Red Bull Indianapolis Grand Prix
FIM Moto2 World Championship
Indianapolis Motor Speedway
Indianapolis, Indiana
August 9, 2014
Qualifying Results (all using Honda engines and Dunlop tires):
1. Mika KALLIO, Finland (KALEX), 1:36.883
2. Esteve “Tito” RABAT, Spain (KALEX), 1:37.056
3. Dominique AEGERTER, Switzerland (SUTER), 1:37.209
4. Johann ZARCO, France (CATERHAM SUTER), 1:37.452
5. Simone CORSI, Italy (KALEX), 1:37.456
6. Maverick VIÑALES, Spain (KALEX), 1:37.513
7. Takaaki NAKAGAMI, Japan (KALEX), 1:37.524
8. Sandro CORTESE, Germany (KALEX), 1:37.558
9. Thomas LUTHI, Switzerland (SUTER), 1:37.582
10. Sam LOWES, UK (SPEED UP), 1:37.664
11. Luis SALOM, Spain (KALEX), 1:37.758
12. Jordi TORRES, Spain (SUTER), 1:37.891
13. Franco MORBIDELLI, Italy (KALEX), 1:37.913
14. Julian SIMON, Spain (KALEX), 1:37.949
15. Mattia PASINI, Italy (KALEX), 1:37.970
16. Xavier SIMEON, Belgium (SUTER), 1:37.981
17. Axel PONS, Spain (KALEX), 1:37.996
18. Randy KRUMMENACHER, Switzerland (SUTER), 1:38.010
19. Jonas FOLGER, Germany (KALEX), 1:38.062
20. Hafizh SYAHRIN, Malaysia (KALEX), 1:38.083
21. Alex DE ANGELIS, San Marino (SUTER), 1:38.086
22. Anthony WEST, Australia (SPEED UP), 1:38.106
23. Josh HERRIN, USA (CATERHAM SUTER), 1:38.123
24. Marcel SCHROTTER, Germany (TECH 3), 1:38.130
25. Gino REA, UK (SUTER), 1:38.171
26. Ricard CARDUS, Spain (TECH 3), 1:38.202
27. Louis ROSSI, France (KALEX), 1:38.369
28. Azlan SHAH, Malaysia (KALEX), 1:38.411
29. Nicolas TEROL, Spain (SUTER), 1:38.505
30. Tetsuta NAGASHIMA, Japan (TSR), 1:38.638
31. Robin MULHAUSER, Switzerland (SUTER), 1:38.680
32. Lorenzo BALDASSARRI, Italy (SUTER), 1:39.084
33. Thitipong WAROKORN, Thailand (KALEX), 1:39.129
34. Roman RAMOS, Spain (SPEED UP), 1:39.406
More, from a press release issued by Marc VDS Racing Team:
Kallio and Rabat dominate Indy qualifying
Indianapolis, USA – 9 August 2014: Mika Kallio and Tito Rabat dominated today’s Moto2 qualifying session at the revamped Indianapolis Motor Speedway, as the Marc VDS Racing Team celebrated an eighth pole position in 10 races.
Finnish rider Kallio clinched his second pole position of 2014 with a brilliant early lap of 1.36.883 that left teammate and World Championship leader Rabat trailing in second by 0.173s.
Only one other rider could lap within 0.5s of Kallio’s blistering speed, though Rabat’s quest to claim a seventh pole position of the campaign ended in painful fashion with less than 10 minutes of qualifying remaining.
The Spaniard, who holds a 19-point advantage over Kallio heading into tomorrow’s 25-lap race, fell heavily but unhurt at turn 8. He was still able to comfortably secure a vital front row start courtesy of an earlier lap of 1.37.056.
Marc VDS Racing newcomer Jorge Navarro staked a claim for outstanding performance of the season in the earlier Moto3 session after he stormed to a sensational top six position on the grid for the 23-lap race.
The Spanish rider was almost 1.5s faster than his practice pace and he finished just over 0.5s behind World Championship leader Jack Miller with a lap of 1.41.248.
The 18-year-old’s sixth place is easily the best Moto3 qualifying result since Marc VDS Racing entered the competitive category at the beginning of 2013.
Mika Kallio // Pole Position // 1’36.883
“Today was perfect because I didn’t expect to be challenging for the pole position on a track where I’ve never had really good results. But this year I have been much more competitive and I am happy with my preparation for tomorrow because my race pace is not too bad. We just need to see the conditions because the new surface is coming better each day and maybe tomorrow the lap times will be even faster. This can have an impact on the setting of the machine, so we need to pay attention to that. I also need to say a big thanks to the Marc VDS Racing Team for the work they did. Yesterday was very difficult and I wasn’t even in the top 10, and now I am starting from pole position. So they deserve a lot of credit and I am looking forward to a good battle with Tito.”
Tito Rabat // 2nd // 1’37.056
“It was not an easy qualifying session, so I am happy to be starting on the front row with Mika. I have been happy with the performance of the tyres on the new asphalt all weekend, but a bit like in Assen, the tyres didn’t work as well as we anticipated in qualifying. I am confident we can find a solution but the big crash at the end finished my session. Thankfully I am not injured and I am confident I can challenge for the win tomorrow.”
Jorge Navarro // 6th // 1’41.248
“I am so happy to qualify on the second row because honestly I really didn’t imagine a top six was achievable considering this is only my second day with the team and I have no experience of the bike or the track. The Marc VDS Racing Team has done an unbelievable job to help me adapt quickly and each time I go out on track I improve. I am strong on the brakes and there are some hard braking points here and this is helping and I have a lot of confidence with the Kalex KTM package. My objective tomorrow is just to learn as much as I can from the best talent in Moto3 and gain some experience. I don’t know how the bike will be in the race because I’ve not done 23-laps together but the goal is to finish.”
More, from a press release issued by AirAsia Caterham Moto2 Team:
Second Row Start for Zarco in Indianapolis
Circuit: Indianapolis Motor Speedway
Circuit Length: 4.170 m
Bike # 5 – Johann Zarco
FP3: P23; 1’38.426 – 23 laps
Qualifying: P4; 1’37.452 – 23 laps
Bike # 2 – Josh Herrin
FP3: P27; 1’38.753 – 21 laps
Qualifying: P23; 1’38.123 – 19 laps
Weather
FP3: (Conditions) Dry; (air temp) 26°, (track temp) 38°
Qualifying: (Conditions) Dry; (air temp) 27°, (track temp) 36°
After a tough start to their Indianapolis Grand Prix the AirAsia Caterham Moto Racing riders picked up the pace with an impressive Qualifying performance.
Working hard to adjust his riding style to suit the American Circuit, Johann Zarco headed out strong from the start. Looking more relaxed and comfortable on the #5 Caterham Suter the Frenchman began to consistently chip away at his time, launching himself into the top five and qualifying on row two for tomorrow’s race.
Determined to improve his position from Free Practice, teammate Josh Herrin just missed out on qualifying within the top twenty. Pushing hard the Moto2 rookie continued to show his pace throughout the session, but an unfortunate crash in the final minutes hampered his chance of bettering his time.
#5 Johann Zarco: “I’m really happy about the qualifying because in the practice sessions it was a difficult situation as I was so far behind.
“After FP3 we made just a few little modifications to the bike and then in Qualifying I pushed also.
I wanted to stay out and get into a rhythm with a consistent pace because on this track the line is very important. My feeling on the bike was a lot better and I felt comfortable to play with both tyres. I was also able to get into the slip stream which helps for the lap time. Throughout the session I was able to better my pace and I could even try to push to be faster again.
“I am happy and this is very important for tomorrow. It’s good to get this confidence and to stay in this lap time, but it’s not easy.
I hope tomorrow the conditions are the same and to have the same feeling on the bike and in the mind. The race I think will be hard but I hope to stay with the top group as long as possible. After losing so many points in Sachsenring I must finish and take these points back with a good result.”
#2 Josh Herrin: “Today has been good. In both sessions I made it into the top twenty and up to fourteenth at one point, but I missed the shift on the back straight which cost us three tenths. If I hadn’t made this mistake the three tenths would have put us around twelfth or thirteenth place overall.
Obviously I wish I could have finished there but I’m happy with the time that I can do now. I felt really relaxed and it’s the first time this year I haven’t been stressed when pushing for the time.
It’s the best position we’ve had so far which is great and hopefully tomorrow I can improve again and get into the 1m37s before the race, just to get a bit more confidence.”
Team Manager – Johan Stigefelt: “It’s really been a weekend of ups and downs. We’ve struggled since FP1 right up until Qualifying.
“At the start it was difficult to determine exactly what the problem was with Johann as it looked to be a combination of both him and the bike. We’ve been working on it and Johann also made a big step himself in the way that he changed his riding style to adapt to this track, which is very different to many of the others. He made an exceptional effort to do this and right when it was needed most.
We also made a step with the bike right before FP3 which turned out to be in the right direction. Johann’s pace was good and consistent with quite a lot of laps in the mid 1m37s.
It looks pretty good for tomorrow but we’ve seen it many times before and we need to be strong for the race and learn from previous mistakes. We will not change a lot with the bike, so now it is up to Johann to do the best he can tomorrow.
“Josh did well and the Qualifying session was really interesting because he made a big improvement in his lap time and was not far off. We could see he was following and learning from some of the other riders in a good way. He was just missing maybe one or two tenths to make it into the top twenty. It’s a shame but still I believe he can do a good race. Twenty third is his best qualifying position this year and I hope that he can capitalise from that, try to stay in a good group and do his best. I think he can fight for the points if he can stay calm and ride well.”
More, from a press release issued by AGT Rea Racing:
Indianapolis Qualifying: So near yet so far for AGT REA Racing
AGT REA Racing concluded Saturday’s qualifying practice in 25th position despite closing the gap to the leaders from 2 to 1.2 seconds.
From the start to mid-session, Gino Rea held positions between 13th and 16th, before dropping down the order after two pit stops, as he explains:
“I’m pretty annoyed with the final position because the start of the session went so well. At the beginning, I was in the top 15 on an old tyre from the morning free practice session. We made a change to the suspension and tried a different compound rear tyre. But the tyre wasn’t so good so we changed the tyre again for the final run. The suspension setting caused more chatter on the front so I wasn’t able to go faster. I’m annoyed because I felt with a new tyre and the bike settings at the start of the session, we could have had those crucial two or three tenths which would have moved us up around 10 positions.
We’re making progress with the bike. We’ve gone from being 2 seconds off the leaders down to 1.2 seconds. And I’m only 0.2 seconds from 12th position. It’s incredibly close! Tomorrow I need to get away with the battle for the points and I will be giving it everything to bring the team a points finish at our home race.”
Tomorrow AGT REA Racing line up for their second ‘home’ race of the season; Indiana being the home state of their title sponsor American Green Technology. The only American team in the MotoGP paddock will be out to impress in front of their home crowd.
The Moto2 race from the Indianapolis Motor Speedway will take place tomorrow at 12.20 local time and 17.20 in the UK. Follow the team on their Facebook www.facebook.com/AGTREARACING and Twitter @AGT_REA_Racing for live updates.