Marini bags third-straight pole position of 2020

Moto2™ World Championship leader Luca Marini (SKY Racing Team VR46) will start from his third pole position in a row after a masterclass in Q2 at the Gran Premi Monster Energy de Catalunya. The Italian finished 0.181 ahead of second place Jorge Navarro (HDR Heidrun Speed Up) with fourth in the Championship Sam Lowes (EG 0,0 Marc VDS) completing the front row.

Marini was quickest from the get-go in Q2 with teammate Marco Bezzecchi going P2 in the early stages, before Xavi Vierge (Petronas Sprinta Racing) and Lowes went ahead of the Italian to sit as Marini’s closest challengers, but that soon changed. Marini went quicker again with Bezzecchi following suit to go P2 once more, before Q1 graduate Jake Dixon (Petronas Sprinta Racing) then went P3 behind the SKY VR46 duo. Marini then went even quicker, setting the fastest ever Moto2™ lap around the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya – a 1:43.355 to move well clear of the competition.

Dixon was then setting red sectors and the British rider leapfrogged Bezzecchi into P2, 0.349 off Marini’s time. Navarro then shot to P2 as the Speed Up rider finds some form in 2020, a tenth and a half away from Marini, with Fabio Di Giannantonio (HDR Heidrun Speed Up) and Lowes then interchanging P3 lap times to push Dixon down to P5, with Di Giannantonio sitting P4.  

In the end though, Marini was untouchable in Moto2™ Q2 with main title rival Enea Bastianini (Italtrans Racing Team) unable to find time in the latter stages. Di Giannantonio makes it two Speed Ups in the top four, Dixon claims his best-ever Moto2™ qualifying result for the second weekend in a row – one better than he went in Misano. Bezzecchi will start on the second row just behind ‘Diggia’ and Dixon, P6 for the Italian in Barcelona.

Quickest in Q1 was Tennor American Racing’s Joe Roberts, and the American spearheads Row 3 in P7 for his first Saturday top 10 since his Czech GP pole position. After finishing second in FP3, rookie Marcos Ramirez makes it two Tennor American Racing liveried Triumphs on the third row – that’s Ramirez’ best qualifying of 2020. Remy Gardner (Onexox TKKR SAG Team) completed the top 10 in Q2, but after crashing under yellow flags on Friday, the Australian faces a six-place grid penalty, meaning Bastianini will move up a position into the top 10 – every little helps for the Italian who faces a tough task to mix it with Marini on Sunday afternoon.

Don’t forget, the races on Sunday are taking place an hour later than normal. The Moto2™ riders will do battle in Barcelona at 13:20 local time (GMT+2).

Top 10:
1. Luca Marini (SKY Racing Team VR46) – 1:43.355
2. Jorge Navarro (HDR Heidrun Speed Up) + 0.181
3. Sam Lowes (EG 0,0 Marc VDS) + 0.282
4. Fabio Di Giannantonio (HDR Heidrun Speed Up) + 0.297
5. Jake Dixon (Petronas Sprinta Racing) + 0.349
6. Marco Bezzecchi (SKY Racing Team VR46) + 0.359
7. Joe Roberts (Tennor American Racing) + 0.386
8. Marcos Ramirez (Tennor American Racing) + 0.508
9. Xavi Vierge (Petronas Sprinta Racing) + 0.516
10. Remy Gardner (ONEXOX TKKR SAG Team) + 0.519*
*Six-place grid penalty for Sunday's race

Click here for the full results!