Moto2 Qualifying at the Sachsenring: Ortola edges out IntactGP rider Gonzalez by the narrowest of margins!

The Moto2 riders found ideal conditions at the Sachsenring to secure pole position. Ahead of qualifying, Ivan Ortola had set the fastest lap of the weekend with his best time in FP2. The Brno winner lapped the Sachsenring in 1:21.807 on Saturday morning, beating the previous lap record. This record was not to stand for long, however, as times in the mid-1:21s were clocked in Q2.

Before the top 18 battled it out for pole position in Q2, the final four starting places for the decisive qualifying session were decided in Q1. Celestino Vietti, who had to go via Q1 after a disappointing Friday, failed to make the cut. After the first session, qualifying was over for the fifth-placed rider in the World Championship.

The session proved more successful for Luca Lunetta, Sergio Garcia, Jose Antonio Rueda and Alberto Ferrandez, who secured the four remaining Q2 places.

Top three within 0.178 seconds

On his very first attempt in Q2, Ivan Ortola beat his lap record from earlier that morning. The clock stopped at 1:21.493 minutes. Daniel Holgado was the closest challenger, but was already 0.254 seconds behind. The two IntactGP riders, Senna Agius and Manuel Gonzalez, were in the top six.

Ortola’s lead narrowed during the second stint: Pramac rider Izan Guevara moved up to second place on his Boscoscuro and closed the gap to Ortola’s time to 0.178 seconds. Championship leader Manuel Gonzalez got even closer. The IntactGP rider fell 0.038 seconds short of Ortola’s time and was now in second place.

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There were to be no further surprises in the final minute: Ortola was unable to improve any further, but ultimately held on to the top spot and secured pole position for the German Grand Prix. Gonzalez and Guevara will complete the front row for Sunday’s Grand Prix.

Last year’s winner only on the fifth row

Aspar rider Holgado leads the second row in fourth place. IntactGP rider Agius finished qualifying in fifth position. Alex Escrig was once again in fine form on his Forward machine, finishing sixth. Taiyo Furusato secured seventh on the grid, relegating David Alonso to eighth. Collin Veijer finished in ninth place.

Last year’s winner, Deniz Öncü, finished qualifying in just 14th place. Filip Salac, who recently shone at Brno and Assen, also had a poor qualifying session: the Czech rider could only manage 15th on the grid.

The 25-lap Moto2 race will start on Sunday at 12.15 pm.