NAKAGAMI STARTS MOTOGP DEBUT FROM ROW EIGHT
The first qualifying session of the 2018 MotoGP World Championship saw LCR Honda IDEMITSU’s Takaaki Nakagami qualify on the eighth row of the grid for Sunday’s Grand Prix of Qatar – his debut in the premier class.
The Japanese rookie had looked in good shape for much of the weekend, but suffered a setback when he had a fast crash during the final free practice session – just moments before qualifying. Heading out on his second machine he set a best lap of 1’56.401, meaning he will start from 23rd position for his maiden event amongst the MotoGP elite.
#30 Taka Nakagami – 23rd (1’56.401)
“It was a bit of a tough day for us today, especially after I had a high-speed crash in the fourth free practice at turn 15. It was the first time I used the hard option tyre on the front and I missed the grip, but I’m ok afterwards. It meant I had to swap to the number two bike and unfortunately I had a bit of a problem with the rear end – just a small electronics glitch or something.”
“It was a difficult day all round, but let’s see what tomorrow brings. It will be a long day and a long race, but as always I will try my best. It’s difficult to put a target on where I want to finish, it’s my first race and I’m not sure what the race pace of everyone in front of me will be. I need to make a good start and then I will try my best to make a good result.”
