THE FASTEST ANYONE HAS EVER BEEN ON A MOTORCYCLE ON THE SPANISH CIRCUIT

MAVERICK VIÑALES IS FIRST IN Q1 AND WILL START FROM THE THIRD ROW

THIS CONFIRMS APRILIA RACING'S GRAND FORM ON QUALIFYING DAY AS WELL

After dominating practice on Friday, Aprilia Racing confirms the outstanding performance on qualifying day as well. Aleix Espargaró broke the Spanish track record twice to take the second pole position of this year.

With this performance, Aleix confirmed the excellent impressions he had been giving from the outset of the weekend, riding his RS-GP admirably and taking full advantage of its performance in the difficult low-grip conditions of the Catalunya track. After setting the new track record in the last practice session (obviously finishing it in first place), he managed to do even better in qualifying, stopping the clock at a time of 1’38.742 for the new track record and the fourth pole position of his career.

Yet again, Q2 seemed to be cursed for Maverick Viñales, knocked out of the top ten by just 10 thousandths of a second. However, this time Maverick redeemed himself straight away, dominating the first qualifying session and going through to Q2 where he finished with a spot on the third row and a time of 1’39.397.

ALEIX  ESPARGARÓ
1st - 1'38.742
"What qualifiers! It’s nice to be ahead of the rest here in Barcelona, but it was anything but easy. The bike moved around a lot, the conditions were critical, and I really had to give one hundred percent. I also have to thank Maverick because thanks to his slipstream on the straight, I gained a few fundamental metres. Overall, we worked well, both on the flying lap and in terms of preparing for the race. Now all that’s left is to start well, stay focused and see who has conserved their tyres the best in the finale."

MAVERICK  VIÑALES
8th - 1'39.397
"We did a good job, even if this performance should come easier for us. In any case, I’m happy to be starting from the third row. It was important for us to improve in qualifying and today we took a good step forward. It’s going to be a long race but I feel good. I’ll be aiming to be aggressive in the early laps and then conserve the tyres a bit for the finale."

#CatalanGP qualifying. Was Mugello’s pole position a coincidence? Not really. Coincidences do not really exist in MotoGP, and Fabio Di Giannantonio proved it by showing some scintillating form on the single-lap again as he qualified fifth for tomorrow’s Catalan GP race – and was only 0.357secs shy from Espargaró’s pole position.  

This is a true display of power for the rider #49, who has always been better known for the race comebacks than the qualifying performances. The wind is changing, however, and the Rome-born rider will sleep tight tonight knowing he will line up close to the front of the grid.
 
Enea Bastianini, on the other hand, had a much more challenging Saturday, as he narrowly missed on Q2 first in FP3 and then in Q1 – as he was only 0.023secs shy of making it through. With a good race pace on his side, however, the Italian will try to get a good start and be aggressive early on – for what hopefully be another successful comeback.

APRILIA RACING, A BETTER START WOULD HAVE BEEN DIFFICULT TO FIND
ALEIX ESPARGARÓ AND MAVERICK VIÑALES FIRST AND SECOND RESPECTIVELY ON THE FIRST DAY IN BARCELONA

The GP of Catalunya weekend kicked off in the best possible way for Aprilia Racing with their riders in first and second place in the standings after the first two practice sessions.

On a track characterised, as always, by poor grip, both Aleix and Maverick dedicated a lot of time in the two sessions preparing for the race, especially in terms of tyre management, one of the factors that could prove to be decisive in the race.

In any case, both demonstrated great speed, resulting in the two best times of the day and already clear in the morning session, where Maverick finished with the second best time and Aleix with the fourth best. The two did even better in the faster second session, occupying the first two spots and also demonstrating an outstanding race pace.

ALEIX ESPARGARÓ
1st - 1'39.402
"It’s always important to start well and to find the right feeling with the bike and with the track. Obviously it’s only Friday, but Maverick and I were both competitive and that renders merit to the team’s hard work. On this track grip is really low, so tyre choice and how to manage them to the end of the race are fundamental issues. Now we’ll have to carefully analyse the spin levels and the speed on corners for each different tyre in order to make the right choices and set up the best strategy."

MAVERICK VIÑALES
2nd - 1'39.705
"I am very, very happy and not just because of the fast lap. On this track, the true difference will be made by knowing how to manage the tyres and from this point of view, we’ve done a good job. I’m convinced that tomorrow in FP3 the times will drop even lower. When you put the new tyre on here, it almost seems like you’re riding a different bike! In any case, we’ll keep moving forward. We’re on the right track and it would be fantastic to take that last step right here, on my home track and with my fan club trackside cheering me on."

#CatalanGP libere. Because of the location and time of the year, the eighth round of the season at Montmeló is once again characterised by scorching temperatures (27ºC), which were partially mitigated by a light breeze. The first day was marked by uncertainty and very levelled performance, with 15 riders covered by only one second.
 
Enea Bastianini’s Catalan Grand Prix started on the right foot as he set the third-quickest time (1’39.890secs) and was the best positioned Ducati rider in the timesheets, despite having margin to improve both in the time attack and with regards to the race pace.
 
Fabio Di Giannantonio also did a good job as he was 0.944secs away from the top and only four tenths in arrears from his teammate. Tomorrow, as usual, the FP3 session will be crucial for a direct access to Q2, while Free Practice 4 will be extremely important for tyre selection ahead of the race.

Barry Sheene’s son Freddie and racing legend Stuart Graham will lead the Barry Sheene parade laps at Suzuki Live, which takes place at Cadwell Park on Friday 10 June.  

Five of Sheene’s Grand Prix bikes will be paraded on the day, including the RT67 125cc machine raced in the world championship by Graham in 1967, before being bought by Sheene in 1970 and raced in Grand Prix in 1971. 

Sheene’s son Freddie will ride the 1984 XR45 – the last Grand Prix motorcycle his father raced in anger dressed in its famous DAF livery – while the parade will be completed by the 1976 and 1977 world championship-winning XR14s and the quirky XR23A: a 652cc, big-bore RG500 raced in the Trans Atlantic series. 

All five of the bikes have been restored to working order by Suzuki’s Vintage Parts Programme.

Suzuki GB’s Tim Davies, said, “It was already going to be special enough to see five of Barry’s bikes being ridden on track together, as it always is whenever one of his machines is fired up and given a run-out. But to be able to have Freddie over is fantastic and it’s great to give him another opportunity to ride the bikes that made his father such a motorcycling hero.

“And then to be able to welcome Stuart Graham along, too, is incredible. The little 125 carried him to Grand Prix wins in 1967 and then kick-started Barry’s world championship career in 1971, when he took three wins and five podiums to finish second in the championship that year. At 80-years-old it’ll be amazing to see him back on that bike.”

As well as the parades Suzuki Live will see plenty of track action, with track day sessions open for classic and modern machines alike. Split into three groups – Classic Novice for those new to track days or riding older machines, Classic Intermediate for those more familiar with track days or riding a classic model, and Open Advanced for the experienced riders on the latest Suzuki machinery – spaces cost £135 per person and can be booked online here.  

Key models from Suzuki’s on-road product range – including the new GSX-S1000GT sports tourer, GSX-S1000 naked, and third generation Hayabusa – will be available to test ride on the day on the stunning roads surrounding Cadwell Park. Those wishing to take a test ride must present a valid licence and produce a DVLA check code or National Insurance number.  

A classic bike display will comprise a 1985 GSX-R750F, the TL1000s built brand new by the Vintage Parts Programme in 2014, a 1991 GSX-R1100L, and the Team Classic Suzuki Katana endurance racer. 

For more information and to book visit https://bike.msvtrackdays.com