The Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto2 rider will start the Thailand Grand Prix from third on the grid, with his teammate Brad Binder in 12th position.

Red Bull KTM Ajo’s good feelings from Friday were further enhanced on Saturday at the Thailand Grand Prix, with the team’s riders both well placed on the starting grid at the 15th round of the 2019 World Championship. After a great performance in free practices, Jorge Martin concluded his work on Saturday by finishing in third place in Q2, to achieve his first front row in the Moto2 category. Brad Binder was 12th and tomorrow he will begin the contest from the fourth line.

The morning session was reduced from 40 to 30 minutes, following the heavy rain which had fallen early in the day. With the track already dry by the time the free practice did get underway, Jorge Martin was one of only two riders capable of going under the 1:36. mark, doing so on his penultimate lap. The Spaniard beat his personal best from yesterday by three tenths -1:35.975- and finished the session in second. Brad Binder was very consistent throughout FP3, matching his Friday pace and riding towards the top of the timesheets. On his 14th and final attempt, he recorded a 1:36.117 to end sixth.

The Red Bull KTM Ajo pair therefore went straight into Q2, a session which saw Jorge Martin achieve his best qualifying result to date as a Moto2 rider, positioning himself on the first row of the grid. Thanks to a last flying lap, the Spaniard finished third – 1:35.448 -, beating his fastest FP3 time by more than half a second. For his part, Brad Binder notched his personal best of the weekend: 1:35.817, leaving him less than 0.5s off pole position. The South African ended 12th and so tomorrow he will start the race from the fourth line.

The Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto2 riders will commence their 24-lap race at the Thailand Grand Prix at 12:20 pm local time tomorrow.

Results (Qualifying session)
1. Alex Marquez (Kalex) 1:35:297
2. Tetsuta Nagashima (Kalex) 1:35.392 +0.095
3. Jorge Martin (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 1:35.448 +0.151
4. Luca Marini (Kalex) 1:35.476 +0.179
5. Remy Gardner (Kalex) 1:35.494 +0.197
12. Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 1:35.817 +0.520

41 BRAD BINDER

“In general, it turned out to be a decent day, even if in the morning it was kind of hard for me to feel comfortable on the bike. We made some improvements for qualifying but what we gained in some aspects we lost due to a lack of rear grip. It was hard in Q2, but the important thing is that my times were good. I believe that not setting a fast lap isn’t a big problem, because if we keep up our pace tomorrow we can have a solid race.”

88 JORGE MARTIN

“I’m very happy, it’s been a positive day for us. This morning, when we put the new tyre on, we already showed our competitive pace. We also managed to make a good fast lap, which is what was missing at the last races. Tomorrow it will be important to push hard at the start of the contest if we want to be in the front group, because that is where we usually lose the most ground. To get in the top 5 would be a great result. I’m satisfied with our pace and the feeling of the bike, which is helping me to ride at my best consistently over several laps.”