2018 Moto2 and Moto3 Results Saturday from Jerez
Moto2
Lorenzo Baldassarri’s morning started with a new best-ever Moto2 lap of Jerez. He couldn’t equal that record speed in the heat of the afternoon, but was close enough to take a career-first pole on the HP40 Kalex.
2018 Moto2 and Moto3 Results Saturday from Jerez
Times were whisker-close in the middle class … the top twenty covered by 0.971 of a second.
This meant that a bad result for Miguel Oliveira (Red Bull KTM), in 14th, was only six tenths away from pole. He crashed on his last run, one of seven victims of the slippery surface, giving no chance of improvement.
Last year’s Jerez winner Alex Marquez (EG-VDS Kalex) made a convincing but unsuccessful late bid to snatch pole, ending up second, seven hundredths down and a similar distance ahead of less than a tenth ahead of title leader Pecco Bagnaia (SKY VR46 Kalex), completing the front row.
Jorge Navarro (Federal Oil Kalex) headed row two from Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM) and class rookie Joan Mir (EG-VDS Kalex), the reigning Moto3 champion continuing his strong debut.
Xavi Vierge (Dynavolt Kalex) led row three from SII KTM rider Sam Lowes and another class rookie Romano Fenati (Marinelli Kalex); with Argentine GP winner Mattia Pasini (Kalex) completing the top ten.
American Joe Roberts (NTS) qualified 27th, one place down on team-mate Steven Odendaal.
2018 Moto2 and Moto3 Results Saturday from Jerez
Moto3
Jorge Martin took his 11th Moto3 pole, the second in a row, on his 11th lap of a sun-baked qualifying session. The Del Conca Gresini Honda rider, currently leading the championship, displaced erstwhile leader Philipp Oettl (Sudmetal KTM) by less than two tenths; with his Gresini team-mate Fabio Di Giannantonio slotting into third.
There was a mixed second row, with SIC58 Honda’s Nico Antonelli heading the KTMs of Argentine GP winner Marco Bezzecchi and Andrea Migno; then an all-Honda row three, with Alonso Lopez heading Enea Bastianini and Lorenzo Dalla Porta.
Red Bull KTM’s Darryn Binder is a doubtful starter, after a heavy crash on only his third timed lap. Apart from being stretchered away for medical checks, his lap time is outside the required 107 percent of pole, so he is unqualified.
