On the second day of the Emilia-Romagna GP Bo Bendsneyder and Piotr Biesiekirski continued the progress they have started on the first day. Both riders of NTS RW Racing GP managed to improve their times significantly again. In terms of positions, the upward trend was not as visible as hoped for. Bendsneyder starts the Moto2 race at the Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli from 23rd place, Biesiekirski makes his GP debut from 29th place. Also today it all looked a lot better than last week for Bendsneyder. The racepace on used tires was especially promising. In the first half of the third free practice, it seemed that the Dutchman was certainly not without a chance for qualification for Q2. In the end of that session, however, he could not beat his best time of 1.36.679.
He did succeed in Q1, but with 1.36.569 he did not qualify for a place in the top four, so Bendsneyder had to settle for 23rd place on the grid.
Biesiekirski also today made huge steps. In FP3 the rookie already approached the fastest time of Jesko Raffin last week with 1.39.528, and in Q1 – the first time for the Polish rider in this system – he beat that time, with 1.39.413. “It’s not really fair to compare the times – Jesko was far from fit – but for a boy who is riding a GP machine for the first time on a circuit that is new to him, it is certainly impressive what Piotr does,” said NTS RW Racing GP team manager Jarno Janssen. “The step from European to World Championship level is a very big one, there is an awful lot coming towards him. He’s thrown into the deep end, but he stands firm and improves himself every lap. It will be a long race for him, but that also means that he can learn a lot and gain experience.”
Janssen was also positive about Bendsneyder. “Compared to last week, we have really made progress and are a lot more competitive. Now it is a matter of the finishing touches and hoping for a good start.”
Bo Bendsneyder: “In FP3 this morning we made a good step on used tires. At the end of the session we put in new tires, but I couldn’t improve my time. I could do so in Q1 and I am satisfied with that, although the position is not yet what we had hoped for. We are missing a few tenths on paper, but in terms of race pace we do have a better prospect than last week. We are going to see how far we can get tomorrow.”
Results Q1 & Q2 combined:
Pos | Rider | Team | Fastest lap |
1 | Luca MARINI | SKY Racing Team VR46 | 1’35.271 |
2 | Marco BEZZECCHI | SKY Racing Team VR46 | 1’35.307 |
3 | Xavi VIERGE | Petronas Sprinta Racing | 1’35.619 |
4 | Sam LOWES | EG 0,0 Marc VDS | 1’35.740 |
5 | Enea BASTIANINI | Italtrans Racing Team | 1’35.789 |
6 | Aron CANET | Inde Aspar Team Moto2 | 1’35.803 |
7 | Jake DIXON | Petronas Sprinta Racing | 1’35.814 |
8 | Fabio DI GIANNANTONIO | Beta Tools Speed Up | 1’35.928 |
9 | Jorge NAVARRO | Beta Tools Speed Up | 1’35.952 |
10 | Nicolò BULEGA | Federal Oil Gresini Moto2 | 1’35.979 |
11 | Marcel SCHROTTER | Liqui Moly Intact GP | 1’36.033 |
12 | Augusto FERNANDEZ | EG 0,0 Marc VDS | 1’36.054 |
13 | Tetsuta NAGASHIMA | Red Bull KTM Ajo | 1’36.087 |
14 | Mattia PASINI | Red Bull KTM Ajo | 1’36.154 |
15 | Hector GARZO | Flexbox HP 40 | 1’36.210 |
16 | Thomas LUTHI | Liqui Moly Intact GP | 1’36.242 |
17 | Lorenzo DALLA PORTA | Italtrans Racing Team | 1’36.245 |
18 | Joe ROBERTS | Tennor American Racing | 1’36.396 |
19 | Lorenzo BALDASSARRI | Flexbox HP 40 | 1’36.304 |
20 | Marcos RAMIREZ | Tennor American Racing | 1’36.335 |
21 | Stefano MANZI | MV Agusta Forward Racing | 1’36.342 |
22 | Edgar PONS | Federal Oil Gresini Moto2 | 1’36.551 |
23 | Bo BENDSNEYDER | NTS RW Racing GP | 1’36.569 |
24 | Simone CORSI | MV Agusta Forward Racing | 1’36.760 |
25 | Hafizh SYAHRIN | Inde Aspar Team Moto2 | 1’36.869 |
26 | Somkiat CHANTRA | IDEMITSU Honda Team Asia | 1’37.044 |
27 | Kasma DANIEL | Onexox TKKR SAG Team | 1’37.409 |
28 | Andi Farid IZDIHAR | IDEMITSU Honda Team Asia | 1’37.812 |
29 | Piotr BIESIEKIRSKI | NTS RW Racing GP | 1’39.413 |
Source: motogp.com, rwracinggp.com