Difficult Qualifying day sees Brad line up 24th on Motegi grid

As a race weekend of tricky conditions continued in Japan, for the first time this weekend, the Moto2 riders were able to run slicks, a change with which Brad Binder was not especially comfortable -and he had to settle for 24th place.

Whilst there was no intense rain, FP3 was another session on a completely wet track for the intermediate class. The conditions were not favourable for lower times from Friday, and both Red Bull KTM Ajo riders were around 1 second off their best FP2 laps; Brad finishing in 25th with -2:08.634.

Qualifying was a session of two halves. In the first stint, the Moto2 riders went out on wet tyres, and both Brad and teammate Oliveira were inside the Top 10. After a pit stop and a change to slicks, for Brad it was a complicated second run, in which one last 1:56.859 lap placed him 24th.

The Moto2 race will be held at 12.20pm local time (5.20am CET).

#41 BRAD BINDER
“Today was a difficult day. In FP3 I suffered a lot, but in qualifying with wet tyres I was fine and I took tenth place. Once the track dried out I wasn’t able to adapt quickly enough to the new conditions. I’m really disappointed to have only qualified in 24th position and I still have a lot of work left to do for tomorrow. We’ll see what conditions we encounter tomorrow, but I’ll do my best.”