MotoMatters.com | Kropotkin Thinks

The final qualifying session in Argentina followed a very familiar pattern for the day, although Manu Gonzalez had to do an extra bit of work to secure back to back pole positions. Despite several challenges from Jake Dixon, the Spaniard was able to retaliate in the final couple of minutes of Q2 and post the first and only 1:40 lap time. That was enough to secure him pole, with Dixon settling for second two tenths back but with a good opportunity to challenge the championship leader in tomorrow’s race. The final place on the front row was a hotly disputed affair, with Alex Escrig making a surprisingly solid bid until Marcos Ramirez put in a late charge to demote his compatriot. 

Escrig still secured a fantastic 4^th place after comfortably escaping Q1, and will open the second row of the grid ahead of Diogo Moreira – who left it late in both Q1 and Q2 to make his move – and fellow Q1 graduate Filip Salac in 6^th. Alonso Lopez shares third row with Darryn Binder and Q1 leader Celestino Vietti, who was a looming threat for pole early on but eventually dropped to 9^th. 

Aron Canet had a pretty anonymous qualifying session, spending most of the session towards the bottom of the hierarchy and only saving the day with a 10^th place on his final flying lap. The Spaniard will be joined by Zonta Van Den Goorbergh and Tony Arbolino on the fourth row, with Mario Aji leading the way on row five, ahead of rookie Dani Holgado and Barry Baltus. 

Joe Roberts was a modest 16^th and shares sixth row with Adrian Huertas and Albert Arenas, while a disgruntled Deniz Öncü was first under the line in Q1 and had to make do with 19^th on the grid. David Alonso also had real hopes of making an escape from Q1 but eventually dropped to 20^th position.

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