Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Ajo) continued to set a precedent in the Moto2™ class at the Gran Premio Motul de la Comunitat Valenciana, the South African going even quicker in FP3 to lead Fabio Di Giannantonio (MB Conveyors Speed Up) and Augusto Fernandez (FlexBox HP 40) by two tenths.
Yeah... this slow motion shot is a bit special
— MotoGP™ ???????? (@MotoGP) November 16, 2019
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The future KTM factory MotoGP™ star was one of the only riders inside the top 10 who didn’t improve on his Friday times in the opening 20 minutes, with his half-second gap being cut to 0.1 by Stefano Manzi (MV Agusta Temporary Forward). Binder soon got in the groove though and his first improvement was 0.055 better than his FP2 effort, as fast times started being set by most of the intermediate class competitors.
With under 10 minutes to go, Tom Lüthi (Dynavolt Intact GP) grabbed P2 before Di Giannantonio then claimed the FP3 runner-up spot to go 0.143 off Binder. The chopping and changing continued as Fernandez then became Binder’s closest rival before ‘Diggia’ struck back. However, no one could get within a tenth of Binder and such was the number 41’s pace, his advantage would then be stretched before the end of FP3. Binder stuck in the best lap of the weekend to stroll 0.214 clear of the pack ahead of qualifying.
Lüthi was relegated to P4 by the end of play on Saturday morning, the Swiss rider also sits 0.2 off Binder. Manzi, continuing his impressive weekend, completes the top five after Moto2™ Free Practice in Valencia, with both the Italian and sixth fastest Sam Lowes (Federal Oil Gresini Moto2) 0.3 off top spot. Jorge Martin (Red Bull KTM Ajo), Jorge Navarro (MB Conveyors Speed Up), 2019 World Champion Alex Marquez (EG 0,0 Marc VDS) – despite a tumble at Turn 14 – and Mattia Pasini (Tasca Racing Scuderia Moto2) completed the top 10.
Just as we were talking about the World Champion... @alexmarquez73 slides out at turn 14! ????#RiderOK #ValenciaGP ???????? pic.twitter.com/uRKumYSrg3
— MotoGP™ ???????? (@MotoGP) November 16, 2019
Marco Bezzecchi (Red Bull KTM Tech 3) and Enea Bastianini (Italtrans Racing Team) were caught up in an incident at Turn 14 early in the session, with Lucas Tulovic (Kiefer Racing) and wildcard Tommaso Marcon (NTS RW Racing GP) also crashing.
Moto2™ qualifying will commence at 15:05 local time (GMT+1) in Valencia – tune in for the final pole shootout of the season!
Top 10 combined:
1. Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Ajo) – 1:34.463
2. Fabio Di Giannantonio (MB Conveyors Speed Up) + 0.214
3. Augusto Fernandez (FlexBox HP 40) + 0.234
4. Tom Lüthi (Dynavolt Intact GP) + 0.298
5. Stefano Manzi (MV Agusta Temporary Forward) + 0.340
6. Sam Lowes (Federal Oil Gresini Moto2) + 0.369
7. Jorge Martin (Red Bull KTM Ajo) + 0.404
8. Jorge Navarro (MB Conveyors Speed Up) + 0.523
9. Alex Marquez (EG 0,0 Marc VDS) + 0.642
10. Mattia Pasini (Tasca Racing Scuderia Moto2) + 0.783
Click here for the full results!