Newly crowned Moto3 World Champion takes pole position at Australian GP in ‘smash and grab’ qualifying session. Bo Bendsneyder claims a positive fourth row.

The rain at Phillip Island gave a 35-minute respite to the Moto3 riders on Saturday, viagra as they were able to run slick tyres for the first time. However, site it was not until after a red flag and with 4½ minutes remaining that the starting grid for tomorrow’s race was decided. The Red Bull KTM Ajo riders played their cards perfectly, for sale with Brad Binder achieving his fifth pole position of the year and Bo Bendsneyder taking twelfth place on his first time at the Australian track.

The final Free Practice session was brought forward an hour due to the suspension of FP2 for MotoGP and Moto2. The earlier start time meant for a colder track, with the asphalt at 9ºC and damp. The track dried out slowly, as Binder and Bendsneyder improved on their times from yesterday past the halfway mark in the session. With 9 minutes remaining, the rain returned, preventing the use of slicks. Finally, Binder was tenth –1:46.430– and Bendsneyder fifteenth –1:46.789–.

The rain took just 20 seconds to make an appearance in the Moto3 qualifying session. Fortunately it lasted for only a few minutes and the track dried before the end, allowing enough time for Binder to claim the top spot. The fastest times were then set in a 4½ minute spell, following a crash that brought out the red flag. Binder –taking pole position with a 1:37.696– and twelfth placed Bendsneyder –1:39.439– were at their quickest on the final lap of a frantic qualifying session.

Round 16 of the season will take place under unpredictable weather conditions tomorrow, and Binder and Bendsneyder will attempt to give Red Bull KTM Ajo a fourth win in 5 years at Phillip Island.

Results – Qualifying Practice
1. Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 1:37.696
2. Fabio Quartararo (KTM) 1:37.790 +0.094
3. Nicolo Bulega (KTM) 1:38.487 +0.791
4. Gabriel Rodrigo (KTM) 1:38.570 +0.874
5. John McPhee (Peugeot) 1:38.661 +0.965
12. Bo Bendsneyder (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 1:39.439 +1.743

41 BRAD BINDER

“In the morning the feeling on the bike was very good, but maybe I have lacked a good adaptation to the conditions. In the afternoon everything was a little better. The conditions were very bad when we left the pits, as it was raining hard and we had to come back in for wet tyres. When we went out again it was almost completely dry, so we did two laps and lost a lot of time due to the conditions. When we rode with slicks for the second time I only put in a few laps, to improve my feeling, and after the red flag I tried to put myself in a good position to get a clean track. Although there were many riders around me, I was able to get pole, and I’m happy with that.”

64 BO BENDSNEYDER

“In the morning we again rode in the wet, but we had a good feeling and as the track dried we gained confidence and ended up having a good session. In the qualifying session it seemed to have dried out but just after we went out we realised that it was wet. It rained more and we had to come in to change tyres, but the track dried very quickly and we needed to make another switch. In the end, when we used slicks we were able to set a good time. I felt good on the bike but for me everything is new this weekend, both the circuit and the references. I still have much to learn here and I hope tomorrow is dry so that I feel stronger and can do well.”