The Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto2 rider qualifies first for the French GP grid, with Augusto Fernandez in an excellent third position.

Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto2 shone in qualifying for the French Grand Prix held today at Le Mans, with both of their riders on the front row of the grid. Pedro Acosta was a step above the rest of the field on Saturday, going fastest in Free Practice and claiming the pole position – the first one for him in the intermediate class. Augusto Fernandez, who was also very strong, placed third and tomorrow he’ll join his teammate on the first row of the grid.

The day started well for the Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto2 duo. Both were able to improve on their times from Friday in FP3. Confirming their good feeling from the previous day, they topped the timesheets in the session. Acosta was the only rider to break the 1:36 barrier, taking the top spot thanks to a time of 1:35.861. The Spaniard completed 19 laps in the runout, to his teammate’s 20. Fernandez finished in a fantastic second position after stopping the clock at 1:36.005.

In the afternoon, the two Red Bull KTM Ajo riders entered Q2 directly. Acosta once again dazzled, achieving his first pole position in the Moto2 class thanks to a time of 1:35.803. It is the second pole of his career to date, and puts him alongside his teammate on the front row. Fernandez was third after posting a personal best of 1:35.963.

The Moto2 French Grand Prix takes place on Sunday at 12:20 PM local time.

Results (Qualifying session)

1. Pedro Acosta (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 1:35.803
2. Jake Dixon (Kalex) 1:35.921 +0.118
3. Augusto Fernandez (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 1:35.963 +0.160
4. Sam Lowes (Kalex) 1:36.071 +0.268
5. Albert Arenas (Kalex) 1:36.088 +0.285

#37 AUGUSTO FERNANDEZ

“I’m very happy because today’s objective was to have a good qualifying session, and we did that. All weekend we have shown great pace, but we needed to finish it off with a great position on the grid since, in the last few races, the start has hindered the race for us. We are happy to have achieved our goal today, and tomorrow we will try to finish the weekend with a positive result. I feel good and I’m ready for it.”

#51 PEDRO ACOSTA

“I’m very happy to have achieved my first pole position in Moto2. From Austin onwards we have been working very well, we have put many hours into this and we believed that it was going to come. I have had people by my side who have helped me a lot. Tomorrow it will be important to remain as calm as we are now. It will be necessary to see if it rains or not in the end, but regardless of this, we will give everything we have. Overall, it’s been a great weekend for us so far.”