Third row at Sepang for Aleix Espargaro

After dominating the opening three free practice sessions at Sepang, Dani Pedrosa was unable to maintain his superiority through qualifying in an afternoon session that took place on a damp and unpredictable track.

Rossi and Crutchlow both took turns at the top as the track dried in a thrilling finale but in the end it was Marquez who once again stole the show with a dramatic late effort that sealed a new pole position record and front spot on the grid for tomorrows race.

It is a race that POWER ELECTRONICS Aspar rider Aleix Espargaró is looking forward to despite this being a circuit where he expected to struggle with his CRT bike compared to the factory prototypes.

The Spaniard set a stunning lap of 2’02.151 in Q2 to seal ninth place on the grid and firmly establish himself as the favourite for another CRT victory tomorrow as he looks to wrap up the title as soon as possible.

9th Aleix Espargaró 2.02.151:
“If somebody offered me a third row start before we came to Sepang I would have taken it immediately. We have done a great job this weekend but we need to be on our guard tomorrow because our CRT rivals are close behind us. I set a fast lap in Q2 on a tricky track and I am really happy to be starting from ninth place. It will be a tough race tomorrow and we all know how the conditions here at Sepang can affect the condition of the tyres and the riders. It will be hard to keep the same pace up over twenty laps but we’ll try to open up a gap, hang on and finish as the top CRT. We need to pick up as many points as we can to wrap up the title as soon as possible.”

Source: Aspar Media