FIFTH AND SEVENTH ROW FOR ALEIX ESPARGARÓ AND ANDREA IANNONE
The good result from Friday, with Aleix solidly in the top ten, was nullified by a Saturday where the Spanish rider crashed no less than three times between FP3 and FP4. In the morning session, decisive for obtaining a spot in the top ten, which would mean going straight through to Q2, there were even two crashes. This meant that Aleix did not have the chance to hone his time from yesterday (one of the best), losing the position he had earned the day before.
Andrea also had to go through Q1, although he showed a clear improvement in the first three sessions. At the end of Q1, Aleix finished fifth (fifteenth overall time) at 1’30.972 and Andrea tenth (the twentieth spot on the grid) at 1’31.714. This earned them spots on the fifth and seventh row of the starting grid for the closing race of the 2019 MotoGP World Championship.