Team Suzuki Press Office – May 4.
Alex Rins: 9th – 1:37.351
Joan Mir: 12th – 1:37.514
• Alex Rins ready to fight from third row start.
• Joan Mir showing strong pace ahead of Round 4.
• Incredibly close lap times with a fierce fight expected.
The Circuito de Jerez – Angel Nieto saw electrifying action in the morning’s FP3 session as the riders fought it out for a final chance to secure a place in Q2. The Top 14 riders were covered by just half a second as the chequered flag came out, but Joan Mir and Alex Rins worked hard throughout FP3, finishing an excellent 5th and 6th respectively.
The Team SUZUKI ECSTAR pair continued their good work into the afternoon’s FP4, trying a variety of tyres and putting in laps with a race set-up.
Alex and Joan made a strong start to the 15-minute session, but later found themselves slightly shuffled down the order. Alex Rins lost out in the 3rd sector but felt quick and confident over the first two sectors. He finished just 0.471 seconds from the pole, in 9th place. Joan Mir, meanwhile, was 0.634 seconds off and will start one row behind his team-mate, in 12th.
Davide Brivio – Team Manager
“Today’s FP3 and FP4 were really good and both riders showed their strong pace, going straight to Q2 was really positive. Then in qualifying we couldn’t really use our full potential, and in the end we’ll start from the third and fourth row. The riders will put in a lot of effort at the beginning of the race to try and get close to the top early on.”
Alex Rins
“We did a good job today, improving the lap time a lot compared to yesterday – which was our plan. In qualifying I tried to give 100% but I didn’t really feel very good with the front tyre that I used. But the third row and 9th place isn’t so bad, and I think I can have a good race anyway. It will be really nice to ride in front of the Spanish fans.”
Joan Mir
“I thought I could get a bit higher on the grid, and I feel that 12th doesn’t show our real potential today, especially as I was fast in FP3 and FP4. In general, I’m very happy with my feeling on the bike, and yesterday we made a step forward. But in qualifying my feeling was really different and I couldn’t match my lap times from the morning, so we need to find out why that was. We need to improve, but I’m looking forward to the race.”
GP of Spain – Qualifying Classification:
1. Fabio QUARTARARO Petronas Yamaha SRT 1’36.880
2. Franco MORBIDELLI Petronas Yamaha SRT 1’36.962 0.082 / 0.082
3. Marc MARQUEZ Repsol Honda Team 1’36.970 0.090 / 0.008
4. Andrea DOVIZIOSO Mission Winnow Ducati 1’37.018 0.138 / 0.048
5. Maverick VIÑALES Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP 1’37.114 0.234 / 0.096
6. Cal CRUTCHLOW LCR Honda CASTROL 1’37.175 0.295 / 0.061
7. Danilo PETRUCCI Mission Winnow Ducati 1’37.209 0.329 / 0.034
8. Takaaki NAKAGAMI LCR Honda IDEMITSU 1’37.332 0.452 / 0.123
9. Alex RINS Team SUZUKI ECSTAR 1’37.351 0.471 / 0.019
10. Francesco BAGNAIA Pramac Racing 1’37.384 0.504 / 0.033
11. Jorge LORENZO Repsol Honda Team 1’37.496 0.616 / 0.112
12. Joan MIR Team SUZUKI ECSTAR 1’37.514 0.634 / 0.018
13. Valentino ROSSI Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP 1’37.371 Q1
14. Stefan BRADL Team HRC 1’37.406 Q1
15. Jack MILLER Pramac Racing 1’37.605 Q1
16. Aleix ESPARGARO Aprilia Racing Team Gresini 1’37.625 Q1
17. Pol ESPARGARO Red Bull KTM Factory Racing 1’37.798 Q1
18. Johann ZARCO Red Bull KTM Factory Racing 1’37.820 Q1
19. Bradley SMITH Aprilia Factory Racing 1’38.357 Q1
20. Tito RABAT Reale Avintia Racing 1’38.403 Q1
21. Karel ABRAHAM Reale Avintia Racing 1’38.447 Q1
22. Miguel OLIVEIRA Red Bull KTM Tech 3 1’38.894 Q1
23. Hafizh SYAHRIN Red Bull KTM Tech 3 1’40.042 Q1
NQ Andrea IANNONE Aprilia Racing Team Gresini
