Oliveira and KTM Claim Maiden Moto2 Pole

Miguel Oliveira made history in Argentina by claiming his first ever pole position in Moto2 and the first in the intermediate class for the KTM chassis at Termas de Rio Hondo. The Portuguese rider edged out championship leader Franco Morbidelli in a frantic session which saw countless changes of polesitter on a drying track.

The session began in damp conditions following a rain-affected MotoGP session and Alex Marquez appeared to be the most confident early on, holding provisional pole for the opening twenty minutes. A switch to slicks for Sandro Cortese and Mattia Pasini saw the times quickly tumble though as pair swapped top spot between themselves.

It wasn’t until the final ten minutes that Oliveira came into play but the KTM rider had timed his last run to perfection, improving on five consecutive laps to finish on a 1:45.616 and a first Moto2 pole. Morbidelli also peaked in the closing stages to take second after a quiet session while Marquez also found pace on slicks towards the end to secure a front row start in third.

Thomas Luthi scrambled his way up to fourth ahead of the impressive Jesko Raffin who equalled his career-best in fifth, just ahead of Pasini and Cortese. Xavi Vierge continued to shine on the Tech 3 Mistral in eighth while Xavier Simeon and Lorenzo Baldassarri completed the top ten.

Moto2 Gran Premio Motul de la Republica Argentina: Qualifying Classification