Canet edges Acosta to Mugello Moto2™ pole

Canet gives himself a great opportunity to take a first Moto2™ race win

Aron Canet (Flexbox HP40) has grabbed the Moto2™ pole position at the at the Gran Premio d’Italia Oakley after setting a 1:51.121 in Q2. Canet was just over a tenth of a second quicker than fellow Spaniard Pedro Acosta (Red Bull KTM Ajo) around the Autodromo Internazionale del Mugello, with Sam Lowes (Elf Marc VDS Racing Team) also earning a spot on the front row for the eighth race of the season.

A closely-contested pole position

Acosta had achieved his first intermediate class pole position a fortnight ago at the French Grand Prix, and the rookie was looking good for two in a row when he set a 1:51.265 and then a 1:51.246 on consecutive laps. However, Canet, who is still not at full fitness after the multi-rider crash three rounds ago at Portimao, had other ideas. It is he who will start from first position on Sunday afternoon, for the second time in four rounds, and just 0.158 seconds covers the top three after Lowes managed to lap as quickly as a 1:51.279.

While pole position gives Canet the best possible chance of chipping away at his 19-point deficit to World Championship leader Celestino Vietti (Mooney VR46 Racing Team), the Italian is far from out of the hunt for victory at his home event. Vietti qualified fourth-quickest with a 1:51.381, while wildcard Mattia Pasini (Inde GASGAS Aspar Team) was one of the remarkable stories of Q2. He came through Q1, topping that session, and is now set to line up in fifth on the grid having ridden a Kalex motorcycle which he owns to a 1:51.465. Also on Row 2 will be Ai Ogura (Idemitsu Honda Team Asia), who went as fast as a 1:51.478.

How does the rest of the grid look?

Joe Roberts (Italtrans Racing Team) heads up the third row of the grid, from Tony Arbolino (Elf Marc VDS Racing Team) and Jake Dixon (Inde GASGAS Aspar Team). Arbolino had a crash late in FP3 which locked him into Q1, but the man who is fourth in the World Championship boosted his hopes of a solid points haul by making his way out of that first stanza of qualifying.

Row 4 will be Barry Baltus (RW Racing GP), Lorenzo Dalla Porta (Italtrans Racing Team), and Jorge Navarro (Flexbox HP40). A winner at the French GP last time out, Augusto Fernandez (Red Bull KTM Ajo) will have to make a charge from 14th on the grid if he is to go back-to-back. Indonesian GP winner Somkiat Chantra (Idemitsu Honda Team Asia) starts even further back, in 24th, after missing out on passage to Q2 by more than half a second. Gabriel Rodrigo (Pertamina Mandalika SAG Team) was declared fit after an unfortunate clash with Marcos Ramirez (MV Agusta Forward Racing) in FP3 and is set to start 29th.

Can Fernandez do it from 14th? Or will Canet, who has finished second in both of the last two races, finally get that first intermediate class race win? The Moto2™ field is back for the Warm Up on Sunday at 09:20 (GMT +2), before we get the answers to those questions with the grand prix itself at 12:20.

Moto2™ Q2 Top 10:
1. Aron Canet (Flexbox HP40) – 1:51.121
2. Pedro Acosta (Red Bull KTM Ajo) + 0.125
3. Sam Lowes (Elf Marc VDS Racing Team) + 0.158
4. Celestino Vietti (Mooney VR46 Racing Team) + 0.260
5. Mattia Pasini (Inde GASGAS Aspar Team) + 0.344
6. Ai Ogura (Idemitsu Honda Team Asia) + 0.357
7. Joe Roberts (Italtrans Racing Team) + 0.431
8. Tony Arbolino (Elf Marc VDS Racing Team) + 0.445
9. Jake Dixon (Inde GASGAS Aspar Team) + 0.510
10. Barry Baltus (RW Racing GP) + 0.633

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