The Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto2 rider qualifies in second position, with teammate Acosta in 17th, on a very busy day for the team.

Due to logistical problems that forced all scheduled Friday activity to be suspended, Saturday at the Argentina Grand Prix saw two Free Practice sessions plus qualifying held on the same day. Both Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto2 riders went directly into Q2, with Augusto Fernandez qualifying second and he will start tomorrow’s contest from the front row. On Row 6 will be Pedro Acosta who, in his first experience at Termas de Rio Hondo, placed 17th.

Thanks to the hard work of the team overnight, the Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto2 duo were able to contest an extended 50-minute FP1 in the morning. Fernandez was very competitive from the start and, after leading the way for much of the session, was second with a time of 1:43.486 set on his last attempt of a total of 21. Acosta did a great job in his adaptation to an unfamiliar track, but a crash at Turn 2, 17 minutes in, halted his progress. The reigning Moto3 World Champion was unable to get back on track and finished 18th, with a time of 1:44.853 and 9 laps completed.

In FP2, Fernandez carried over his good feeling from the morning, finishing second with a 1:43.562. The Spaniard completed 21 laps in the session, compared to 19 by teammate Acosta – who was fourth with a 1:43.837.
The times were enough to take them straight through to Q2, in which they experienced mixed fortunes. Fernandez once again showed that he is in top form, and qualified second, achieving his personal best with a 1:43.456.

Tomorrow he will start from the front row of the grid. On Row 6 will be Acosta, who finished 17th thanks to a 1:44.205.

The 23-lap Moto2 Argentina GP takes place on Sunday at 1:20 PM local time.

Results (Qualifying session)
1. Fermin Aldeguer (Boscoscuro) 1:43.306
2. Augusto Fernandez (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 1:43.456 +0.150
3. Tony Arbolino (Kalex) 1:43.513 +0.207
4. Albert Arenas (Kalex) 1:43.615 +0.309
5. Jake Dixon (Kalex) 1:43.622 +0.316
17. Pedro Acosta (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 1:44.205 +0.899

#37 AUGUSTO FERNANDEZ

“It has been an intense day, but we are happy with the final result. This Saturday we had a lot of work to do, and we had to make a great effort to stay calm and not make mistakes. I feel satisfied with how everything went and, above all, with the fact that the team can go to sleep feeling good, since they put in an enormous effort throughout the night. Tomorrow we will try to have a good race to round off a tough weekend. We worked hard throughout the day, taking things step by step. We are doing well in terms of pace and us starting from the first row will be important. We will have to see which riders are at the front tomorrow, as some of them have proven to be very strong here. I think we have a chance to be up there, so we will do everything we can to get into the fight for the win.”

#51 PEDRO ACOSTA

“Today the credit goes to the team, because they made such a massive effort last night setting up the box and preparing the bike. As for us, overall there was room for improvement. Tomorrow we will work hard, together with the team, to try to solve some aspects and take a step forward. As always, we will try to enjoy ourselves to the fullest and continue learning, since, in addition, this circuit is new for us. We will give it one hundred percent.”