25/03/2023

Binder secures 4th row on grid & season opener ended prematurely for Tulovic

On Saturday's qualifying session Darryn Binder made a perfect start to his Moto2 rookie season with 11th position on the grid, while Lukas Tulovic unfortunately had to end his weekend in Portimao early due to injury.

In 17th place on Saturday morning, Darryn Binder missed out on direct entry into Q2 by a small gap after a small slip in P3 ruined his fastest lap. He then made up for it brilliantly in the early afternoon by being one of the top 4 riders in Q1 to get his ticket for the second qualifying session, which decides the top six rows of the grid. With a pit stop halfway through the short time chase, the South African eventually raced to 11th place in his first qualifying session in the Moto2 class, putting him on row four!

Teammate Lukas Tulovic on the other hand had to call it a day on his long-awaited first Moto2 race weekend of the season. After Friday's practice sessions for the Portugal GP, the 22-year-old again struggled with severe pain in his right hand. An MRI scan today at the Hospital do Algarve in Alvor revealed oedema in the metacarpal bone as well as in the area around the bone, which he contracted due to the heavy crash at the Portimao test last Saturday. As a result, with a heavy heart Lukas will not only have to miss this weekend, but also the Argentinean Grand Prix. The LIQUI MOLY Husqvarna Intact GP team wishes him a speedy recovery!

P3
1. Aron CANET / SPA / KALEX - 1'42.003
2. Filip SALAC / CZE / KALEX - 1'42.089 (+0.086)
3. Pedro ACOSTA / SPA / KALEX - 1'42.128 (+0.125)
17. Darryn BINDER / RSA / KALEX - 1'42.889 (+0.886)

Q1
1. Tony ARBOLINO / ITA / KALEX - 1'42.965
2. Zonta VD GOORBERGH / NED / KALEX - 1'43.084 (+0.119)
3. Jeremy ALCOBA / SPA / KALEX - 1'43.374 (+0.409)
4. Darryn BINDER / RSA / KALEX - 1'43.386 (+0.421)

Q2
1. Filip SALAC / CZE / KALEX - 1'42.323
2. Aron CANET / SPA / KALEX - 1'42.381 (+0.058)
3. Pedro ACOSTA / SPA / KALEX - 1'42.607 (+0.284)
11. Darryn BINDER / RSA / KALEX - 1'43.041 (+0.718)

Lukas Tulovic

"This was not that day of qualifying I had prepared for all winter. The after-effects of last Saturday's crash are worse than expected. I tried to recover as much as possible in the days ahead of the race weekend. We really tried everything. On Friday we started without painkillers and then resorted to them in the second practice. After the pain this morning was much worse than yesterday, the injury gets worse with riding, we finally made the decision to sit out this weekend. At the same time, we pulled out all the stops and had an MRI scan done meanwhile. This then revealed the real injury that had not previously shown up on the x-ray. Nothing was broken, but the impact had crushed and compressed a bone so much that an oedema inside the bone was the consequence. In addition, fluid has formed in and around this bone, causing severe pain, especially when braking. According to the doctors, the healing process on the outside should quickly proceeding, while the greater evil in the bone will take some time to heal completely. This means that Argentina also falls into the water for me. The focus is now fully on the healing process to hopefully be ready to race in Austin again."

Darryn Binder

P11 - 1'43.041 (+ 0.718)

"I think it was a positive day for us, even if it started with a small mistake in P3. That stupid crash cost me the lap that would probably have put me straight into Q2. Still, I knew I had good pace and felt very comfortable with the bike. Q1 was not so unfavorable for me, because we were able to do some more extra laps and I gave everything to get into Q2. Fortunately, we successfully mastered this hurdle. I think I did a pretty good job in Q2 as well. In the end, of course, I wanted to get a bit more out of it. I was also doing well on my last lap until I unfortunately made a small mistake. But eleventh on the grid for my first race in Moto2 is quite respectable. The starting position is accordingly good. We have worked incredibly hard since last week. Especially in terms of pace and feeling for the bike. I am confident that we have put together a strong package for Sunday, with good pace for the first race of the season."