Gonzalez leads World Championship battle from row 3, Agius in row 8
The LIQUI MOLY Dynavolt Intact GP duo Manuel Gonzalez and Senna Agius secured seventh (row three) and 23rd (row eight) on the grid in the heated Moto2 qualifying session at the Malaysian Grand Prix – the last overseas event of the season. This promises a particularly exciting race on Sunday at 1:15 pm local time.
Manuel Gonzalez is in the midst of a close World Championship battle with Diogo Moreira and, with seventh place on the grid, has a clear advantage over the Brazilian, who will start the third-to-last race of the season from 16th position. On Friday, the 23-year-old already underlined that he will be a force to be reckoned with this weekend on the fast, 5.54 km track by setting the fastest time in the curcial practice session.
For Senna Agius, the weekend has been less than ideal so far. One week after his brilliant home victory at Phillip Island, the young Australian faces new challenges in Malaysia. On Friday, the Kalex rider failed to finish in the top 15 in either session, which meant he had to start in Q1. Even on an even hotter Saturday, the 20-year-old was unable to improve significantly. With 26th place in FP2 and 9th in Q1, his hard work continued. Over the distance of 17 laps, Agius still wants to use his chance in the race to score important World Championship points before returning to Europe.
Results
FP1
1. Jake DIXON/ GBR/ BOSCOSCURO – 2'04.131
2. Albert ARENAS/ SPA/ KALEX – 2'04.292 (+0.161)
3. David ALONSO/ COL/ KALEX – 2'04.429 (+0.298)
10. Manuel GONZALEZ/ SPA/ KALEX – 2'04.881 (+0.750)
15. Senna AGIUS/ AUS/ KALEX – 2'05.171 (+1.040)
PR
1. Manuel GONZALEZ/ SPA/ KALEX – 2'04.166
2. Jake DIXON/ GBR/ BOSCOSCURO – 2'04.218 (+0.052)
3. Albert ARENAS/ SPA/ KALEX – 2'04.282 (+0.116)
15. Senna AGIUS/ AUS/ KALEX – 2'04.771 (+0.605)
FP2
1. Jake DIXON/ GBR/ BOSCOSCURO – 2'03.633
2. Aron CANET/ SPA/ KALEX – 2'03.642 (+0.009)
3. Daniel MUÑOZ/ SPA/ KALEX – 2'03.680 (+0.047)
14. Manuel GONZALEZ/ SPA/ KALEX – 2'04.359 (+0.726)
26. Senna AGIUS/ AUS/KALEX – 2'05.252 (+1.619)
Q1
1. Jorge NAVARRO/ SPA/ FORWARD – 2'03.899
2. Ivan ORTOLA/ SPA/ BOSCOSCURO – 2'03.929 (+0.030)
3. Adrian HUERTAS/ SPA/ KALEX – 2'03.969 (+0.070)
9. Senna AGIUS/ AUS/ KALEX – 2'04.245 (+0.346)
Q2
1. Daniel HOLGADO/ SPA/ KALEX – 2'02.858
2. Barry BALTUS/ BEL/ KALEX – 2'03.420 (+0.562)
3. Jake DIXON/ GBR/ BOSCOSCURO – 2'03.449 (+0.591)
7. Manuel GONZALEZ/ SPA/ KALEX – 2'03.605 (+0.747)
