2011 Moto2
Thomas Luthi (Interwetten Paddock Moto2) clinched his first pole position in the Moto2 class at Sepang, Malaysia, Saturday, beating Stefan Bradl and Michele Pirro, whilst Marc Márquez completed just two laps to ensure himself a spot on the grid.
Leading the field for the second time this weekend, 2005 125cc World Champion Lüthi took over the top spot from Bradl (Viessmann Kiefer Racing) with a lap of 2’07.512, a two-tenths margin over the Championship leader. Gresini Racing Moto2’s Pirro followed Bradl by two-tenths to clinch his best starting position of the season with third just before crashing out of the qualifying outing.
Yuki Takahashi (Gresini Racing) posted a lap of 2’08.069 to land at the head of row two, with both Espargaró brothers following the Japanese rider, with junior Pol (HP Tuenti Speed Up) ahead of senior Aleix (Pons HP 40) by four-hundredths.
Completing the session in seventh with a best effort of 2’08.240 was Mika Kallio (Marc VDS Racing), with Claudio Corti (Italtrans Racing) and Scott Redding (Marc VDS Racing) joining the Finn on row three. Mattia Pasini (Ioda Racing Project) rounded out the top ten with a time nine-tenths off the pole time set by Lüthi.
Márquez, who had sat out both Friday afternoon’s second practice and Saturday morning’s third session as he continued to recover from his huge crash in FP1, did enough to qualify in 36th position. Just three points separate the Spaniard and Championship leader Bradl going into Sunday’s penultimate race of the season.
2011 Sepang Moto2: Qualifying Results
| Pos. | Num. | Rider | Nation | Team | Bike | Km/h | Time | Gap 1st/Prev. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 12 | Thomas LUTHI | SWI | Interwetten Paddock Moto2 | Suter | 264.3 | 2’07.512 | Â |
| 2. | 65 | Stefan BRADL | GER | Viessmann Kiefer Racing | Kalex | 265.3 | 2’07.724 | 0.212 / 0.212 |
| 3. | 51 | Michele PIRRO | ITA | Gresini Racing Moto2 | Moriwaki | 256.8 | 2’08.004 | 0.492 / 0.280 |
| 4. | 72 | Yuki TAKAHASHI | JPN | Gresini Racing Moto2 | Moriwaki | 261.9 | 2’08.069 | 0.557 / 0.065 |
| 5. | 44 | Pol ESPARGARO | SPA | HP Tuenti Speed Up | FTR | 260.5 | 2’08.107 | 0.595 / 0.038 |
| 6. | 40 | Aleix ESPARGARO | SPA | Pons HP 40 | Pons Kalex | 265.7 | 2’08.154 | 0.642 / 0.047 |
| 7. | 36 | Mika KALLIO | FIN | Marc VDS Racing Team | Suter | 264.8 | 2’08.240 | 0.728 / 0.086 |
| 8. | 71 | Claudio CORTI | ITA | Italtrans Racing Team | Suter | 260.7 | 2’08.319 | 0.807 / 0.079 |
| 9. | 45 | Scott REDDING | GBR | Marc VDS Racing Team | Suter | 263.9 | 2’08.412 | 0.900 / 0.093 |
| 10. | 75 | Mattia PASINI | ITA | Ioda Racing Project | FTR | 261.9 | 2’08.414 | 0.902 / 0.002 |
| 11. | 15 | Alex DE ANGELIS | RSM | JIR Moto2 | Motobi | 263.9 | 2’08.417 | 0.905 / 0.003 |
| 12. | 34 | Esteve RABAT | SPA | Blusens-STX | FTR | 260.3 | 2’08.466 | 0.954 / 0.049 |
| 13. | 29 | Andrea IANNONE | ITA | Speed Master | Suter | 264.1 | 2’08.520 | 1.008 / 0.054 |
| 14. | 3 | Simone CORSI | ITA | Ioda Racing Project | FTR | 263.3 | 2’08.549 | 1.037 / 0.029 |
| 15. | 76 | Max NEUKIRCHNER | GER | MZ Racing Team | MZ-RE Honda | 260.6 | 2’08.620 | 1.108 / 0.071 |
| 16. | 13 | Anthony WEST | AUS | MZ Racing Team | MZ-RE Honda | 257.1 | 2’08.714 | 1.202 / 0.094 |
| 17. | 63 | Mike DI MEGLIO | FRA | Tech 3 Racing | Tech 3 | 261.2 | 2’08.855 | 1.343 / 0.141 |
| 18. | 16 | Jules CLUZEL | FRA | NGM Forward Racing | Suter | 267.3 | 2’08.934 | 1.422 / 0.079 |
| 19. | 54 | Kenan SOFUOGLU | TUR | Technomag-CIP | Suter | 260.1 | 2’09.015 | 1.503 / 0.081 |
| 20. | 77 | Dominique AEGERTER | SWI | Technomag-CIP | Suter | 260.2 | 2’09.087 | 1.575 / 0.072 |
| 21. | 6 | Joan OLIVE | SPA | Aeroport de Castello | FTR | 263.9 | 2’09.278 | 1.766 / 0.191 |
| 22. | 35 | Raffaele DE ROSA | ITA | NGM Forward Racing | Suter | 262.8 | 2’09.307 | 1.795 / 0.029 |
| 23. | 19 | Xavier SIMEON | BEL | Tech 3 B | Tech 3 | 259.5 | 2’09.315 | 1.803 / 0.008 |
| 24. | 53 | Valentin DEBISE | FRA | Speed Up | FTR | 258.0 | 2’09.382 | 1.870 / 0.067 |
| 25. | 80 | Axel PONS | SPA | Pons HP 40 | Pons Kalex | 266.9 | 2’09.472 | 1.960 / 0.090 |
| 26. | 64 | Santiago HERNANDEZ | COL | SAG Team | FTR | 259.8 | 2’09.625 | 2.113 / 0.153 |
| 27. | 18 | Jordi TORRES | SPA | Mapfre Aspar Team Moto2 | Suter | 257.3 | 2’09.686 | 2.174 / 0.061 |
| 28. | 87 | Mohamad ZAMRI BABA | MAL | Petronas Malaysia | Moriwaki | 257.2 | 2’09.822 | 2.310 / 0.136 |
| 29. | 4 | Randy KRUMMENACHER | SWI | GP Team Switzerland Kiefer Racing | Kalex | 257.6 | 2’09.911 | 2.399 / 0.089 |
| 30. | 9 | Kenny NOYES | USA | Avintia-STX | FTR | 259.1 | 2’10.319 | 2.807 / 0.408 |
| 31. | 39 | Robertino PIETRI | VEN | Italtrans Racing Team | Suter | 258.4 | 2’10.348 | 2.836 / 0.029 |
| 32. | 20 | Ivan MORENO | SPA | Mapfre Aspar Team Moto2 | Suter | 262.5 | 2’10.875 | 3.363 / 0.527 |
| 33. | 68 | Yonny HERNANDEZ | COL | Blusens-STX | FTR | 255.2 | 2’11.022 | 3.510 / 0.147 |
| 34. | 86 | Hafizh SYAHRIN | MAL | Petronas Malaysia | Moriwaki | 259.2 | 2’11.388 | 3.876 / 0.366 |
| 35. | 95 | Mashel AL NAIMI | QAT | QMMF Racing Team | Moriwaki | 260.2 | 2’12.180 | 4.668 / 0.792 |
| 36. | 93 | Marc MARQUEZ | SPA | Team CatalunyaCaixa Repsol | Suter | 260.1 | 2’12.864 | 5.352 / 0.684 |
| 37. | 23 | Apiwat WONGTHANANON | THA | Thai Honda Singha SAG | FTR | 260.6 | 2’13.201 | 5.689 / 0.337 |
| Â | 38 | Bradley SMITH | GBR | Tech 3 Racing | Tech 3 | Â | Â | Â |
| Â | 88 | Ricard CARDUS | SPA | QMMF Racing Team | Moriwaki | Â | Â |
