Peter Hickman will start the 53rd running of the Macau Motorcycle Grand Prix from pole position on Saturday on his MGM by Bathams BMW, although it was a close-run thing.

His overnight margin of 1.7 seconds over team-mate Michael Rutter looked unassailable throughout most of Friday morning’s second qualifying session until five minutes from the end when the TV screens showed the MGM by Bathams Honda RC213V loitering on track, Rutter idling along for as long as possible in order to create the empty space he needed for a final fast run.

And it was a fast one, only the second 2:25 lap time of the weekend and so nearly the pole lap Rutter was looking for. But in the end he was a couple of tenths shy of Hickman’s 2:25.10 pole lap.

Third place went to Australian David Johnson, who set a time of 2:26.09 on the Tak Chun by PBM Ducati, one and-a-half seconds faster this morning than he was yesterday, some achievement given he’d never ridden a Ducati until yesterday morning.

Equal testament to the quality of the machinery was the fourth-fastest time set by John McGuinness on the second the BSB-winning Ducatis, his best qualifying position since 2013. Lee Johnston (Ashcourt Racing BMW) moved into fifth on the grid this morning and will start ahead of Horst Saiger (Saiger Racing Yamaha) and the remarkable Erno Kostamo (MGM by Penz13 BMW), the 28-year-old Finnish rider who’s a comparative newcomer to Macau and road racing in general.

On the second of the Ashcourt Racing BMW’s Gary Johnson held eighth place when the checkered flag dropped, with Phil Crowe (Handtrans Lee Jackson AC BMW) in ninth. Still working on his recovery from injuries sustained at Silverstone nine years ago, Ian Hutchinson scored a popular tenth place on the Team Milwaukee with SMT BMW, but he’ll have his hands full in the race, fending off the likes of Didier Grams G&G Motorsport BMW), Davey Todd (MGM by Penz 13 BMW) and Derek Sheils (Burrows Engineering/RK Racing Suzuki) who are close behind him on the grid.

The Suncity Group Macau Motorcycle Grand Prix 53rd Edition starts at 15.55 local time on Saturday.