Pini & Muñoz: With fighting spirit and strong pace into the Qatar Grand Prix
The Qatar Grand Prix marks the fourth round of the season for the LIQUI MOLY Dynavolt Intact GP Team around Moto3 rookie Guido Pini and David Muñoz. Both riders battled hard in Qualifying 2 and secured promising starting positions for Sunday's race with grid positions 9 on row three and P11 on row four.
David Muñoz, who set the fastest time in the first free practice session on Friday, improved steadily and qualified sixth fastest for Q2 on Saturday. However, a yellow flag and heavy traffic prevented a final attack in the 15-minute Q2 session, meaning that he ultimately had to settle for eleventh place on the grid. The 18-year-old Spaniard is nevertheless confident of scoring his first world championship points of the season in the 16-lap race after establishing a strong pace on his KTM.
Moto3 rookie Guido Pini also impressed with a strong start. Despite initially having to familiarise himself with the night sessions at the Lusail International Circuit, the 17-year-old Italian not only quickly found his rhythm, but also took a liking to the unique race track, which is ridden under floodlights. After making it safely into Q2, he achieved ninth place with a time of 2'03.557 and will therefore start the fourth race of the season from the third row.
With these solid qualifying results, the German Moto3 team from Memmingen in Bavaria is optimistic about the upcoming race, which starts at 5 pm local time (4 pm CEST).
Results
FP1
1. David MUÑOZ/ SPA/ KTM – 2'04.556
2. Ryusei YAMANAKA/ JPN/ KTM – 2'04.571 (+0.015)
3. Jose Antonio RUEDA/ SPA/ KTM – 2'04.662 (+0.106)
4. Guido PINI/ ITA/ KTM – 2'05.046 (+0.490)
PR
1. Jose Antonio RUEDA/ SPA/ KTM – 2'03.277
2. Ryusei YAMANAKA/ JPN/ KTM – 2'03.521 (+0.244)
3. Angel PIQUERAS/ SPA/ KTM – 2'03.591 (+0.314)
6. David MUÑOZ/ SPA/ KTM – 2'03.897 (+0.620)
12. Guido PINI/ ITA/ KTM – 2'04.316 (+1.039)
FP2
1. Jose Antonio RUEDA/ SPA/ KTM – 2'03.357
2. Adrian FERNANDEZ/ SPA/ HONDA – 2'03.629 (+0.272)
3. David MUÑOZ/ SPA/ KTM – 2'03.670 (+0.313)
9. Guido PINI/ ITA/ KTM – 2'04.111 (+0.754)
Q2
1. Ryusei YAMANAKA/ JPN/ KTM – 2'02.638
2. Joel KELSO/ AUS/ KTM – 2'02.679 (+0.041)
3. Jose Antonio RUEDA/ SPA/ KTM – 2'02.914 (+0.276)
9. Guido PINI/ ITA/ KTM – 2'03.557 (+0.919)
11. David MUÑOZ/ SPA/ KTM – 2'03.795 (+1.157)
