In a cܫompetitive session record 𝐆pace was needed and Alonso Lopez went fastest on the limit to claim pole for the Moto2 Valencia Grand Prix, the final round of the championship.

The Beta Tools Speed Up has continued to impress since arriving as Romano﷽ Fenati’s replacement but a pole had eluded him.

The Spaniard ♒spent the session duelling for thℱe top spot with Pedro Acosta as they responded to each others best times.

It was Lopez who first broke the old record, held by St🍬efano Manzi, and it held firm so the Spaniar🐓d returned to the pits for a spell.

He took the honours back from Acosta with a solo best of 1m 34.314s,🤡 a time which he equalled exactl✨y on his final fast lap on the Boscoscuro.

With the duo pushing, Acosta lit up red sꦓectors all around the track but came up short - by just🍌 0.001s.

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Title battle starts from third and fifth

The Red Bull KTM Ajo rider will line up nest to his team-mate, championship leader Augusto Fernandez. The #37 holds the advantage on the grid over rival Ai Ogura, who looked tense as he pushed hard to ꩲclimb up from eighth to fifth in the final minutes of the session.

That gives the Idemitsu Honda Team Asia rider hope of catching and passing Fernandez after putting himself under presꦕsure and on the chase after his DNF in Malaysia.

The duo are split by Sepang race winner Tony Arbolino, who needed to come through Q1 first, then chipped away at his time all session to finish fourth on the🎉 Elf M♛arc VDS bike.

Joe✅ Roberts left it late to move into the progression slots and started how he left off to improve further and take sixth on the grid, 🌳shuffled back by Ogura’s late improvements, for Italtrans.

Flexbox HP40 rider Aron Canet set the seventh quickest time. Fermin Aldeguer crashed early in the session while chasing the time of early leader Acosta. A quick turnaround by his mechanics atꦉ Beta Tools Speed Up saw him back out before the end of Q2 and able for one ꦏfinal fast run which pulled the #54 from 15th to eighth.

Ce🐽lestino Vietti moved on from Q1 with theꦗ top time after a practice crash saw him in the session as his season continued to curtail itself. After finding pace in Q1 the Mooney VR46 rider saw his progress stagnate, finishing ninth.

Lore𝐆nzo Dalla Porta held on for a top ten start as the chequered flag waved on the second Italtrans ent🔜ry.

Albert Arenas improved late on to move into eleventh for Inde GasGas Aspar. He was well ahead of team-mate Jake Dixon who after showing good pace all weekend seemed to opt for a long sta𒆙y out on the same tyre, possibly to give more options come the race, but dropping him to 15th in qualifying.

What happened in Q1?

Vietti, Arbolino, Gonzalez and Roberts all moved o🐭n, the late laps from the latter two knocked out Senna Agius who in fifth will line up in 19th and Bo Bendsneyder (Pertamina Mandalika SAG Team) who starts 20th.

Marcel Schrotter will start his last Moto2 race before leaving for the World Supersport cham𒉰pionship in 22nd after finishin𒊎g Q1 in eighth.

Simone Corsi qualiified for what could be his last grand prix as a ful🍌l time rider in 26th with MV Agusta Forward Racing.

Injuries, absentees and wildcards

Barry Baltꦦus remains absent fꦆollowing the collision he had with Aron Canet. He is replaced at RW Racing GP by the highly experienced Mattia Pasini (17th).

Sam Lowes also misses the final race, Agius returns to ri🐻de his Elf Marc VDS bike.

Borja Gomez (21st) replaces Jorge Navarro again after sitting in at Sepang on the Flexbox 💎HP40 bike, Navarro𝔉 fractured his femur at Phillip Island, leading to an extended hospital stay in Australia.

Eric Escrig, 2021 CEV Superstock champion and a MotoE rider this season, finishing ninth, has a wildcaওrd ride with MV Agusta Forward Racing. The only faller in Q1, the Spanish rider starts 24th.