Correos Prepago Yamaha VR46 Master Camp‘s Manuel Gonzalez and Kohta Nozane found themselves on the Thailand Grand Prix Moto2 Q1 entry list today. Unable to promote to Q2, they will start tomorrow‘s Race from P20 and P29 respectively.
While most of the Moto2 Q1 riders bided their time, Gonzalez was quick to head out of pit lane. His first flying lap, a 1‘36.200s briefly put him in first place. Unable to improve on his next try, he dropped to third as his rivals completed their first attempts. The Spaniard bettered his time to a 1‘35.970s on lap 4 but was relegated to fifth as he went into the pits with six and a half minutes remaining. When he headed back out, he was in sixth place, 0.069s from his aim, a place in the top 4. He pushed hard again and saved the best for last. Despite not having a fully clear lap, he posted a 1‘35.957s on lap 8/8, but it wasn‘t enough to promote to Q2. He ended the session in sixth place, 0.134s from the Q1 best time and 0.056s from fourth. It earned him 20th place on the grid.
Like his teammate, Nozane headed out ahead of the majority of the Q1 participants, aiming to get some clear laps in. The Japanese rider showed improved speed compared to his practice results. His 1‘37.338s, set on lap 2, kept him in 15th place for most of the session. He dug deep and kicked up the pace a notch on his seventh and penultimate lap. Clocking a 1‘37.023s, he ended the qualifying session in 15th place, which puts him in 29th position on the grid for tomorrow‘s Race.
The Correos Prepago Yamaha VR46 Master Camp duo will be back in action tomorrow at 13:15 local track time (GMT +7*) for the Race.
*For Europe and some other countries, Daylight Saving Time ends on Sunday, 29 October 2023, at 3am (the clocks are turned back 1 hour to 2am).
