Movistar Yamaha MotoGP rider Maverick Viñales secured a front row start today during a mixed Q2 session at the Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit, taking second place on the grid for tomorrow’s Michelin Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix. The worsening rainy conditions in sector 4 compromised teammate Valentino Rossi’s qualifying efforts. He secured seventh position on the third row of the grid.
Just before Q2, Viñales and Rossi underlined how comfortable they were feeling on their YZR-M1s in FP4, taking second and third place respectively. However, a bit of drama occurred right before the start of the 15-minute shoot-out. Spots of rain meant the track conditions would be considerably different to any of the previous free practice sessions.
Nevertheless, Viñales was feeling confident that he would be able to put in a hot lap and left the pits a little after the first few riders, to ensure a free track for his first stint. His second flying lap of 1’29.824s left him in provisional third place, before he came into the pits with more than eight minutes to go.
The Spaniard leapt onto his other bike and immediately made his way back out on the track, eager to show his pace. The early stop proved to be a master stroke: he managed to clock a 1’29.509s, moving him up from fourth to second place just before the rain became heavier. The number-25 rider had three more goes left as the conditions worsened and even set a fastest first sector on his final try, but he wasn’t able to better his time. He finished the session in second position, 0.310s from pole.
Rossi felt confident on his bike in the earlier free practice sessions, but he didn’t have the qualifying session he had hoped for. At the beginning he took some time to warm his tyres after he had left pit lane, allowing the majority of the pack to start their hot laps ahead of him. On his third flying lap the Italian put in a 1’30.270s to slot into sixth place before he returned to the pits for fresh tyres.
The Doctor had a quick stop and with more than five minutes on the clock hit the track again. However, just when the nine-time World Champion wanted to put his head down to up the pressure on his rivals, the rain intensified. Unable to better his time, he finished the session in seventh place, 1.071s from first.
Maverick Viñales
Position: 2nd – Time: 1’29.509 – Laps: 9
“Today’s qualifying was good. I expected a little bit more, but when I arrived at sector 4 it was raining there, so I couldn’t finish my lap like I normally would. I’m actually pretty happy about how the bike was working. I’m in second place, so I’m really satisfied with the bike’s performance, and the team is working well. We’re not changing anything on the set-up; we’re just riding and riding, getting in a lot of laps to get used to the bike. I’m happy, because after Japan we made an improvement here, and I’m able to be more consistent, especially in all the fast corners. I really don’t know what to expect for tomorrow’s race though. I want to be the rider that pulls away a little, but I will just try to do my best. I think we have good potential, so I just need to take a bit of a risk and stay in the 1’29s, and it also depends on the tyre performance.”
Valentino Rossi
Position: 7th – Time: 1’30.270 – Laps: 9
“These were difficult conditions, because when it rains just a little bit and you are with slicks on the track, you have to be very brave. At this track you go very fast and you never know how much water is on the ground. It’s a shame, because I think under normal conditions today, we could start tomorrow’s race from a slightly better position, as in FP3 and FP4 I was quite strong. Anyway, starting from the third row, I will try my hardest. Today I improved the feeling with the bike and my pace, but we have to wait for tomorrow, especially for the tyre choice. We hope to have sun and good weather for the race.”
Massimo Meregalli
Movistar Yamaha MotoGP – Team Director
“It was a very strong second day at Phillip Island from Maverick and he fully deserves this front row start. He’s had an impressive pace in every session so far and set some really great lap times during Q2, especially when you consider that the spots of rain made the track treacherous. It’s unfortunate that the rain got worse towards the end of Q2, just when Valentino was about to start his second run, because his pace in the FP4 session shows he also could have been a contender for the front row. However, the main thing for tomorrow is that both riders are satisfied with their bikes. Now it just comes down to making the right tyre decision for the race, and we’ll see what the weather brings to the table. I really hope it won’t influence the outcome of the race.”
Zarco Secures Fantastic Front Row in Australia – Syahrin with Best Ever Qualifying Performance
The Monster Yamaha Tech3 duo did a great job in today’s Qualifying at the Phillip Island circuit. In very tricky conditions, Johann Zarco set the third quickest time of the strong field and will start tomorrow’s 17th round of the 2018 season at 16.00 local time (6.00 CET) from the front row of the grid.
Meanwhile, Hafizh Syahrin delivered an amazing performance as well. The Malaysian rookie competed in Q2 for the very first time today and did brave to conquer a stunning 10th position, which takes him to the front of the fourth row, after overcoming a crash in FP3 this morning.
Johann Zarco
Position: 3rd – Time: 1’29.705 – Laps: 8
“I’m pretty happy about the first row. Qualifying today has been difficult with some drops of rain. Even we knew the track was dry, you are scared about it, so I was happy that the lap time was coming good until the last lap, when I was just too afraid to push even more. Anyway, after this Qualifying I’m so delighted to be third, because it’s an advantage for tomorrow and it also shows that I have the potential to fight with the guys in front. The pace for the race is not bad, so I will try to do it. I hope for nice weather on Sunday afternoon to give me even more confidence and enable me to fight close to the top. I think, we can have reasonable hopes to be back on the podium.”
Hafizh Syahrin
Position: 10th – Time: 1’30.593 – Laps: 8
“This was a big day for me! I’m really happy, but at the same time I wasn’t too sure if I can make it to Qualifying and FP4, through I was very motivated and impatient to be on the bike. I try to get along with my pain in the fingers, the shoulder and the elbow. The result from FP4 was a huge surprise to me, because normally I’m quite cautious and slow coming back to track after a big crash. Maybe because I was really eager to prove myself, all this work payed off. Now I need to rest tonight because tomorrow we have a long race, so I try to recover as soon as possible, as my finger is quite in pain and I can’t bend it too much. Anyway, I’m really happy. Thank you very much to the team. We have a great feeling, although we had the big off this morning, but they keep me really motivated and I’m learning.”
