Team Suzuki Press Office
Grid positions for San Marino GP:
Alex Rins 7th – 1’32.090 (+ 0.679)
Joan Mir: 8th – 1’32.102 (+ 0.691)
After spending much of the opening day at the Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli working on set-up, settings and tyre options, Team Suzuki Ecstar’s riders switched their attention to time attack on Saturday morning.
Alex Rins and Joan Mir knew it would be crucial to make it into Q2 and secure good grid positions for tomorrow’s Grand Prix, and they came into FP3 fighting. Rins took time to work on improving his feeling before putting in a flying lap to go fifth at the end of the session. Mir was the first rider in the field to make significant improvements to his lap time, and in his final run he was able bring himself as high as fourth before closing the session in sixth.
With both riders safely through to Q2, FP4 was the perfect opportunity to put in some longer runs and confirm settings before the race. Rins and Mir finished fifth and seventh respectively, around half a second from the top time.
In the final qualifying session the pair worked hard to carve their way up the grid, both bringing their lap times down progressively throughout Q2. Rins crossed the line with a 1’32.090 to go seventh, and Mir took eighth with a 1’32.102.
Davide Brivio – Team Manager:
“We made a big improvement with both riders compared to yesterday; the team worked well and we found some solutions. The riders did a good job to get into Q2, and they qualified seventh and eighth. We thought we had potential to have them both a bit higher but we’re keen to race and see what we’re capable of.”
Alex Rins:
“I had good feelings today, better than yesterday, and I’m happy to start on the third row. I did my best lap during qualifying and I improved quite a lot during today, also my race pace is pretty strong. I think the race will be quite complex and it will be important to gain a good position in the early laps in order to fight later in the race.”
Joan Mir:
“We already knew that our fast lap wasn’t quite as good as the other guys, but we worked really hard and made some improvements which have helped, and in the end the grid position is OK. Another positive thing is that my race pace in FP4 was good with used tyres, so that gives me confidence. Tomorrow morning I will work a little bit more on getting the bike stopped, and let’s see what I can do in the race, the Yamaha riders will be hard to beat but I feel I can be competitive.”
GRAN PREMIO LENOVO DI SAN MARINO E DELLA RIVIERA DI RIMINI QUALIFYING RESULTS:
1. M. VIÑALES – Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP – 01:31.411
2. F. MORBIDELLI – Petronas Yamaha SRT – 01:31.723 – +0.312
3. F. QUARTARARO – Petronas Yamaha SRT – 01:31.791 – +0.380
4. V. ROSSI – Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP – 01:31.877 – +0.466
5. J. MILLER – Pramac Racing – 01:32.052 – +0.641
6. F. BAGNAIA – Pramac Racing – 01:32.054 – +0.643
7. A. RINS – Team SUZUKI ECSTAR – 01:32.090 – +0.679
8. J. MIR – Team SUZUKI ECSTAR – 01:32.102 – +0.691
9. A. DOVIZIOSO – Ducati Team – 01:32.184 – +0.773
10. J. ZARCO – Esponsorama Racing – 01:32.218 – +0.807
11. P. ESPARGARO – Red Bull KTM Factory Racing – 01:32.266 – +0.855
12. M. OLIVEIRA – Red Bull KTM Tech 3 – 01:32.323 – +0.912
13. A. ESPARGARO – Aprilia Racing Team Gresini – 01:32.295 – Q1
14. T. NAKAGAMI – LCR Honda IDEMITSU – 01:32.382 – Q1
15. D. PETRUCCI – Ducati Team – 01:32.418 – Q1
16. B. BINDER – Red Bull KTM Factory Racing – 01:32.534 – Q1
17. T. RABAT – Esponsorama Racing – 01:32.791 – Q1
18. I. LECUONA – Red Bull KTM Tech 3 – 01:32.838 – Q1
19. S. BRADL – Repsol Honda Team – 01:32.915 – Q1
20. B. SMITH – Aprilia Racing Team Gresini – 01:33.166 – Q1
21. A. MARQUEZ – Repsol Honda Team – 01:33.333 – Q1
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For more stories about Alex Rins, Click Here. For photos, Click Here.
For more stories about Joan Mir, Click Here. For photos, Click Here.