Maverick Viñales to Start Qatar GP from Pole Position

Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP‘s Maverick Viñales will start the first race of the season in the best way possible: from pole position.

Viñales waited at the start of the Q2 session, to be ensured of some clear space on track for his hot laps. The strategy worked out perfectly for him. He positioned his YZR-M1 firmly in the lead after his first try, with a 0.741s advantage over his closest rival. He showed it wasn‘t a lucky shot when he posted another, slightly higher, 1‘53s, though his benchmark time remained unthreatened in the first half of the session.

He timed his ultra-quick pit stop to perfection to re-enter the track on his own again with five-and-a-half minutes left on the clock. The pace was heating up, with multiple rivals flashing red sectors, but the Spaniard responded. He found another 0.298s, posting a 1‘53.546s. This stunning lap earned him the first pole position of 2019, with a 0.198s gap to the rider in second place.

Maverick Viñales:

“I was surprised. I didn’t expect that everyone was going to be so fast. We’ve made good steps forward with the bike, but we need to keep working, because we still need to improve the exit of the last corner. If we can do that, we are going to be ready to fight for this race. I will push my hardest tomorrow, no fear, I will go for it. I’m able to hit good lap times and I’m fast straight away. I will give my all. The team prepared a really good bike for me, so now it’s in my hands to push and be at the front. I think it will be a group of five to six riders that will battle at the front in the first laps. Let’s see at the end of the race. I will plan tonight what I can do, but my first plan is just to do my best.”