aleix solidly in the top ten, was nullified by a Saturday where the Spanish rider crashed no less than three times between FP3 and FP4. In the morning session, decisive for obtaining a spot in the top ten, which would mean going straight through to Q2, there were even two crashes. This meant that Aleix did not have the chance to hone his time from yesterday (one of the best), losing the position he had earned the day before.
Andrea also had to go through Q1, although he showed a clear improvement in the first three sessions. At the end of Q1, Aleix finished fifth (fifteenth overall time) at 1’30.972 and Andrea tenth (the twentieth spot on the grid) at 1’31.714. This earned them spots on the fifth and seventh row of the starting grid for the closing race of the 2019 MotoGP World Championship.
ALEIX ESPARGARÒ
“Today the low temperatures made things difficult for us. My riding style and the characteristics of the RS-GP force me to always brake very hard. Since I’m at the limit, it is very easy to make a mistake as soon as the conditions are less than ideal. I really need to sincerely thank my team and Andrea’s team. During the lunch break, they worked non-stop to get the two bikes ready after the crashes. Thanks to them, in qualifying I was able to use the one I preferred and limit the damage. I am confident that, all told, our pace is not bad. It’s a pity we weren’t able to try the hard rear tyre that seems to provide the best race performance. I’ll do that tomorrow in the warmup session.”
ANDREA IANNONE
“Unfortunately, the bike continues to give me strange sensations, especially on the front. The low temperatures certainly don’t help us and, compared to yesterday, we were unable to make the necessary steps forward. When a weekend starts the wrong way, like what has happened here, we struggle to sort it. This is an aspect we need to work on and improve.”
