*** Dani Pedrosa "The dream is still alive" takes pole in home GP
Dani Pedrosa sealed home GP pole position as teammate Marc Marquez crashed out numerous times during the Qualifying session. Jorge Lorenzo found some miraculous form as he clinched a P2 start for tomorrow's race, making it his first ever front row start on the Italian marquee Ducati. Danilo Petrucci continued his Italian GP form as he secured a P3 start.
Q1 of the Catalan GP saw almost most of the big names like Valentino Rossi, Maverick Viñales, Cal Crutchlow, Johann Zarco and Jonas Folger. The Q1 was a disastrous session for both Rossi and Zarco as they lost their chances to get into Q2. On the other side, it was a great 15 minute session for Jonas Folger and Maverick Viñales as they both entered Q2.
As the clock started ticking for Q2, it was Marc Marquez setting the pace at the front, only to crash out in the following lap. After rejoining, Marc had a fall yet again in the ending stages of the session only to finish at P4. Dani Pedrosa proved why he is the second best Repsol Honda rider, as he made a stunning 1'43.870 at the Montmeló circuit at Catalunya. Jorge Lorenzo ended his session with a quick 1'44.201, which saw him at the front just 3 tenths behind pole man Pedrosa.
Danilo Petrucci finished the Q2 session at P3, proving his worth to be provided with a GP17 machine. Aprilia man Aleix Espargaro starts at P5, which proves the used tyre-low fuel pace of the Aprilia RS-GP.
Home man Hector Barbera joins the second row at P6, while the Italian GP winner Andrea Dovizioso starts from P7. The top 10 of the grid is completed by Jonas Folger, championship leader Maverick Viñales and Alvaro Bautista. Scott Redding and Andrea Iannone complete the fourth row of the grid. Valentino Rossi starts way behind at P13, as he looks to do what he does the best on a Sunday afternoon. Johann Zarco starts behind Rossi at P14, which would make the battle at the back interesting.
The Catalan GP goes live from the Circuit de Barcelona at 5.30 PM IST. Having home hero at the front would make the battle interesting, while the top Championship contenders start way behind. We are as excited as you fans for the Catalan GP, hoping for a repeat of 2016. Stay tuned to BikesMedia for further updates on the 2017 MotoGP World Championship.By: Aravind Rb