Bradley Smith continued his strong form at the Monster Energy Grand Prix de France in qualifying today and will launch from the rear of the second row in tomorrow’s 28 lap sprint around the Le Mans circuit. The British rider began the day by undertaking some additional setup work in FP3 this morning where the track conditions were much colder when compared with day 1. Nevertheless, his brilliant time from yesterday’s free practice 2, where he clinched 1st position, was strong enough for him to graduate straight through to QP2. When rain started to fall at lunchtime before FP4, it looked like it would interfere with the Q2 session, yet the track had dried when the 15 minute shootout began. Here, Smith leapt into action straight away and powered onwards to ride a 1’33.299 lap time, confirming his sixth place on the grid which is his highest qualifying position this season. Tomorrow he will aim to undertake a flying start and then challenge for the leading satellite rider position at the Monster Yamaha Tech3 Team’s home Grand Prix.
On the other side of the Monster Yamaha Tech3 Team garage, Pol Espargaro will begin from 12th place on the grid after a challenging qualifying 2 session at the 4.2 kilometre Le Mans circuit. The Spaniard produced a lap time of 1’33.694 in FP3 which saw him progress through to the second 15 minute shootout. As Q2 got underway, Espargaro took off at speed as he looked to seize a strong starting position for the race and ultimately he produced a personal best time of 1’33.724 on his final lap out of 9. Tomorrow he will intend to ride relentlessly through the field to end round 5 of the 2015 MotoGP World Championship on a high.
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