The Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto2 rider qualifies fourth on the grid at Le Mans despite a tough Saturday, with Tetsuta Nagashima in 22nd place.

The Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto2 team carried over their good feeling from Friday to Saturday at the French Grand Prix, with Jorge Martin qualifying fourth. The Spaniard went directly into Q2 and will head the second row of the grid, despite suffering two incidents that greatly reduced his track time today. Tetsuta Nagashima finished eighth in Q1 and will start from 22nd position, on Row 8.

In the morning, the asphalt was completely dry, contrasting with the mixed conditions from Friday. However, low temperatures at Le Mans forced the Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto2 duo to keep focused. Martin was enjoying a solid session when, 15 minutes in, he crashed at Turn 8. The Spaniard was unhurt, but his bike was badly damaged, making it impossible for him to go back out on track. Martin was 13th with a 1:37.429, set before the incident. Nagashima worked hard, trying to lower his times and improve his feeling. Finally, the Japanese placed 15th – 1:37.496 – from a total of 18 laps.

Martin had gone directly into Q2 and held the top spot at the start of that session. However, with seven minutes remaining, a crash at Turn 3 ended his qualifying. A 1:36.522 set previously, earned him fourth. Nagashima took part in Q1 and he finished 8th after stopping the clock at 1:37.512. The Japanese qualified in 22nd position on the French Grand Prix grid.

The 25-lap Moto2 French Grand Prix will start this Sunday at the rescheduled time of 2:30 pm.

Results – QP
1. Joe Roberts (Kalex) 1:36.256
2. Sam Lowes (Kalex) 1:36.343 +0.087
3. Remy Gardner (Kalex) 1:36.449 +0.193
4. Jorge Martin (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 1:36.522 +0.266
5. Marco Bezzecchi (Kalex) 1:36.577 +0.321
22. Tetsuta Nagashima (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 1:37.512 (Q1 time)

88 JORGE MARTIN

“It was a bit strange day, although in general our Saturday was positive. This morning, riding with a full tank and used tyres, I managed to get into Q2, despite the short time I spent on track. In the afternoon, I had just set a fast lap when I crashed due to a technical issue. I’m happy that we qualified on the second row of the grid for tomorrow. We showed that we are competitive, so we are going to do our best to be able to get on the podium on Sunday.”

45 TETSUTA NAGASHIMA

“It was a tough day for us, as we struggled a lot due to a lack of feeling with the front end. We now have to analyse all the data to find out exactly what happened. For tomorrow it will be important to stay focused and calm. If we are able to take a step forward in certain aspects, we could be fighting for the top positions in the race. We will try with all our strength and we will do our best.”