Moto2: Baldassarri on fire for first pole
Full Moto2 qualifying results from Jerez here
Lorenzo Baldassarri put in a spectacular performance to secure pole position ahead of round four of the Moto2 championship, the Spanish Grand Prix at Jerez.
The Pons HP40 rider took his first ever pole position in style, following on from his lap record in FP3 he was once again the first rider to dip into the 1m42s on his way to his best of 1m41.925s.
The Italian had consistent pace, putting in a strong set of fast laps on his Kalex, showing he has important pace for tomorrows race on his way to take the top spot on the grid.
He has stiff competition from Alex Marquez, who was on pole in Jerez last season and also at the last round in Austin, the EG 0,0 Marc VDS rider was on the ragged edge to also push under the 1m 42s barrier - the only other rider to do so- to finish just 0.071s behind Baldassarri for second.
Championship leader and Austin winner Francesco Bagnaia will complete the front row for Sky Racing Team VR46, completing an all Kalex front row.
Jorge Navarro was one of many riders to push too hard in the final minutes and fall, though he had done enough to hold on to fourth before his exit at turn six on his Gresini machine.
Brad Binder was the best placed KTM in fifth with Joan Mir rallying to come back from the stomach bug which saw him exit FP3 early, the top rookie in sixth with the EG 0,0 Marc VDS team.
Xavi Vierge (Dynavolt Intact GP) will lead off row three after setting a time strong enough for seventh, while Sam Lowes (Swiss Innovative Investors) was another faller, one of many casualties at turn nine but only slipped to eighth, having been seventh at the time of his fall.
Romano Fenati climbed into ninth late on for Marinelli Snipers, with Italtrans rider Mattia Pasini holding on to a top ten start despite crashing twice in the session.
Danny Kent’s last lap rocketed him up to eleventh for Speed Up in a close session where all of the top twenty were within 0.97 of the pole time.
Miguel Oliveira was another late crasher, dropping him to 14th on the Red Bull KTM Ajo.
Dominique Aegerter, who injured his pelvis while training, and Remy Gardner, who broke both his legs and an ankle while Motocross training during the gap between races, are both replaced for the weekend.
Hector Garzo returns for his second Moto2 race, in at Tech3 for Gardner, while his CEV team-mate Lukas Tulovic makes his debut with Kiefer replacing Aegerter. Garzo crashed on his way to 30th while Tulovic fared better in 24th.
