QMMF Racing Team rider Anthony West (right) in action during Indianapolis Grand Prix qualifying session on Saturday.

Agencies/Indianapolis, Indiana

In hot and muggy conditions, QMMF Racing Team rider Julian Simon settled for 17th place in qualifying for the Indianapolis Grand Prix, while team-mate Anthony West will start 23rd in the race, despite a breakthrough with the set-up of his bike.
Even though Simon couldn’t improve his lap time (1:37.462) in the crucial final stages of the session, the 28-year-old Spaniard was still upbeat about his possibilities in the race, because he was consistent, with a gap of only nine tenths of a second to Alex Rins on pole position.
Australian West (1:38.101) had a break-through with the set-up of his bike. A different linkage for the rear suspension made it much easier for him to get the bike to turn and to find the confidence he needed, which clearly showed when he rode to 14th place in the third free practice session on Saturday morning. In warmer conditions in the afternoon, he found riding more difficult again. Unable to get the best out the softer rear tyre compound, he eventually dropped back to 23rd place on the grid.
“It was not the best qualifying as far as my position on the grid goes, but I am still reasonably happy with my lap time because we are still quite close to the front. The most important thing is that I have a good rhythm for the race.
“In qualifying, I had a little problem towards the end, with strange vibrations that weren’t normal. It was also difficult for me to get a good feeling for the bike with the settings we had, because the bike was moving a lot.
“I put my best lap in about halfway through the session, but I couldn’t push more when it counted towards the end. The team worked very well and I think I can do a good job tomorrow. The most important thing for me to concentrate on is the start – if I get a good start and if I can do a few strong opening laps, it will be possible to break into the top ten,” Simon said.
West said: “The change we made from yesterday to today was a success. The bike felt ten times better this morning, it would turn, I felt comfortable and I could ride properly. My lap time was also quite good and consistent.
“Then this afternoon, it was difficult to get a good run. We started with the hard tyre, but with this compound it’s difficult to get good grip. We then put the soft tyre in and I expected to go faster, but whether it was the temperature or the tyre itself, I just couldn’t get the grip out of the turns and I couldn’t turn like I did in the morning.
“On the set-up, we had only made a small change that certainly didn’t make that much of a difference. Whatever it was, I couldn’t go any faster than what I did this morning and I am a bit disappointed with that. For tomorrow, we will just go back to the setting we had this morning and otherwise we hope that it won’t be too hot in the race.”