Jorge Martin and Tetsuta Nagashima go straight into Q2 and place on the fifth and sixth rows of the grid, respectively, in Barcelona.

The starting grid for the Moto2 Catalan Grand Prix race was set in qualifying on Saturday and the Red Bull KTM Ajo continued to show solid progress. Jorge Martin and Tetsuta Nagashima secured spots in Q2, after improving in the last Free Practice session. Tomorrow, in what will be the ninth round of the 2020 season for the intermediate class, the Spaniard will start from the fifth row of the grid in 14th position. The Japanese will take off from Row 6, after qualifying in 18th place.

The Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto2 duo took a big step forward in FP3, with both riders lowering their times from Friday. Jorge Martin was 1 second faster than yesterday, clocking a 1:43.853 that earned him fifth in the session – just 3 tenths off the top spot. The Spaniard completed 18 laps of the Catalan track during the practice, while teammate Tetsuta Nagashima put in 16. The Japanese rider finished 14th – with a 1:44.200 -, despite suffering a crash at Turn 2 with two minutes remaining.

Thanks to their solid performances in the morning practice, Jorge Martin and Tetsuta Nagashima made their way directly into Q2. The best lap for the Spaniard in that session was a 1:44.046, 6 tenths behind the man on pole. The Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto2 rider qualified on the fifth row on the grid, in 14th, for tomorrow’s race. Nagashima, in 18th place with a 1:44.434 lap, will take off from Row 6.

The 22-lap Moto2 Catalan Grand Prix gets underway an hour later than usual, at 1:20 pm local time.

Results – QP
1. Luca Marini (Kalex) 1:43.355
2. Jorge Navarro (Speed Up) 1:43.536 +0.181
3. Sam Lowes (Kalex) 1:43.637 +0.282
4. Fabio Di Giannantonio (Speed Up) 1:43.652 +0.297
5. Jake Dixon (Kalex) 1:43.704 +0.349
14. Jorge Martin (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 1:44.046 +0.691
18. Tetsuta Nagashima (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 1:44.434 +1.079

88 JORGE MARTIN

“It was a tough day for us, as we had expected to be a little higher up on the grid. However, this morning we showed that we have a good pace, so I am happy about that. We want to try several things in the warm-up tomorrow to try to take another step forward.”

45 TETSUTA NAGASHIMA

“Qualifying was not easy. However, we have improved a little in terms of feeling and confidence. This afternoon we have to analyse the data to find out what we lacked today and apply it for tomorrow. We are not that far off, but we have to take a step forward in some aspects. We have to work hard for the race and prepare to make a good fight back.”