2021 FIM MotoGP World Championship
Round 12 – Silverstone

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Fabio Quartararo – P1

“This win felt great! In Austria I was thinking of the championship when we were switching bikes, but here I thought of nothing. I was feeling great on the bike, and I enjoyed fighting for the victory. It was perfect. I enjoy racing like that, living in the moment. I felt great at the start and stayed calm. I only made a few mistakes, and I felt like I was really good on braking. It was better than expected, and because of that I had kind of a change in strategy during the race. When I had a 3s lead I said, ’Okay, now it‘s time to go slowly and not make any mistakes‘, and then on the last lap I was just enjoying the track, still riding slowly. I‘m so happy about this result. It‘s a really special win. When I won in Assen, I already had some fans there. I don‘t know how many fans there were here today, but it was massive, and it was great to share this moment with them. I want to thank them. For a Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP rider, it‘s always nice to win a Monster Energy Grand Prix, so I basically got it all, it‘s amazing! It‘s a great win for them, and also for my family and the team. I have a mechanic who couldn‘t come here, Daniele Grelli, so this one is for him. I can‘t wait to be with the crew to celebrate.”

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Alex Rins – P2

“I’m super, super, super happy because we’ve put in a lot of effort and work to get back on the podium. It hasn’t been easy, because even when I’ve had the pace, I’ve had crashes and problems. I was aiming for a Top 5 finish today, but in the end I felt really good and comfortable with the bike so I was able to push. I was fast but without taking risks or having to make aggressive moves. It’s a great feeling to be back on the podium and celebrate with all my team.”

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Aleix Espargaro – P3

“We’ve come so close. We have almost had it several times and finally we did it! A deserved podium that we’ve worked hard for and I dedicate, first and foremost, to Aprilia. The team has always worked to the utmost during these years. We have overcome difficult times together and now we are reaping the fruits of our labour. On the podium, I thought about Fausto, my family, and all the people who have been close to me. Our growth over the last two years has been extraordinary. We have improved in every aspect, but we needed a podium to lend credence to what we’ve done. I knew we had a chance today. We built our performance throughout all the sessions and I felt good in warm up this morning too. I had a few doubts at the start on tyre choice but in the end, we got it right. I lost a few positions at a certain point but I was able to recover, except on Fabio, who pulled away and created a gap. In the finale, I was struggling a bit with the front, but to compensate, I had good traction and that’s why I didn’t fight Jack in the braking sections, relying instead on crossing the trajectory and exploiting my acceleration. Now we need to celebrate and then get refocused straight away. There are more races coming up where we can be competitive. One podium can’t be enough to make us happy. We want more.”

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Jack Miller – P4

“It’d be hard to get much closer to a podium than that – a bit over a tenth of a second after racing for 40-odd minutes – so it’s hard to know how to feel about Silverstone on Sunday. On one hand it was a good bounce-back for me because six laps in, it wasn’t looking too good, but I was biding my time. And I nearly timed it right. 

“I was seventh with half the race to go but a load of guys in front of me were running the soft front tyre, and I was on the mediums so the race was always going to come to me. And it did – I passed my teammate Pecco (Bagnaia), (Joan) Mir and then Pol (Espargaro), and all of a sudden Aleix (Espargaro) was in front of me and a podium was there if I could get by him. I had five laps to do it – well, technically I did do it because I was past him for a second there on the last lap – but he got on the box and I didn’t. But, fair play to him, and it was big for Aprilia to get their first podium. It’s good to have so many manufacturers who can fight for podiums and victories these days, it’s awesome for the sport to have six different bikes in the top six like we did today. 

“It was always going to come down to the final lap with Aleix, and I could see the right-hand side of his tyre was struggling where mine was good, but the opposite was true too. He had more life on the left side than I did, and the corner at the end of the last straight is a left, so he was always going to have it over me on the last lap. I tried, but didn’t quite make it. 

“Where this race did feel good was that I was able to control it a lot more, and I had as good of a pace as anyone in the second half of the race and didn’t fade with tyre wear or something physical, or anything else. I was trying to work my way into the race on that medium tyre, so I executed the race I wanted to, let’s say. The first lap was hectic but I got out of that OK, and then I could see the group at the front and could set my sights on them – well, everyone besides Fabio (Quartararo) anyway because he just cleared off and that was all we saw of him after about seven laps. We were all pretty much racing for second after he pulled the pin. 

“Fabio was the man with his race pace here, so we knew all weekend that it would come down to needing to keep tabs on him early and not let him escape, but I made life hard for myself by only qualifying seventh. I won’t lie, I was pretty pissed off after qualifying because I got through practice as the fastest rider and went straight to Q2, so seventh on the grid wasn’t what I had in mind. I had two runs on new tyres in Q2 and just couldn’t find the pace. It was a shame because I’d felt mega all weekend before Q2 but just didn’t feel comfortable in qualifying. It was a strange one – I wasn’t able to go as fast on a new tyre in Q2 as I was on a used tyre in FP3 when I was fastest of everyone – so yeah, she was a bit of a head-scratcher. 

“I wondered what sort of condition Silverstone would be in because it had been a while since we were here – it was back in 2019 and they’ve had Formula One race here three times since then, so we all wondered if it would be pretty bumpy. But the track was in pretty good condition which makes this place so much more enjoyable, because it’s a proper old-school Grand Prix track with a lot of different styles of corners, they don’t build places like Silverstone these days. Sure, there were a few bumps but it was better than we thought, which was a good surprise to get. Right from the first lap of Friday I had a smile on my face, it was good to be back. 

“The British Grand Prix is one of the ones I look forward to every year. My results here haven’t been that good normally, but it’s definitely one of those historic races that’s extra special to ride in. Right from Friday morning the British fans came out, there were plenty of them all weekend so I was super stoked to see that. Definitely makes it more enjoyable when there’s a lot of fans around.  Aragon’s next in a couple of weeks, so I’ll catch you from there.”

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Pol Espargaro – P5

“I enjoyed the race a lot, this was the feeling I was looking for after struggling. To be leading the race was something really special. We went with the soft rear because it gave us the best feeling, but it wasn’t enough to fight for the podium and there’s still some more work to do. Anyway, until the middle of the race I was there, fighting and enjoying it so much – even closing the gap to Rins and Aleix when my tyre was still performing well. As the grip dropped, I controlled the gap and finished the weekend well. It has been a great weekend overall, we’ve been able to show what we can do and now we head to Aragon where Honda has been very strong in the past.”

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Brad Binder – P6

“Today was a solid day, all things considered. I had a tough start to the race and struggled a lot in the first few laps but as the race went on I got stronger and stronger. I’m really happy with the rhythm I managed to keep until the end. I want to say a huge thanks to the team; this weekend has not been easy for us and the guys have worked non-stop. We tried everything and the best bike we had all weekend is the bike we had for the race.”

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Iker Lecuona – P7

“I’m really, really happy! Qualifying yesterday was difficult for me. I made some mistakes but I knew the pace was there. In Warm Up this morning, I felt really strong, finishing in P5 and I knew if I can recover some places, I can fight in the front group. The start of the race was ok, although I tried to save the tyre a bit because the conditions were cold. Lap by lap I managed to improve my lap time. On the last lap, I overtook the last rider to finish in P7, which is my second best result in MotoGP and it happened in the dry. I want to say thanks to my team because this weekend was very good and very strong.”

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Álex Márquez – P8

“Sunday at Silverstone and we can be happy and proud at the race we did, especially starting from 17th. It’s pretty difficult but today I did it. Our choice of the soft rear for the race was right for us. It performed as expected and helped with the rear grip which we’re missing, but we did good and the race went well. Now, I’m looking forward to Aragon and to take learnings from this weekend. We’re happy and I’m proud of the team, I’d like to thank them for their hard work during the weekend.”

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Joan Mir – P9

“Well, honestly, the feeling today was really good and I was able to ride in a nice way and be in the positions that I wanted. I felt confident with my bike and I knew that I could have good race pace. Even if my results this weekend haven’t been really strong, I was feeling very strong in the race. But then I started struggling with the front end, which was completely unexpected, and I lost a lot of time in the last laps. This problem started from the 10th lap, and from then it was a bit of a struggle and I’m disappointed because I was hoping for a better result, even for my first time here.”

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Danilo Petrucci – P10

“It was a good top 10 result. We managed to hit the target we set yesterday. Unfortunately, I lost a lot of time in overtaking, mainly on the straights, so it was difficult for me to pass other riders. In the end, it was pretty decent. I think we could have been a little bit better. Anyway, it’s a good result. Now I really have a very good feeling on the bike, maybe Aragon will be even better with the KTM for us. We will fight for a good result there as well.”

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Johann Zarco – P11

“It has been a difficult weekend; I struggled a lot. We worked a lot but I was not able to achieve what I had hoped. Now this chapter ends and we are concentrating on doing well at Aragon.”

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Enea Bastianini – P12

“I’m happy because I knew it wouldn’t be an easy race for me after the two heavy crashes we had, as I wasn’t 100%. I had a bad start, so I tried to be conservative at the beginning. In the middle of the race, I started to have a good pace, which allowed me to recover some positions. Overall I’m happy and we’ll go for more in Aragón.”

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Takaaki Nakagami – P13

“So from P15 on the grid, I had a good start and was able to get up to P10 by the first or second lap. From the beginning I felt quite comfortable and had good pace on the bike and I thought I had an opportunity to have a good race today. But in the second half of the race I had a big drop in the rear tyre and it was really, really difficult to stay on the bike. Towards the end of the race, I dropped positions and lap time and ended up in P13 which is not the best, but I gave my all and I’m looking forward to the next one in Aragon.”

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Francesco Bagnaia – P14

“Unfortunately, after a perfect weekend where I felt really strong, today in the race, something didn’t work. Now we’re going to analyse all the data and understand why I didn’t have any rear grip from the first few laps. I am very disappointed because I was sure I could have a really good race after being fast all weekend. Now let’s move on and try to come back stronger at Aragón”. 

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Luca Marini – P15

“Obviously I can’t be happy with today’s position, I had a great pace and could have challenged for the top-10. I managed the rear well and I was hoping to have a bit more in the last few laps. I struggle to overtake on the straight, I can’t get close enough to the guys in front to overtake under braking and I often have to go long. This is an area we need to work on at Aragón and Misano to be strong under braking, because when you start from the middle of the grid it is difficult to defend yourself in the first few laps. In the end I fought with Bagnaia and I preferred not to attack because it’s important to help with the other Ducati riders for the championship and at this moment a point for him can make the difference.”

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Miguel Oliveira – P16

“It was not the race we were looking for, at least the result. It felt like I didn’t have a lot of grip from the beginning. Nothing really clicked for me this weekend. Hopefully we can keep working with a positive attitude and get things going in our way again in Aragon.”

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Cal Crutchlow – P17

“I did enjoy the race. Obviously, I’m disappointed about where I finished, but overall I was pleased with my performance and pleased with the lap times I was doing. We came here to do a good job, and I feel we did that. During this weekend we worked in a great way with the Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP team, but I just started too far back. It was as simple as that, because I felt that I had a bit of a better pace to run with the guys nearer the front. In the mid-race I was quite pleased with my pace. It was probably a little bit faster than the pace I was doing over the weekend, so I stayed consistent. We saw a lot of guys dropping with the tyres, which we knew would happen. I was in the exact same boat with the rear tyre, but I was able to manage it well, which was quite pleasing. Overall, to be racing here in Silverstone in front of the home fans, I got great support. I’m glad they got to see three great races today. We can go away from here proud about our weekend.”

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Valentino Rossi – P18

“It’s a great shame because I felt good with the bike all weekend and I was quite fast. I had a good start and good first laps; I was in a place where I could fight. However, after six laps I had problems with the rear grip, which made me slow. This sometimes happens to us and we tried a lot of things, but in the end we couldn’t fix it. I think if the temperature was a little higher than I could have used the hard tyre and we are normally better on that, but I was cold so we had to use the medium. It’s sad because I wanted to have a decent race here at Silverstone, as there is a big crowd. I want to thank them all for their support. It has been a great pleasure to ride here with so many people here all weekend and thank you everyone for your love over the years.”

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Jake Dixon – P19

“I felt good all weekend and felt really strong today, especially in morning Warm Up. The pace I had, I felt like I could stay with the guys in the back group. In the race I didn’t have the same feeling and the grip was different. It’s a bit frustrating. It was a great experience, although I wanted more from the race. The team did a great job and we made improvements during the weekend, but the race was out of our hands. I feel like I’ve done a good job; I was two seconds off the top guys in Qualifying after only a small number of laps. I can’t thank the British crowd enough, the cheers were fantastic every lap and it was such a nice feeling. It was so nice to see a packed out crowd at Silverstone and the atmosphere was sensational. It was an incredible feeling.”

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Marc Marquez – DNF

“First of all I want to say sorry to Jorge Martin, already I went to him and his team to say sorry after the race. It was my mistake; I was too optimistic with that overtake. Races are sometimes like this and today it was me who made the mistake. Overall the weekend has been quite good as we have been fast in a lot of sessions, even after a big crash on Friday. It’s a shame to make this mistake in the race because we had the pace to do something interesting here today.”

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Jorge Martín – DNF

“These unfortunate moments are also a part of racing. It’s a shame because I felt like I could have had a great race. Marc has come to apologize, now the only thing to do is to completely reset everything and focus on the next race.”

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Team Managers

Massimo Meregalli – Monster Yamaha Team Director

“What a great win by Fabio! He looked in control throughout the entire race. We prepared for today’s race in a perfect way. All sessions, including Warm Up, were crucial, and we’re delighted that it led to Fabio winning the Monster Energy British Grand Prix. Still, we didn‘t expect him to pull away that easily. His 2’00.098s lap was the fastest of the race. He set it at the perfect time, and it was the nail in the coffin for the other riders. After that they didn’t stand a chance. Fabio really was on another level and managed the gap perfectly even without pushing 100%. We couldn‘t be more elated for him, our title sponsor Monster Energy, and for all the team and Yamaha staff to be able to celebrate such a dominating win. Cal had a more difficult race. He wanted to get into the points, but in the end he didn‘t quite manage that. He lost a bit of time at the start of the race battling with other riders, and towards the end he was one of the many who noticed a drop in the rear tyre, which we know happens here quite easily. Still, he managed it well and rode a quite steady race, so overall he ended the weekend with a positive feeling.”

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Shinichi Sahara – Suzuki Project Leader and Team Director

“Today was a mixed day for us. We’re very happy for Alex, finally he got a podium and he did a good job. This is his first podium of the year, so it’s very nice for all of us. It was a pity for Joan because he was in really good shape and he learned the track well, but then he had some issues with the feeling on the front end. We need to investigate what happened because it cost him quite a few positions. But he is still second in the championship, which is a great thing. We know that qualifying is our biggest issue at the moment, so we’ll continue to work and fight.”

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Ken Kawauchi – Suzuki Technical Manager

“First I want to say congratulations to Alex, we’ve all waited a long time to see him on the podium again and it’s been a strong comeback. I hope he can continue in this way. Joan’s performance wasn’t bad, but he struggled with the feeling and in the end we couldn’t get the result we’d hoped for. But the season isn’t finished yet, we will continue to fight and let’s see what happens.”

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Mike Leitner – Red Bull KTM Race Manager

“In general we’re quite pleased with the result. It was tricky for us to find the right set-up for this circuit from Friday. Silverstone is one of the tracks where we haven’t done quite so many laps with our race package. In five years MotoGP missed two races here but Brad and Iker did a great job today and overtook a lot of riders. Danilo also made a lot of forward progress. We tried to help Miguel for set-up but he was struggling with rear grip. We’ll go to Aragon hoping to start in a better way.”

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Hervé Poncharal – Tech3 KTM Team Manager

“What a race! Finally, we could see our two riders, Iker and Danilo in the fight for top positions. By far, this is the best race of the season. We knew there was something to do, but honestly, this race overcame our expectations. I am speechless, as this year hasn’t been easy, it was always difficult to receive Iker and Danilo back in the garage when the race hasn’t been going the way they wanted and we wanted. But today we had a great fight!”

“We could see both, Iker and Danilo showing an incredible fighting spirit. They did some great passes, aggressive, but clean as you expect from a rider. I am very proud of Iker and Danilo. To have both of them in the top 10 with nearly no crash in front means it was a real top 10 result. Even though KTM didn’t get too much data on that circuit, I think we turned the situation around in a positive way with the three KTM’s in the top 10.”

“Clearly, I’m very happy for Danilo to have shown he still is a fast MotoGP rider and he had some fun today riding and passing guys. I’m really proud of Iker, who at 21 years old is showing that he is growing and becoming a better MotoGP rider every day. I hope this performance will help him to find a MotoGP ride next year. All in all, we are happy. It was a great weekend, we worked really hard. We didn’t have any rain and this is a tough track to understand, but together with the team and the KTM engineers we learned a lot. That has been a very important and crucial GP. So, congrats Iker, congrats Danilo, congrats to the whole crew! As I usually say, it’s just a few days off before we hit the track again.”

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Razlan Razali – Petronas SRT Team Principal

“​​It has been a very mixed weekend for us. It was a very difficult MotoGP race with rear grip issues for Valentino, which saw him drop from sixth to outside of the points. It was a baptism of fire for Jake, but I’m sure it was a nice experience to be riding in the MotoGP class for the first time at his home Grand Prix.”

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MotoGP Silverstone 2021 Race Results

2021 MotoGP Standings

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2021 FIM MotoGP World Championship calendar

(Subject to change)

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Source: MCNews.com.au

2021 FIM MotoGP World Championship
Round 12 – Silverstone

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Trev’s take

Fabio Quartararo steadily scythed his way to the front of the field via a series of safe and calculated overtaking manoeuvres but once he hit the front on lap five he put his head down and pulled away with ease.

Quartararo was smooth and consistent, setting the fastest lap of the race on the sixth lap, a 2m00.098s, then immediately backed them up with a 2m00.179s, 2m00.289s, 2m00.460s, 2m00.472s to break way from the rest of the field.

It was an amazing performance but one that was almost expected if you had examined his long run pace over the practice sessions. Still, it was a cool, calm and collected display of dominance that underlined just how powerful the combination of the 22-year-old and the Monster Energy Yamaha YZR-M1 is.

This dominance is obviously not just coming from the machine, but Quartararo’s skill to adapt his riding style to suit the bike at each circuit and get the best out of it at every opportunity. There were four Yamaha MotoGP machines on the grid at Silverstone, while Quartararo dominated, the remaining three bikes filled the last three places on the results sheet. Cal Crutchlow 17th, Valentino Rossi 18th and debutante Jake Dixon in 19th.

Yamaha’s tally of points in the Constructor’s World Championship is almost entirely the doing of Quartararo. Vinales scored 25-points at the Qatar season opener but from then-on Quartararo has almost single handedly built Yamaha’s tally of 234-points.

With the failure of the rest of the current crop of Yamaha riders to fire, Yamaha’s hopes for wrapping up the Constructors Cup will be bolstered when Andrea Dovizioso joins Valentino Rossi in the Petronas SRT squad from Misano. But of course there is no guarantee that the Italian will find competitive speed right from the off after a long time away from the heat of MotoGP competition. Franco Morbidelli will slot into the Monster Energy Yamaha seat vacated by Maverick Vinales when he returns from injury.

Ducati are second in the Constructor’s World Championship but four riders have been scoring good points on the Desmosedici as Ducati most definitely have strength in numbers. Jack Miller has taken two victories for Ducati and Jorge Martin one, but even when those two haven’t won Francesco Bagnaia or Johann Zarco have still bagged good points to help build Ducati’s tally of 225.

Quartararo will take a 65-point lead over defending champion Joan Mir into Round 13 at Aragon in a fortnight. There are seven rounds left on the official calendar but of course there is no guarantee that all of those will be able to be held. Unless Quartararo falls apart or succumbs to injury he is now certainly expected to take the title. The importance of that victory overnight was not lost on Fabio, his elation is always stratospheric, that boy loves to win, but with his closest challengers in the championship only taking a handul of points from the British GP, this was big. You can’t fail to be impressed with his performance this season and he will make a worthy champion indeed.

Alex Rins has had a difficult season but found his feet at Silverstone to take a hard fought second place while Aleix Espargaro took Aprilia’s first ever podium in the MotoGP era.

The squirt off the turn from the Aprilia, and the ability to put that down to the ground and translate that into immediate forward motion, was really quite amazing at Silverstone. Even when Aleix was in close consort with a Desmosedici while fighting for position, the Aprilia put the power down off the turn in a way that the Ducati, generally the yardstick in this area, could not match.

This was quite eye-opening and will be making Maverick Vinales want to race that RS-GP sooner rather than later. The Spaniard will test the bike this week and the results from that will decide when we see him on a MotoGP grid astride an Aprilia.

Jack Miller was the top finishing Ducati at the British GP with fourth, and showed strong enough pace towards the end that suggested he might have been able to claim second if the race was much longer. After some recent mistakes it was a big relief to see Jack bag good points and strengthen his fifth position in the championship.

Pol Espargaro had taken pole for Honda and kept it together to take fifth position while Brad Binder was sixth for KTM, making it six different manufacturers in the top six positions.

Iker Lecuona strengthened his chances of having a job in 2021 after working his way forward to an impressive seventh place finish, only just over a second behind Binder. Likewise Alex Marquez rode well to finish eighth while Joan Mir faded back to ninth after racing strongly early on. Danilo Petrucci rounded out the top ten ahead of Johann Zarco.

Francesco Bagnaia found he had no rear grip right from the start. Team-mate Jack Miller had complained of two dud tyres in Q2 but it was Bagnaia’s turn to score a dud come race day. This apparent random variation in tyre performance must be a serious cause for concern in the paddock.

The only non-finishers overnight were Marc Marquez and Jorge Martin. Marquez effectively skittled Martin out of the race late on the opening lap while trying to put a pass on the Ducati. Marquez apologised on social media after the race and accepted blame for the incident.

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MotoGP Race Report

Pol Espargaro (Repsol Honda Team) took the holeshot from pole, with Quartararo initially up into second. But Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team) was on the move, past Aleix Espargaro into third and then attacking El Diablo.

Drama struck just off that fight too as Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team) and Jorge Martin (Pramac Racing) came together once with Martin up the inside, and then the eight-time World Champion tried to take it back. With Martin reacting to those ahead to have opened a small gap, the number 93 made it just ahead but then collected the rookie. He apologised and it was deemed a racing incident.

That early race action was still led by Pol Espargaro, with Bagnaia in second and Aleix Espargaro shadowing. The Aprilia then went for the lead but headed wide, and not long after that Quartararo started to make his moves. By 16 to go the Yamaha had worked his way to the front, and from there the hammer went down.

The battle behind raged on, with Pol and Aleix Espargaro ahead of Bagnaia and reigning Champion Joan Mir (Team Suzuki Ecstar). Jack Miller (Ducati Lenovo Team) was in the mix too, but the rider starting to make serious progress was Rins.

With 13 laps to go, Rins was into third with Quartararo gone out front and Aleix Espargaro holding strong in second. Pol Espargaro was starting to fade slightly, but the big change was Bagnaia as the number 63 sunk to the back of the group, struggling to stay with them.

Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing), meanwhile, was doing the opposite. The South African was on an absolute Sunday charge once again, and was past Mir and homing in on Pol Espargaro. Bagnaia had dropped well back and Alex Marquez (LCR Honda Castrol) had moved well forward, as a change up ahead then ultimately decided the podium. Aleix Espargaro headed wide, and Rins needed no second invitation as he moved into second.

Quartararo was gone, and by the final lap the key battle was focused on Aprilia, on the verge of making history. Rins was just out of reach although still tantalisingly close, but Miller was on the march. The Australian struck to momentarily break a thousand Noale hearts, but Aleix Espargaro hit straight back and made it stick. A few apexes were all that remained between the number 41 and history, and he kept ahead for that mythical first podium.

Quartararo made the masterclass look easy but far from it, Rins got back on the box after a tougher 2021 so far, and Aleix Espargaro ended a long, long wait for a podium – for man and machine. Not since 2014 has he been on the box, and Aprilia never have in the MotoGP era.

Miller was denied but came home top Ducati, with Pol Espargaro taking fifth and a great result from pole. And sixth went to Binder, the South African raising more eyebrows on race day and adding the final piece in a history-making race: Yamaha, Suzuki, Aprilia, Ducati, Honda and KTM in the top six makes it the first time since 1972 six factories have been in the top six.

Iker Lecuona (Tech 3 KTM Factory Racing) also put in a Sunday stunner to take seventh, not so far from Binder either as the Spaniard leapfrogged compatriot Alex Marquez, who took eighth. In the latter stages Mir faded to ninth, and he was only just ahead of another charging KTM as Tech 3 KTM Factory Racing’s Danilo Petrucci completed the top ten. Johann Zarco (Pramac Racing) was close behind too in P11, before a slightly bigger gap back to Enea Bastianini (Avintia Esponsorama), Takaaki Nakagami (LCR Honda Idemitsu) and then Bagnaia, who took P14 in the end. Luca Marini (Avintia VR46) picked up the final point.

After a monster weekend for Quartararo that sees him now sit 65 points clear of Mir in the Championship, the Frenchman seems to be holding most of the cards in 2021. But next up it’s Aragon and good hunting ground for his rivals. Can they fight back next time out? We’ll find out in two weeks!

Fabio Quartararo

“It feels so good because it has been a tough qualifying. Yesterday I lost confidence, but we knew in FP4 our pace was strong with the medium, I felt great. I will be short, I want to thank the fans, it’s the first time we have them, a lot I mean. Also, it’s the Monster Energy GP it is great to win for all of them and my family and team. Also, my mechanic, who couldn’t come, Daniele, so that one was for him, and I can’t wait to be with the crew and celebrate!”

MotoGP Silverstone 2021 Race Results

2021 MotoGP Standings

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Moto2

Remy Gardner (Red Bull KTM Ajo) took what could be a crucial victory in the Monster Energy British Grand Prix, the Australian holding off Marco Bezzecchi (Sky Racing Team VR46) as the Italian was forced to settle for second. Lightech Speed Up’s Jorge Navarro back on the podium in third position to show some more serious speed at Silverstone.

Bezzecchi took the holeshot initially, but home hero Sam Lowes (Elf Marc VDS Racing Team) was quick to pounce and lead his home race. Navarro was sitting ahead of Gardner and Raul Fernandez (Red Bull KTM Ajo) on the opening lap but soon, the number 87 was up to P3 as Bezzecchi passed Lowes for the lead.

Gardner then found a way past Lowes for second, with the top five – Bezzecchi, Gardner, Lowes, Navarro and Fabio Di Giannantonio (Federal Oil Gresini Moto2) – split by less than a second. Raul Fernandez was a second back of the group in P6 as teammate Gardner hit the front. Not for long though. Bezzecchi pounced back half a lap later but on the exit of Turn 14, the Italian was out of the seat and it caused Gardner to sit up but handed him the race lead, with the top five still locked together.

Just after Gardner had set the fastest lap of the race, Bezzecchi scooped up some slipstream and made a pass for the lead stick at Stowe. Bezzecchi, Gardner and Lowes had a 0.8s lead over fourth place Navarro with nine laps to go and Gardner, again at Turn 13, dived up the inside of Bezzecchi. The Aussie was back in the lead.

With four laps to go, huge drama in the Championship chase unfolded. Raul Fernandez suffered a huge crash at Turn 12 and was out of the race, thankfully the Spaniard was back up on his feet. But with Gardner leading and Bezzecchi a close second, the rookie sensation’s title hopes took a big dent.

At the front, Gardner and Bezzecchi were locked together with two laps to go, with Navarro was also getting the better of Lowes for P3. It was close as Bezzecchi set his fastest lap of the race on the penultimate lap, and Navarro setting the fastest lap of the race overall. Stowe and Vale – two big passing places – passed by for Bezzecchi, and pushing hard, he was slightly wide at Turn 13.

In the end, Gardner held on with a fantastic last lap and a fantastic race in general to take a crucial 25 points, with Bezzecchi 0.4s away from the win after pushing the Australian all the way. Navarro claimed a first podium since the 2019 Valencia GP, the Spaniard beating Lowes by 0.3s to deny the latter a home GP podium.

Di Giannantonio faded slightly and just held off 2019 winner Augusto Fernandez (Elf Marc VDS Racing Team) in the duel to complete the top five, with Aron Canet (Kipin Energy Aspar Team) coming home seventh in some clear air. Xavi Vierge (Petronas Sprinta Racing) beat rookie Ai Ogura (Idemitsu Honda Team Asia) to eighth by mere thousandths, with American Joe Roberts (Italtrans Racing Team) completing the top ten for a solid haul of points after a weekend further up the field.

Remy Gardner

“I think it was a good day, we brought home the victory. That was a long race, I got the message on the dashboard that Marco was on the soft, and I could see it so I said I would wait and be patient. We were expecting him to drop off because that’s what we experience with the soft tyre but he was there the whole race. When he got back in front of me the last time, I said ok, I’m going to really put the head down and push, and I just managed to open a little gap and he couldn’t catch me and yeah, I brought home the points and yeah, it couldn’t have been a better day to do it. It’s incredible. Honestly, it’s my first podium or win with fans here so that’s something special. I’m just lost for words.”

Moto2 Silverstone 2021 Race Results

2021 Moto2 Standings

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Moto3

It seemed hard to look past Romano Fenati (Sterilgarda Max Racing Team) for victory at Silverstone, and on race day the Italian more than proved why. Leading from lights out and initially shadowed by Niccolo Antonelli (Avintia VR46 Academy), the number 55 was then able to pull away in the final few laps to take that rarest of prizes: a breakaway Moto3™ win. Antonelli, on return from injury and still riding through the pain barrier, held on for a stunning second, however, with Dennis Foggia (Leopard Racing) just coming out on top in a duel for third against rookie Izan Guevara (Valresa GASGAS Aspar Team) after a fabulous race from the Spaniard.

At lights out, Gabriel Rodrigo (Indonesian Racing Gresini Moto3) was just about able to get alongside Fenati, but the Italian held on round the outside and from there, he never looked back. Antonelli moved up into second to begin his charge, with Andrea Migno (Rivacold Snipers Team) initially in third as the trio made an early break for it.

By 14 to go, Fenati, Antonelli and Migno were still stuck pretty close together, and the gap back to Darryn Binder (Petronas Sprinta Racing) at the head of the fight for fourth was already up to nearly a second and a half. But heartbreak would then hit for Migno as the Italian pulled off the track with an issue – leaving Fenati and Antonelli with even more space back to the chasing pack.

The chasing pack was then one group fighting for third ahead of a bigger gap back to the battle for tenth, which included Championship leader Pedro Acosta (Red Bull KTM Ajo) and closest challenger Sergio Garcia (Valresa GASGAS Aspar Team). After some early progress the two then watched the group ahead escape, making it a handful of points up for grabs in their battle at the top.

Back at the front, the Fenati-Antonelli duo pounded on. Over three seconds clear and pretty well matched on rhythm, there wasn’t much to choose between the two. But as the laps ticked on Antonelli, riding through the pain barrier, started to fade slightly – just as Foggia and Guevara managed to pull away from the group battle behind them.

Over the final two laps, Fenati really hammered home the advantage and crossed the line over a second and a half clear, putting in as close to perfect a Moto3™ race weekend as possible. Antonelli held on to second and although the gap was coming down rapidly on the last couple of laps, Foggia and Guevara had their own duel to focus on.

The rookie was able to strike and take over in third, but Foggia found an answer. And from there, the number 28 stayed glued to the rear tyre of the Leopard machine, but there was no way through. It went down to Woodcote and Guevara tried the inside line on the drag to the line, but it wasn’t quite enough. Foggia takes anther podium, but Guevara’s fourth is his best result so far and rounded out a fabulous race from the rookie.

The battle for fifth behind them was won by Tatsuki Suzuki (SIC58 Squadra Corse) as he pipped Jaume Masia (Red Bull KTM Ajo), with Darryn Binder forced to settle for seventh. There was then another even bigger gap back to the battle for eighth, with Deniz Öncü (Red Bull KTM Tech3) winning that ahead of front row starter Riccardo Rossi (BOE Owlride).

Another gap back to a crucial fight behind saw Carlos Tatay (Avintia Esponsorama Moto3) able to gain a bit of breathing space for tenth, with Acosta classified 11th after a one position penalty for John McPhee (Petronas Sprinta Racing), the number 17 taking P12 despite some early drama that dropped him back. Ayumu Sasaki (Red Bull KTM Tech 3), Filip Salac (CarXpert PrüstelGP) and Rodrigo completed the points, with Garcia losing out late on and taking P16.

Moto3 Silverstone 2021 Race Results

2021 Moto3 Standings

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2021 FIM MotoGP World Championship calendar

(Subject to change)

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Source: MCNews.com.au

2021 FIM MotoGP World Championship
Round 12 – Silverstone – Qualifying

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Pol Espargaro (Repsol Honda Team) is back in business! After a tougher time of late, the Spaniard has hooked it up so far at Silverstone and in Q2, the number 44 hit a landmark run to take his first pole position since joining the Repsol Honda Team.

It was incredibly close at the top, with Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team) just 0.022 back and Championship leader Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) locking out a top three split by just 0.036. Over a near 6km lap, it could hardly be any closer.

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MotoGP Rider Quotes

Pol Espargaro – P1

“Incredible. Just incredible. I almost can’t believe it. We arrived here in Silverstone after two really difficult weekends in Austria and this gave me a lot of motivation, a lot of fire to push this weekend. I have been feeling so good this weekend with the bike, the track, the grip and I am so pleased we were able to make the most of it today. I want to say a huge thank you to the Repsol Honda Team, to Alberto Puig, to Takeo, to Kuwata-san, all of them have helped me so much and continued to work 100% behind me no matter what. We have kept working all this time and we will keep working, but I just want to enjoy this moment for now.”

Francesco Bagnaia – P2

“I’m delighted with my qualifying today. There’s a lot of harmony in my team, and together we’re doing an incredible job: we’ve made great progress with our bike, despite this not being a track particularly favourable for us. We got second place and the front row, and our pace in FP4 was also excellent. We’re still unsure about our tyre choice for the race, and we’ll have to evaluate the weather conditions tomorrow morning, but otherwise, I’m confident we can fight with the front guys in tomorrow’s race”.

Fabio Quartararo – P3

“I‘m happy about the front row, but to be honest, I didn‘t feel so good with the soft rear tyre in Qualifying. Normally I feel much more grip with the soft tyre than I did today. Anyway, I‘m on the front row, that was our main aim. I‘m just a little bit disappointed about Qualifying. But the pace with the medium tyre is great, we‘re pretty fast, and that‘s the most important thing for the race. I will do my best tomorrow. I think we have great potential to fight for the podium and the victory, but we‘ll approach it step by step. I feel great and our pace is good, so let‘s see.”

Jorge Martín – P4

“I am satisfied. To be starting from the second row tomorrow is a great result. My pace in FP4 was good; I feel able to compete. Tomorrow we can have a good race.”

Marc Marquez – P5

“My eye today is much better; it was not a big problem, but it was disturbing me a lot yesterday. My body still had some pain today after the 270 km/h crash. I think our Qualifying was strong today since normally I feel some limitations there and we have achieved our goal of the second row. Let’s see what’s possible tomorrow in the race because the bike has been working well here since Free Practice 1. If we can continue in this direction we can have a good race and it’s important to keep closing the distance to the top guys. Also congratulations to Pol and to Honda for the pole position.”

Aleix Espargaro – P6

“I’m fast here and I feel very good. Aprilia has given me the most competitive bike of the season. We have no obvious weaknesses and that makes me optimistic. In FP4, I took the tyres to 21 laps with good times, so we definitely have the pace. In qualifying, I could have done better but I won’t complain. At the end of the day, we are all rather close and the second row isn’t bad. There are times when you have all the right cards to make a play for it and I think tomorrow will be one of those times for us.”

Jack Miller – P7

“I’m pretty unhappy with today’s result in qualifying. After managing to post a great time this morning in FP3, I was obviously hoping for something more this afternoon. Unfortunately, in Q2, I didn’t feel completely comfortable with the new tyres. Tomorrow in the race, we will have to attack immediately to try and make up positions and not let Quartararo get away in the early laps. Even though we’ll start from seventh position, from the third row, I don’t think it’ll be difficult: in general, my feeling with the Desmosedici GP on this track is very good, so I’ll try to give my best in tomorrow’s race”.

Valentino Rossi – P8

“I have a better pace here, compared to Qatar where I was fourth on the grid, as I was inside the top-ten throughout Free Practice today. I feel good with the bike, so now we just need to make the right tyre choice for tomorrow’s race. It’s hard to predict what the feeling will be like in the race, as sometimes you can be strong during practice but slower in the race. Hopefully I will continue to feel good tomorrow. Recently my starts have not been the best, so we need to work on that and make sure I stay in the pack during the opening laps. We will then see what our pace is like; I’ll give my maximum though and try to stay inside the top-ten.”

Johann Zarco – P9

“I wasn’t able to do any better than ninth – I gave it my all. We have taken a step forward compared to yesterday. In FP4, we were able to obtain important information, which we will make use of tomorrow. To start well tomorrow will prove to be fundamental.”

Alex Rins – P10

“Today was a strange day because in FP3 we struggled a little bit with the crash, that put me out of Q2 and then it was hard because I was really pushing for Q2 and I hoped to be there. In the end, I got in via Q1 and I improved my time so I was quite satisfied. I set some good lap times and I had a really good feeling with the bike. The tyre options were useful to try and tomorrow, even though I’m a bit far back on the grid, I want to ride like I did in the past here and get a nice result for the team.”

Joan Mir – P11

“Normally I would say that starting in 11th position is something normal for us, but today I expected more really. I felt good in the morning and I got through to Q2 without any problems. But then I started to have some trouble with tyres and also electronics, and it was difficult to fix this. It’s not a mechanical thing, the electronics are quite complicated to get right – in some corners I felt really good and then in others I felt bad. It was difficult to get a fast lap. I’m not worried for tomorrow because I think that we can fix it. So I feel quite ready for the race.”

Brad Binder – P12

“Today was OK, we started this morning a bit tough, a bit difficult, but I found a lap that pulled me onto the Q2 session. I gave my all in Q2 but there was not much more left for me. I did my best and 12th place will have to do. We’ll do our homework tonight and get in the mix tomorrow. I felt pretty good all weekend. I think in the race we can be stronger.”

Enea Bastianini – P13

“Today I tried, I was going to the maximum and we crashed. Anyway, we have a great pace. In FP4 I felt good on used tires and I’m very happy with the work we’ve done with the team, because we’ve improved every lap. The Ducati has strong points on this track, so tomorrow we will give our maximum from the start to get a good result.”

Luca Marini – P14

“I’m happy with qualifying, we all went very fast and 14th place is a good result on this track. In FP4 we had problems and I wasn’t satisfied, as I had no grip on the medium tire and I couldn’t keep the pace I wanted. The tire choice for tomorrow will be crucial, now we will analyse the data and try to understand what will be the right choice. The grid position is good”.

Takaaki Nakagami – P15

“So, it was a tough session again in qualifying, I gave it my best but I did not have enough speed and the lap time was not enough. I ended up in Q1 and then in P5, so that means P15 on the grid for tomorrow’s race. We will try our best, we will try to make a good start and then 20 laps around here means we will have a lot of chance to make up places. I’ll do my best and then let’s see what happens in the race.”

Danilo Petrucci – P16

“We managed to do a lap that is quite close to the others, even if the position still doesn’t look great. In terms of race pace, I think we are set up well and I hope we can fight tomorrow to stay in the points. The race will be very long here. I’m happy. We still have to understand, which tyre we will use tomorrow, but overall I’m satisfied about today.”

Álex Márquez – P17

“As we know, Silverstone is a difficult track to learn with a MotoGP bike, today we made some changes to the set-up which were good and we made a lot of improvement in FP4 and FP3 also. We still have many things to improve, especially in the set-up area as I’m not comfortable, but that’s how it is and we knew there would be weekends like this when I have to learn the track. Unfortunately, in the qualy (Q1) it was not my best performance, I made a mistake that lost us two or three tenths. But tomorrow we’ll try to make a good start, we have Taka close to us as well, so we’ll do our best and make the best result possible.” 

Iker Lecuona – P18

“This morning I felt pretty good, although it was a shame that there have been so many yellow flags, so you always have to close the gas and I had no chance to go straight to Q2, after we have been so close yesterday. I think the potential was there, but in Q1 I was finally struggling a lot and did some mistakes. I don’t know what happened and I want to say sorry to my team for this. For tomorrow, it’s going to be difficult. My race pace is good though, so the first laps will be crucial.”

Cal Crutchlow – P19

“I feel good with the set-up of the bike and I’m riding in a good way, but I don’t feel comfortable at the moment. The bike was shaking a lot, and we’re trying to work out why. I went back to the setting I tested with many times, and that was better in the corners and on acceleration, but still on the straights it was exactly the same. We will look into that tonight. I did have a couple of good sessions. FP3 and FP4 were good. Just Qualifying was not. I made some mistakes, and on my fastest lap I got the yellow flag. That would have been a good lap, and I would have been right up there. My qualifying time was the same as the last time I rode here, so it shows I am still able to go fast, it’s just that everybody else is going faster.”

Miguel Oliveira – P20

“Despite being the worst qualifying of the year so far I still feel there is a good chance to score some points tomorrow. This will be our goal and we’ll push to make some good laps for myself and the team.”

Jake Dixon – P21

“It is difficult because you can’t take your time to get used to the bike, like you could at a test, and there’s a lot to learn in a short amount of time. I felt good today though. In FP3 I unfortunately crashed and had to use the second bike, which didn’t have the same settings. It wasn’t too bad and I knew that I had more pace than what I’d shown. In FP4 I made another step forward, so I was really happy with that. In Qualifying I was able to reduce my time by another 1.3 seconds. I think I could have done more but I made some mistakes on one lap. The race will be difficult because I’m still learning every lap, but I can’t wait. The crowd is incredible out there and the support is unbelievable – it’s just so nice to be doing this at home.”

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Q1

Q1 had a few fast faces looking to move through, not least of all 2019 Silverstone winner Alex Rins (Team Suzuki Ecstar). But after the first runs it was Enea Bastianini (Avintia Esponsorama) leading the way, with a couple of tenths in hand over Johann Zarco (Pramac Racing).

The key drama then also came from Bastianini as the Italian, on another hot lap, lost the rear but somehow didn’t quite highside, nevertheless sliding out and that bringing out the Yellow Flags – cancelling the laps of Rins and Alex Marquez (LCR Honda Castrol). Bastianini was up and ok and the track went green again, leaving one final push for those behind to try and oust the Italian.

Zarco and Rins did just that, the Suzuki taking over on top first before the Pramac rider pipped him, both leapfrogging Bastianini’s best to deny him a place in Q2.

Q2

After the first runs, Quartararo led Bagnaia led Jorge Martin (Pramac Racing), but there was some drama left in the tank. The first rider setting red sectors was Pol Espargaro and he took over on top, but Martin was on an absolute stunner – and shaved nine tenths off the number 44’s best in one fell swoop. But gaining over a second in one sector seemed a lot, even for the rookie sensation, and it turned out to be too much: Martin had cut the track, and the laptime was cancelled. So Pol Espargaro completed his impressive weekend so far with a first pole position at Repsol Honda, bouncing back in style from a difficult two weekends in Austria to pip ‘Pecco’ by just 0.022.

Bagnaia was bumped back up to second as Martin’s lap was cancelled, with Quartararo completing the front row after losing a little ground on Run 2, not able to find the grip he was expecting but still within an infinitesimal 0.036 of pole. Martin, nevertheless, takes fourth – and is therefore also top Independent Team rider.

The Grid

Pol Espargaro, Bagnaia and Championship leader Quartararo head up the grid, putting ‘Pecco’, the closest challenger, in a good position to try and deny El Diablo on Sunday. Martin heads up Row 2 ahead of Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team), the eight-time World Champion beaten to it by just 0.012. Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia Racing Team Gresini) completes the third row.

Jack Miller (Ducati Lenovo Team) had a tougher qualifying to line up seventh, 0.479 off the top, and the Aussie will be looking to make gains on Sunday. He’s joined by Valentino Rossi (Petronas Yamaha SRT) as the Doctor continues a good vein of form at Silverstone, taking P8, with Johann Zarco forced to settle for ninth.

That leaves Team Suzuki Ecstar’s Alex Rins and Joan Mir down in P10 and P11, respectively, with the 2019 Silverstone winner and the reigning Champion looking for a classic quick comeback into the podium fight tomorrow. Austrian GP winner Brad Binder (Red Bull KM Factory Racing) is P12.

Then come Bastianini, Luca Marini (Sky VR46 Avintia) and Takaaki Nakagami (LCR Honda Idemitsu) in 15th.

2021 MotoGP Combined Qualifying

2021 MotoGP Standings

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Moto2

Marco Bezzecchi (Sky Racing Team VR46) set a searing new lap record at Silverstone in Moto2, the Italian putting in a 2:03.988 to just deny Jorge Navarro (Lightech Speed Up) the honour. It really wasn’t by much either as just 0.073 separated the top two, with Sam Lowes (Elf Marc VDS Racing Team) taking third and still within only 0.081 of the top… over a whopping 6km lap.

Q1

Stefano Manzi (Flexbox HP 40) topped the session into the 2:04s, with rookie and recent podium finisher Ai Ogura (Idemitsu Honda Team Asia) next up as he just pipped teammate Somkiat Chantra. Joining the three moving through was Xavi Vierge (Petronas Sprinta Racing).

It was also announced just before the session that Lorenzo Dalla Porta (Italtrans Racing Team) was withdrawing from the GP after struggling with a shoulder injury.

Q2

It looked like Lowes was on for a home pole position and his third at the track in Moto2 until late on, and even including late on in the laps that Bezzecchi and Navarro were putting in. Bezzecchi was behind points leader Remy Gardner (Red Bull KTM Ajo) and setting yellow sectors until right at the line – when he and Gardner also got very close, the Italian still at full chat. And it was just enough, putting Bezzecchi provisional top and leaving it all up to Navarro.

The Spaniard was well within striking distance although not with red sectors, and he was the last rider in with a shout at denying Bezzecchi. Over the line he got incredibly close but had to settle for second by just 0.073, nevertheless denying Lowes P2.

The Grid

Bezzecchi, Navarro and Lowes head the grid, with Gardner forced to settle for the head of Row 2. He’s joined by teammate Raul Fernandez (Red Bull KTM Ajo), just 0.014 between the two. Fabio Di Giannantonio (Federal Oil Gresini Moto2) took sixth.

2019 Silverstone winner Augusto Fernandez (Elf Marc VDS Racing Team) starts P7, with Aron Canet (Kipin Energy Aspar Moto2) and Vierge alongside. American Joe Roberts (Italtrans Racing Team) completes the top ten, retaining his step back towards the front.

Moto2 Combined Qualifying

Moto2 Championship Standings

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Moto3

Romano Fenati (Sterilgarda Max Racing Team) waited four years for another pole position, and now two have come at once! The Italian took to the top last time out in qualifying and he’s done it again at the Monster Energy British Grand Prix, making it a full house of sessions he’s led at Silverstone so far and this time with a new all-time lap record. His first back-to-back poles and the first time he’s taken four front row starts in a row bodes well, and key rivals Pedro Acosta (Red Bull KTM Ajo) and Sergio Garcia (Valresa GASGAS Aspar Team) didn’t make it out of Q1, giving Fenati a clear goal on Sunday: gain some serious ground.

Gabriel Rodrigo (Indonesian Racing Gresini Moto3) was the rider just denied pole, within half a tenth despite coming through Q1, with Riccardo Rossi (BOW Owlride) taking his second ever front row in third.

Q1

Q1 had a fair share of headlines. With Championship leader Acosta AND closest challenger Garcia in the mix, and Fenati having shown such speed at Silverstone, it could prove crucial. And crucially, neither Acosta nor Garcia made it through, the latter crashing early to boot. They qualified down the order: Acosta in P22 and Garcia P24.

Rodrigo topped the session to head the charge, four tenths ahead of Carlos Tatay (Avintia Esponsorama Moto3), with Filip Salač (CarXpert PrüstelGP) and rookie Izan Guevara (Valresa GASGAS Aspar Team) also moving through.

One moment of drama saw Yuki Kunii (Honda Team Asia) collide with Kaito Toba (CIP Green Power), riders ok. Kunii was awarded a Long Lap penalty for the crash.

Q2

Rodrigo was holding on to provisional pole as the minutes ticked down, and the fastest rider in practice, Fenati, was leaving it late. After some yellow flags and his penultimate effort got cancelled, the Italian had one shot to take pole position and make it every session fastest at Silverstone… and he got it done. Ultimately by just 0.043, shuffling Rodrigo down to second as the Argentinean’s speed remained from Q1.

Third was a standout performance from Le Mans podium finisher Rossi, the Italian third fastest and taking his second ever front row start.

One rider fast so far this weekend who wasn’t able to feature in the fight for pole was Ayumu Sasaki (Red Bull KTM Tech3) as the Japanese rider crashed out early, rider ok,

The Grid

Fenati, Rodrigo and Rossi lock out the front row, with Andrea Migno (Rivacold Snipers Team) heading up Row 2. He’s joined by Niccolo Antonelli (Avintia VR46 Academy) – the only rider in the field previously on the podium at Silverstone – and Salač.

Jeremy Alcoba (Indonesian Racing Gresini Moto3) and Dennis Foggia (Leopard Racing) were seventh and eighth fastest, around half a second off the top, before a bigger gap back to Deniz Öncü (Red Bull KTM Tech 3) in ninth. Alcoba and Öncü, as rookies last year, race Moto3 at Silverstone for the first time.

Jaume Masia (Red Bull KTM Ajo) locked out the top ten.

Moto3 Combined Qualifying

Moto3 Championship Standings

2021 British Grand Prix – Silverstone Schedule

Source: MCNews.com.au

2021 FIM MotoGP World Championship
Round 12 – Silverstone

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Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) shot out the blocks at Silverstone, the Championship leader ending Day 1 of the Monster Energy British Grand Prix over half a second clear despite an FP2 crash.

Jack Miller (Ducati Lenovo Team) was second quickest, with Jorge Martin (Pramac Racing) also bouncing back, in his case from an FP1 tumble, to take third on first contact with Silverstone on MotoGP machinery.

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MotoGP Rider Quotes

Fabio Quartararo – P1

“Everything is okay. My left foot is a little bit sore, but it’s nothing too serious. I’ve been to the medical centre and went back on the bike, and it was okay. On the bike it’s not an issue, just when I’m walking I have quite a lot of pain. But, honestly, the most important thing is that on the bike I have no pain. I knew I was going to be fast with the soft tyre. I wasn’t pushing to the limit on the medium tyre. I was doing my own pace, and I was quite impressed by my lap times. In that moment I knew that with the softs I could be much faster. I knew I was going to be fighting for the top-3 positions, but I never expected to be first by half a second. I need to go back to the Clinica Mobile later. I kind of twisted my ankle, so they will put some ice on it and tape it to strengthen it. It should be fine tomorrow.”

Jack Miller – P2

“I’m thrilled to be back at Silverstone! It’s an old-style track with lots of corners, where it’s always great fun to race. Compared to 2019, the last year the GP was held here, the asphalt conditions have improved significantly, which is also positive in terms of tyre wear. Compared to two years ago, my feeling with the bike has improved a lot, and this also shows how the Desmosedici GP has made huge steps forward in recent years! We have a really great bike this year, shown by the fact that we are always competitive on every track. Now we will continue to work hard to try to improve again tomorrow. There were already a lot of fans in the stands today, and I hope we can give them a great show this Sunday!”

Jorge Martín – P3

“I feel great on the bike. Since this morning, we have taken a big step forward. I lose time at turns 9 and 10, but tomorrow we will work hard to improve in this sector.”

Pol Espargaro – P4

“It was a good day, but not our best day so far. Everything was going quite well today, this is true. With the medium tyres we couldn’t push too much because it has still been quite cold but we found a good direction with the soft in these conditions. There are no complaints today and right now I am feeling good with the bike, the track, the temperature, and everything is coming smoothly to us. It’s all working well but today doesn’t matter in FP3 and it does not matter on Sunday, so we need to keep working to improve. It’s not the time to get excited, it’s the time to work.”

Marc Marquez – P5

“Today I was feeling really good from the start, I went out and I was riding like I wanted to. Unfortunately, at the end of FP1 we had a big crash and I got some dirt inside my eye which caused some crying during FP2 and it was difficult to concentrate well and perform at my best. Even in this situation we were able to perform well but after FP2 the eye felt worse, my vision has always been ok, but I went to the hospital to get it properly cleaned. Now I will take some rest, keep the eye closed and be ready for tomorrow. The aim is to keep this level until Sunday.”

Francesco Bagnaia – P6

“I’m pleased with the work we’ve done on this first day. In FP1, I struggled a little bit with the lack of grip, but in the afternoon, we improved a lot and took a big step forward with the bike. It was very cold this afternoon, which made it difficult to make a time attack, so I preferred not to take too many risks. Anyway, we are sixth, and this is a sign that we are doing a great job. Quartararo and Márquez were fast today, but I’m not worried: I’m sure that tomorrow we’ll be able to take another big step forward”.

Aleix Espargaro – P7

“I’m satisfied. The RS-GP is working well overall. I managed to be fast and consistent, especially in race configuration, whereas with the soft tyre, partly due to some problems with traffic, I was unable to improve as much as I would have expected. I know it’s only Friday, but here in Silverstone with the unpredictable weather, it’s important to be fast in every session. We’ll have to work on this and try to find a little something more with the soft tyre so we aren’t penalised too much by our starting position.”

Alex Rins – P9

“It’s been a cold day here in Silverstone, but despite this my feeling wasn’t actually bad and I have good consistent pace. I was pretty fast with used tyres, but then when I put the soft tyre in I didn’t manage to improve as much as I wanted because the feeling wasn’t so good. The main thing I need to work on now is setting a fast lap, and that will be the aim for tomorrow. At the moment I’m in the Top 10, and hopefully it will stay like that so I can go directly into Q2 tomorrow.”

Valentino Rossi – P10

“Today was a good day for me, especially to be within the top-ten at the end of the day. This was important to do. Although if tomorrow morning is dry, then that will be the practice that decides the Q2 places. I have a good feeling with the bike, although I was not able to give my maximum in FP1 because of the red flag, but my pace was not so bad. In the afternoon I tried the hard tyre, but it was not the best in those conditions. At the end of the session, with the soft tyre, I did a good lap though. It’s always a great pleasure to ride at Silverstone because it is a fast, technical circuit with a lot of corners. The new asphalt also provides a lot of grip and they have done a very good job with the layout.”

Iker Lecuona – P11

“I’m very happy. This morning, I was working hard with the bike, we tried something on the base and I felt good on the last run with used tyres. This afternoon, we tried to improve this base even more. One more time, I managed to go faster by myself and later on following someone else. I felt really good, very strong with the bike. I tried to follow Marc (Marquez) and lost only a few tenths. I nearly ended up inside the top 10, so I’m very satisfied for myself and for my team. We will see, what is going to happen tomorrow, but we are there.”

Enea Bastianini – P12

“It was a very cold day and not the best conditions. This morning we started off on the right foot and managed to put in some good laps. In the afternoon, on the hard rear tire, I didn’t feel quite right, so we focused on finding a good rhythm on the medium tire. We did some tests on the rear to try to get the bike to turn a bit better and with the soft tire I felt better than usually. I think we can take advantage of the strengths of the Ducati, we are ready for tomorrow and we will fight for the top-10.”

Joan Mir – P13

“I really enjoyed riding this amazing track for the first time with the GSX-RR, but I had some trouble – in FP1 something was not feeling right with the front tyre that we used and I lost a lot of confidence, and then in FP2 it was much better but I needed more laps. We spent quite a lot of that second session understanding and building on the speed, but in the end there was just not enough time to make up for the struggles in FP1. We need to adjust a few things, which is usual when you come somewhere for the first time. The main thing is that we still had some improvement, but today I wasn’t competitive and tomorrow I want to be.”

Johann Zarco – P14

“I am struggling a lot with the rear; this does not allow me to express myself at my best. Together with the team, we will continue trying to resolve this situation and set a good lap-time tomorrow in FP3.”

Takaaki Nakagami – P15

“This morning it was quite good, and we found good performance and ended up the session in P6. In FP2 we had a tough session and found a lack of rear grip throughout the 45 minutes, and couldn’t make a good lap time at the end – so we dropped down to P15.  We have a lot of work to do for tomorrow and we need to improve in several areas. We’ll check the data and hopefully we can improve the feeling on the bike for tomorrow.”

Cal Crutchlow – P16

“It was a day of learning again. In Austria I got used to the feeling of the 2019 bike. I hadn’t ridden the 2021 bike since the start of April. The feeling was a little bit different, and the position on the bike was a bit different. The mechanics worked very well to give me a better feeling with the bike in that area. Overall, it was not a bad day. I felt okay and comfortable enough. I wanted to be a bit faster than I was, but this is the situation at the moment. I felt we did a good job. We made some good changes. Tomorrow we expect more. We will make more changes, and we expect to have the bike similar to how I had it at the test, which is a bit different and more experimental than those of the other guys. Overall, the Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP team worked great today, and we look forward to tomorrow.”

Luca Marini – P17

“It was a very cold Friday with very difficult track conditions. Due to the cold, I had very little grip during FP1 and I had some problems. In FP2 I started better and with the medium tire I felt good. It was a pity about the two time attacks, because we found a lot of traffic and I couldn’t use my full potential. The feeling is good and the Top-10 is not far away. We still have to improve in some aspects to fight for the direct access to Q2 in FP3 tomorrow.”

Danilo Petrucci – P18

“I was quite happy about the feeling I have, but like always I can’t really use the extra grip of the soft tyre. It’s an issue, as our pace is quite good, but I can’t really improve my lap time on one single fast lap. I’m very consistent, but somehow limited to go faster in order to make a step forward in the classification. We will try to improve our lap time tomorrow. I think we are in a good shape, but we have to have a better Qualifying compared to the other rounds and then we can manage a decent race.”

Álex Márquez – P20

“The first day in Silverstone was a little bit complicated with the crashes. With a spill in the morning and another in the afternoon session, it didn’t help us show the potential we had today, which actually in the morning was quite good. Apart from that I think we need to take the positives out of this first day, we can be positive going into tomorrow because we’ve seen lots of good things. It’s true that we are far from the top guys, but here the differences are always bigger. We need to keep going like that and keep improving and I am looking forward to making a step forward tomorrow and forgetting about this first day.”

Jake Dixon – P21

“It’s been an incredible day and experience, especially in FP1 because there was a lot to take in and a lot of things going on. I was so slow on the first lap because of this. All my timings for braking and accelerating were out because it’s just so different on the MotoGP bike. The afternoon was a lot more enjoyable because I was able to enjoy the speed of the bike and I was more in control of everything. So many things impressed me, like the speed and how much lean angle you can get because of the grip the tyres give. The team has been incredible, it was a really special day for me and I can’t wait for tomorrow. I want to keep improving every session, which I did this afternoon by 1.3 seconds on the same tyre, so if we keep doing this we’re good.”

Lorenzo Savadori – P22

“To be honest, I expected things to go better, but the fact is that you can never really know what the situation is until you get on a MotoGP bike. The track doesn’t help either. It is a very physical circuit and right now I’m unable to push and ride the way I’d like to. We tried not to turn too many laps today in order to keep the situation from getting worse. We’re working on all fronts, from pain killers to my position in the saddle to my boots. We’ll see how the situation is tomorrow and evaluate how to proceed from there.”

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FP1

Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team) stole all the headlines in the morning. The eight-time World Champion was the fastest, and the only rider under the 2-minute barrier, but he also brought out the Red Flag for a fast crash through Maggots and Becketts. It was a lowside but a 270km/h lowside, leaving rider and bike sliding over the grass and gravel. The result was rider ok, bike not so much, and the Red Flag came out.

0.250 behind Marc Marquez was Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia Racing Team Gresini) as the Spaniard slotted into second, pipping Quartararo by 0.110. Pol Espargaro (Repsol Honda Team), who had a grandstand seat for teammate Marquez’ slide in the closing stages, took fourth by just 0.035, with Miller closing out the top five within less than a tenth.

Jake Dixon (Petronas Yamaha SRT) made a solid first impression, ending FP1 on a 2:03.939 and only seven tenths off Luca Marini (Avintia VR46).

Alex Marquez (LCR Honda Castrol) crashed and Martin also went down, both at Turn 12 and both riders ok.

FP2

There was another headline-grabbing crash in the afternoon, this time for Quartararo. The Frenchman went down at Turn 8, avoiding a highside by letting go early, and was initially holding his ankle and appeared in some pain. He was able to walk away and head back to the garage, however, as well as heading back out on track and going… even faster. So he was quickest, with a whopping 0.512 in hand over Miller.

Martin bounced back from his FP1 crash to leap up into third late in FP2, with Pol Espargaro and Marc Marquez completing the top five as they retained some good speed. Marc Marquez later explained he did have some sand in his eye from the crash though, causing irritation and affecting his FP2 running. Heading to the hospital for the ok, the number 93 says it should be fine for Saturday.

Alex Marquez was the other crasher in the afternoon, after Quartararo.

Combined timesheets

FP2 timesheets are the combined timesheets as everyone improved, leaving Quartararo dominant after Day 1 ahead of Miller, Martin, Pol Espargaro and Marc Marquez.

Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team) was sixth quickest, just ahead of Aleix Espargaro. Austrian GP winner Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) impressed with one of his best Fridays of the season so far, riding at the track for the first time in the premier class, as he took eighth.

2019 Silverstone winner Alex Rins (Team Suzuki Ecstar) was ninth, with Valentino Rossi (Petronas Yamaha SRT) completing the top ten on Day 1 after a solid day at the office for the ‘Doctor’ as he makes his last call at the British GP.

Reigning Champion Joan Mir (Team Suzuki Ecstar), riding at the track for the first time in MotoGP after having missed the 2019 edition through injury, was 13th.

Dixon shaved another 1.3 seconds off his best lap in the afternoon, getting to within around 1.2 of Alex Marquez and Miguel Oliveira (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) ahead of him.

2021 MotoGP Combined Friday Practice

2021 MotoGP Standings

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Moto2

Raul Fernandez (Red Bull KTM Ajo) may be a Moto2 rookie and heading into Silverstone with less overall experience than many, but that didn’t stop him on Day 1 of the Monster Energy British Grand Prix. The Austria winner managed to pip 2019 Silverstone podium finisher Jorge Navarro (Lightech Speed Up) by just 0.017, with home hero Sam Lowes (Elf Marc VDS Racing Team) third overall but another three tenths back.

FP1

Navarro was the fastest rider in the morning, beating most recent Silverstone Moto2 winner Augusto Fernandez (Elf Marc VDS Racing Team) to the top by jut under a tenth and a half. The two had a huge advantage over the rest, with Championship leader Remy Gardner (Red Bull KTM Ajo) in third but 0.582 off the top.

Raul Fernandez started his Silverstone Moto2 debut well in fourth, 0.125 off Gardner, with Joe Roberts (Italtrans Racing Team) making a leap back up the timesheets into the postcode more expected of the American as he took fifth – pipping home hero Lowes. The Brit was also the only faller of the session, but rider ok.

FP2

FP2 saw Raul Fernandez strike back. He was fastest, Navarro took over, and then the number 25 finally laid down his 2:04.501 to stay quickest. Lowes managed to leapfrog teammate Augusto Fernandez, and Gardner lurked in fifth.

Somkiat Chantra (Idemitsu Honda Team Asia), Albert Arenas (Kipin Energy Aspar Moto2) and Marco Bezzecchi (Sky Racing Team VR46) all crashed, riders ok.

Moto2 Combined Friday Practice

The top 12 all set their best efforts in FP2, so it’s Raul Fernandez, Navarro, Lowes, Augusto Fernandez and Gardner in the top five.

Fabio Di Giannantonio (Federal Oil Gresini Moto2) took sixth ahead of Bezzecchi, with Roberts in P8 as he retained good speed in the afternoon. Nicolo Bulega (Federal Oil Gresini Moto2) was ninth quickest, with Aron Canet (Kipin Energy Aspar Team) rounding out the top ten.

Xavi Vierge (Petronas Sprinta Racing) was 11th, with Ai Ogura (Idemitsu Honda Team Asia) in P12 and the last of those on for a provisional place in Q2 who set their best in FP1.

Pertamina Mandalika SAG teammates Bo Bendsneyder and Tom Lüthi, the latter racing at the British GP for the final time before retiring, took P13 and P14 on the combined times thanks to their FP1 bests.

Moto2 Combined Friday Practice Times

Moto2 Championship Standings

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Moto3

Romano Fenati (Sterilgarda Max Racing Team) ends Day 1 of the Monster Energy British Grand Prix as the fastest man in Moto3, the Italian taking to the top in both sessions to lay an early claim to Silverstone. By the end of play, Ayumu Sasaki (Red Bull KTM Tech3) had cut over half a second to a tenth and a half of advantage, with Niccolo Antonelli (Avintia VR46 Academy) returning from injury to get within 0.199 of the top.

FP1

Fenati absolutely dominated the timesheets in FP1. The Italian was six tenths clear of the field, although that field was led by Jeremy Alcoba (Indonesian Racing Gresini Moto3) despite the Spaniard never having raced at Silverstone. His teammate Gabriel Rodrigo was just half a tenth further back.

Sasaki was fourth, fast from the off and 0.060 ahead of Championship leader Pedro Acosta (Red Bull KTM Ajo) as the rookie hit the ground running. His closest challenger – and the Austrian GP winner – Sergio Garcia (Valresa GASGAS Aspar Team) was 14th quickest.

John McPhee (Petronas Sprinta Racing) was unfortunately the first crasher at the British GP, but he was up and ok. Lorenzo Fellon (SIC58 Squadra Corse), Deniz Öncü (Red Bull KTM Tech3) and Stefano Nepa (BOE Owlride) also went down, riders ok.

FP2

Fenati was once again the man to beat, and had a similar advantage to the morning until the final few minutes. Sasaki was then able to cut that gap, and Antonelli too, with three riders in two tenths a lot more Moto3-esque.

Riccardo Rossi (BOE Owlride) impressed to take P4, with Dennis Foggia (Leopard Racing) just 0.006 further back.

Filip Salač (CarXpert PrüstelGP) was the sole faller. He went down at Turn 1, rider ok.

Moto3 Combined Timesheets

All improved in the afternoon barring Alcoba and Yuki Kunii (Honda Team Asia), leaving the top 14 – and potential Q2-graduates – unchanged from the FP2 results.

Fenati, Sasaki, Antonelli, Rossi and Foggia are therefore the top five, with Darryn Binder (Petronas Sprinta Racing) slotting into sixth ahead of Deniz Öncü as the Turk bounced back from his FP1 crash. So did Fellon, and the French rookie impressed in P8.

Acosta is ninth on the combined timesheets ahead of Rodrigo, with Jaume Masia (Red Bull KTM Ajo), Izan Guevara (Valresa GASGAS Aspar Team) and Nepa the last set to move through as it stands. McPhee was the rider just denied, with Garcia down in P17.

Moto3 Combined Friday Practice Times

Moto3 Championship Standings

2021 British Grand Prix – Silverstone Schedule

Source: MCNews.com.au