Sasaki takes pole at the German GP, Veijer in brilliant 4th place

Qualifying sensation for the LIQUI MOLY Husqvarna Intact GP team: Ayumu Sasaki and Collin Veijer team up in Q2 and triumph in front of packed grandstands. Ayumu Sasaki grabbed the pole by an incredible 1.092 seconds, while fellow rookie Veijer secured a fabulous fourth place on the grid.

With a new Moto3 track record and a sensational pole lap, Ayumu Sasaki demonstrated that he is the absolute top favorite ahead of the seventh World Championship round. Already in the first practice session, the Japanese took the lead, which he managed to hold throughout all practice sessions after the track times in the rain practice sessions were not comparable. In Qualifying 2, the 22-year-old took the hammer out early and set the pace from then on. A few seconds before the time expired, Sasaki slammed a new lap record of 1'25.130 onto the 3.64 km track, with thousands of fans watching in excitement as he took pole while his four years younger teammate paved the way for his best qualifying result to date.

For said teammate, it's a weekend made to measure as rookie Collin Veijer seemed to cope well with the Sachsenring's special layout from the start. His 14th place in the first and only dry practice session boded well. The 18-year-old not only made it directly into the fiercely contested Q2, but also had the chance to play at the top of the world championship for the first time in his still youngGrand Prix career.

On both sides of the pits, the LIQUI MOLY Motorrad Grand Prix Deutschland, which starts at 11:00 am (CEST) on Sunday, is eagerly awaited, as a pole and fourth place on the grid whet the German racing team's appetite for more.


Results

P1
1.   Ayumu SASAKI/ JAP/ HUSQVARNA – 1'25.840
2.   Deniz ÖNCÜ/ TUR/ KTM – 1'26.089 (+0.249)
3.   Jaume MASIA/ SPA/ HONDA – 1'26.407 (+0.567)
14. Collin VEIJER/ NED/ HUSQVARNA – 1'27.502 (+1.662)

P2 (wet)
1.   Matteo BERTELLE/ ITA/ HONDA – 1'38.972
2.   Adrian FERNANDEZ/ SPA/ HONDA – 1'39.364 (+0.392)
3.   Deniz ÖNCÜ/TUR/ KTM – 1'39.440 (+0.468)
21. Ayumu SASAKI/ JAP/ HUSQVARNA – 1'41.826 (+2.854)
24. Collin VEIJER/ NED/ HUSQVARNA – 1'42.532 (+3.560)

P3 (wet)
1.   Xavier ARTIGAS/ SPA/ CFMOTO – 1'40.923
2.   Mario AJI/ INA/ HONDA – 1'41.209 (+0.286)
3.   Scott OGDEN/ GBR/ HONDA – 1'41.445 (+0.522)
26. Collin VEIJER/ NED/ HUSQVARNA – 1'45.806 (+4.883)
NC  Ayumu SASAKI/ JAP/ HUSQVARNA – 1'46.703 (+5.780)

Q2
1. Ayumu SASAKI/ JAP/ HUSQVARNA – 1'25.130
2. Deniz ÖNCÜ/ TUR/ KTM – 1'26.222(+1.092)
3. Ivan ORTOLÁ/ SPA/ KTM – 1'26.285 (+1.155)
4. Collin VEIJER/ NED/ HUSQVARNA – 1'26.641 (+1.511)