Rookie Senna Agius takes 6th row in Italy
The Moto2 qualifying at the Grand Prix of San Marino was a tough one for LIQUI MOLY Husqvarna Intact GP riders Senna Agius and Darryn Binder and will be again on race Sunday after the duo qualified 16th and 25th on rows six and nine of the grid.
Shortly after the two Moto2 riders celebrated their Intact GP teammate Hector Garzo's phenomenal MotoE title win, their focus turned to the upcoming qualifying session, for which they both set to work in Q1. After an extremely close Q1, Senna Agius, who leads the rookie standings, made the leap into the even more fiercely contested Qualifying 2, where he tried to secure a good grid position for the 22-lap race on Sunday at 12:15 (CEST). An improvement to the morning was clearly noticeable after the young Australian had not had an optimal start to the Misano weekend and was working hard for every tenth. From 16th on the grid, the road to the points is not far away and that is exactly what the 19-year-old is building on, hoping to make a decent start in the 13th race of the season.
Darryn Binder does not want to be inferior to his younger team-mate, but the South African will have a lot more work ahead of him on Sunday coming from 25th on the grid. The 4.23km Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli did not make it easy for the 26-year-old either, as Binder has been struggling with his performance since the start of free practice on Friday morning. However, the former MotoGP rider has proven himself to be a Sunday rider on more than one occasion, which is why he will start the race full of hope.
Results
FP
1. Tony ARBOLINO/ ITA/ KALEX – 1'35.775
2. Aron CANET/ SPA/ KALEX – 1'35.958 (+0.183)
3. Alonso LOPEZ/ SPA/ BOSCOSCURO – 1'36.102 (+0.327)
21. Darryn BINDER/ RSA/ KALEX – 1'37.145 (+1.370)
23. Senna AGIUS/ AUS/ KALEX – 1'37.233 (+1.458)
P1
1. Aron CANET/ SPA/ KALEX – 1'35.561
2. Celestino VIETTI/ ITA/ KALEX – 1'35.692 (+0.131)
3. Manuel GONZALEZ/ SPA/ KALEX – 1'35.781 (+0.220)
17. Senna AGIUS/ AUS/ KALEX – 1'36.481 (+0.920)
21. Darryn BINDER/ RSA/ KALEX – 1'36.654 (+1.093)
P2
1. Aron CANET/ SPA/ KALEX – 1'35.185
2. Tony ARBOLINO/ ITA/ KALEX – 1'35.420 (+0.235)
3. Ai OGURA/ JPN/ BOSCOSCURO – 1'35.476 (+0.291)
21. Darryn BINDER/ RSA/ KALEX – 1'35.993 (+0.808)
26. Senna AGIUS/ AUS/ KALEX – 1'36.363 (+1.178)
Q1
1. Alonso LOPEZ/ SPA/ BOSCOSCURO – 1'35.446
2. Bo BENDSNEYDER/ NED/ KALEX – 1'35.902 (+0.456)
3. Filip SALAC/ CZE/ KALEX – 1'35.950 (+0.504)
4. Senna AGIUS/ AUS/ KALEX – 1'35.965 (+0.519)
11. Darryn BINDER/ RSA/ KALEX – 1'36.176 (+0.730)
Q2
1. Tony ARBOLINO/ ITA/ KALEX – 1'35.229
2. Celestino VIETTI/ ITA/ KALEX – 1'35.240 (+0.011)
3. Ai OGURA/ JPN/ BOSCOSCURO – 1'35.419 (+0.190)
16. Senna AGIUS/ AUS/ KALEX – 1'36.073 (+0.844)
