Strong qualifying performance for Fantic Racing in Portimão: Baltus fourth, Canet fifth. Both riders ready to fight for the top positions in tomorrow’s race.
The Portuguese Grand Prix Saturday ended with another strong showing for the Fantic Racing Team, placing Barry Baltus and Aron Canet in fourth and fifth position respectively after a fiercely contested Q2 session.
After a Friday dominated by Aron Canet, who set the fastest time in both practice sessions, and with Baltus comfortably qualifying for Q2 thanks to the ninth fastest lap in practice, Saturday morning began on a still damp track. The Fantic riders only took to the track for a few laps in the final minutes of the session, focusing mainly on practice starts.
In qualifying, both riders once again demonstrated the potential of their technical package and the strength of the team’s work. Barry Baltus put in a brilliant final lap attempt, fighting for pole position until the very end, but a sudden front-end slide at the last corner forced him to save the bike and settle for fourth place with a time of 1’41.337, opening the second row of the grid. A valuable result that confirms his consistency and ability to remain among the frontrunners in the championship.
Aron Canet, last year’s race winner here in Portimão, also came close to fighting for pole position. A late-session crash, fortunately without any consequences, prevented him from completing his final flying lap. His fifth-place finish with a time of 1’41.355 still provides an excellent starting point for tomorrow’s race, where the Spanish rider will aim to once again be a key contender at the Portuguese circuit.
Barry Baltus: "You can’t be disappointed with a second-row start. It’s always good to be up front. A shame about the last lap, as we could have aimed for the front row or even pole, but overall it was a strong qualifying. It wasn’t easy with only four laps after yesterday’s rain, but we managed well. I’m happy and confident for tomorrow, we have good pace and can fight at the front."
Aron Canet: “It was a positive qualifying session, starting from the second row gives me the chance to fight for the top positions. It’s a pity about the crash; I was pushing to the limit to go for pole, but the fall ended my attempt. We know we can be very competitive, and tomorrow I want to prove it in the race.”
Roberto Locatelli, Fantic Racing Team Manager: "A good qualifying session for both riders: they’ll start from the second row, which is exactly where you need to be to fight for the win. Canet had a small crash while pushing for pole, but that’s part of racing. Great job from Baltus as well; he was second after the first run and just missed the front row due to a small mistake in the last corner. Tomorrow will be an important race — we invite all Fantic fans to support us because we have a real chance for a strong result."
