Red Bull KTM Ajo rider heads grid for Malaysian GP after scorching lap. Karel Hanika takes creditable 12th place.

The penultimate round of the season features a race in which Jack Miller is obliged to tighten up the Moto3 World Championship standings. The Red Bull KTM Ajo rider set the wheels in motion for that this Saturday, claiming his eighth pole position of the season. The Australian achieved the fastest lap of the circuit, stopping the clock in 2:12.450. His teammate Karel Hanika earned the twelfth fastest time of the session, with a lap of 2:13.884.

The final practice session of the weekend was used by the Red Bull KTM Ajo riders to lower their times from yesterday. Miller –tenth with a time of 2:13.593– continued working with the race in mind, whilst Hanika –fourteenth with a time of 2:14.603– followed his teammate to take the best possible lines and bested his previous top lap by almost a second.

The qualifying session showed the work that both Red Bull KTM Ajo riders have been doing throughout the weekend. Miller claimed pole number eight of the campaign with a circuit record of 2:12.450, set with just four minutes remaining in the session. Hanika rounded off the two days of practice with 12th position on the grid, courtesy of his fastest time of the weekend: 2:13.884.

The Moto3 Malaysian Grand Prix will begin two hours later than usual, at 1pm local time. The two races in the class so far at Sepang have both been won by Red Bull KTM Ajo, through Sandro Cortese in 2012 and Luis Salom in 2013.

Results – Qualifying practice
1. Jack Miller (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 2:12.450
2. John McPhee (Honda) 2:12.909 +0.459
3. Jakub Kornfeil (KTM) 2:13.016 +0.566
4. Efren Vazquez (Honda) 2:13.040 +0.590
5. Alex Marquez (Honda) 2:13.315 +0.865
12. Karel Hanika (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 2:13.884 +1.434

Jack Miller >> Audio (solely for radio use)

“We are very pleased with how the bike is working, but at the end of the day this was only the qualifying session, so we have to continue to demonstrate that we are strong in the race tomorrow. The time I set was very good and I knew we had pace to do it. We have a good base setting and I feel prepared for the race, but we’ll see what happens. I think there will be another large group again and a great battle between us.”

Karel Hanika >> Audio (solely for radio use)

“I’m really happy because yesterday we just focused on learning the circuit and on doing as many laps as possible. The truth is that we have evolved a lot from one day to the next; this was maybe the biggest leap that we have made all year. I feel very comfortable about my riding and with the bike, and I am improving with every corner. I am very satisfied with the result because I’ve rode the lap completely by myself, even the long straights. This is great news for tomorrow. My team did a great job and I really appreciate it. I hope to have a good race tomorrow.”