Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto2 put in their second-best Qualifying performance of the season, with their riders set to start from the second row at the Qatar Grand Prix.

Collin Veijer and Jose Antonio Rueda achieved their team’s second-best combined qualifying result of the season, securing fifth and eighth place, respectively, at the Lusail International Circuit. The Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto2 riders concluded the day by earning spots on the second rows, as some penalties to another riders put them fourth and sixth respectively on the grid.

Hot conditions returned for the start of Saturday in Lusail. With nightfall approaching, the intermediate class held FP2 around midday, with track temperatures hitting 45°C.

Rueda climbed into the Top 10 in the early stages, before heading into the pits at the same time as his teammate and waiting until the final ten minutes to begin his second run. By finding some good reference points, the Spaniard was able to further improve his lap time, finishing just 0.5 seconds off the fastest rider and securing a spot in the Top 10. Coming close to his previous time from Practice -without needing to fit a fresh set of tyres- he ultimately secured eighth place with a best lap of 1:56.835, and completed 13 laps. Veijer spent the early part of the session working on his race pace for Sunday, then headed to the pits to prepare for a final push. Returning to the track slightly later than his teammate, he attempted to improve his earlier time but couldn’t quite put together a perfect lap, which saw him slip to 15th place -though only 2 tenths of a second behind Rueda. The session was extremely competitive, with 23 riders separated by less than a second. Veijer ended the morning with a 1:57.043, having run 11 laps.

Conditions during qualifying were significantly cooler than in FP2, with a track temperature of 33°C and notably higher humidity.

Veijer started Q2 strongly, placing himself within the front two rows after his first flying lap. Riding with great confidence, the Dutchman showed good pace before heading back out for his second run. After a tyre change, he returned to the track in a strong position; despite improvements from many of his rivals, he managed to hold onto fifth place thanks to a fast sixth lap from a total of seven, clocking a time of 1:55.579 -nearly a second faster than his pace from Friday. This result matches his third-best qualifying result of the season, achieved at the Italian Grand Prix. Anyway, the Dutchman will start from fourth after a penalty for another rider. Rueda also enjoyed an excellent qualifying performance. He broke into the Top 10 during his first stint, and although he was unable to improve his time after his second outing, he held on to eighth place to mark his best-ever qualifying result in the intermediate class. His best lap of seven at Lusail in Q2 was a 1:55.884. The Spaniard, after some penalties, will start from 6^th, being in the second row for the first time in the class.

In conclusion, the second day of practices at the Lusail International Circuit has given a lot of optimism to the Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto2 team, as they aim to secure a double top result at the Qatar Grand Prix tomorrow. The 18-lap race will take place on Sunday, starting at 5:15 p.m. (local time).

Qualifying Results
1. Alex Escrig (Forward) | 1:55.241
2. Manuel Gonzalez (Kalex) | 1:55.367 (+0.126)
3. Daniel Holgado (Kalex) | 1:55.574 (+0.233)
4. Celestino Vietti (Boscoscuro) | 1:55.480 (+0.239)
5. Collin Veijer (Red Bull KTM Ajo) | 1:55.579 (+0.338)
8. Jose Antonio Rueda (Red Bull KTM Ajo) | 1:55.884 (+0.643)

#95 COLLIN VEIJER

“It wasn’t a bad Saturday. This morning wasn’t easy because we tried different things with the setup and they didn’t work too well, so it didn’t make a big change to our feeling. In any case, with used tyres we worked quite well, so our pace is quite good for tomorrow. Qualifying was very decent, and we managed to do two good stints -especially the second one- taking fifth for tomorrow, which is a very good result. Now we have to prepare for Sunday’s race and analyse the best strategy with the team.”

#98 JOSE ANTONIO RUEDA

“The day went very well. In Free Practice 2 we were able to try something that helped us to be a little faster, and that will be very useful for tomorrow’s race, so I’m very satisfied with that. In Qualifying I decided to go out with the group at the start, which was very good for me to be able to set a good lap early on. In the last few minutes we tried it again, but it wasn’t possible to get a clean lap in. We’re prepared for tomorrow and focused on the two first laps, which is what we’re finding most difficult. We have a good pace, so we are going to try to have a good Sunday.”