The Yamaha Sepang Racing Team will start the 8 Hours of Sepang from pole position, after dominating qualifying today in Malaysia.
The threesome Franco Morbidelli, Michael van der Mark and Hafizh Syahrin was indeed untouchable in qualifying today, finishing at the top of the timesheets for their respective qualifying sessions this morning, despite a minor crash in Q2 for Morbidelli which prevented the 2 Moto2017 World Champion from improving his best time of 2'03.907.
Already logically the holder of provisional pole position calculated on average times, the #1 Yamaha R21 therefore lined up with Franco Morbidelli on his handlebars at the start of Top 10 Trials this evening, contested under the floodlights of the Sepang international circuit.
It was a new scenario for Morbidelli who, unlike his teammates van der Mark and Syahrin, has no previous experience of the EWC Top 10, where drivers set out on the track individually and only have one lap of track to achieve their best time. Unfazed, the MotoGP rider simply outperformed his closest rival by 0,793 seconds to take pole position in 2'04.647.
The Sepang 8 Hours race will begin on Saturday, December 14 at 6:00 a.m. French time, with the final part of the race taking place under the recently installed floodlights at the Sepang International Circuit.
Franco Morbidelli : “It's always good to qualify on pole, but it's also fun to do it like they do here in EWC, with just one lap on an empty track to set your best time. The format certainly gets the adrenaline pumping, as you try to squeeze maximum speed out of the bike. Tomorrow we will enjoy the day of rest before returning to the track on Saturday. In the race we will try to do our job in the best possible way and try to get the best result possible. This will be my first race in EWC, but it's a fun category and I enjoy the challenge, so thanks to Yamaha, Sepang International Circuit and the team for giving me this opportunity. »
Michael van der Mark : “We had a good start to the weekend, with Franco putting in a fantastic lap in the Top 10 Trial and turning our provisional qualifying pole into pole position for Saturday's race. Even more important is our constant improvement and the feeling of well-being that our YZF-R1 gives us, which grows for everyone with each ride. All three of us have very good pace, so I'm sure we can fight for the lead in the first race in the history of the 8 Hours of Sepang on Saturday. I can not wait to be there ! »
Hafiz Syahrin : “I am very happy that we managed to take pole position in front of my home crowd and that of the team for the very first race of the 8 Hours of Sepang. It will definitely be a difficult race in hot conditions on Saturday, but we believe in our package, which is really strong, so we will see what we can do. We must be patient during the race, avoid making mistakes in managing traffic on the track and ensure that our pit stops are as smooth as possible. I believe in the team, I believe in my teammates and I think we can do a good job in the race. »
