Tuenti HP 40 Pol Espargaro2013 Qatar Moto2 Qualifying ResultsTuenti HP 40’s Pol Espargaro earned the first Moto2 pole position of 2013 under the floodlights at Losail International Circuit, coming back from a crash to deliver a remarkable final lap at the Commercial Bank Grand Prix of Qatar.
Joining Espargaro on the front row for Sunday’s Moto2 race will be Italtrans Racing Team’s Takaaki Nakagami and Marc VDS Racing Team’s Mika Kallio.Riders were challenged with much traffic and an extremely dusty track surface from the off. This was confirmed by an assortment of falls, not least for Espargaro himself who went down within the first five minutes. Adding to the early surprises, Nakagami, another pace-setter so far this weekend, was stuck in his garage with problems early on.Amid the early dramas, the Marc VDS bike of Scott Redding headed the timesheets and appeared to be losing less ground on the start/finish straight than in previous sessions. He eventually settled for fourth place as Espargaró surprised many, including himself, to pick up a remarkable half a second in the final sector alone, sealing the top spot with 2’00.882. One and a half tenths cover the top three, with Nakagami, deprived of a career-first pole by just over a tenth, eventually managing 15 laps as Kallio improved his personal best in the last knockings.Behind Redding, row two is completed by Technomag carXpert’s Dominique Aegerter and second Italtrans representative Julián Simón. Nico Terol will start seventh for the Mapfre Aspar Team Moto2, making up the third row with Tuenti’s Esteve Rabat and Desguaces La Torre SAG’s Marcel Schrotter. JiR Moto2’s Mike di Meglio was tenth, as less than a second covered the first 13 riders; that particular group was rounded out by reigning Moto3 Champion Sandro Cortese, who managed to re-join the session for Dynavolt Intact GP following an earlier highside from which he escaped unharmed.Also falling during the 45 minutes were Interwetten Paddock’s Sergio Gadea, substituting for the injured Tom Lüthi, and NGM Mobile Racing’s Mattia Pasini.2013 Qatar Moto2 Qualifying Results:
KTM RC 390 and Gordon McCall of Quail Motorcycle Gathering
byMotos and Friends by Ultimate Motorcycle
Hello and welcome once again to Ultimate Motorcycling’s weekly Podcast—Motos and Friends.
This week’s Podcast is brought to you by Yamaha motorcycles. Discover how the YZF-R7 provides the perfect balance of rider comfort and true supersport performance by checking it out at YamahaMotorsports.com, or see it for yourself at your local dealer.
This week features Senior Editor Nic de Sena’s impressions of the new KTM RC 390. The entry-level KTM has always been an impressive motorcycle that has sold extremely well, however the factory has now taken the bike to another level, with top-spec features that are typically found on flagship machines. Clearly KTM has realized that even smaller engined machines should have high spec suspension, brakes and electronics packages. Nic tells us how well the new RC 390 is equipped, and what he thought of riding the smaller displacement rocket.
In the second segment I chat with automotive and motorcycle industry icon, Gordon McCall. Gordon is the Director of Motorsports at the Quail Lodge & Golf Club in Carmel Valley, California.
This weekend of Saturday May 14th sees the annual Quail Motorcycle Gathering re-start after its Covid-forced hiatus, and having attended every one of the previous Motorcycle Gatherings, personally I’m very happy that the event is back on the schedule. Gordon chats about the event and a little of what’s happening this year. It’s a great event and if you feel like a trip to the gorgeous Quail Lodge in Carmel Valley, you’ll get to meet Gordon, Roland Sands, and of course a large number of stunning motorcycles too.
From all of us at Ultimate Motorcycling, we hope you enjoy this episode!
