NI's Rea takes ninth at qualifiers
Published Saturday, 15 September 2012
It was a big day for local rider Jonathan Rea on Saturday, as he qualified in ninth position for his debut Moto GP race.
Jonathan Rea greets fans after the MotoGP qualifiers. (© Getty)
The Larne rider was selected to replace Repsol Honda rider Casey Stoner for two rounds of the event, beginning with the weekend meeting at Misano, San Marino.
Stoner is currently sidelined after undergoing ankle surgery.
Rea's Honda team-mate Dani Pedrosa secured a dramatic pole position ahead of Sunday's race.
The Spaniard's time of one minute 33.857 seconds was enough to clinch pole with the Yamaha of Jorge Lorenzo less than two hundredths of a second behind.