Submitted by David Emmett on
Pol Espargaro has started the 2013 Moto2 season as he means to go on, topping the timesheets in the first session of free practice. The Tuenti HP 40 rider ended the session three tenths ahead of Italtrans rider Takaaki Nakagami, the two men swapping the lead throughout the session. Espargaro's teammate Tito Rabat ended the session in 3rd, ahead of Marc VDS Racing's Scott Redding. Redding had a difficult start, stopping with an electrical problem on his out lap, but returning in time to get within three quarters of a second of Espargaro. Julian Simon ended the session in 5th, the last man to get within a second of Espargaro.
Results:
| Pos | No | Rider | Bike | Time | Diff | Prev |
| 1 | 40 | Pol ESPARGARO | Pons Kalex | 2'01.437 | ||
| 2 | 30 | Takaaki NAKAGAMI | Kalex | 2'01.755 | 0.318 | 0.318 |
| 3 | 80 | Esteve RABAT | Pons Kalex | 2'02.004 | 0.567 | 0.249 |
| 4 | 45 | Scott REDDING | Kalex | 2'02.223 | 0.786 | 0.219 |
| 5 | 60 | Julian SIMON | Kalex | 2'02.321 | 0.884 | 0.098 |
| 6 | 3 | Simone CORSI | Speed Up | 2'02.563 | 1.126 | 0.242 |
| 7 | 36 | Mika KALLIO | Kalex | 2'02.701 | 1.264 | 0.138 |
| 8 | 18 | Nicolas TEROL | Suter | 2'02.795 | 1.358 | 0.094 |
| 9 | 77 | Dominique AEGERTER | Suter | 2'02.826 | 1.389 | 0.031 |
| 10 | 5 | Johann ZARCO | Suter | 2'02.854 | 1.417 | 0.028 |
| 11 | 15 | Alex DE ANGELIS | Speed Up | 2'03.005 | 1.568 | 0.151 |
| 12 | 4 | Randy KRUMMENACHER | Suter | 2'03.357 | 1.920 | 0.352 |
| 13 | 23 | Marcel SCHROTTER | Kalex | 2'03.509 | 2.072 | 0.152 |
| 14 | 19 | Xavier SIMEON | Kalex | 2'03.626 | 2.189 | 0.117 |
| 15 | 54 | Mattia PASINI | Speed Up | 2'03.775 | 2.338 | 0.149 |
| 16 | 11 | Sandro CORTESE | Kalex | 2'03.783 | 2.346 | 0.008 |
| 17 | 63 | Mike DI MEGLIO | Motobi | 2'03.834 | 2.397 | 0.051 |
| 18 | 14 | Ratthapark WILAIROT | Suter | 2'03.878 | 2.441 | 0.044 |
| 19 | 95 | Anthony WEST | Speed Up | 2'03.958 | 2.521 | 0.080 |
| 20 | 88 | Ricard CARDUS | Speed Up | 2'04.016 | 2.579 | 0.058 |
| 21 | 72 | Yuki TAKAHASHI | Moriwaki | 2'04.019 | 2.582 | 0.003 |
| 22 | 96 | Louis ROSSI | Tech 3 | 2'04.148 | 2.711 | 0.129 |
| 23 | 24 | Toni ELIAS | Kalex | 2'04.306 | 2.869 | 0.158 |
| 24 | 49 | Axel PONS | Pons Kalex | 2'04.320 | 2.883 | 0.014 |
| 25 | 33 | Sergio GADEA | Suter | 2'04.697 | 3.260 | 0.377 |
| 26 | 52 | Danny KENT | Tech 3 | 2'04.899 | 3.462 | 0.202 |
| 27 | 81 | Jordi TORRES | Suter | 2'05.361 | 3.924 | 0.462 |
| 28 | 7 | Doni Tata PRADITA | Suter | 2'05.982 | 4.545 | 0.621 |
| 29 | 44 | Steven ODENDAAL | Speed Up | 2'06.748 | 5.311 | 0.766 |
| 30 | 17 | Alberto MONCAYO | Speed Up | 2'06.769 | 5.332 | 0.021 |
| 31 | 9 | Kyle SMITH | Kalex | 2'07.576 | 6.139 | 0.807 |
| 32 | 97 | Rafid Topan SUCIPTO | Speed Up | 2'08.062 | 6.625 | 0.486 |
Round Number:
1
2013
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Comments
Pol Espargaro
Swapped places with Pol Espargaro? That's a trick!
Nakagami
Yeah, I was about to write the same thing.
Looks like Moto2 will not be dominated
by Espargaro.
I thought after watching last year that Espargaro would dominate from start to finish. But Rabat, Nakagami, and even Redding seem to be within striking distance. Nakagami seemed to keep popping up at the top of the sheets over and over. Rabat seemed more focused and consistent than I have seen him before.
Don't know what has happened to Elias, but whatever it is is making me sad watching him flounder. Kallio seems like he has picked up some speed. Also saw some tight passes for it just being practice.
Pol on pole?
Wow, that Pol Espargaro really gets around!
This is why I am getting help
Hopefully by tomorrow, I will have sifted through the applications and will have someone writing practice and race reports for me. Then these sort of things won't happen so much...