Kent On Pole Despite Late Crash

Jul 11, 2015
3 min read

Danny Kent has been untouchable all weekend and cemented that position in qualifying with pole position for tomorrow's Moto3 Grand Prix of Germany. The Leopard Racing rider came out the box swinging, setting his fastest lap of 1:26.420 in the opening quarter of the session. That lap put him 0.5 clear of the field and 0.565 clear of Jack Miller's pole record from last year. The Briton suffered a small scare in the final fifteen-minutes when he crashed at turn six. He'd just left the pits on a fresh soft rear and a used medium front tyre, and as he tipped into turn six the front of his Honda washed out from underneath him. He skittled into wild card rider Max Kappler and both of their sessions were ended. Despite this no one was able to get close to Kent.

Enea Bastianini had not looked in usual form leading up to qualifying, and still wasn't totally comfortable during the session having languished down in 17th as the 40-minutes neared its end. A last gasp lap saw the Gresini Honda rider jump up to 2nd. He'll be joined by Red Bull KTM Ajo's Karel Hanika who starts on the front row for the second consecutive weekend. The Czech rider did have a crash halfway through the session, but was able to get the bike back to the pits and rejoin to cement his 3rd spot. Having learned from his bad start in Assen, Hanika will be determined to convert this one into a good result.

Fabio Quartararo was close to a front row start on his Sachsenring début but missed out by just a couple of hundredths. Team-mate Jorge Navarro had struggled a little more to get to grips with the devilishly trick circuit, but dug deep and produced a lap good enough for 8th. Both showed very well in Assen, a circuit fairly similar in its technical nature, so they could definitely cause a headache for some in the race.

Efren Vazquez has paled in comparison to his championship leader team-mate, but rediscovered some lost form this afternoon to place his Leopard Racing Honda slap-bang in the middle of the second row. The Spaniard would love to head into the summer break with a win under his belt, especially with Indy on the horsizon – the scene of his first Grand Prix victory last year.

Jorge Martin impressed on the Mapfre Mahindra in 7th and only missed out on the second row by three-hundredths of a second, the Spaniard's 1:27.160 coming late in the session. The Mahindra should go well at the Sachsenring given that horsepower isn't a massive benefit. And there will be some expectation for at least a top five finish after Brad Binder's podium success of last year. It was a difficult day for team-mate Juanfran Guevara who suffered another heavy crash. The Spaniard was helped away by the marshals after coming off eight-minutes into the session. He suffered a nasty high-side at the end of FP3 as well, so his participation in tomorrow's race could be in doubt.

Niklas Ajo completed the top ten for the RBA Racing team, but his session was not without incident. Rounding the final corner, the Finn collided with his team-mate Ana Carrasco. Both hit the deck and were equally peeved with one another. Carrasco, incidentally, qualified down in 24th.

Probably the most disappointing result of the afternoon came in the form of John McPhee. The Scotsman had looked very strong heading into qualifying having ended FP3 5th fastest. But the RTG Honda rider could only manage a disheartening 20th on the grid, whilst team-mate Alexis Masbou crashed and curtailed his session. The Frenchman will start 12th.

QP Top 10:

1st Danny Kent, Leopard Racing Honda, 1:26.420

2nd Enea Bastianini, Gresini Team Honda Moto3, 1:26.939

3rd Karel Hanika, Red Bull KTM Ajo, 1:26.941

4th Fabio Quartararo, EG 0,0 Honda, 1:26.968

5th Efren Vazquez, Leopard Racing Honda, 1:27.005

6th Andrea Locatelli, Gresini Team Honda Moto3, 1:27.130

7th Jorge Martin, Mapfre Mahindra Team, 1:27.160

8th Jorge Navarro, EG 0,0 Honda, 1:27.253

9th Niccolo Antonelli, Ongetta-Rivacold Honda, 1:27.313

10th Niklas Ajo, RBA Racing Team KTM, 1:27.334

Full results can be found here: