Phillip Island MotoGP J.2: Espargaro doesn't give up. Especially not Crutchlow

Although leaving the Yamaha fold at the end of the year, Pol Espargaro has set himself a task to accomplish to thank the men of Iwata and Bormes les mimosas before greeting them: to do everything to finish this season at the first places non-factory drivers.

And for that, we will have to make up for the ten points that separate him from that devil Cal Crutchlow who previously occupied his place on the seat of the M1 of the Monster Tech3 team. A task far from easy, especially since the Briton, after a snow-white start to the season, made excellent progress in the second half of the year.

At the end of an eventful qualification for everyone, this level of competitiveness of the LCR Honda driver is illustrated by his position on the front row of the starting grid... right next to Pol Espargaro who is not giving up! At the time of departure, the tension is likely to be extreme...

Espargaro Pol, 3rd: “I'm very happy with the qualifying result and it's a great feeling, but it's also a bit strange knowing that I'll be starting from the front row! This weekend hasn't been easy weather-wise, but we should always expect it to be like it here on Phillip Island. However, during qualifying we were lucky because it didn't rain and we were immediately fast. For sure, it's risky to go out with slicks when the sky is dark and it looks like it might rain at any moment. But in the end, we made the right choice at the right time, and we reached the first line. Of course, this does not mean that we will automatically finish in the Top 5 tomorrow and I expect a strong fight, but today's result is positive for us, the team and the sponsors. We have done a good job and now we have to see what we can do in the dry conditions tomorrow. We only did a few laps in the dry, so it really helps that the warm up was extended, but either way, I'm delighted with today's performance and looking forward to the race...”