Dutch Grand Prix TT Assen MotoGP J2: Personal qualifying best for Joan Mir

After having so far only managed to qualify in eleventh position at best in MotoGP, rookie Joan Mir achieved the great feat of grabbing fifth position at the end of qualifying practice. It was a big Saturday for Suzuki with the other GSX-RR of teammate Álex Rins in third position on the first row of the starting grid alongside Fabio Quartararo and Maverick Viñales.

Aged 21 and a native of Palma de Mallorca like his elder Jorge Lorenzo, Joan (pronounced Jo-ann, not Yo-ann), already has 62 Grand Pris to her name, including 37 in Moto3, 18 in Moto2 and 7 in MotoGP). He won 11 races, all in Moto3 and on Honda, which allowed him to become World Champion in the category in 2017 and switch to a Kalex in 2018 to finish sixth in the Moto2 World Championship. This series of interesting performances interested Suzuki who recruited him alongsideAlex Rins. The goal was simple: Obtain the rookie title ahead of Fabio Quartararo, Miguel Oliveira and Francesco Bagnaia.

Since the start of the year, Joan had only managed to qualify among the top ten in 7 Grands Prix. Ninth place at Le Mans was his best grid position. So why suddenly fifth here in Assen?

It seems that something clicked (not suddenly, but gradually) at home in Barcelona. Previously, he could only claim eighth place in the Qatar race this year. Then two retirements and a modest twelfth place. In Barcelona, ​​he had a very good race under the leadership of his French technician Jacques Roca, and Mir obtained a very good sixth place, 0.2 from fifth Jack Miller and 0.4 from sixth his teammate Alex Rins.

The Mir machine was launched and he achieved the eighth time of the first day in 1'33.415, 0.777 behind. Maverick Vinales. He completed free practice tenth in 1'33.068, 0.597 behind Cal Crutchlow. In Q2, Mir finished magnificently in the middle of the second row, in fifth position between Marc Márquez and Cal Crutchlow, the two fastest Honda riders.

After changing brands every year since his debut in Grands Prix (Honda, KTM, Honda, Kalex and Suzuki), Joan is having a very good rookie year, and his fifth place acquired during qualifying for this Dutch GP is certainly for him the opening of a prestigious career in MotoGP.

According to Joan mir, who are " I am happy with today's qualification. The team and I worked very well this weekend and I got closer to the best drivers.”

“I made some mistakes today, so I think my lap time could have been better. It's the first time I've started from the second row, so I'm very happy about that. Thanks to the team ».

Qualifying has been difficult for Suzuki this year. Why is it better in Assen?

“I believe our work is slowly bearing fruit. I'm also learning more and more how to handle the new tires. A lot comes together. We have been in the top 8 in all our testing sessions and our pace is consistent.”

What can we expect from Suzuki in racing?

“The two Yamahas in front have more ammunition than us, but in races it often looks different. I don't look at the others, but it goes faster. Alex is fast, but I'm also faster – it helps us and keeps us moving forward ».

According to the team manager Davide Brivio, who are " It's the best Saturday of the season. Álex made an incredible recovery, moving through Q1 and then to the front row.”

“Joan was brilliant too, he went straight into Q2 and then managed to qualify 5th.

“Having both drivers in the Top 5 gives us a good start for tomorrow. Both have a strong pace, let's see how the race goes. A big thank you to the whole team for the hard work.”

Qualification results:

1. Fabio QUARTARARO Petronas Yamaha SRT 1'32.017
2. Maverick VIÑALES Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP 1'32.157 0.140 / 0.140
3. Alex RINS Team SUZUKI ECSTAR 1'32.458 0.441 / 0.301
4. Marc MÁRQUEZ Repsol Honda Team 1'32.731 0.714 / 0.273
5. Joan MIR Team SUZUKI ECSTAR 1'33.085 1.068 / 0.354
6. Cal CRUTCHLOW LCR Honda CASTROL 1'33.228 1.211 / 0.143
7. Danilo PETRUCCI Ducati Team 1'33.282 1.265 / 0.054
8. Takaaki NAKAGAMI LCR Honda IDEMITSU 1'33.295 1.278 / 0.013
9. Franco MORBIDELLI Petronas Yamaha SRT 1'33.314 1.297 / 0.019
10. Jack MILLER Pramac Racing 1'33.323 1.306 / 0.009
11. Andrea DOVIZIOSO Ducati Team 1'33.692 1.675 / 0.369
12. Pol ESPARGARÓRed Bull KTM Factory Racing 1'33.762 1.745 / 0.070
13. Francesco BAGNAIA Pramac Racing 1'33.221 Q1
14. Valentino ROSSI Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP 1'33.466 Q1
15. Aleix ESPARGARÓ Aprilia Racing Team Gresini 1'33.547 Q1
16. Karel ABRAHAM Reale Avintia Racing 1'33.583 Q1
17. Miguel OLIVEIRA Red Bull KTM Tech 3 KTM 1'33.706 Q1
18. Johann ZARCO Red Bull KTM Factory Racing 1'33.776 Q1
19. Hafizh SYAHRIN Red Bull KTM Tech 3 KTM 1'33.869 Q1
20. Andrea IANNONE Aprilia Racing Team Gresini 1'33.960 Q1
21. Tito RABAT Reale Avintia Racing 1'34.580 Q1

Reference times:

Old test record: 1'32.627 by Valentino Rossi (Movistar Yamaha MotoGP) in 2015

Lap record: 1'33.617 by Marc Márquez (Repsol Honda Team) in 2015

Best top speed: 319,8 km/h for Andrea Iannone (Ducati Team) in 2015

Provisional ranking of the World Championship:

1 Marc MÁRQUEZ – Honda 140 points

2 Andrea DOVIZIOSO – Ducati 103

3 Alex RINS – Suzuki 101

4 Danilo PETRUCCI – Ducati 98

5 Valentino ROSSI – Yamaha 72

6 Jack MILLER – Ducati 53

7 Fabio QUARTARARO – Yamaha 51

8 Takaaki NAKAGAMI – Honda 48

9 Pol ESPARGARÓ – KTM 47

10 Cal CRUTCHLOW – Honda 42

11 Maverick VIÑALES – Yamaha 40

12 Franco MORBIDELLI – Yamaha 34

13 Aleix ESPARGARÓ – Aprilia 27

14 Joan MIR – Suzuki 22

15 Jorge LORENZO – Honda 19

16 Johann ZARCO – KTM 16

17 Miguel OLIVEIRA – KTM 12

18 Andrea IANNONE – Aprilia 12

19 Michele PIRRO – Ducati 9

20 Francesco BAGNAIA – Ducati 9

21 Tito RABAT – Ducati 9

22 Stefan BRADL – Honda 6

23 Sylvain GUINTOLI – Suzuki 3

24 Karel ABRAHAM – Ducati 2

25 Hafizh SYAHRIN – KTM 2

 

Photos © motogp.com / Dorna, Suzuki Racing