PHILLIP ISLAND, Australia – Maverick Vinales claimed the pole position for Sunday’s MotoGP event at the Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit.
Windy conditions forced qualifying, originally scheduled for Saturday, to be postponed until Sunday. That didn’t phase Vinales, who continued his strong form at the Australian circuit by earning his third pole of the season for Monster Energy Yamaha.
Vinales put his Yamaha bike on the pole with a 1:28.492, which was more than half a second ahead of Fabio Quartararo in second. MotoGP champion Marc Marquez qualified third to complete the front row.
“I feel good and very positive because on the laps I did I was able to push at my maximum, that‘s very important,” Vinales said. “Straight away I felt good on hard tires and soft tires, so we will try to keep this momentum: start well, get into first place, and push from the beginning. I will try my best as always. The Yamaha is working very good on the track, we need to be careful with the tires, but anyway, I‘m very happy and feeling very positive.”
Vinales’ teammate Valentino Rossi qualified fourth to lead the second row. He’ll be joined by Ducati’s Danilo Petrucci and the LCR Honda entry of rider Cal Crutchlow.
The Aprilia duo of Aleix Espargaro and Andrea Iannone are seventh and eighth, with Pramac Racing’s Jack Miller qualifying ninth. Andrea Dovizioso qualified 10th for Ducati to complete the top-10.
Riders will now turn their attention to the race, which will take place at 3 p.m. local time in Australia.