Valentino Rossi will start tomorrow’s Italian MotoGP from pole position after posting the fastest ever lap around Mugello.
The Doctor waited until his second run on the YZR-M1 to post his fastest lap time of a 1’46.208 which was just 0.035 seconds ahead of his former team-mate Jorge Lorenzo on his factory Ducati.
The front row was completed with the Italian’s current team-mate Maverick Vinales who will be a lot more positive about his chances after securing a front row start after navigating his way through Q1. Vinales’ late time had the top three covered by just 0.096 seconds.
The two fastest men from earlier in the weekend will both start on the second row with Andrea Iannone heading the row and Marc Marquez sixth with Danilo Petrucci in the middle of the second row. Both Iannone and Marquez will be frustrated to be off the front row with both riders lapping under Marquez’ morning lap record pace themselves.
Marquez found himself hampered by a huge moment with the front end of his RC213V on the final corner, only to save the potential crash with his elbow in trademark Marquez style.
Andrea Dovizioso will start from seventh and was less than three tenths off of Rossi’s time himself. Cal Crutchlow and Johann Zarco will join the factory Ducati rider on the third row. Crutchlow will be frustrated to only end eighth after having a lap on top five pace cancelled in the closing stages of the session.
The fourth row will be made up of Alex Rins, Jack Miller and Franco Morbidelli with the top twelve all covered by less than eight tenths of a second.
After following Maverick Vinales for the majority of Q1 and just missing out on a top two-spot, Tito Rabat will start from thirteenth with Hafizh Syahrin and Pol Espargaro completing the fifth row.
Dani Pedrosa was a shock exit from Q1 and after struggling with the wind down the home straight, the Repsol Honda rider will start tomorrows race from 20th on the grid.