The start of official MotoGP testing at Sepang on Tuesday saw a familiar figure in a new HRC uniform: Alex Baumgärtel, or ‘Alex from Kalex’.

HRC told Crash.net that Baumgärtel has been employed as a “Technical Advisor contracted for a collaboration with HRC”.

Baumgärtel founded chassis specialist’s Kalex with Klaus Hirsekorn (the ‘K’ in Kalex) in 2008. Kalex has gone on to dominate the Moto2 class, winning the last eleven riders titles, and fills most of grid.

HRC hired Kalex to build its MotoGP swingarms in 2022 and, from last season, a full RC213V chassis.

But while Kalex may have constructed the chassis, the actual design still looked to have been provided by HRC, appearing almost identical to the usual version. Honda’s riders failed to notice a significant difference.

Baumgärtel’s new role suggests HRC – which has won just one race in the last two seasons, finished last in the 2023 constructors’ standings and has lost star rider Marc Marquez to Gresini Ducati – is now prepared to trust Kalex with evolving its chassis design.

Repsol branding shrinks on 2024 Honda livery?

Meanwhile, in a hint at rumours of a significant Repsol Honda livery change for 2024, the Sepang machines of Joan Mir and new signing Luca Marini feature a prominent ‘Honda’ sticker with a smaller ‘Repsol’ logo moved to the lower fairing (above).

In other words, the exact opposite of the sticker sizes used for previous Repsol Honda winter test liveries, see below from 2023:

Repsol began its title sponsorship of the factory Honda team in 1995. The 2024 team launch will be held in Spain on February 13.

Of Marquez’s accidents, the second – at the very end of the afternoon – was the most substantial, sending his Kalex frame barrel-rolling through the gravel.

Yet it was the slower morning slide he felt was “not necessary’ since the afternoon accident, on entry to the fast Turn 9 chicane, occurred while fighting to stay inside the top ten on his final lap.

Marquez, who had already unleashed his strategic side by targeting reigning champion Francesco Bagnaia for a tow earlier in the session, revealed that it had been a calculated risk:

“I was P8, so then I was pushing, I said, ‘OK, I will try to improve the lap time, because like this I will be in Q2, and if not, there will be a yellow flag and they will not improve’. So…”

Fast laps are cancelled if a rider passes the scene of a yellow flag.

The morning accident had prompted Marquez to switch over to the Kalex chassis, already waiting on his second bike, and he seemed to favour the German frame for most of the day.

The eight-time world champion was using the new frame when he fell at the end of Practice 2, and must hope it has not been fatally damaged, but had no regrets for making such a typical all-out attack on his return to MotoGP from a broken thumb.

“I know that 90% of riders will take it easy and step by step [on their return], but I’m not like this,” Marquez said. “If I come back, it’s because I’m ready to race, ready to push, ready to work for the team and ride the bike on the limit.

“Of course, I can be half a second slower like the other Hondas, and be out of Q2, but it’s not my way. My way is to push.”

Marquez added: “I’m very happy about the day. I had two crashes. For me, the second one is normal in racing. You are pushing with new tyres, and the target was to try to be in Q2, and I was happy.

“The first one was maybe unnecessary, and one that I can avoid. But honestly speaking, being one and a half months at home, it’s difficult to go out, be fast, feel the tyres, feel everything.

“And in this GP the tyre allocation is not so good, so for that reason I went out in the morning with the medium front, and then I crashed with that medium front. And this was the main reason for the first crash.

“We tried both chassis. It was a busy day, because every time I went out on the track, it was a different bike, different chassis, different riding style, different way to approach the corner. But it was the time to do it, and it was positive.

“Now we need to analyse a few things, but tomorrow maybe we will keep going in that way of the Kalex chassis, to try to understand this different philosophy.

“Because there are some negative points, some positive, but try to absorb those negative points to try to be even faster. Saying that, we are still far from the top guys…”

Marquez, who sustained the thumb injury when he collided with Miguel Oliveira in Portimao, made clear the Kalex frame is not a silver bullet that will instantly solve all of Honda’s problems.

“It’s another step in some areas in this circuit, but we need more steps,” Marquez said. “We are still losing too much, we are [pushing[ too much on the brakes, because we are losing in acceleration and on the straight.

“For that reason we are pushing a lot the front. For that reason all the Hondas, we are crashing too many times. But OK, this is the way to keep going, and I’m a rider who will keep pushing to try to understand the way for the future.”

Team-mate Joan Mir, who also had one Kalex chassis in his pit box, began the day in a competitive sixth but slipped all the way back to 18th in the faster afternoon hour.

“We tried the new chassis in the morning and I could feel a bit better,” Mir said. “I was able to ride more comfortable but it’s quite different so we have to adapt a bit the bike and myself to the new style.

“In the morning it was coming very natural but in the afternoon we have to see because it is not normal what happened. We have to understand so we avoid it for tomorrow.

“Overall tomorrow we will keep with the same chassis [Kalex] and try to improve a bit more and to see where we are. “

Pressed on what the strange feeling was in the afternoon, Mir added: “It looks like the [soft front] is the tyre that everyone likes. So to make the time attack with a ten-lap tyre is not the same…

“But I’m sure it was only that. We have to see what really happened. Maybe something also on the engine side with the electronics that was not really correct.”

LCR Honda riders Alex Rins and Takaaki Nakagami, who do not have the Kalex chassis available, were 13th and 15th.

While no official confirmation of the Kalex was given by HRC there were also no denials and subtle design differences to the usual Honda chassis pointed to test rider Stefan Bradl having one of the German-built frames in his pit box.

Bradl, who won Kalex’s first Moto2 title in 2011, favoured the new bike in terms of track time – but when the 33-year-old fitted some black prototype aero to it just before 2pm he went on to suffer a fast accident at Turn 5.

While the German escaped serious injury, the bike sustained significant damage. However, HRC mechanics were able to repair it in time for Repsol Honda’s Joan Mir to make a late run…

Unfortunately, the bike then suffered an electrical problem, perhaps linked to the earlier accident, before the 2020 world champion could complete a lap.

“What do I think about Stefan’s [Kalex] bike? I only made one lap. Because I had an electrical problem, so on the exit of Turn 5, I had my teeth on the dashboard!” Mir said.

“So I could just make one lap, and in one lap you can’t make any conclusions. Can be positive, maybe, but we must try in a better way than this.”

While Bradl didn’t speak to the media, Mir relayed what he had been told by the German: “Stefan was happy. Obviously the riding style of Stefan is a bit different [but] I’m sure that bike is different.

“On the out lap, you feel that it’s different. But I don’t know if it’s faster. So this is what we have to know.”

“You understand that the concept is a little bit more different,” he added. “You have probably more feedback on what’s happening on the wheels. But that’s it. So I cannot say so much, because one lap warming up the tyres, is not the proper way to speak about it.”

However Mir – who struggled throughout the Spanish MotoGP race weekend, including crashing out of both races – doesn’t expect to try the frame during the upcoming French Grand Prix.

“I think no, honestly,” he said.

LCR’s Alex Rins, who ended Honda’s 18-month win drought at COTA, said he was “surprised” that Mir was also given the chance to try the bike.

“I was quite surprised, because originally they said to me that only Stefan is going to test the new frame, the new chassis and I heard on TV that Joan also tried,” Rins said. “Unluckily his bike was stopping in corner six, but I was quite surprised about this.”

Repsol Honda team manager Alberto Puig also avoided using the word ‘Kalex’, but did tell told MotoGP.com: “It’s too early to make a clear statement. For now the vibes are positive, but only Stefan could test it [the Kalex frame] and we would like other riders to give their opinion. But the first inputs are good.”

Takaaki Nakagami, who also didn’t get to try the Kalex, was the fastest Honda rider in 12th followed by Mir in 15th, Rins in 17th and Bradl in 19th (+1.2s), after 54 laps.

Marc Marquez’s Spanish Grand Prix replacement, Iker Lecuona, did not take part in the test.

There had been talk of a Kalex chassis making its debut during the two-day outing, which saw Bradl share the Spanish track with test riders from Yamaha, KTM and Aprilia.

But the German, who will race in place of the injured Marc Marquez at Repsol Honda in Texas this weekend, insisted it didn’t happen.

“There have been these rumours [about a] Kalex chassis – just to tell you directly that was not there,” he said.

“We had new things, of course. But I need to be careful [what I say because] this test was private and let’s say confidential.

“That’s all I can say to you; that we didn’t have a Kalex chassis.”

Bradl will be riding alongside Joan Mir, who is returning from injury in Austin. The Spaniard said he had only heard about a Kalex chassis in the media and “at the moment there’s nothing on the table I think”.

Mir also warned there are no miracle parts in MotoGP: “I don’t trust on one chassis to give me all that I need – acceleration and top speed and everything. I think it’s not like that.”

But should a Kalex frame indeed be in the pipeline, the upcoming official post-race test at Jerez on May 1st would be among the next opportunities.

Two Germans on the MotoGP grid ‘might never be seen again’

After riding his last full MotoGP season with Aprilia in 2016, former Moto2 champion Bradl has gone on to make 33 starts as a Honda wild-card and replacement rider.

“It’s not the first time that I’m doing this, so I’ve got a little bit used to it,” he said of the last-minute call-up. “I’ve probably done more than a [full] season in the last three years replacing other riders.”

With countryman Jonas Folger also drafted in this weekend, in place of the injured Pol Espargaro at GASGAS Tech3, there will be two Germans on the premier-class grid.

After posing the question of when the last time that had happened – “I think ’91” – Bradl warned:

“We should be proud because it’s not going to happen again very soon. Probably in the future, we will never see it again because I can’t see anybody coming up from the young riders. Even in Moto3. And that’s a little bit of a shame as well.”

Dominant in the Moto2 class, Kalex’s swingarm expertise was called upon to try and rejuvenate Honda’s results from Misano onwards.

Upon returning from surgery, star rider Marc Marquez soon favoured the Kalex swingarm, using it to claim his only podium of the season at Phillip Island.

The aluminium swingarm has continued to be part of the Honda package during 2023 pre-season testing.

But, according to Speedweek.com, the German company will soon deliver an entire frame, perhaps in time for the first official in-season MotoGP test of the year, at Jerez in early May.

With Marquez in his best physical shape since 2020, the spotlight is now firmly on the performance of the flagging RC213V, the only MotoGP bike without a win last season.

Four different machines were offered to Marquez during the opening pre-season test at Sepang in February, but he felt no significant step over the previous prototype from Valencia in November.

The lack of clear forward momentum continued in the final pre-season test at Portimao, where Marquez found no advantage from a new frame and finished the test, in 14th, with the bike package he had preferred at Sepang.

Ex-Suzuki technical manager Ken Kawauchi has been hired to take over the RC213V MotoGP project this season but the Kalex chassis plans may have already been in the pipeline.

Pedro Acosta gave a reminder of what he is capable of with an emphatic win with a controlled performance as he responded every time August Fernandez tried to take the title with a win leaving him a solid second as he finishes the season champion after the Moto2 finale in Valencia.

Alonso Lopez had started from pole for the first time and was the early race leader. His early fiery performance, including contact with Acosta which lead to a conduct warning, and several near misses including a save on his elbows which indicated the Beta Tools Speed Up rider and his Boscoscuro would not go race distance, and that came to be with 21 laps still to run.

That left Tony Arbolino in control out front, who immediately took advantage and a gap with a fastest race lap.

The Elf Marc VDS rider was under pressure from Ai Ogura and Acosta with Fernandez keeping safe in fourth.

 

Title decided as Ogura hits the gravel

 

With crucial DNFs and errors leading up to the final battle at Ricardo Tormo, with Augusto Fernandez picking up zero points in Australia before Ai Ogura’s sensational exit last time out in Malaysia, the swing of power meant the final round could go either way.

The title was decided while Arbolino was leading, when Ai Ogura started to challenge for the win which would have handed him the championship, coming unstuck out of turn seven on lap eight.

Under pressure from Acosta, the Japanese rider pushed into the corner and had a strange fall where the front of his Idemitsu Honda seemed to struggle and lock, sending him flying through the gravel. In a strange turn of events his team-mate Somkiat Chantra suffered a carbon copy crash later in the race, suggesting bike set up rather than rider might have been the cause.

That took the pressure of Fernandez, as the Red Bull KTM Ajo pair caught and dropped Arbolino.

The #37 tried to go for the win, but was equally happy to take his title on the podium, finishing second by 1.232s as he gave up the chase, with Acosta taking his third win of his rookie season. Fernandez changed into gold leathers to celbrate on the podium, completed with a gold helmet beside him.

Arbolino was the first to congratulate Fernandez, with Ogura clapping his rivals performance graciously from his garage.

Malaysian grand prix winner Arbolino was third but ten seconds adrift by the time the chequered flag waved.

Fermin Aldeguer went backwards at the start after sitting up Fernandez but fought back to be the only Boscoscuro finisher in fourth.

Albert Arenas progressed to fifth, around four seconds behind Aldeguer to the finish line for Inde GasGas Aspar.

He held off a late charge from Manuel Gonzalez, who finished just short of equalling his best finish with the Yamaha VR46 Master Camp team this season in sixth.

 

Jake Dixon makes huge comeback to claim seventh.

 

Fifth after free practice, Dixon’s weekend came unravelled when he felt ill at ease on hos GasGas Aspar in qualifying, which lead to him starting 15th on the grid.

As the lights went out the British rider saw his situation worsen, getting swallowed up and dropping to as low as 23rd.

Undeterred, the #96 persisted and came through, aided by several falls ahead on the way to finish seventh – with the pace to run at the front.

Jeremy Alcoba was eighth. The Liqui Moly Intact GP rider again showed his aggressive side, causing Mattia Pasini to crash (replacing Barry Baltus at Rw Racing GP) after putting a move on the Italian from way back, with contact from a a shoulder barge as he pushed his Kalex under taking the #11 out of the race.

That lead to a long lap penalty and eighth place.

Senna Agius is back to replace Sam Lowes at Marc VDS to aid his recovery for next season and he made the most of his final replacement rider with the team to finish ninth, smashing his previous best of 16th and picking up his first world championship points.

Marcel Schrotter bowed out of the world championship with a top ten finish on the second Liqui Moly Intact GP entry.

Bo Bendsneyder (Pertamina Mandalika SAG Team) worked his way into the points to finish eleventh, ahead of Manuel Gonzalez (Yamaha VR46 Master Camp Team), who came through for twelfth.

The remaining points on offer went to Filip Salac (Gresini Moto2) in 13th, Lorenzo Dalla Porta (Italtrans) in 14th and his team-mate Joe Roberts, who had turned his weekend around in qualifying finding his way through Q1 to sixth on the grid before needing to come back from a poor start in the race for 15th.

 

Crashes and penalties

 

Aron Canet was ready for his home round and back in good spirits, with a special paella themed helmet, as he hunted an elusive first win, but he was out of contact and soon out of the race.

He lasted longer than Simone Corsi who saw his last Moto2 race end on the first lap.

Niccolo Antonelli and Cameron Beaubier also fell, as did Taiga Hada, who received a long lap penalty for crashing under yellow flag conditions, but remounted to finish 22nd.

Celestino Vietti also tried to rejoin the race, but was shown the ‘meatball’ flag for a technical issue on his bike and forced to retire.

 

Where does that leave the final championship standings?

 

Augusto Fernandez and Ai Ogura took their battle for the Moto2 crown all the way to the wire with the gap as small as half a point in the race. 9.5 points separated the dup before the race.

After the fall and Fernandez picking up positions the final gap stood at 29.5 points.

Ogura finished the season second, with Arbolino in of a shout of third before the race, when in the lead he could have took the position, but even though he fell Canet finished the season third, with Arbolino fourth overall

Acosta took the top rookie title in style with his win.

Early championship leader Celestno Vietti’s season was summed up by his drop to seventh overall, losing a place to Jake Dixon who finished sixth after his strong end to his season as the Italian failed to go the distance.

Alonso Lopez needed a big start to have time to take his long loop penalty, and that is exactly what he got, heading through his punishment and still coming out in front to win the Moto2 Australian Grand Prix.

Having come in with six races already run to replace Romano Fenati at Beta Tools Speed Up, the Boscoscuro rider already knew he needed a trip around the loop after he took out Celestino Vietti in a moments of carelessness in FP1. 

Fully committed he had an almost three second advantage as he entered and only lost one and a half seconds, the first rider to win with a sanction in Moto2 as he kept his control of the race and stayed one step ahead, with a winning margin of 3.556s.

 

Fernandez out, Ogura eleventh

 

Pedro Acosta was leading his Red Bull team-mate around after working his way to the front of the race. The rookie was left solo when Fernandez slipped away, his championship lead going with him.

Acosta wore a #87 t-shirt on the podium for his friend Remy Gardner who will leave the paddock at the end of the season.

The Spaniard picked up his fourth podium of the tear, but Jake Dixon went one better with a fifth as he held third. Leaving it all on the track to power through from 14th on the grid after a poor qualifying. Dixon dedicated his performance to the late BSB rider Chrissy Rouse.

The British rider was secure in the final podium spot with Fermin Aldeguer, who started on pole, a very distant fourth on the second Boscoscuro, completing a strong day to the team.

The French rider held off Manuel Gonzalez, who equalled his best result to date in fifth for Yamaha VR46 Master Camp Team.

Jeremy Alcoba was sixth for Liqui Moly Intact GP. He benefited from Cameron Beaubier deciding to go for it and try for a podium. His risk didn’t pay off, leaving him to instead finish seventh.

Somkiat Chantra, who scored pole at the last round, was almost two seconds further down the road in eighth for Idemitsu Honda team Asia.

Aron Canet had a mainly uneventful race in ninth, while Bo Bendsneyder completed the top ten for Pertamina Mandalika SAG Team.

Ai Ogura never really got into gear after a poor qualifying left him outside the top ten. The Japanese rider recorded his worst result of the season, but was let off the hook by Fernandez’s fall, which turned the tables and instead he found himself in a favourable position overall.

 

Where does that leave the championship?

 

After looking like the points were going to be huge for Augusto Fernandez, his DNF changed all that. The Spaniard remained on 238.5. Ogura is now the championship leader with the points he picked up in eleventh making the difference.

The Japanese rider picked up an extra place when Joe Roberts was a late retirement to the pits.

Tony Arbolino crashing out of second earlier in the race also helped swing the balance in Ogura’s favour.

Sam Lowes brought home the only remaining Elf Marc VDS bike home in twelfth.

The remainig points on offer went to Marcel Schrotter (Liqui Moly Intact GP) 1n 13th, Inde Gas Gas rider Albert Arenas in 14th and Taiga Hada in 15th (Pertamina Mandalika SAG Team ) his second consecutive points finish.

Only 18 riders finished the race – Alessandro Zaccone, Marcos Ramirez and Sean Dylan Kelly were the only others to see the chequered flag.

Simone Corsi and Jorge Navarro were the first to exit. The yellow flags were out for a while for Navarro who needed to be stretchered away, Lorenzo Dalla Porta retired to the pits as Filip Salac and Keminth Kubo crashed out in quick succession. Niccolo Antonelli, Barry Baltus and one time title contender Celestino Vietti all also failed to see the end of the race.

An emotional Ai Ogura declared his win ‘the best day of his life’ as he put in a ride full of fastest laps and overtakes to come through the pack and claim a memorable home win in the Moto3 Japanese Grand Prix, round sixteen of the championship.

The Idemitsu Honda team Asia rider had qualified down in 13th on the grid and a fiery start saw him up to third after one lap as pole man Canet lead the way.

Lap three saw Fermin Aldeguer exit from second, quickly followed by polesitter Aron Canet, who was leading when he pushed too hard to try for an early break.

That left Somkiat Chantra in control of the race, with Tony Arbolino and Alonso Lopez in the way of the #79’s dream win.

The Italian suggested a follow by tapping the back of his bike, but Ogura was soon past. A tough move and block on Lopez saw Ogura in charge and free to make and maintain a gap out front.

Crossing the line 1.192s ahead the Japanese rider was willed over the line by his team, including boss Hiroshi Aoyama, who was the last Japanese rider to win at home, back in 2006. It is Ogura’s third win of the season, keeping the Moto2 title in his sights.

Augusto Fernandez left it all on track to battle back from eleventh on the grid to push Ogura over the closing laps and retain a small championship advantage. The Red Bull KTM Ajo rider put in a flurry of fastest laps, but Ogura responded, leaving the Spaniard second.

Lopez announced himself in the race when he hit the front on lap seven. Though he couldn’t stay ahead in the race he did hold on to third, only just ahead of Jake Dixon at the chequered flag for CAG Speed Up.

By contrast to the podium finishers who all made early gains, Dixon knew he would struggle to keep up and dropped back from his front row start to be back in eighth at the end of lap one.

Keeping his cool and knowing crashes ahead were very much on the cards after the Moto3 result, the British rider put in a patient performance, allowing him to almost stage a podium return, finishing fourth, but only just for Shimoko GasGas Aspar.

Chantra lead briefly, after his early strong start, followed by him sitting up on the bike initially gapped the pack. His hard tyre gamble didn’t pay off, causing him to run wide and lose ground on several occasions. The Idemitsu Honda Team Asia rider brought the bike in in fifth, completing a strong home grand prix for the team.

Early contender Arbolino finished sixth for Elf Marc VDS, their only rider after Sam Lowes was withdrawn following his qualifying day crash.

Pedro Acosta, much like Dixon, let the race come to him, moving up to seventh by the chequered flag , a mixture of overtakes and gains from falls ahead allowing the Red Bull KTM Ajo rider to be able to make his way forward through the field.

Albert Arenas was a distant eighth on the second GasGas entry, with a further wait for ninth placed Bo Bendsneyder to reach the finish line for the Pertamina Mandalkia SAG Team. Filip Salac was almost three seconds behind him in a gapped section of the chasing group to complete the top ten for Gresini.

American Racing’s Cameron Beaubier got a huge start, catapulting him up towards the leaders before fading back to an eventual eleventh. Compatriot Joe Roberts found a way forward to take twelfth for Italtrans.

The riders were close in the run to the line but  Marcel Schrotter (Liqui Moly Intact GP) couldn’t find a way past for 13th. The remaining points on offer went to Barry Baltus (RW Racing GP) in 14th and Lorenzo Dalla Porta in 15th for Italtrans.

 

Crashes and Penalties.

 

No in race penalties were applied as those receiving a track limits warning exercised caution.

Like Moto3, there were plenty of crashes over the duration.

Manuel Gonzalez was declared fit after his earlier crash, but was first to exit.

Aldeguer lasted two laps longer, with Alessandro Zaccone not lasting much longer. At the same time Simone Corsi retired to the pits.

The next two crashes were crucial with Celestino Viettu’s spill all but ending his slim title dreams, with Canet next out and in the same situation after throwing away the lead in the race.

Niccolo Antonelli, Jorge Navarro and Jeremy Alcoba all also failed to finish.

 

Where does that leave the championship?

 

Augusto Fernandez pushing for second ensures he holds the lead in the title hunt, on 234 points he is just two ahead of Ai Ogura after his win cut into the difference,

Behind them Canet is a distant third on 177 points , 57 behind Fernandez and his early success means Vietti is still fourth despite his poor run of form. He is 72 points adrift.

Aron Canet took advantage of his track time in the tricky wet conditions, then remained unfazed by the rain delay to claim pole position ahead of the round sixteen of the championship, the Moto2 Japanese Grand Prix.

The Flexbox HP40 rider took advantage of his rivals struggle to keep one eye on the championship with a dominant performance for pole position.

Moving through Q1 with the top ten gave the Spaniard a taste of the track and time to adapt to the treacherous conditions. That saw him lead the way at the start of the session as he made his early banker lap count as the red flag waved for the weather.

 

With his main competition for the top slot coming from Fermin Aldeguer, not a title rival, once the long rain break ended, Canet answered every time to claim his third pole of the season with a best of 2m 04.939s.

As the chequered flag waved Aldeguer was sitting in second, but that lap was set with yellow flags still in action after his team-mate Alonso Lopez crashed. His lap was cancelled after the session, dropping the CAG Speed Up rider to sixth.

Jake Dixon had pace in the damp, dark conditions and held third before the delay. The Shimoko GasGas Aspar rider was straight back up to speed to following the break , fighting the spray and streams of water on track. The #96 gained a position following Aldeguer’s demotion so will start second in Motegi. 

Canet’s wet lap was special – the gap between his time and Dixon’s was 0.730s, showing how hard the Spanish rider pushed.

The final spot on the front row went to Tony Arbolino. The Elf Marc VDS rider left it late, having been twelfth before his final attempt.

Somkiat Chantra was the biggest loser on the restart. Holding second before the red flag, although the Thai rider still dropped his time he didn’t take big enough chunks out to challenge the besttimes, leaving the Idemitsu Honda Team Asia rider fourth.

Filip Salac moved up the timesheets purposefully from ninth to sixth to fifth over the final minutes for Gresini.

Jorge Navarro was in fifth when he was caught out by the water on track, but only drooped to seventh on  the second Flexbox entry after his turn four fall.

The restart benefited Cameron Beaubier, who after coming through Q1 had not set a time before the stoppage. A final effort moved him into eighth, ahead of fellow graduate Keminth Kubo (Yamaha VR46 Master Camp Team).

Barry Baltus, who also came through the first session, braved the lightning to top Q2 early on before the delay, as thunder and lightning arrived at Motegi. He later lost his knee slider as pushed hard to complete the top ten for RW Racing GP.

Title rivals struggle in the wet.

 

Augusto Fernandez took pole in Aragon, but the championship leader never looked like troubling the top times at the Mobility Resort track.

After some tentative lapping the Red Bull KTM Ajo rider worked his way up to ninth, but a flurry of braver riders willing to risk the elements saw him finish qualifying in twelfth, almost two and a half seconds off the lead lap.

Ai Ogura had a similar tale to his Saturday, but his best effort sees him sit in 13th on the grid. The duo were split by faller Alonso Lopez, who was unable to improve on the Boscoscuro.

Rookie Pedro Acosta, fresh from is Aragon victory, cementing his return from injury, was also unable to match the frontrunners, he was last in Q2 for 18th on the grid on the second Red Bull KTM Ajo entry. Over four seconds slower than pole, the other crasher in the session, Albert Arenas, was ahead of him on the Aspar in 17th.

What happened in Q1?

 

Q1 started momentarily dry before the rain poured again.

Jeremy Alcoba was the first rider caught out by the change. Sam Lowes, who had said he wanted to get race fit and back on board his bike was doing do well he was holding a progression place when he too succumbed, flying over his handlebars and spinning through the gravel.

The Marc VDS rider, who as a team have already got off to a trying start to the Japanese Grand prix after a fire in their garage, slipped back to tenth in the session, for 24th on the grid.

Vietti stuck in Q1

 

Celestino Vietti did not trouble the top of the timesheets in Japan. The early championship leader looked lost and unable to find a fix for his woes on the Mooney VR46 Racing bike. Briefly hitting third, he took the flag early. His wait saw Keminth Kubo and Taiga Hada both better his time, before Lorenzo Dalla Porta and Cameron Beaubier pushed his best back even further – the troubled Italian will line up in 22nd.

Dalla Porta was knocked back to fifth in the session, for 19th on the grid for Italtrans after Beaubier found a way around his American Racing team-mate Sean Dylan Kelly.

Niccolo Antonelli crashed out before setting a time, so will start last.

Injuries, replacements and penalties

 

Following his crash earlier in the day which brought out the red flag, Manuel Gonzalez was missing from qualifying as he instead went to have checks on his wrist after the huge highside.

Augusto Fernandez found track space and an almost perfect line of the MotorLand circuit to claim pole position before tyres lost performance in qualfying for the Moto2 Aragon Grand Prix, round fifteen of the championship.

Sitting in tenth, he pulled out a near faultless lap while out on track after the class exited pit lane for their second runs to finish Saturday topping the timesheets with a best of 1m 51.888s.

The Red Bull KTM Ajo rider remain calm and focussed to claim just his third career pole – his last one came at Silverstone where he went on to win the race.

An added bonus came from his title rivals under-performing in qualifying. The #37 enjoys a gap back on the grid to Ai Ogura on row six, with Celestino Vietti sitting on a distant row six.

Albert Arenas was flying around the track at the same time but fell just 0.124s short of the best tome for Shimoko GasGas Aspar.

 

Dixon back on form and back on the front row

 

After his rostrum run, Jake Dixon saw his hopes of making it four visits come to an end after a crash in qualifying in San Marino left him swamped on the grid and taken out early in the race.

Undeterred, he arrived in Spain knowing his pace hadn’t changed and was supported by his Apsar team to reset and not the same error again. 

The confidence paid off with Dixon on the front row, alongside team-mate Arenas, completing a strong showing for the GasGas bikes in Q2.

Alonso Lopez continued his good form with the best time after free practice, but couldn’t quite translate that into qualifying pace. The rookie finished Saturday a solid fourth for at CAG Speed Up, the best of the non-Kalex riders in the intermediate class for Boscoscuro.

Aron Canet (Flexbox HP40) was the closest of the title contenders to Fernandez as he saw his provisional pole time slip back to fifth.

Pedro Acosta made moves forward from eleventh to sixth for Red Bull KTM Ajo, to complete row two.

Tony Arbolino also found late gains to rise from tenth to seventh for Elf Marc VDS.

Ai Ogura (Idemitsu Honda Team Asia) was the early pace-setter in the session, but his chase for the win will be harder from his eighth place grid slot, with both Canet and Fernandez, who he is only four points behind in the title hunt, ahead on the grid.

The Japanese rider was the best of the Q1 graduates, with American Racing’s Cameron Beaubier, who moved on with the top time, next in 16th.

His team-mate Somkiat Chantra will line up next to him in ninth after being the final rider to set a time in Q2.

With five minutes left to run, it appeared Joe Roberts might have done enough for a fourth place start, but a flurry of late improvements shuffled the Italtrans rider back to tenth.

Fermin Aldeguer was again beaten by his team-mate Lopez since his arrival to replace Romano Fenati, and had to settle for eleventh, with Filip Salac twelfth for Gresini.

Jorge Navarro was the second crasher in the session but still managed to qualify ahead of many riders who stayed upright in 13th for Flexbox HP40.

A qualifying to forget for Vietti

Since his pole to win in Barcelona, qualifying has not seemed quite such an issue for Mooney VR46 Team rider Celestino Vietti.

After also qualifying in the top slot of the grid last time out in San MArino, and needing a strong showing to keep his fading title chances alive, hopes had been high for a repeat for team and rider.

Vietti was immediately on the back foot when he had his last lap cancelled in FP3, which saw him go from 14th to 26th and back into Q1 for exceeding track limits.

After just making it through Q1 with the fourth best time, the Italian immediately had a further setback – falling as the front of his bike locked at turn one, sending him sliding into the gravel in the opening minutes.

Without a lap to his name for most of the session as his machinery underwent repairs and a tyre change, back on track his first effort lifted him from 18th to 16th. He was then dropped back to 17th with only fellow Q1 rider Alessandro Zaccone setting a slower time.

What happened in Q1?

 

With a one run situation, there were no real improvements to be had as the session went on – Vietti’s session progression time was set on his first flyer, while Beaubier remained in the garage as his time was going to remain safe.

Barry Baltus just missed out on the cut so will be best of the rest in 19th on the grid for RW Racing GP.

Loranzo Dalla Porta also came close and will be one place further back for Italtrans.

Marcel Schrotter was another veteran of the class not to progress, he lines up 21st for Liqui Moly Intact GP

Injuries, replacements and penalties

 

Senna Algius is once again in for Sam Lowe at Elf Marc VDS and was looking to break into the Q1 top four on his final run. His time didn’t improve after meeting Sean Dylan Kelly and a host of other riders on track, leaving him seventh in the session – 21st on the grid.