Monster Yamaha Tech3 Team rider Pol Espargaro will bolt forward from the rear of the second row tomorrow in what will be his last race aboard the Yamaha YZR-M1, after producing an impressive showing today in Valencia. The Spaniard kicked off his day by notably speeding to 6th in the morning practice where he finished only 0.487 from the top as he continued his momentum from yesterday. Later, in Q2, he got straight to work and after completing 8 laps, his personal best left him in 6th and just 0.264 from the front row. The qualifying marks a strong performance by the 2013 Moto2 World Champion and tomorrow he will set his sights on sealing the top independent rider honours in the season finale to close his account with the Tech3 team in a highly positive way.

Meanwhile, Bradley Smith will contest his final Grand Prix for the Monster Yamaha Tech3 Team from the head of the fourth row of the grid after a hard fought display today at the Circuit Ricardo Tormo. His solid work yesterday paid off as he completed the ultra-competitive FP3 session in 10th and just 0.257 from his teammate after he posted his time on the 19th lap out of 21. This allowed him to pass straight through to Q2 and here he set off at speed in pursuit of clinching a strong grid placement for the Valencia GP. Smith’s efforts saw him qualify in 10th as he finished just over half a second back from the second row and tomorrow afternoon, he intends to close what has been a challenging year on a high note.

Pol Espargaro - Position: 6th Time: 1'30.392 Laps: 8

"I am delighted with my qualifying performance today, and we knew that we could do a good job, which we did, but it was really tight in Q2. Every rider was fast here in Valencia today, yet we started the weekend with a decent pace and I was able to carry this on and then build upon it which allowed me to qualify well. With regards to the circuit, it is quite challenging, and very technical, especially when the electronics are concerned, such as anti wheelie and rear traction control. However, I feel positive here and the Yamaha is working well. It’s always a bit special, as a satellite rider, to begin the GP from the second row, but we’ll enjoy the rest of today knowing that we were competitive and I will try to have fun in my last track appearance with Yamaha. I’ve always been fast in Valencia, so I am pleased about today’s result and even though my expectations are not huge for the race, I am excited to see what we can do tomorrow."
 
Bradley Smith - Position: 10th Time: 1'30.949 Laps: 9

"First of all, it was a great achievement to go straight through to Q2 today, as it has been a few GP’s since I’ve been able to do this. This afternoon, we worked quite hard on the race setup in FP4 and we also learnt a few more things during the qualifying. I am still not 100% happy with how the bike handles, but we confirmed our race tyres which is positive and now we just need to make some small modifications for the 30 lap sprint. It will be a long, tough fight and of course, it is vital for the bike to handle well under braking because here it’s important to have that balance, especially in the hard braking areas, of which there is at least one in each sector. I’m on the outside of the grid tomorrow, and that is possibly a bit better than beginning from 9th because sometimes you can get pinched on the inside at the first turn. Nevertheless, I will try to get a good start and then enjoy my final event with the Tech3 team."