Unstoppable Aegerter takes first Mugello MotoE™ pole

Dominique Aegerter (Dynavolt Intact GP MotoE™) has marked himself as the rider to beat in the FIM Enel MotoE™ World Cup’s first ever round at the Autodromo Internazionale del Mugello. He took the lead in the World Cup with a win in Race 2 at Le Mans a fortnight ago and now has pole position for the two races at the Gran Premio d’Italia Oakley, having set the pace in both practice sessions.

Joining the Swiss rider on the front row in Italy will be two Italians, with Kevin Zannoni (Ongetta Sic58 Squadracorse) qualifying second-fastest and Mattia Casadei (Pons Racing 40) third.

Aegerter puts a quarter of a second on the field

Casadei was fastest after the first flyers of Q2 on a 1:59.535, but he was not able to extract any more time as the 10-minute session played out in hot conditions. Zannoni, on the other hand, was through with a 1:59.473 on his second flyer, only to be knocked off his perch by Aegerter’s 1:59.406.

Aegerter was not willing to settle, either, clocking a 1:59.205 next time around which moved him to 0.268 seconds clear of Zannoni. Beyond that, the margins were close, with Casadei 0.062 seconds away from second place, and Eric Granado (LCTR E-Team) missing the front row by only 0.002 seconds. A winner of both races at Jerez just a few weeks ago, Granado is set to line up in fourth for the two Mugello encounters, with Matteo Ferrari (Felo Gresini MotoE™) fifth and Q1 graduate Kevin Manfredi (Octo Pramac MotoE™) sixth.

The rest of the top 10 on the grid will be Niccolo Canepa (WithU GRT RNF MotoE™ Team) in seventh, from Miquel Pons (LCR E-Team), Andrea Mantovani (WithU GRT RNF MotoE™ Team), and Marc Alcoba (Openbank Aspar Team), the latter of whom also came through Q1.

Big names outside the top 10

Hikari Okubo (Avant Ajo MotoE™) and Hector Garzo (Tech3 E-Racing) were arguably surprises not to make it out of Q1, given both are solidly top 10 in the World Cup standings. However, they still earnt spots on Row 4 of the grid, with Okubo 11th and Garzo 12th.

The rider who qualified 13th, Xavi Cardelus (Avintia Esponsorama Racing), has gone to the medical centre with pain in his left leg after a clash with Massimo Roccoli (Pons Racing 40) on the final lap of Q1. Cardelus was still on a hot lap when he happened upon the slower-moving Roccoli at Correntaio, the side-to-side contact putting both on the floor. Roccoli, filling in for an injured Jordi Torres, is currently set to start from 15th but has been called to see stewards about the incident.

Next up, it’s the first race of the weekend! Tune in on Saturday at 16:15 (GMT +2) to see all the FIM Enel MotoE™ World Cup action unfold.

MotoE™ Q2 Top 5:
1. Dominique Aegerter (Dynavolt Intact GP MotoE) – 1:59.205
2. Kevin Zannoni (Ongetta SIC58 Squadracorse) + 0.268
3. Mattia Casadei (Pons Racing 40) + 0.330
4. Eric Granado (LCR E-Team) + 0.332
5. Matteo Ferrari (Felo Gresini MotoE) + 0.397

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