Best ever qualifying for Laverty

PULL&BEAR Aspar Team rider Eugene Laverty graduated to Q2 for the first time in Austria, beating LCR Honda’s Cal Crutchlow to the top spot in Q1 and the pair defeating Danilo Petrucci (Octo Pramac Yakhnich) in the fight to move up. The Irishman then qualified P11, already guaranteed for it to be a best-ever result, to make the most of the natural Ducati advantage around the Red Bull Ring.

Eugene Laverty (P11): “It's nice, because when things only come through for you on Sunday it gives you a lot of work to do -because you start from further back on the grid. Now I'm starting in a good position, and being that little bit further forward enables you to stay with the others at the start and maintain your position. I'll be trying to stay with the fast riders, rather than having to fight my way through from further behind. You have to balance going as fast as possible with the risk of crashing, and on the final lap I knew that it was my last chance and rode completely on the limit. That got me the extra 3 tenths I needed. We did a good run in FP4 to test the tyres for the race, of 16/17 laps. I wanted to understand how the tyres held up, because I think tyre wear at the end will be important tomorrow. I think we're prepared more than many riders for tomorrow, and I’m aiming for more than just a Top Ten finish.”