Starting rows 2 and 5 for Veijer & Suzuki in Mugello
It was a close call for Collin Veijer in qualifying for the Italian Grand Prix after the LIQUI MOLY Husqvarna Intact GP Moto3 rider crashed in the final metres of Q2 causing him to lose his place on the front row of the grid. From position four on row two, he will now try to fight for victory in Mugello. Tatsuki Suzuki will start from position 15 on row five.
In Moto3, not only the races are full of action and excitement, but also the qualifying sessions. Especially when Collin Veijer, who set the tone early in the Q2 session, crashes in the final metres in his attempt to do even better and reclaim the pole. The Dutchman, fortunately, remained unhurt after his front slid and immediately got back on his dusty Husqvarna, but the time running out did not allow any further attacks, so the 19-year-old had to settle for a solid fourth place on the grid. However, the youngster's strong pace was not only demonstrated by his P4 in qualifying, as Veijer worked his way up from P9 in P1 on Friday to second place in the first practice session and third place in P2 on Saturday morning, which means that he will start Sunday's 17-lap race with a lot of confidence and will try to fight for nothing less than victory.
His Japanese team-mate Tatsuki Suzuki did not find the sessions on the 5.25 kilometre Autodromo Internazionale del Mugello quite so easy. Of course, the Japanese rider, who calls the Mugello Grand Prix his second home race, also improved from session to session. After starting nineteenth in free practice, he finally made it into Qualifying 2 in ninth place from P2, where he completed six full laps within fifteen minutes. Unfortunately, his personal best time of 1'55.900 was 1.706s behind the Colombian pole setter David Alonso, which meant a fifteenth place on the grid in row five for Suzuki. However, nothing is lost for the seventh Grand Prix of the year, which starts at 11:00 am, as the 26-year-old will start within the points and will fight tenaciously to keep up with the leading group.
RESULTS
Free Practice
1. David ALONSO/ COL/ CFMOTO – 1'55.818
2. Ryusei YAMANAKA/ JPN/ KTM – 1'56.886 (+1.068)
3. Jose Antonio RUEDA/ SPA/ KTM – 1'57.050 (+1.232)
9. Collin VEIJER/ NED/ HUSQVARNA – 1'57.669 (+1.851)
19. Tatsuki SUZUKI/ JPN/ HUSQVARNA – 1'58.119 (+2.301)
P1
1. David ALONSO/ COL/ CFMOTO – 1'54.671
2. Collin VEIJER/ NED/ HUSQVARNA – 1'55.207 (+0.536)
3. Ryusei YAMANAKA/ JPN / KTM – 1'55.368 (+0.697)
11. Tatsuki SUZUKI/ JPN/ HUSQVARNA – 1'56.392 (+1.721)
P2
1. David ALONSO/ COL/ CFMOTO – 1'53.926
2. Ryusei YAMANAKA/ JPN/ KTM – 1'54.646 (+0.720)
3. Collin VEIJER/ NED/ HUSQVARNA – 1'54.715 (+0.789)
9. Tatsuki SUZUKI/ JPN/ HUSQVARNA – 1'55.235 (+1.309)
Q2
1. David ALONSO/ COL/ CFMOTO – 1'54.194
2. Ivan ORTOLA/ SPA/ KTM – 1'54.441 (+0.247)
3. Jose Antonio RUEDA/ SPA/ KTM – 1'54.797 (+0.603)
4. Collin VEIJER/ NED/ HUSQVARNA – 1'54.906 (+0.712)
15. Tatsuki SUZUKI/ JPN/ HUSQVARNA – 1'55.900 (+1.706)
