Moto3, Ono in pole at Motegi, but to start 4th

Hiroky Ono scored pole position at Motegi, but won't have the satisfaction of starting from the head of the  pack on Sunday. The Japanese set the fastest time on board his Honda, with a 1’56”443 that saw him beat Andrea Migno by just 0.086 of a second.

But the Japanese rider had already received a penalty yesterday for irresponsible riding, and will therefore start from three places back on the grid. So Ono can be pleased with his first career pole, but it will be Migno who starts from the front.

“I'm pleased because we've progressed and I think we're in a good position for the race”, said Andrea.

Alongside him will be the KTM of Brad Binder and Enea Bastianini, who takes a front row spot despite setting the 4th fastest time. The second row comprises two Italians, both from the VR46 team, Nicolò Bulega and Lorenzo Dalla Porta.

Seventh for Niccolò Antonelli, who got the better of Quartararo (crashing twenty minutes from the end but able to return to the track) Norrodin and Oettl, who rounds out the top ten.

THE TIMES