Tom Lüthi (7th) starts from the third row
After coming seventh in the qualifying in the GP of San Marino & de la Riviera de Rimini Moto2, Tom Lüthi (CarXpert Interwetten) will start the race on Sunday from the third row (start 12:20). According to forecasts, the weather will be instable. Even though Tom was in the front positions during the practices, he didn’t manage to achieve a good lap time and therefore no place in the front row. Spanish up-and-coming talent Lecuona (Garage Plus Interwetten) continued his strong perfomance and will start from the 19th position. Jesko Raffin (Garage Plus Interwetten)’s situation, however, remains unchanged and complicated. He lacked the last bit of effort in the qualifying that was missing to get him a good starting position. He was doing great in the morning, yet it didn’t last. The native of Zurich will start from the ninth row (27th position).
Fred Corminboeuf, manager of the two Swiss teams, who has just signed a contract with KTM for the coming season, gives his statement of the day: “We aren’t at the place yet where we want to be with Tom. We need to stay calm and use the warm-up tomorrow to find a better solution. This is the only way to have a good race performance despite the hard qualifying. The changeable weather forecast isn’t music to my ears, either. Iker has had a good day. He continues to show progress and works great. He isn’t far from getting his first world championship point. Jesko on the other hand needs to regain his balance in order to compete – one day he’s great, the other he’s bad.”
The announcement of the day: “I’m pleased to officially announce that we will collaborate with the Austrian manufacturer KTM in 2018 and 2019. We will equip our riders with their material. I’m really excited about this step in the history of CGBM Evolution. I remember when we brought suspension system specialist WP-Suspension, who’s already a long-term partner of KTM, to the Moto2. I’d also like to take this opportunity and thank the entire team at Kalex. It’s thanks to them that Tom Lüthi is in the race about the world title again. The change to KTM is a strategic step for us”, explains Frédéric Corminboeuf.
He said…
Thomas Lüthi (carXpert Interwetten, 7th):
«I’m really disapointed about this qualifying. Even though we found a better grip for the back tire, the front one isn’t ready yet. I almost fell several times because the front tire slipped. Pasini and Morbidelli, the first two drivers, were extremely fast. Yet I know that I would have had the pace to be faster by two-tenth and therefore be with them. We will use the warm-up tomorrow to continue where we left off at the end of the qualifying. We really need this time. If the announced storm arrives, we will all have to fight tomorrow.”
Misano (Italy). GP of San Marino & de la Riviera de Rimini Moto2, qualifications: 1. Pasini (ITA, Kalex), 1’37.390 (156.200 km/h); 2. Morbidelli (ITA, Kalex), + 0.083; 3. Aegerter (SWI, Suter), + 0.333; 4. Baldassari (ITA, Kalex), + 0.344; 5. Nakagami (JPN, Kalex), + 0.387; 6. Bagnaia (ITA, Kalex), + 0.499; 7. Lüthi (SWI, Kalex, carXpert Interwetten), + 0.547; 8. Corsi (ITA, Speed Up), + 0.550; 9. Oliveira (POR, KTM), + 0.593; 10. Quartararo (FRA, Kalex), + 0.666. Further: 19. Lecuona (SPA, Kalex, Garage Plus Interwetten), + 1.059; 27. Raffin (SWI, Kalex, Garage Plus Interwetten), + 1.476. 32 classified.
