Thanks to a second fastest time in Q1, Bo Bendsneyder qualified in sixteenth for the GP of Portugal. It was the fourth time in a row that the Dutch rider of NTS RW Racing GP managed to reach Q2. Teammate Dominique Aegerter stranded in eighth in Q1, which means that he starts the race in Portimao at 13:20 CET from place 22. Aegerter was unlucky in FP3 by missing valuable track time due to an issue with electronics. As a result, the Swiss did not have the opportunity to make a serious bid for direct placement for Q2. Bendsneyder did have that chance and came very close, but just missed it, in sixteenth position. In Q1 both NTS RW Racing GP riders were in the mix for the first four places. Aegerter just couldn’t hold on and finished eighth with 1.43.814. Bendsneyder was on the brink of missing out as well, but squeezed out a 1.43.280 in the final phase, which was good for second place. In Q2 Bendsneyder improved that time a few times. With the first improvement he was initially in tenth place, but a handful of other riders were just a little faster at the Portimao circuit. Unfortunately another improvement, to 1.43.013, didn’t bring a better position. With the sixteenth fastest time Bendsneyder was only 0.470 away from the fastest time. The differences are so small, tenth to seventeenth are divided by less than a tenth of a second.
Bo Bendsneyder: “It was a good day, with good lap times, but I’m not happy with the position. Seven hundredths of a second only is the difference from tenth place. That does hurt a bit. On the other hand, we have to be satisfied, because we have made a big step and we are in good shape, with a good pace. In Q2 I improved my time riding alone. That is very positive. I am ready to fight in the race.”
Q1 & Q2 combined:
| Pos | Rider | Team | Fastest lap |
| 1 | Remy GARDNER | Onexox TKKR SAG Team | 1’42.592 |
| 2 | Luca MARINI | SKY Racing Team VR46 | 1’42.710 |
| 3 | Fabio DI GIANNANTONIO | BETA Tools Speed Up | 1’42.721 |
| 4 | Enea BASTIANINI | Italtrans Racing Team | 1’42.722 |
| 5 | Sam LOWES | EG 0,0 Marc VDS | 1’42.759 |
| 6 | Jorge MARTIN | Red Bull KTM Ajo | 1’42.798 |
| 7 | Nicolò BULEGA | Federal Oil Gresini Moto2 | 1’42.845 |
| 8 | Augusto FERNANDEZ | EG 0,0 Marc VDS | 1’42.871 |
| 9 | Marcos RAMIREZ | Tennor American Racing | 1’42.905 |
| 10 | Tetsuta NAGASHIMA | Red Bull KTM Ajo | 1’42.993 |
| 11 | Hector GARZO | Flexbox HP 40 | 1’43.004 |
| 12 | Marco BEZZECCHI | SKY Racing Team VR46 | 1’43.013 |
| 13 | Xavi VIERGE | Petronas Sprinta Racing | 1’43.030 |
| 14 | Jorge NAVARRO | BETA Tools Speed Up | 1’43.036 |
| 15 | Aron CANET | Pull&Bear Aspar Team Moto2 | 1’43.039 |
| 16 | Bo BENDSNEYDER | NTS RW Racing GP | 1’43.062 |
| 17 | Lorenzo BALDASSARRI | Flexbox HP 40 | 1’43.077 |
| 18 | Joe ROBERTS | Tennor American Racing | 1’43.172 |
| 19 | Stefano MANZI | MV Agusta Forward Racing | 1’43.561 |
| 20 | Lorenzo DALLA PORTA | Italtrans Racing Team | 1’43.635 |
| 21 | Marcel SCHROTTER | Liqui Moly Intact GP | 1’43.734 |
| 22 | Dominique AEGERTER | NTS RW Racing GP | 1’43.814 |
| 23 | Edgar PONS | Federal Oil Gresini Moto2 | 1’44.040 |
| 24 | Thomas LUTHI | Liqui Moly Intact GP | 1’44.046 |
| 25 | Simone CORSI | MV Agusta Forward Racing | 1’44.137 |
| 26 | Andi Farid IZDIHAR | IDEMITSU Honda Team Asia | 1’44.209 |
| 27 | Somkiat CHANTRA | IDEMITSU Honda Team Asia | 1’44.263 |
| 28 | Hafizh SYAHRIN | Pull&Bear Aspar Team Moto2 | 1’44.293 |
| 29 | Kasma DANIEL | Onexox TKKR SAG Team | 1’45.922 |
Source: motogp.com, rwracinggp.com
