FIM Moto2 World Championship
Sepang International Circuit, Malaysia
October 25, 2014
Qualifying Results (all using Honda engines and Dunlop tires):
1. Esteve “Tito” RABAT, Spain (KALEX), 2:07.429
2. Mika KALLIO, Finland (KALEX), 2:07.587
3. Sandro CORTESE, Germany (KALEX), 2:07.706
4. Maverick VIÑALES, Spain (KALEX), 2:07.754
5. Thomas LUTHI, Switzerland (SUTER), 2:07.849
6. Takaaki NAKAGAMI, Japan (KALEX), 2:07.875
7. Julian SIMON, Spain (KALEX), 2:07.886
8. Johann ZARCO, France (CATERHAM SUTER), 2:07.956
9. Dominique AEGERTER, Switzerland (SUTER), 2:08.133
10. Axel PONS, Spain (KALEX), 2:08.144
11. Marcel SCHROTTER, Germany (TECH 3), 2:08.169
12. Jonas FOLGER, Germany (KALEX), 2:08.225
13. Franco MORBIDELLI, Italy (KALEX), 2:08.338
14. Xavier SIMEON, Belgium (SUTER), 2:08.344
15. Sam LOWES, UK (SPEED UP), 2:08.359
16. Luis SALOM, Spain (KALEX), 2:08.398
17. Louis ROSSI, France (KALEX), 2:08.503
18. Hafizh SYAHRIN, Malaysia (KALEX), 2:08.558
19. Roberto ROLFO, Italy (SUTER), 2:08.669
20. Florian MARINO, France (KALEX), 2:08.759
21. Gino REA, UK (SUTER), 2:08.832
22. Jordi TORRES, Spain (SUTER), 2:08.835
23. Lorenzo BALDASSARRI, Italy (SUTER), 2:08.865
24. Ricard CARDUS, Spain (TECH 3), 2:09.254
25. Randy KRUMMENACHER, Switzerland (SUTER), 2:09.335
26. Anthony WEST, Australia (SPEED UP), 2:09.409
27. Nicolas TEROL, Spain (SUTER), 2:09.441
28. Tomoyoshi KOYAMA, Japan (NTS), 2:09.710
29. Azlan SHAH, Malaysia (KALEX), 2:09.782
30. Thitipong WAROKORN, Thailand (KALEX), 2:09.813
31. Roman RAMOS, Spain (SPEED UP), 2:09.829
32. Decha KRAISART, Thailand (TECH 3), 2:10.699
33. Ratthapark WILAIROT, Thailand (CATERHAM SUTER), 2:15.599
34. Mattia PASINI, Italy (KALEX), no time recorded
35. Robin MULHAUSER, Switzerland (SUTER), no time recorded
More, from a press release issued by Marc VDS Racing Team:
Rabat chases World Championship from pole position at Sepang
Sepang, Malaysia – 25 October 2014: Tito Rabat will start from pole position for the tenth time this season in tomorrow’s Malaysian Moto2 Grand Prix, after posting the fastest time in today’s qualifying session, which was held in sweltering conditions at Sepang.
Mika Kallio will join Rabat on the front row for the Malaysian Moto2 Grand Prix, after overcoming rear grip issues to qualify in second position, just over a tenth behind his teammate.
It is the fourth time this season that the Marc VDS riders have lined up alongside each other in position one and two on the grid, but never before has the outcome of the race been so important for the championship battle, which has raged between Rabat and Kallio since the first race of the season in Qatar.
Should Rabat finish seventh or higher in the race then he will be crowned as the 2014 Moto2 World Champion on Sunday afternoon at Sepang, regardless of where his Marc VDS teammate finishes. All Kallio can do is race to win, while hoping that the rich vein of form that Rabat has enjoyed since Brno finally deserts him tomorrow.
Jorge Navarro was disappointed to secure a start only on the seventh row of the grid for tomorrow’s 18-lap Malaysian Moto3 Grand Prix, after qualifying in 20th position this afternoon at Sepang. The 18-year-old Spaniard will look to make improvements in warm up tomorrow, before heading into the race with the goal of another points scoring finish.
Tito Rabat // Pole Position // 2’07.429
“Today I had a good feeling on the bike, both with a full fuel load and later in the session with less weight. My rhythm was also good from the start, but maybe I worked a little bit too hard today, with too much stopping and starting. I also came across too many riders on track, which meant I wasn’t able to improve my lap time further. The race will be hard tomorrow, not just because of the conditions but also because all the riders are so close on time. Like always, I will focus only on the race tomorrow, not the championship. I will try to make a good start and then fight at the front, hopefully for the win.”
Mika Kallio // 2nd // 2’07.587
“If I want to win the race tomorrow then there is no place for a plan; I need to brake later, open the throttle earlier and fight from the first metre to the last! The conditions are really difficult, it’s hard to find a good setting but as we saw in qualifying, it’s the same for everyone. We do need to think about the tyres as the grip is good initially, so you can be aggressive, but then it drops off quite quickly and then you need to a little bit more gentle, more smooth, to maximise the grip. We are in not too bad a position at the moment, and we’ve closed a lot on Tito in qualifying, but we could do with another two tenths per lap and a bit more consistency in the race. I need to win here and I need to win in Valencia, but it’s really down to Tito at the moment. He has a big advantage, but we will keep putting on the pressure and see what happens.”
Jorge Navarro // 20th // 2’15.277
“This morning the feeling with the bike was good and the lap time was coming, but then I hit the limit and couldn’t seem to get past it to improve my lap time further. Now we need to break this limit because I expected much more than 20th position in qualifying and, more importantly, the gap to first place is too much. For tomorrow we need to work, because we are not where we should be yet.”
More, from a press release issued by AirAsia Caterham Moto2 Team:
Third Row Start for Zarco at Sepang
Circuit: Sepang Circuit
Circuit Length: 5.543 km
Bike # 5 – Johann Zarco
FP3: P3; 2’07.759 – 18 laps
Qualifying: P8; 2’07.956 – 16 laps
Bike # 14 – Ratthapark Wilairot
FP3: P28; 2’09.396 – 11 laps
Qualifying: P33; 2’15.599 – 4 laps
Weather
FP3: (Conditions) Dry; (air temp) 32°, (track temp) 43°
Qualifying: (Conditions) Dry; (air temp) 33°, (track temp) 56°
AirAsia Caterham Moto Racing rider Johann Zarco will start tomorrow’s Malaysian Grand Prix from the third row on the grid. Having only been able to make one flying lap due to a technical issue, Ratthapark Wilairot will start from 33rd position.
In the sweltering heat Zarco pushed to improve his pace from practice but was unable to better his fastest lap time set in FP3. With ten minutes left to go the Frenchman looked set to claim another front row start, but in the final minutes was left to settle for 8th place.
Following a technical issue at the beginning of the qualifying session, teammate Ratthapark Wilairot was forced to sit out of the majority of QP, only making four laps in total. The #14 crew worked hard to repair the bike but time was against them, leaving Wilairot down in 33rd position as the session came to an end.
#5 Johann Zarco: “I am disappointed with qualifying today. I tried not to get nervous at the beginning but I was so slow. It was difficult, the feeling was not the same as the morning and it was hotter. Finally I really needed to give everything to push to do the lap time and I managed only eighth place.
We can still find some positive things because we are not far, it’s only pole position that is faster than everyone, but then there is a very close group between second and my position. I should not be unhappy but I am. I need to relax myself and really fight and give all I can give for the race and then I can be on the podium if I do like this. I hope to be in good condition and be strong for the 19 laps.”
#14 Ratthapark Wilairot: “I went out on the first lap and immediately I could feel there was a problem; I had to pull off track because there was an issue with the throttle cable, I think it was broken. Luckily there was someone there, I think the father of Niccolo Antonelli, who helped me to push the bike back through the paddock so I didn’t have to wait too long for the van to arrive. I have to say a big thank you to him. The team then worked on the bike and I just had to wait. Eventually I was able to get back out, I think around fifteen minutes before the end. I started to try to push and again in the last corner it was the same problem and I had to stop. I think tomorrow good things must happen because today had been very hard. I will do my best. “
Johan Stigefelt – Team Manager: “Qualifying for Johann wasn’t that bad, but we maybe expected a little bit more. Its close, only two tenths to third position so we’re in range for a good race tomorrow I’m sure. The session was a little bit weird because there weren’t so many consistently good laps, which is a bit strange because normally Johann is pretty strong when it comes to doing laps on his own. He was maybe waiting a bit too much for other riders and for a good tow. However we can see the ideal time is very good and the speed is there. The bike is good enough to do well tomorrow, so lets see. Starting from third row will maybe give us something extra for tomorrow because we have been on the front row now for a while, but lets see what happens from eighth position.
“Ratthapark had an issue with his bike, a technical issue with the throttle which unfortunately happened two times and it took a long time to repair during the session. It was not really the perfect time to fix it the first time and then it happened again, perhaps due to a mistake because we had to speed up things, so we have to see what it is, why it stopped the second time. It’s going to be hard for him to fight from 33rd on the grid and do well here, but you never know, in the race anything can happen.”
More, from a press release issued by NGM Mobile Forward Racing:
Difficult qualifying for the NGM Forward Racing at Sepang
It was a demanding day for the NGM Forward Racing Team at Sepang. At the very beginning of the qualifying Mattia Pasini crashed, fortunately without any consequences for the rider. The Italian couldn’t rejoin the session and he will take the start of the Malaysian GP from the back of the grid. Team mate Florian Marino eventually finished in 20th position setting a lap time of 2.08.759.
After the positive first day of practices, Pasini tackled the qualifying aiming at getting close to the Top10. Unfortunately due to a problem with the brake, he crashed on the first lap damaging the bike. He couldn’t return on track for the rest of the session.
It was a demanding session also for his team mate Florian Marino, who finished in 20th position and tomorrow will take the start from the 7th row, aiming at getting closer to the top15.
Mattia Pasini
“On the first lap of the qualifying I had a problem with the brake at the first corner and I crashed. The bike was damaged and I couldn’t return on track for the session. It’s a pity because I could do well. On Friday we did well and today I expected to do a good result in the qualifying. Tomorrow it will be a difficult race as we start from the back of the grid. I will do my best to recover as many positions as possible”.
Florian Marino
“This has been my best qualifying so far. We have been able to improve and also the confidence has increased. Tomorrow it will be a long and tough race. I will give my best to finish closer to the top15”.
More, from a press release issued by QMMF Racing Team:
West and Ramos struggle with rear grip in the heat but are both confident for the race
In blistering tropical heat, QMMF Racing Team riders Anthony West and Roman Ramos qualified for 26th and 31st position on the starting grid for the Malaysian Grand Prix. Both riders rode significantly faster in comparison to day one on the fast and difficult Sepang circuit, improvements that came alongside with crucial steps in the set-up of their Speed Up prototypes. Australian West was especially happy with his bike in the cooler morning session, before both riders ran into problems with rear tyre grip in suffocating heat during qualifying. In the warm-up session on Sunday, West and Ramos will try to make the final step with the set-up and improve rear tyre grip for the race, with the clear goal of hunting down as many other riders as possible and achieving a strong result.
Anthony West – 26th in 2.09,409
“I was happy this morning because I went straight out and did the fastest time I’ve ever done here, by quite a bit. I was quite happy with that and we continued to make small changes to the bike. Some parts got better, like the turning, some parts got worse, like the grip in the rear. We thought we could fix the bike in the afternoon, but with the temperatures being so hot it was just difficult to get grip and drive out of the corners. I wasn’t able to put a good lap together in the second session, it was quite hard with the hot tarmac. I just didn’t have the confidence in the rear grip in hot conditions. I tried to find someone to follow in qualifying, because on the two long straights here you can make up quite a lot of time if you find another find fast rider, but unfortunately I didn’t. That’s why I wasn’t really happy with qualifying today. But this morning I felt good, the guys did a good job and I was happy with the way the bike was. I hope I can carry this feeling through to the race tomorrow. The race is a little later than usual, which could help us. All things considered, I think we can still be strong in the race!”
Roman Ramos – 31st in 2.09,829
“It was a difficult day, but not as difficult as yesterday. I am still way back on the grid, but at the same time, I am very close to a whole bunch of other riders. I just couldn’t string a perfect lap together, mainly because we had some issues with rear grip in the heat, a problem that we will try to solve for tomorrow. If we can do this, I think we have the chance to do a good race, since the lap times are so close together. With slipstream, you can go much faster on this track, so I hope to have a good start and to be able to stay with the riders in front of me. With the intense heat, it will be a really tough race, but I’m in good shape physically and I hope that will give me a little bit of an advantage over some of the other riders, especially on the last laps!”
More, from a press release issued by AGT Rea Racing:
Gino Rea fighting for a Top 15 in tomorrow’s Malaysian Grand Prix
Gino Rea qualified 21st for the Malaysian Grand Prix on Saturday, finishing just 1.4 seconds from pole position. Rea was within the Top 20 for most of the qualifying session however a few minor setbacks hindered his progress as he explains:
“Qualifying today didn’t exactly go to plan so to finish 1.4 from pole in 21st is still a big improvement over last weekend. I was inside the Top 20 for most of the session but when I went out on new tyres I had to make an extra pit stop to change my helmet because my drink tube opened and splashed inside the visor. When I got back out on track I was on a quick lap but I lost the front in the tight turn 9 and crashed. Luckily I managed to get going again with just a bent handlebar. There wasn’t enough time to pit in so I continued and did my best lap after that. I feel good going into the race so I’m hoping I can make up some positions to battle for the Top 15.”
AGT REA Racing will line up for the Malaysian Grand Prix tomorrow at 14.20 local time.