FIM Moto2 World Championship
Le Mans, France
May 17, 2014
Qualifying Results (All using Honda engines and Dunlop tires):
1. Jonas FOLGER, Germany (KALEX), 1:37.619 (New Circuit Best Lap Record)
2. Esteve RABAT, Spain (KALEX), 1:37.623
3. Luis SALOM, Spain (KALEX), 1:37.731
4. Mika KALLIO, Finland (KALEX), 1:37.768
5. Thomas LUTHI, Switzerland (SUTER), 1:37.773
6. Simone CORSI, Italy (KALEX), 1:37.809
7. Maverick VIÑALES, Spain (KALEX), 1:37.884
8. Ricard CARDUS, Spain (TECH 3), 1:37.929
9. Sandro CORTESE, Germany (KALEX), 1:37.963
10. Sam LOWES, UK (SPEED UP), 1:38.032
11. Xavier SIMEON, Belgium (SUTER), 1:38.112
12. Julian SIMON, Spain (KALEX), 1:38.153
13. Alex DE ANGELIS, San Marino (SUTER), 1:38.202
14. Franco MORBIDELLI, Italy (KALEX), 1:38.322
15. Dominique AEGERTER, Switzerland (SUTER), 1:38.326
16. Mattia PASINI, Italy (KALEX), 1:38.432
17. Marcel SCHROTTER, Germany (TECH 3), 1:38.449
18. Louis ROSSI, France (KALEX), 1:38.505
19. Lucas MAHIAS, France (TRANSFIORMERS), 1:38.616
20. Johann ZARCO, France (CATERHAM SUTER), 1:38.686
21. Takaaki NAKAGAMI, Japan (KALEX), 1:38.696
22. Jordi TORRES, Spain (SUTER), 1:38.731
23. Gino REA, UK (SUTER), 1:38.903
24. Randy KRUMMENACHER, Switzerland (SUTER), 1:38.980
25. Axel PONS, Spain (KALEX), 1:38.988
26. Hafizh SYAHRIN, Malaysia (KALEX), 1:39.126
27. Anthony WEST, Australia (SPEED UP), 1:39.255
28. Nicolas TEROL, Spain (SUTER), 1:39.298
29. Lorenzo BALDASSARRI, Italy (SUTER), 1:39.462
30. Josh HERRIN, USA (CATERHAM SUTER), 1:39.621
31. Tetsuta NAGASHIMA, Japan (TSR), 1:39.639
32. Thitipong WAROKORN, Thailand (KALEX), 1:39.724
33. Roman RAMOS, Spain (SPEED UP), 1:39.816
34. Azlan SHAH, Malaysia (KALEX), 1:40.081
35. Robin MULHAUSER, Switzerland (SUTER), 1:40.755
More, from a press release issued by AirAsia Caterham Moto2 Team:
Challenging Qualifying for AirAsia Caterham Moto Racing at Le Mans
Circuit: Le Mans
Circuit Length: 4.185 m
Bike # 5 – Johann Zarco
FP3: P10; 1’38.518 – 19 laps
Qualifying: P20; 1’38.686 – 20 laps
Bike # 2 – Josh Herrin
FP3: P33; 1’40.167 – 23 laps
Qualifying: P30; 1’39.621 – 23 laps
Weather
FP3: (Conditions) Dry; (air temp) 20°, (track temp) 28°
Qualifying: (Conditions) Dry; (air temp) 25°, (track temp) 45°
Saturday at Le Mans ended in disappointment for the AirAsia Caterham Moto Racing team as both riders struggled to improve their times in the afternoons forty five minute qualifying session around the French circuit.
#5 Johann Zarco:
“The result today is not good. I’ve never been this far behind in qualifying. I don’t understand what is wrong because we tried to find a solution but the lap times still aren’t coming, so maybe it’s me.
“Perhaps we made a small mistake with the tyre choice which may have helped a little, so tomorrow morning I will start with the harder option in warm-up and I will see if it’s better or not. This is the only way that I can see an explanation.
“I don’t feel nervous or pressured it’s just that this weekend the lap times aren’t there and I’m very disappointed.
“Tomorrow I will do the maximum to have good constant lap times in warm up and then the race is quite long, so if I have the pace I will overtake many riders. “
#2 Josh Herrin:
“We started qualifying by doing a fourteen lap stint without me following anyone and I was able to get a string of laps in, so I’m happy with how that went.
“As far as positions go obviously I’m not happy to be in 30th place and on the tenth row but we improved our time by another sixth tenths this afternoon and we’ve just got to keep chipping away. Hopefully tomorrow morning in warm-up I can find something else and then get a good start in the race.
“I’m not too happy about the result but I’m pleased with the track time I got and the knowledge of the bike. I know tomorrow I just really need to finish a race. I will be aiming for the top twenty and if I can fight for the points I will.
Team Manager – Johan Stigefelt:
“We are all very disappointed today and we will have to make a long analysis tonight of why we are not faster. It’s been a struggle from the first session here and we have been trying different settings to make it easier for Johann but it is not coming. In the morning we will try something different again and let’s see how that works out. We have by no means given up and will keep fighting.
“For Josh it’s been a difficult track for him to come back to as he is also struggling here. The most important thing for him tomorrow will be to finish the race. If he can make a good start I believe he can run further up then what he has qualified today, so let’s see.”
More, from a press release issued by QMMF Racing Team:
Anthony West struggles – Roman Ramos finds good rhythm for the race
After a strong performance in Saturday morning’s third free practice session, QMMF Racing Team rider Anthony West dropped back to 27th place in qualifying for the French Grand Prix. With a lap time of 1.39,255 minutes, the 32-year-old Australian was about a tenth of a second slower than in the morning session, but was unsure whether the rising track temperatures, a problem with the set-up of his Speed-Up prototype or his own riding style hampered his efforts.
Team-mate Roman Ramos ended the day in 33rd position, but was in good spirits despite a roller-coaster ride with the set-up of his bike. Trying to fix a small problem, he and his team went the wrong direction with their chassis and suspension adjustments and had to return to their previous settings in qualifying. Ramos found back to a strong and consistent rhythm but started his hunt for a good qualifying lap time a little bit too late and couldn’t get the best out of a new set of tyres. Nevertheless, the Spanish Grand Prix rookie is determined to put up a good show in the race.
Anthony West – 27th in 1.39,255
This morning I still wasn’t fast, but I was a little better than now in qualifying and I could repeat my times every lap. But this afternoon, I was struggling. I just didn’t find any grip and couldn’t make the bike turn. I was just sliding all the time. I tried different lines, followed other riders, did everything imaginable, but I just couldn’t get a good lap time. Sam Lowes is fast with this bike, so there are no excuses – I just went slow and I don’t know why!”
Roman Ramos – 33rd in 1.39,816
“We made a change from this morning to the afternoon in order to improve the bike, but it didn’t quite turn out the way we hoped, so we had to go back to our previous settings. We had a lot of work, so I didn’t get the best out of a new set of tyres that we mounted towards the end. I only managed to do two laps before we ran out of time. But even though my grid position is not what we expected, I am still reasonably happy because I know that I have a good pace for the race. The bike works quite well, but we will obviously use the warm-up practice on Sunday morning to try and improve it further, so I can do the best race possible!”
More, from a press release issued by Marc VDS Racing Team:
Rabat and Kallio ready for podium challenge in Le Mans
Le Mans, France – 17 May 2014: Marc VDS Racing Team riders Tito Rabat and Mika Kallio put up a tremendous fight for pole position in an incredibly close Moto2 qualifying battle at the historic Le Mans circuit this afternoon.
Spaniard Rabat led the practice timesheets and he missed out on securing a fourth pole in five races by just 0.004s. The World Championship leader suffered a small crash in hot conditions during qualifying, but he remains confident he can fight for his third victory of 2014.
A second successive pole position eluded Kallio by just 0.149s, the Finn qualifying in an excellent fourth to boost his hopes of another maximum points haul after a dominant start-to-finish triumph in Jerez.
A lack of front-end confidence has hindered Livio Loi’s progress in France and he will start the Moto3 race from 25th position on the grid.
Tito Rabat // 2nd // 1’37.623
“That was quite an eventful qualifying. I had a crash but still managed to get on the front row and I only missed out on another pole by the tiniest of margins. In the first part of the session I made a very good lap time and my rhythm was also very strong, so that was important before the mistake. I released the front brake too early in the crash, but I am still very confident for the race tomorrow. A good start will be vital because as always, the lap times are very close.”
Mika Kallio // 4th // 1’37.768
“I am very happy because after a difficult weekend, I got my confidence back on the bike this afternoon like in Jerez, so thanks to my crew chief Naoya Kaneko, who gave me a great bike. Before qualifying I was struggling in the braking zone with front feeling, and that is crucial at Le Mans. The set-up changes allowed me to push to the limit and my lap time was very constant. I might have had another pole position but I had a big slide from the rear exiting the final corner on one of my best laps and that cost me some vital time. But I am confident for the race that I can get another good result. My good point is in the first laps on a full fuel tank when some other riders seem to struggle, so I will push hard immediately like in Jerez.”
Livio Loi // 25th // 1’44.237
“It was a very difficult day and I don’t have the feeling I need with the bike. Qualifying was very hard and all weekend I’ve had no confidence with the front. Each time I try and push I almost lose the front and I have a lot of movement that doesn’t give me any confidence. Hopefully we can find a better set-up in the warm-up to improve because it will be a tough race from my starting position.”
Michael Bartholemy: Team Principal
“It would have been great to keep our 100% pole position record going in 2014, but Tito was so close we can’t be too disappointed. It is a shame he lost some time because of the crash and for his last five laps the rear brake was not working properly, so to be so close to pole again is a great effort. Mika did a great job too because he has been very consistent and found the confidence with the bike like he had in Jerez. I’m sure we can see both of them fighting for the podium tomorrow, which would be great at the home race of our event title sponsor Elf. We can’t be happy with Livio qualifying down in 25tth position. The gap to pole position is far too much and I hope we can give him some more confidence with the front tomorrow to enable him to try and salvage some points.”