Gran Premio d’Italia Oakley Sunday Guide

2018-06-03 12:31
MotoGP™
Valentino Rossi has qualified on pole position for the first time since Motegi in 2016 and the 65th time in his Grand Prix career, equaling Jorge Lorenzo as the rider with second most career pole positions. Marc Márquez leads with 74.

At 39 years and 106 days old, Rossi is the oldest rider to start from pole position in the premier class since Jack Findlay in 1974 (39 years, 121 days).

In his 64 previous pole positions, Rossi went on to win the race 41 times and stood on the podium in 55 of the races, with 1.68 as his average position across the line.

The last time Rossi qualified on pole position at Mugello was in 2016, but he had to retire from the race due to an engine issue. He is aiming to win on home soil for the first time since Misano in 2014.

Rossi is the most successful rider across all classes at Mugello, with a total of nine victories; one each in the 125cc and 250cc classes to add to his seven successive MotoGP™ wins from 2002 and 2008. Each of those seven premier class wins were from the front row of the grid.

Rossi will be aiming to finish within the top five to become the first rider in history to reach the milestone of 5000 points scored in the premier class.

Jorge Lorenzo is in second place on the grid, which is his fourth front row start on a Ducati. Last year at Mugello, he led the race on the second and third laps before dropping down to 8th.

After passing through Q1, Maverick Viñales, who started from pole position last year at Mugello, completes the front row on the grid. That’s his second front row start of the season, with the other coming in with Austin.

Andrea Iannone heads the second row of the grid for the second successive race after Le Mans. He will be aiming to become the first Suzuki rider to win at Mugello since Kevin Schwantz back in 1992, or the first to stand on the podium at the track since Daryl Beattie (2nd) in 1995.

In fifth place on the grid and as the top Independent Team rider is Danilo Petrucci, who crossed the line in third position last year at Mugello for his first podium finish in dry conditions.

Marc Márquez has qualified in sixth place on the grid for the second successive year at Mugello, equaling his worst qualifying result from Argentina earlier this year. He will be aiming to become the first rider in the MotoGP™ class to win four races in a row since Jorge Lorenzo in 2015.

Andrea Dovizioso, who became the first Italian rider to win on an Italian bike at Mugello in 2017, starts seventh.

Cal Crutchlow has qualified in eighth place on the grid and is the second Honda rider. He crashed last year at Mugello, collected in a crash for Dani Pedrosa on the final lap.

In ninth place on the grid is Johann Zarco, who has failed to start from the front row for the first time since he was 11th at Aragón last season.

Franco Morbidelli, who starts from 12th on the grid, was the first of the five rookies this year to reach Q2.

Dani Pedrosa starts from 20th on the grid, which is his worst position on the grid since he stepped up in MotoGP™ class in 2006.

The last fifteen MotoGP™ races have been won by either Ducati or Honda riders. The last non-Honda or Ducati rider to win a MotoGP™ race was Valentino Rossi in Assen last year.

Moto2™
Mattia Pasini starts from pole position for the sixth time in the Moto2™ class, equaling Franco Morbidelli as the Italian rider with most pole positions in the class. He will be aiming to win for the third time at Mugello in the intermediate category.

Mattia Pasini (32 years 293 days old) is the oldest rider to qualify on pole position in the Moto2™ class, beating his own previous record from Australia last year.

In second place on the grid is Marcel Schrötter, which is the third time he’s qualified on the front row on what is his 145th Grand Prix start.

Álex Márquez has qualified on the front row for the fourth time in 2018 and the 18th time in the Moto2™ class, equalling Takaaki Nakagami. He crossed the line in third place last year at Mugello after fighting for the win.

Francesco Bagnaia heads the second row for the second time this season, the first coming at Austin. He crashed last year at Mugello, but he managed to restart to cross the line in 22nd.

Simone Corsi starts his 250th Grand Prix from fifth, which is his best qualifying result since he was also fifth in Aragón last year.

Romano Fenati, who won two years ago in Moto3™ at Mugello, has qualified on the second row for the second time in 2018 after he was fifth in Qatar, making him the fourth Italian rider on the first two rows on the grid. Fenati is also the top rookie on the grid.

Moto3™
Jorge Martín has qualified on pole position for the fourth successive time in 2018 at Mugello and the 13th time in Moto3™, equaling the record of Álex Rins in this class.

Only Maverick Viñales (FTR Honda), in 2012, has won from pole position in Moto3™ at Mugello. That’s also the only Honda victory at the track in Moto3™ so far.

Second on the grid is Tatsuki Suzuki, his best qualifying result and the best qualifying performance for a Japanese rider in the Moto3™ class since Hiroki Ono was also second in Mugello back in 2015.

Ayumu Sasaki completes the front row on the grid, which is his best qualifying result on what is 25th start in the Moto3™ class.

Fourth in qualifying is Arón Canet, which is his best qualifying result since he was second in Austin earlier this year.

This highest placed KTM rider is Championship leader Marco Bezzecchi, who has qualified fifth. Bezzecchi will be aiming to become the third Italian rider to stand on the top step of the podium at Mugello since the introduction of the Moto3™ class in 2012.

Taking the final place on the second row is Fabio Di Giannantonio. Along with Andrea Migno, he is the only other rider in the current field to have stood on the podium at Mugello; finishing second over the last two years.

The winner last year at Mugello, Andrea Migno, has qualified 15th.

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