Young talents Pini & O'Gorman secure top starting positions in Portugal
The penultimate race weekend of the season, which takes place at the Autódromo Internacional do Algarve, had a few surprises in store so far for LIQUI MOLY Dynavolt Intact GP riders Guido Pini and substitute rider Casey O'Gorman. The young duo secured a strong team result for the German racing team in an impressive Moto3 qualifying session, with fifth and seventh places on the grid, raising hopes for an exciting and successful Portuguese Grand Prix.
Changeable conditions have characterised the practice sessions so far on the 4.59-kilometre track on the Portuguese Atlantic coast. But with his previous World Championship experience, Guido Pini knows exactly how to adapt quickly and efficiently to such challenges with his KTM. After finishing eleventh in the first free practice session and twentieth in practice, the start to the weekend was a little cautious, but the 17-year-old worked meticulously to make a clear statement in Saturday's practice session with fourth place. In Q1, Pini secured himself one of the last four Q2-spots with a time of 1:47.905. A strong final lap (1:47.061) ultimately earned him an excellent fifth place on the grid in the second row.
Due to David Muñoz's ongoing healing phase, the Intact GP team had to adapt to a new young talent once again after Brian Uriarte's strong performances in Australia and Malaysia – Casey O'Gorman. It is impressive how quickly the team from Memmingen is managing to fight for top positions with young riders who are still inexperienced in the World Championship. The 18-year-old Irishman, who normally rides a Honda in the JuniorGP, also improved rapidly aboard the Intact GP KTM: 21st place in the first free practice session was followed by 13th place in practice, which meant he qualified directly for Q2. On Saturday morning, the current fifth-placed rider in the JuniorGP impressed with a top-nine result, which he converted into an excellent seventh place on the grid in row three with a strong Q2 time of 1:47.159.
For the 19-lap race, which concludes the penultimate race weekend of the season on Sunday at 2:30 p.m. local time, both Intact GP riders are in a promising starting position for a successful Portuguese Grand Prix before heading to Valencia for the season finale.
Results
FP1
1. Dennis FOGGIA/ ITA/ KTM – 1'47.422 1
2. Joel KELSO/ AUS/ KTM – 1'47.458 (+0.036)
3. Joel ESTEBAN/ SPA/ KTM – 1'47.581 (+0.159)
11. Guido PINI/ ITA/ KTM – 1'47.950 (+0.528)
21. Casey O'GORMAN/ IRL/ KTM – 1'48.550 (+1.128)
PR
1. David ALMANSA/ SPA/ HONDA – 1'47.056
2. Taiyo FURUSATO/ JPN/ HONDA – 1'47.191 (+0.135)
3. Maximo QUILES/ SPA/ KTM – 1'47.295 (+0.239)
13. Casey O'GORMAN/ IRL/ KTM – 1'47.902 (+0.846)
20. Guido PINI/ ITA/ KTM – 1'48.212 (+1.156)
FP2
1. Angel PIQUERAS/ SPA/ KTM – 1'59.106
2. Brian URIARTE/ SPA/ KTM – 2'00.600 (+1.494)
3. Adrian FERNANDEZ/ SPA/ HONDA – 2'00.841 (+1.735)
4. Guido PINI/ ITA/ KTM – 2'01.066 (+1.960)
9. Casey O'GORMAN7 IRL/ KTM – 2'02.217 (+3.111)
Q1
1. Joel ESTEBAN/ SPA/ KTM – 1'47.679
2. Marco MORELLI/ ARG/ HONDA – 1'47.829 (+0.150)
3. Stefano NEPA/ ITA/ HONDA – 1'47.855 (+0.176)
4. Guido PINI/ ITA/ KTM – 1'47.905 (+0.226)
Q2
1. Joel KELSO/ AUS/ KTM – 1'46.764
2. Scott OGDEN/ GBR/ KTM – 1'46.833 (+0.069)
3. Angel PIQUERAS/ SPA/ KTM – 1'46.927 (+0.163)
5. Guido PINI/ ITA/ KTM – 1'47.061 (+0.297)
7. Casey O'GORMAN/ IRL/ KTM – 1'47.159 (+0.395)
