Binder & Agius tackle the Aragon Grand Prix from the 7th and 8th row
The combination of a challenging track and changing weather conditions made things difficult for LIQUI MOLY Husqvarna Intact GP Moto2 riders Darryn Binder and Senna Agius on this mixed Saturday at the MotorLand Aragon circuit, which means that both will have a lot of work tomorrow from P19 and P24.
A solid start in P11 in Friday's free practice session raised Darryn Binder's hopes that further improvements would lead to a start in Qualifying 2, but Alonso Lopez set a strong 1'50.989 in P1, which Binder lost 1.203s on, prompting the South African to put all his focus on Saturday morning's practice. Unfortunately, a wet P2 session threw a spanner in the 26-year-old's works and the former MotoGP rider was forced to start in Q1. There, Binder was within the all-important top four at one point but was then pushed back to sixth place at the last second, which meant nineteenth place on the grid in row seven for race Sunday. Certainly not an easy task on the 5.08km long track in the hinterland of Aragon, but his unbroken motivation gives him hope of being able to catch up.
Senna Agius also struggled, after Moto2 rookie finished the first free practice session at the MotorLand Aragon in twelfth place, which gave him a boost for the first practice session. However, his 1'52.307 was only good enough for P21, which made it difficult to improve in P2 in order to make the direct jump into Q2. When the wet asphalt made for treacherous damp conditions in P2, the 19-year-old decided to wait and not complete a lap. In Q1, the Australian then fought with everything his Kalex had to offer, but the one important lap time was simply not meant to be. The tenth place puts the youngster in 24th place on the grid for Sunday's 19-lap race, which starts at 12:15, on row eight, from where he will try to avoid the starting carnage in order to quickly find his rhythm, which will hopefully lead him quickly into the points.
Results
FP
1. Alonso LOPEZ/ SPA/ BOSCOSCURO – 1'51.657
2. Tony ARBOLINO/ ITA/ KALEX – 1'51.954 (+0.297)
3. Manuel GONZALEZ/ SPA/ KALEX – 1'52.040 (+0.383)
11. Darryn BINDER/ RSA/ KALEX 1'52.532(+0.875)
12. Senna AGIUS/ AUS/ KALEX – 1'52.670 (+1.013)
P1
1 Alonso LOPEZ/ SPA/ BOSCOSCURO – 1'50.989
2. Diogo MOREIRA/ BRA/ KALEX 1'51.212 (+0.223)
3. Jake DIXON/ GBR/ KALEX – 1'51.292 (+0.303)
19. Darryn BINDER/ RSA/ KALEX 1'52.192 (+1.203)
21. Senna AGIUS/ AUS/ KALEX – 1'52.307 (+1.318)
P2
1. Alonso LOPEZ/ SPA/ BOSCOSCURO – 1'59.335
2. Jake DIXON/ GBR/ KALEX – 2'01.056 (+1.721)
3. Fermin ALDEGUER/ SPA/ BOSCOSCURO – 2'01.551 (+2.216)
Not qualified (Out 105%) 2'05.301
Darryn BINDER/ RSA/ KALEX – 2'05.984 (+6.649)
Not classified
Senna AGIUS/ AUS/ KALEX
Q1
1. Zonta VD GOORBERGH/ NED/ KALEX – 1'52.603
2. Tony ARBOLINO/ ITA/ KALEX – 1'52.627 (+0.024)
3. Ai OGURA/ JPN/ BOSCOSCURO – 1'52.657 (+0.054)
6. Darryn BINDER/ RSA/ KALEX – 1'53.090 (+0.487)
10. Senna AGIUS/ AUS/ KALEX – 1'53.558 (+0.955)
