Tag Archives: Maverick Vinales

Race reports, results and points from Misano MotoGP II

2020 MotoGP Round Eight – Misano II

MotoGP Race Report


The season began pretty well for Maverick Viñales (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) in Jerez as the Spaniard took two podiums and a solid haul of points, but after a tough race in Brno, a dramatic Austrian GP and then a high-speed bailout in Styria, ‘Top Gun’ arrived at Misano poised to hit back. Last weekend it didn’t quite go to plan, but take two in the Gran Premio TISSOT dell’Emilia Romagna e della Riviera di Rimini saw everything fall into place as the Spaniard seared his way to his first win of the season and catapulted himself to within one point of the Championship lead. He also becomes the sixth rider so far to stand on the top step in 2020.

‘Top Gun’ hits the bullseye to become the sixth different winner of the season

Viñales broke clear early on, lost out to Francesco Bagnaia (Pramac Racing) and then started to haul the Italian back in, the number 12’s tactics readying us for a crescendo at the front. Heartbreak then hit for Bagnaia as the Italian crashed out from what looked like an almost certain victory. Viñales swept past the stricken Pramac Ducati rider and kept it inch perfect to the flag for those invaluable 25 points. Joan Mir (Team Suzuki Ecstar) sliced through from P11 on the grid for another stunning podium in second, with more drama just behind him as Pol Espargaro (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) took third back from Fabio Quartararo (Petronas Sprinta Racing) as the latter was given a time penalty for exceeding track limits and failing to complete a Long Lap Penalty. The Frenchman looked dark as he retured to the pits and stormed out the back beyond the view of the cameras.

Vinales the sixth different winner so far this season

As to be somewhat expected, Jack Miller (Pramac Racing) got a great launch from P2 to grab the holeshot as the lights went out, with polesitter Viñales slotting into second, Quartararo initially holding onto P3 and Bagnaia making up a place to get past Pol Espargaro. Viñales didn’t take long to secure the lead though, the Spaniard up the inside at Turn 4 to mug Miller as Pecco had a very close look at getting past Quartararo at Turn 8 – although there was no way through for now.

Jack Miller

Drama then unfolded behind for San Marino GP winner Franco Morbidelli (Petronas Yamaha SRT) as Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia Racing Team Gresini) tucked the front and collected the Italian, Morbidelli somehow staying on and continuing but the Italian pushed back to dead last…

Unbeknownst to anyone, a tear-off from Fabio Quartararo, through a dire stroke of misfortune, entered the air-box of Jack Miller’s Pramac Ducati. The tear-off effectively blocked the supply of air to the Desmosedici’s engine and Miller started drifting back through the field. After a confusing five laps for the Australian he then returned to the pits in frustration at the recalcitrant antics of his machine. The reason only found much later when mechanics investigated the gremlin… The Australian then posted this image of the offender on his Instagram story.

A tear-off from Fabio Quartararo through a dire stroke of misfortune entered the air-box of Jack Miller’s Pramac Ducati

Meanwhile at the front, Viñales had a 0.9 second lead over the line as the riders clocked onto Lap 2, but fortunes were flipped for his team-mate Valentino Rossi (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) as the ‘Doctor’ was soon out of his 250th Grand Prix with Yamaha. Down at Turn 4 and home podium dreams over, Rossi remounted but had a big ask on his hands to score points.

Valentino Rossi

In the meantime, Bagnaia had got past team-mate Miller for P2 and Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) had charged through to third at Turn 10 but it sadly didn’t last long; the South African down at Turn 14. Bagnaia up ahead, however, was unleashing the fastest lap of the race as the Italian locked his radar firmly onto the back of Viñales’ YZR-M1, edging closer as Pol Espargaro started to do the same to him…

Bagnaia, Miller

Bagnaia was right on Viñales on Lap 5 and by then, the duo were once again pulling away from Pol Esparagro and Quartararo, who was tucked in behind the number 44. Bagnaia set another fastest lap of the race – a 1:32.3 – and it seemed game on, with Viñales then slightly wide at Turn 4, opening the door. Bagnaia needed no second invitation and the Italian took the lead, then immediately half a second clear, although it subsequently stayed pretty constant at 0.6 seconds for a number of laps…

Bagnaia takes the lead from Vinales

Behind that chess match, Mir had managed to get to the front of the battle for the lower ends of the top 10 and get some clean air in front of him – although the gap to Quartararo and the podium was 3.5 seconds on Lap 7. The top two pounded on, Bagnaia started to edge away, and Mir kept chipping away behind.

Joan Mir worked his way steadily forward as Miller drifted backwards thanks to a tear-off blocking the air intake of his Ducati

As the laps went on, the Suzuki edged closer and closer as Bagnaia stretched his legs. Not long after though, it started to turn as Viñales chipped back a tenth and then two, with the lead back down to just over a second and the last few laps looking set to cook up a storm. By that time, Mir was also under two seconds away from the podium fight but with seven to go, huge drama then unfolded. Turn 6 was the place and Bagnaia the rider, the race leader sliding out in some late heartbreak as Viñales shot past. The number 12’s lead was over four seconds then – with no one else having been able to stay near the leading duo.

Pecco Bagnaia

The fight for the podium was then the focus. Quartararo was showing a wheel to Espargaro but the latter was defending brilliantly on his KTM… before Joan Mir finally appeared on the scene. 0.6 faster than the duo ahead of him with six laps to go, it was soon a three-rider dog fight for the remaining two spots on the podium. And also with six laps to go, Quartararo was handed a track limits warning – something that would prove to be costly for El Diablo shortly after.

The Pol Espargaro versus Fabio Quartararo battle was frenetic

With three to go, Mir struck. Turn 2 was the spot as the Spaniard shot through underneath and past Quartararo, and it wasn’t long before Mir was up to second as well. On the next lap at Turn 1, Mir was past Espargaro’s KTM and back into clear air. Quartararo then pounced on Pol at Turn 3 as well, Espargaro going from P2 to P4 in a matter of corners. It seemed that was that for the podium fight too, but there was one last shot of drama.

Mir caught up to the tussling Quartararo and Espargaro

For exceeding track limits too many times, Quartararo was then handed a Long Lap Penalty. His only time to do it? The the last lap. Would he see it? He was just over a second clear of Espargaro and four seconds ahead of fifth place Miguel Oliveira (Red Bull KTM Tech3), so it looked like he was going to lose P3…

Mir got Quartararo then Espargaro

Ahead on track, Viñales didn’t have any such troubles. ‘Top Gun’ rounded the last corner to take his first victory since the 2019 Malaysian GP in fine style, taking 25 vital points and moving to within one point of the top. Mir crossed the line a magnificent second to take his third rostrum in four races, and Quartararo took the chequered flag in third… but hadn’t taken the Long Lap. He was therefore demoted to P4 as it became a three-second penalty instead, handing Pol Espargaro his second podium of the season.

Vinales the sixth different winner so far this season

Behind Quartararo classified fourth, Oliveira was stunning in the second half of the race to finish P5, the Portuguese rider had serious pace but starting P15 ultimately cost the Styrian GP winner. The leading Honda across the line was Takaaki Nakagami (LCR Honda Idemitsu) in P6 as the Japanese rider showed strong late-race pace to get the better of Repsol Honda Team’s Alex Marquez in seventh. The reigning Moto2 World Champion produced his best MotoGP ride to date, finishing seven tenths away from Nakagami.

Alex Marquez was dicing inside the top ten

So where’s Dovi? The man still leading the Championship had a tougher day at Misano, but with Quartararo finishing fourth and that very points leader Andrea Dovizioso in P8, it’s the number 04 still ahead. Viñales is now level on points with Quartararo but technically behind him as he has less wins, with Mir now just four points from the title leader – madness!

Dovizioso found himself dicing with Alex Marquez at Misano II – And it was Alex that got the better result…

Despite sitting last on the opening lap, an unwell Morbidelli recovered to salvage a brilliant P9, with fellow Italian Danilo Petrucci (Ducati Team) completing the top 10. Johann Zarco (Esponsorama Racing), Alex Rins (Team Suzuki Ecstar) and Bradley Smith (Aprilia Racing Team Gresini) were the only other finishers in 11th, 12th and 13th respectively.

Iker Lecuona (Red Bull KTM Tech3) crashed out of P6 with two and bit laps to go after stringing together a fantastic race, Rossi pulled in with 12 laps to go after his crash, and Miller encountered issues early on that he later revealed had been caused by a visor tear-off blocking the air filter. Tito Rabat (Esponsorama Racing) crashed at Turn 1 on Lap 12 – rider ok.

Four riders, four points. That’s how it stands at the top of the MotoGP World Championship after the Misano double-header: Dovizioso, Quartararo, Viñales and Mir the quartet leading the way. But this is 2020, and this is MotoGP – it could all change in the blink of an eye! With Barcelona coming up in less than a week’s time, we don’t have to wait long to witness more unrivalled premier class action…

Maverick Viñales – P1

“Amazing, amazing job this weekend, we prepped really well for the whole race. Pecco was really fast! I was pushing a lot, I was trying to save a bit of tyre for the last ten laps, and then I started to push. I thought I was catching him, but then when he made a mistake I just tried to not crash, take the maximum points and wow. Fantastic, I’m really happy, my mentality is the same as the last weekend and last races, but we found a little bit better setup for the 20 litres at the beginning of the race. I made a mistake at Turn 4, I was pushing a lot at the beginning trying to open the gap – if were were only two riders it was good. I want to say thank you to all the people supporting me at home, because they know there have been tough times, but it seems it’s passed, now we have good luck and this is what counts! I’m very happy, I appreciate all the work and we need to continue like that, pushing very hard. We can have a lot more potential!”

Maverick Vinales

MotoGP Race Results

Pos Rider Bike Time/Gap
1 Maverick VIÑALES Yamaha 41m55.846
2 Joan MIR Suzuki +2.425
3 Pol ESPARGARO KTM +4.528
4 Fabio QUARTARARO Yamaha +6.419
5 Miguel OLIVEIRA KTM +7.368
6 Takaaki NAKAGAMI Honda +11.139
7 Alex MARQUEZ Honda +11.929
8 Andrea DOVIZIOSO Ducati +13.113
9 Franco MORBIDELLI Yamaha +15.88
10 Danilo PETRUCCI Ducati +17.682
11 Johann ZARCO Ducati +23.144
12 Alex RINS Suzuki +24.962
13 Bradley SMITH Aprilia +30.008
Not Classified
DNF Iker LECUONA KTM 3 Laps
DNF Francesco BAGNAIA Ducati 7 Laps
DNF Valentino ROSSI Yamaha 12 Laps
DNF Tito RABAT Ducati 15 Laps
DNF Jack MILLER Ducati 20 Laps
DNF Brad BINDER KTM 24 Laps

MotoGP World Championship Standings

Pos Rider Bike Points
1 Andrea DOVIZIOSO Ducati 84
2 Fabio QUARTARARO Yamaha 83
3 Maverick VIÑALES Yamaha 83
4 Joan MIR Suzuki 80
5 Franco MORBIDELLI Yamaha 64
6 Jack MILLER Ducati 64
7 Takaaki NAKAGAMI Honda 63
8 Miguel OLIVEIRA KTM 59
9 Valentino ROSSI Yamaha 58
10 Pol ESPARGARO KTM 57
11 Brad BINDER KTM 53
12 Alex RINS Suzuki 44
13 Johann ZARCO Ducati 36
14 Danilo PETRUCCI Ducati 31
15 Francesco BAGNAIA Ducati 29
16 Alex MARQUEZ Honda 24
17 Aleix ESPARGARO Aprilia 18
18 Iker LECUONA KTM 15
19 Bradley SMITH Aprilia 11
20 Tito RABAT Ducati 7
21 Cal CRUTCHLOW Honda 7
22 Michele PIRRO Ducati 4

Moto2

Italtrans Racing Team’s Enea Bastianini clinched an impressive Moto2 victory at Misano after rain played havoc at the Gran Premio TISSOT dell’Emilia Romagna e della Riviera di Rimini. Red flags were brought out after just seven laps as the heavens opened but, from the restart, and back in the dry, the ultra-aggressive Bastianini bolted clear to take the win ahead of Sky Racing Team VR46’s Marco Bezzecchi and EG 0,0 Marc VDS’ Sam Lowes. With his victory, the ‘Beast’ cut Luca Marini’s (Sky Racing Team VR46) title lead down to just five points.

Enea Bastianini

On the first start it was Petronas Sprinta Racing’s Xavi Vierge managing to squeeze his way into the lead pat Marini and the hit the front of a Moto2™ race for the first time in 2020, with a strong start coming in from his Petronas Sprinta Racing teammate too as Jake Dixon settled into fifth. The Italians suffered a few dramas in the early shuffles, but the biggest drama was about to come down as rain started and the flag came out to let the riders know. By then, Bastianini had muscled to the front and started to bolt despite the worsening weather, but the Red Flag came out not long after.

The riders filtered into pitlane and a ten lap restart was announced, but as the grid reformed, with everyone on slicks, the rain suddenly got heavier again. As the Moto2 field set off on their Warm Up lap, the entire grid instantly pointed skywards and began wagging fingers to signal it was far too wet for the race to start. The rain eventually subsided and, after a short delay, a dry-ish 10 lap dash was back underway – with Bastianini on pole as the grid formed up based on standings before the flag.

Lights out for the second time saw Marini take control into Turn 1, and Bastianini settling in behind him. The Beast struck immediately though at Turn 4, sending the pair wide and giving Vierge chance to pounce. The Spaniard took the lead and Marini lost out big time with his fellow Italian’s move dropping him back to fifth. Bastianini then hit the front at the end of the opening lap, and the plan appeared the same: BOLT.

The Italian made the most of Vierge and Marcel Schrötter (Dynavolt Intact GP) battling over second and didn’t need a second invitation, stretching his lead out to over a second after two laps.

Next, Marini lost out to Bezzecchi for fourth place and then got beaten up by Sam Lowes over fifth place, with valuable points slipping through the fingers of the Championship leader. Meanwhile, an incredible fight was ensuing between Vierge and Schrötter, the German moving through into Turn 7 and on the exit the pair were side by side, bashing elbows for good measure. Some more contact then saw Vierge crash out, with Schrötter dropping back to fourth and then fifth as Marini sliced with his way past. Lowes found himself up to third too, trying to go with the fastest man on the track with three laps left: Marco Bezzecchi.

He was eight tenths quicker than Bastianini and suddenly, just like a week ago, Bezzecchi was hunting down the race leader at some rate. By two laps to go it was seven tenths separating the two Italians at the front of the race, with Bezzecchi visibly throwing everything at it and Lowes in close company too. As they started the final lap, it was just half a second between the leading duo.

Despite the mounting pressure, Bastianini remained calm and didn’t fold, however, crossing the line seven tenths clear to take a third intermediate class win of 2020, and his second GP win at Misano. Bezzecchi came across the line in P2 for a third consecutive top three finish, even more closely followed by Sam Lowes. Marini, meanwhile, took 13 points in fourth place and kept hold of his World Championship lead. But only just, with Bastianini now only five points adrift and breathing down his neck heading to Barcelona next weekend…

Schrötter took fifth after his earlier dramas, with Jake Dixon the next man over the line after getting the better of Jorge Navarro (Beta Tools Speed Up) by three tenths. That’s Dixon’s best ever Grand Prix result and after an impressive fight for it, in the dry to boot. Rounding out the top ten were Fabio Di Giannantonio (Beta Tools Speed Up), Tom Lüthi (Dynavolt Intact GP) and Hector Garzo (FlexBox HP40), who jumped up following a one place penalty for Nicolo Bulega (Federal Oil Gresini Moto2) for exceeding track limits on the final lap.

Joe Roberts (Tennor American Racing) crashed before the restart in a monster high side, rider ok.

Enea Bastianini – P1

“I’m really happy to be here in first place, today was a strange race because we stopped twice but after I kept good pace in the third race and it was possible to keep a bit of distance from Marco. I put the soft rear tyre on, and it was pushing a bit more on the front and Marco was really close the last two laps! But I’m happy for this victory for my team and my family, and in my town… it’s incredible!”

2020 Misano II Moto2 podium L-R: Bezzecchi, Bastianini and Lowes

Moto2 Race Results

Pos Rider Bike Time/Gap
1 Enea BASTIANINI Kalex 9m50.709
2 Luca MARINI Kalex +0.509
3 Xavi VIERGE Kalex +0.775
4 Marco BEZZECCHI Kalex +0.798
5 Fabio DI GIANNANTONIO Speed Up +0.994
6 Marcel SCHROTTER Kalex +1.151
7 Sam LOWES Kalex +1.417
8 Jorge NAVARRO Speed Up +1.716
9 Jake DIXON Kalex +1.969
10 Aron CANET Speed Up +2.029
11 Nicolò BULEGA Kalex +2.338
12 Tetsuta NAGASHIMA Kalex +3.376
13 Augusto FERNANDEZ Kalex +3.742
14 Thomas LUTHI Kalex +3.85
15 Hector GARZO Kalex +4.22
16 Lorenzo BALDASSARRI Kalex +4.453
17 Mattia PASINI Kalex +6.222
18 Stefano MANZI MV Agusta +6.582
19 Simone CORSI MV Agusta +6.856
20 Marcos RAMIREZ Kalex +7.06
21 Lorenzo DALLA PORTA Kalex +7.845
22 Bo BENDSNEYDER NTS +8.926
23 Hafizh SYAHRIN Speed Up +9.087
24 Edgar PONS Kalex +11.116
25 Somkiat CHANTRA Kalex +11.877
26 Andi Farid IZDIHAR Kalex +13.024
27 Piotr BIESIEKIRSKI NTS +29.254
Not Classified
DNF Kasma DANIEL Kalex 1 Lap
DNF Joe ROBERTS Kalex 3 Laps

Moto2 World Championship Standings

Pos Rider Bike Points
1 Luca MARINI Kalex 112
2 Enea BASTIANINI Kalex 95
3 Marco BEZZECCHI Kalex 85
4 Jorge MARTIN Kalex 79
5 Tetsuta NAGASHIMA Kalex 68
6 Sam LOWES Kalex 67
7 Xavi VIERGE Kalex 59
8 Aron CANET Speed Up 50
9 Joe ROBERTS Kalex 45
10 Thomas LUTHI Kalex 45
11 Remy GARDNER Kalex 41
12 Lorenzo BALDASSARRI Kalex 39
13 Marcel SCHROTTER Kalex 37
14 Augusto FERNANDEZ Kalex 36
15 Jorge NAVARRO Speed Up 19
16 Hafizh SYAHRIN Speed Up 17
17 Stefano MANZI MV Agusta 15
18 Fabio DI GIANNANTONIO Speed Up 12
19 Jake DIXON Kalex 12
20 Hector GARZO Kalex 12
21 Nicolò BULEGA Kalex 12
22 Bo BENDSNEYDER NTS 5
23 Marcos RAMIREZ Kalex 5
24 Dominique AEGERTER NTS 4
25 Lorenzo DALLA PORTA Kalex 3
26 Somkiat CHANTRA Kalex 3
27 Simone CORSI MV Agusta 3

Moto3

Romano Fenati (Sterilgarda Max Racing Team) was back on the top step of the podium for the first time in over a year at Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli, the Italian veteran judging a last lap battle to perfection to pip compatriot Celestino Vietti (Sky Racing Team VR46). In doing so, Fenati takes Husqvarna’s first Grand Prix victory and becomes the most successful rider in the Moto3 class, overtaking both Joan Mir’s win count and Enea Bastianini’s podium record. He also becomes only the second Moto3 rider to win more than once at Misano, alongside Alex Rins. Ai Ogura (Honda Team Asia) completed the podium behind the home heroes, moving to within two points of Albert Arenas’ (Gaviota Aspar Team Moto3) Championship lead.

Romano Fenati

Polesitter Raul Fernandez (Red Bull KTM Ajo) got the initial launch off the line but Tony Arbolino (Rivacold Snipers Team) ultimately fired his way into Turn 1 ahead, with Championship leader Arenas making a good start from the second row to grab P3. Arbolino’s lead didn’t last long though, with Fernandez through at Turn 5 before Arenas was also past the Italian around the outside at Turn 13.

Further back, third in the Championship John McPhee (Petronas Sprinta Racing) was 17th after the opening couple of laps, not making great headway after having started P18. As Fernandez fought it out with Arbolino, Arenas and Vietti near the front though, the top 17 were still covered by two seconds.

After crashing out seven days prior, Arenas was on a mission. The Spaniard was leading from the front early doors, before Vietti took the baton and led for a fair chunk of time. Jaume Masia (Leopard Racing) was making good ground up to get the better of Fernandez and move into the top three too, and McPhee was starting to recover by the halfway point; the top 11 locked together and the British rider just behind Ogura at the back of that.

Into the final 10 laps, Vietti was making P1 his own, with Masia was now his immediate threat. Darryn Binder (CIP – Green Power) and Jeremy Alcoba (Kömmerling Gresini Moto3) came into contact heading down the back straight before Turn 11 – a close call – but with eight laps remaining, Binder wasn’t fazed and was up to P4 behind Vietti, Gabriel Rodrigo (Kömmerling Gresini Moto3) and Masia. Arenas then got the better of Binder for P4 in the 11-bike freight train, before a change came courtesy of Masia at Turn 8. Rodrigo and Vietti were lucky to stay upright too, as Rodrigo came into the contact with the Italian’s rear tyre.

With five to go, Arenas was almost down at Turn 1 as he ran out of room in the slipstream and just behind, Binder suffered a huge highside as he got shuffled by it too, the South African’s stunning Sunday charge over. With three to go, Vietti was still the race leader but it was all to play for in the lead group, with Ogura was making his presence in the top three known as he got the better of Arenas. With two to go, Masia then led into Turn 1 – and it was the start of some serious, fairing-bashing action. Arenas lunged into Turn 4, but Vietti was aggressive up the inside at Turn 5 and some contact was made between the duo. Further back, Alcoba made contact with McPhee at Turn 4 as well, which left the Scot down in P10.

Vietti led over the line to start the last lap, from Arenas and Fenati, with Masia and Ogura inside the top five. Arenas got a good run down into Turn 8 and was alongside the race leader, but Vietti was late and strong on the brakes. Then, Arenas made a classy move stick into Turn 10 and led with half a lap to go, but the slipstream played its part and heading into Turn 11 as Masia stormed up the inside of Vietti – who in turn was looking for a way through on Arenas – and it got breathtakingly close at high speed. After leading heading onto the straight, Arenas then found himself down in P5 just seconds later as Masia, Vietti, Fenati and Ogura stormed their way through.

At Turn 14 Masia went defensive in the lead, but that didn’t stop Vietti lunging up the inside and the Italian ended up a bit out of shape, some slight contact was made, and the top two were wide. Reading that perfectly and slicing through was Fenati, the veteran now in the lead and looking to defend it. That he did, as Vietti couldn’t find a way through and was forced to settle for second, just holding off Ogura to keep P2 as well. Masia was forced down to P5 with Arenas getting through, although the latter just holds onto the points lead…

Fernandez finishes P6 for the fourth time in 2020 to end the race just 0.4 from victory, with Deniz Öncü (Red Bull KTM Tech3) showing fantastic late-race pace to finish seventh. Andrea Migno (Sky Racing Team VR46) and Kaito Toba (Red Bull KTM Ajo) were also less than a second from the race win in 8th and 9th respectively, the duo finishing ahead of McPhee who now drops to 21 points off Arenas in the standings after a tougher race.

That’s it from Misano, with another twist in the title race as Ogura and Arenas head into Barcelona just two points apart.

Romano Fenati

“The final lap was really crazy, in the last part of the track I thought immediately on the last lap that I didn’t know where they’d overtake me, it was a bit scary! But the feeling with the bike was really good, we were really strong on braking, I’m really happy and now it’s important to be consistent and to always be strong.”

2020 Misano II Moto3 podium
1 Romano Fenati – Sterilgarda Max Racing Team – Husqvarna 39:30.124
2 Celestino Vietti – Sky Racing Team VR46 – KTM +0.036
3 Ai Ogura – Honda Team Asia – Honda +0.121

Moto3 Race Results

Pos Rider Bike Time/Gap
1 Romano FENATI Husqvarna 39m30.124
2 Celestino VIETTI KTM +0.036
3 Ai OGURA Honda +0.121
4 Albert ARENAS KTM +0.199
5 Jaume MASIA Honda +0.28
6 Raul FERNANDEZ KTM +0.439
7 Deniz ÖNCÜ KTM +0.678
8 Andrea MIGNO KTM +0.791
9 Kaito TOBA KTM +0.939
10 John MCPHEE Honda +1.125
11 Tony ARBOLINO Honda +1.452
12 Gabriel RODRIGO Honda +1.687
13 Jeremy ALCOBA Honda +4.331
14 Ayumu SASAKI KTM +5.925
15 Stefano NEPA KTM +6.165
16 Filip SALAC Honda +6.249
17 Sergio GARCIA Honda +7.167
18 Niccolò ANTONELLI Honda +12.714
19 Carlos TATAY KTM +18.045
20 Ryusei YAMANAKA Honda +20.184
21 Riccardo ROSSI KTM +20.498
22 Barry BALTUS KTM +20.291
23 Jason DUPASQUIER KTM +20.555
24 Khairul Idham PAWI Honda +24.967
25 Yuki KUNII Honda +25.264
26 Davide PIZZOLI KTM 27.159
27 Maximilian KOFLER KTM +27.848
Not Classified
DNF Darryn BINDER KTM 5 Laps
DNF Dennis FOGGIA Honda 13 Laps
DNF Alonso LOPEZ Husqvarna 15 Laps

Moto3 World Championship Standings

Pos Rider Bike Points
1 Albert ARENAS KTM 119
2 Ai OGURA Honda 117
3 John MCPHEE Honda 98
4 Celestino VIETTI KTM 86
5 Tatsuki SUZUKI Honda 75
6 Tony ARBOLINO Honda 75
7 Gabriel RODRIGO Honda 63
8 Jaume MASIA Honda 61
9 Raul FERNANDEZ KTM 61
10 Romano FENATI Husqvarna 47
11 Jeremy ALCOBA Honda 46
12 Dennis FOGGIA Honda 44
13 Darryn BINDER KTM 37
14 Andrea MIGNO KTM 36
15 Niccolò ANTONELLI Honda 26
16 Stefano NEPA KTM 23
17 Deniz ÖNCÜ KTM 22
18 Sergio GARCIA Honda 19
19 Kaito TOBA KTM 19
20 Filip SALAC Honda 12
21 Ryusei YAMANAKA Honda 12
22 Ayumu SASAKI KTM 10
23 Alonso LOPEZ Husqvarna 5
24 Carlos TATAY KTM 4
25 Riccardo ROSSI KTM 3

MotoE

Matteo Ferrari (Trentino Gresini MotoE) is back on top! After Race 1 at Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli saw the Italian’s winning streak come to an end, Sunday flipped the fortunes as the number 11 won his fourth race in five at the venue, ahead of a close battle for the podium between Mattia Casadei (Ongetta SIC58 Squadra Corse) and Jordi Torres (Pons Racing 40) ultimately won by the Italian. Big drama erupted at the front too, with former points leader Dominique Aegerter (Dynavolt Intact GP) getting taken out by Tommaso Marcon (Tech 3 E-Racing) and failing to score despite remounting.

MotoE

Polesitter Aegerter got the holeshot into Turn 1, tussling past Ferrari, but the the Italian made a move into the lead on the opening lap down into Turn 8 – and led over the line. Tommaso Marcon (Tech3 E-Racing) had made a good start and sat third, but Casadei dived up the inside at Turn 1 on Lap 2. That set the scene for the key drama in the race: trying not to lose the final podium position, Marcon broke late into Turn 2 but it was too late, and Aegerter was in the firing line. Marcon hit the number 77’s rear tyre as both riders went down at Turn 2. Both ok and Aegerter managing to remount but out of the fight for points.

The incident left Ferrari with a comfortable eight tenths advantage up front, with Casadei and Torres chasing the Italian. The gap between Ferrari and the Casadei-Torres battle got down to about half a second initially, but there it stayed as Torres was unable to make a pass stick. The Italian and Spaniard swapped positions at Turn 4 as Casadei ran wide, but Torres was then really wide at Turn 10 and the duo switched again. For Ferrari, it was just more breathing space at the front…

Heading onto the last lap, Ferrari had the win in the bag, but second and third were yet to be decided. Torres was hounding Casadei but the latter was supreme on the brakes into all the passing opportunities. Having a good run down the back straight through the fast Turns 11 and 12, Torres got his rear tyre smoking through Turn 13 and looked like he was going to make a late lunge into Turn 14. However, again, Casadei was simply brilliant on the brakes and Torres held station, taking the podiu and some valuable points. Meanwhile, 1.3 seconds up the road, Ferrari took the chequered flag in P1 to stand on the top step of the podium for the fourth time in five at Misano, taking the points lead.

Casadei rode an awesome race to keep Torres behind him to the line, the duo both happy with podiums at Misano and right in the hunt near the front, with just 15 points covering Ferrari, Aegerter, Torres and Casadei heading into the final round at Le Mans.

Fourth place went the way of Niccolo Canepa (LCR E-Team) who picks up his best result of the season, and the same is true for rookie Alessandro Zaccone (Trentino Gresini MotoE) in P5 in Race 2. After his Race 1 crash at Turn 16, Mike Di Meglio (EG 0,0 Marc VDS) was able to pick up a solid P6, just 0.051 ahead of Eric Granado (Avintia Esponsorama Racing) as both fought through after starting from the back of the grid due to their Race 1 crashes and the new Race 2 grid format.

Alex de Angelis (Octo Pramac MotoE) also crashed in Race 1, and the Sammarinese rider was happy to claim a P8 finish at his home race, with Alejandro Medina (Openbank Aspar Team) being forced to drop one position to P9 after exceeding track limits on the last lap. P10 went the way of Xavi Cardelus (Avintia Esponsorama Racing).

Maria Herrera (Openbank Aspar Team) finished P11, with 12th place Niki Tuuli (Avant Ajo MotoE) given a time penalty for exceeding track limits. Rookie Jakub Kornfeil (WithU Motorsport) was able to finish P13 and take some points, ahead of an unfortunate Xavier Simeon (LCR E-Team). The Belgian’s title hopes took a huge dent as he was forced to start from pitlane due to a technical issue before the race start.

After his huge crash in Race 1, Lukas Tulovic (Tech3 E-Racing) somehow managed to finish Race 2 in P15, with Aegerter taking the flag in P16 after his unfortunate crash.

Another dramatic MotoE race ends with Ferrari now sitting at the top of the standings heading into the final round and another double-header. Ferrari, Aegerter, Torres and Casadei are split by just 15 points heading to France..

2020 Misano II MotoE Race 2 podium
1 Matteo Ferrari – Trentino Gresini MotoE – Energica – 12:11.053
2 Mattia Casadei – Ongetta SIC58 Squadra Corse – Energica – +0.996
3 Jordi Torres – Pons Racing 40 – Energica – +1.098

MotoE Race Two Results

Pos Rider Bike Time/Gap
1 Matteo FERRARI Energica 12m11.053
2 Mattia CASADEI Energica +0.996
3 Jordi TORRES Energica +1.098
4 Niccolo CANEPA Energica +3.907
5 Alessandro ZACCONE Energica +4.619
6 Mike DI MEGLIO Energica +6.046
7 Eric GRANADO Energica +6.097
8 Alex DE ANGELIS Energica +6.775
9 Alejandro MEDINA Energica +6.672
10 Xavi CARDELUS Energica +7.042
11 Maria HERRERA Energica +7.868
12 Niki TUULI Energica +11.514
13 Jakub KORNFEIL Energica +12.652
14 Xavier SIMEON Energica +15.533
15 Lukas TULOVIC Energica +27.21
16 Dominique AEGERTER Energica +38.363
Not Classified
DNF Josh HOOK Energica 2 Laps
DNF Tommaso MARCON Energica 6 Laps

MotoE World Championship Standings

Pos Rider Bike Points
1 Matteo FERRARI Energica 86
2 Dominique AEGERTER Energica 82
3 Jordi TORRES Energica 79
4 Mattia CASADEI Energica 71
5 Eric GRANADO Energica 43
6 Niccolo CANEPA Energica 42
7 Xavier SIMEON Energica 37
8 Mike DI MEGLIO Energica 35
9 Alex DE ANGELIS Energica 29
10 Lukas TULOVIC Energica 28
11 Alejandro MEDINA Energica 28
12 Alessandro ZACCONE Energica 26
13 Josh HOOK Energica 23
14 Xavi CARDELUS Energica 23
15 Tommaso MARCON Energica 22
16 Maria HERRERA Energica 17
17 Niki TUULI Energica 12
18 Jakub KORNFEIL Energica 11

Source: MCNews.com.au

Half-a-second covers Misano II MotoGP Grid Top Ten

2020 MotoGP Round Eight – Misano


MotoGP Qualifying Report

Maverick Viñales (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) has done it again. A week on from pole at the San Marino GP, the Spaniard slammed in 1:31.077 to set a new lap record in qualifying at the Gran Premio TISSOT dell’Emilia Romagna e della Riviera di Rimini, taking his third pole of the season and third in succession at Misano when including 2019. It was still pretty close, however, with Jack Miller (Pramac Racing) cutting the gap to 0.076 as the Australian leapt up the time-sheets to take second on the grid, with Fabio Quartararo (Petronas Yamaha SRT) taking third to lock out the front row.

2020 Misano II MotoGP front row
1 Maverick Viñales – Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP – Yamaha – 1:31.077
2 Jack Miller – Pramac Racing – Ducati – +0.076
3 Fabio Quartararo – Petronas Yamaha SRT – Yamaha – +0.145

Sunny skies on the Riviera di Rimini since the paddock arrived have seen the times tumble and tumble, right down to another new lap record in Q2. On the way there though, there was Q1 to decide first and it was a real shootout. In the end, Miller was the man on top, with Andrea Dovizioso (Ducati Team) in second as two of the key contenders moved through to fight it out for the top 12.

Once Q2 was underway, it was a familiar story for Viñales: two stops, three runs. He was the man on top first as Bagnaia slotted into P2, but then the Italian really got the hammer down on his second lap – a 1:31.313 handing the Pramac Racing rider provisional pole. Quartararo then slotted into P2 less than a tenth off ‘Pecco’, with Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Brad Binder slotting into third ahead of Viñales and teammate Pol Espargaro.

Quartararo was right on the money again though, just 0.032 off Bagnaia coming through Sector 3, but the Frenchman made a mistake coming into Turn 16 – lap over. That was the first runs down for most but as the field filed in, Viñales was back out.

Already on his second run, ‘Top Gun’ was flying. The number 12 nailed the lap to the end but he still didn’t quite manage to beat Bagnaia, 0.073 off and forced to reload for another run at it. Next time around the Spaniard was a quarter of a second up through the first sector and it looked like this might be it, but he lost time in the middle of the lap – with just 0.013 covering him and Bagnaia into the final sector. Viñales was on rails through Sector 4 though and sure enough, a Yamaha was at the summit – a 1:31.268 was now the time to beat for pole position.

Maverick Viñales

Meanwhile Joan Mir (Team Suzuki Ecstar) – one of the pre-race favourites – was lingering down in P10 after his opening few flying laps, one-lap pace still seemingly hampering the Spaniard and Suzuki on Saturday afternoons. Dovizioso was P8 heading into the final three minutes, and his nearest title rival Quartararo P3. With two minutes to go though, Dovizioso found some time and moved up into P6 – a provisional second row start.

Tucked in behind VR46 Academy protégé Bagnaia, Valentino Rossi (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) then improved from P9 to P5, shuffling Dovizioso onto Row 3, as Binder and Bagnaia lit the timing screens red. The South African moved into P3 with a great lap, but an even greater one (kind of) was coming in for Bagnaia. The Ducati rider rounded the final corner with Rossi and Miller in tow and it was a scintillating 1:30.973, the fastest ever lap round Misano, but it had looked outside track limits… and it ultimately was. Bagnaia’s record-breaker was cancelled for the infraction on the exit of Turn 16 – the same thing that had bitten Viñales earlier in the season.

Miller’s lap, meanwhile, put him second and then provisional pole as Bagnaia’s lap disappeared off the screen, but Viñales was still out on the hunt. The San Marino GP polesitter would take the chequered flag in P1 with another new Misano outright lap record, making it three poles in a row for Viñales, and Yamaha, at Misano as well as Viñales’ fourth overall at the venue. That, in turn, sees him equal Jorge Lorenzo for most MotoGP™ poles at the track.

Quartararo set a personal best on his last lap to claim P3, 0.069 off Miller, with Pol Espargaro just beating Bagnaia’s valid fastest time to give the KTM rider his second best qualifying result of the season. Bagnaia didn’t seem too disheartened in fifth, however.

Binder joins his KTM team-mate Pol Espargaro on Row 2 after qualifying in sixth, which is also the rookie’s best Saturday afternoon result of 2020. Rossi spearheads the third row in P7, The Doctor just three-tenths away from Viñales’ time, with the nine-time World Champion sitting ahead of San Marino GP winner Franco Morbidelli (Petronas Yamaha SRT). It was P8 for Morbidelli this time around, who is nursing an illness this weekend.

Danilo Petrucci (Ducati Team) eventually got the better of teammate Dovizioso and the factory GP20 machines will line-up P9 and P10 for the Emilia Romagna GP. What can the title chase leader do from P10? And what can Mir do from P11 on the grid? The Suzuki rider has been one of the leading contenders throughout the weekend, but finishing outside the top 10 in Q2 wasn’t how the script was supposed to go – although it’s only 0.540 covering the leading 11 riders. Takaaki Nakagami (LCR Honda Idemitsu) will want more too, the Japanese rider having crashed at Turn 15 in the early stages. Rider ok, and P12.

The top six in Emilia Romagna GP Q2 were all faster than last week’s pole position, but it’s the same man emerging at the top. Viñales will again launch from pole at Misano, but he’ll be hoping the story of the race plays out a little different his time around.

2020 MotoGP Misano Qualifying Quotes

Maverick Vinales – P1

“We worked really hard today and we got the job done. We hope that tomorrow all the hard work will pay off as well. We are going to try the maximum. I’m very happy and comfortable with the bike. I was very relaxed in FP4 in conditions that are similar to tomorrow’s race, so we will see. Today I focused mainly on riding with a full fuel tank and the race set-up. Tomorrow is a new opportunity to improve. If we don’t, we will try again at the next race in Montmeló. We have good potential, and I think we can still do better. We’re going to try to be at the best level.”

Maverick Viñales is on pole for the third time this season, along with Austria and San Marino, which is as much as the whole of 2019. It’s his fourth pole at Misano, equalling Jorge Lorenzo as the riders with most poles here. This is Viñales’ 12th premier class pole, equalling Johnny Cecotto and one less than Loris Capirossi and Sete Gibernau.
Jack Miller – P2

“Very happy for the qualifying, I didn’t make the Q2 directly, but we have been working all the weekend, we tried many different tires combination, now we know very clear which tire and set up we are going to use. The most important thing will be do a good start,  and be in front row for sure will help.”

Passing through Q1, Jack Miller qualified second as the top Ducati. This equals best qualifying result from the Austrian GP, which is his only other front row start so far this season. This is Ducati’s best qualifying result at Misano since Jorge Lorenzo was on pole in 2018 ahead of Miller in second.
Fabio Quartararo – P3

“It was a tough qualifying and I didn’t feel that good on the bike. I was surprised with my lap because I made a mistake in Turn 14, but it was still good enough. I’m happy to be on the front row again, this was our main goal and also our pace is great. We tried many things in FP4 with the bike, so it was a little bit difficult for us, but we’ve shown that we have a good pace and I’m feeling strong. I think there are seven or eight riders who could fight for the victory tomorrow. It will be important to have a good start, which I have been working on this weekend to improve. I think it will be a fun race and hopefully we should be able to have a good result.”

Fabio Quartararo has qualified third for his 19th front row start in MotoGP. On his 18 previous front rows, he went on to finish on the podium nine times (50% rate), including two wins.
Pol Espargaro – P4

“I’m very happy because it was a crazy fast lap and it was difficult to put it all together. There was a lot of risk today. In the end the fast lap came through taking chances through those left corners and I ‘sent it’ through the last sector. I did not care so much about crashing, I wanted the lap. I’m happy we got the time, but we also had an amazing performance with our rhythm in FP4 and this is what matters for tomorrow’s race.”

Pol Espargaro has qualified fourth as the highest-placed KTM rider, which is the fifth time this year he starts from the front two rows (although he qualified seventh in Spain and started from sixth).
Pecco Bagnaia – P5

“Unfortunately I made a mistake and I touched the green area when the pole was mine, in T3 I had a big advantage and I didn’t have an advantage touching the green indeed I lost time but the rules are made to be respected and I made a mistake. I’m sorry because I would like to do my first pole position in MotoGP here in Misano. Our pace is one of the fastest, also Yamaha and Mir but we can play it.”

Francesco Bagnaia, who missed out on pole after exceeding track limits, has qualified fifth, which means he’s been on the front two rows for all the races he’s started this season (Spain, Andalucia, San Marino and Emilia Romagna). He will be aiming to take his second MotoGP podium following last Sunday.
Brad Binder – P6

“Much better. Much happier with qualifying today and to be in 6th place is fantastic. Not only is the rhythm better but also the lap-time: 1.2 seconds faster. In the second exit of FP2 we made some changes that gave me a little bit more feedback from the front tire as well as a little bit more support on the rear, so I felt stronger and it gave me the opportunity to push a bit harder. The more I pushed the better I felt, so it was good. I’m not really setting a goal on positions tomorrow. All I know is that starting in 6th position is going to be much nicer than last week. Starting in 16th was so tough. I’m happy with the steps we have made so hats-off to the boys for getting everything ready and we’ll try to have a solid race tomorrow.”

Brad Binder has qualified sixth for the best qualifying result of his rookie season in MotoGP so far. This is the second time there are two KTMs within the top six in MotoGP qualifying, along with Brno last year.
Valentino Rossi – P7

“Today was a good day for me, because during this second weekend in Misano everybody raised their level, but so did we. We were able to improve the setting of the bike and to be stronger. In the afternoon, in FP4, we made some modifications to the bike that give me more grip, so I feel good and I have a good pace. I’m not very happy about my position in the quali. It’s true that I’m only 0.3s off pole, but I had the potential to do better, because my bike was good and worked well. I didn’t ride fantastic on my hot lap, and I can do better. Anyway, I will start from seventh. A lot of riders have good pace, but we are also strong. Starting from the third row is a bit difficult: you have to do everything well from the start. But like I said, I feel stronger than last week, and we improved in some places where I was losing something last week. So, I hope I will be able to fight for the top positions.”

Heading the third row is Valentino Rossi, who is the most successful current rider in MotoGP at Misano with three wins. This is the fifth time so far this year he has failed to qualify within the top six on the grid.
Franco Morbidelli – P8

“Today was not too bad. I am feeling better than yesterday, but I am still not 100% so I had to manage this in today’s sessions. In qualifying I didn’t feel like I had the energy to be able to attack how I wanted, but I will try to rest some more to be as prepared as possible for the race. The pace doesn’t look too bad, but we do still need to decide which tyres we will use. I think tomorrow’s race will be more demanding compared to last Sunday. I have been sick all week, lost one day of testing and I don’t feel completely fit yet. The gap between a lot of riders is really tight so I think it will be a close race.”

Danilo Petrucci – P9

“Finally, we were able to find some solutions that have improved my feeling with the bike. Unfortunately, in qualifying, I wasn’t precise, and I made some mistakes that made me lose a few tenths. In general, I am satisfied because I’m back being fast and I’m happy with the steps forward that we’ve been able to make. Let’s see how tomorrow’s race will go: it will be crucial to know how to manage the tyres well.”

Andrea Dovizioso – P10

“It has been a difficult day. This morning we weren’t able to get through to Q2 directly, but luckily we found something in FP4 that improved my feeling with the bike, and that allowed me to set the second-fastest time in Q1. Unfortunately, in Q2, I wasn’t able to do a perfect lap. Tomorrow we will start the race quite from behind, but I hope this won’t penalise us too much”.

After passing through Q1, Andrea Dovizioso, who has finished on the podium twice at Misano in MotoGP including a win in 2018 (the last win for Ducati at the track to date), has qualified 10th, which is his worst qualifying result at Misano in MotoGP since he was 14th in 2008.
Joan Mir – P11

“I improved my pace today, which was good, but I still for found it hard to set a fast lap. My one-lap pace is something I’ve struggled with for a while; I actually perform better with less grip and on worn tyres. For that reason I’m confident with my race pace, because I feel good with my bike and I know I can do well over race distance. It’s not easy starting from further back on the grid but I will fight to be on the podium again and try to take as many points as possible.”

Joan Mir
Takaaki Nakagami – P12

“It was a tough day for us, especially this afternoon as in FP4 I had one crash, then in qualifying Q2 I had a crash again. After the session I was disappointed because we ended up in P12, so it will be difficult for tomorrow’s race as the starting grid is not the best. But, fortunately, I am ok after these two crashes, it was high speed and there is quite a lot of damage to the bike. I’ll try to stay positive and the team will work hard to prepare another bike for tomorrow and we’ll see what happens. We’ll concentrate on tomorrow and be ready for the race.”

Takaaki Nakagami
Iker Lecuona – P13

“In FP3 I struggled and found it difficult to improve my lap time but finally, in FP4 we worked really well with used and harder tires, which made me truly confident for the Qualifying. I was so close to the Q2. I have to say, that I’m very happy anyway. I have a good feeling for tomorrow, we have a good pace for the race, so I’m looking forward to it.”

Iker Lecuona
Miguel Oliveira – P15

“It was not the best Qualifying for us. After this morning’s crash I lost a bit of feeling and I also hurt my right shoulder. In any case, we went faster than the whole weekend, so we must be happy for that. We have a hard race ahead tomorrow. We know that we are going to suffer a bit, especially because we start from behind. We can only take what we can, score the maximum amount of points possible and make a clever race. It’s a shame because we improved our speed a lot from last weekend to this one.”

Aleix Espargaro – P16

“Today I gave everything I could, starting from FP3 this morning, but it wasn’t enough to get into the top 10. I am disappointed because the RS-GP is working well. I have an outstanding feeling and I’m having fun riding. The only thing lacking is acceleration. I was able to follow various bikes and I’m able to keep pace with them. The problem is coming out of corners where even the riders who are slower than me have an advantage. This factor limits us particularly on the flying lap, because we are unable to exploit the extra grip of the new tyre. In any case, I’ll start aggressively and focused tomorrow. The gaps are still narrow, especially in terms of pace.”

Aleix Espargaro
Alex Marquez – P17

“Again, our race pace is looking quite good and in both practice sessions we did a good job. Our rhythm is good but we can’t make a big step like the others with the soft tyre. Since Jerez we have improved this and even since last weekend we have found some time but everyone else has also made a step. I feel good on the bike but when we put new tyre in, the situation changes. It will be a hard fight tomorrow starting from where we are but if we can make some moves at the start we can make some progress.”

Alex Rins – P18

“It seems like a difficult weekend for us. I don’t know why but I can’t quite find the same feeling that I had during the test. I’ve been going faster this weekend compared to last weekend, but all the other riders have also taken a step forward. So let’s see how I can manage the race tomorrow, my aim will be to recover as many positions as possible and give my best. At the moment my shoulder is feeling OK, and I’m continuing with my physiotherapy.”

Bradley Smith – P19

“Undoubtedly a tricky day. I don’t know if it was because of the wind or our settings, but I struggled a lot in the third sector. That’s also where I crashed in the tests, so that obviously doesn’t help my confidence. The FP4 session started off in the worst possible way, with a crash, but I’m pleased to have done my best time of the weekend in qualifying, managing to get my focus back. At the moment, we’re struggling to find something that will let us make a decisive step forward, but we won’t stop looking and working.”

Massimo Meregalli – Monster Yamaha Team Director

“Overall, we had a positive day today. We have seen how high the level is in MotoGP and how much everyone has improved since last week, so we knew this Q2 was going to be a hard one. After a not-so-good Friday, Maverick found his way again. He is looking even stronger than he did last week, both in terms of one-lap and long-distance pace. He is comfortable with the bike again, also during the longer stints, so we are feeling positive about tomorrow. It’s a pity Valentino lost the second row by just 0.047s, especially because his ideal time, combining all his best sectors, was almost 0.2s quicker. But, anyway, his confidence on the bike is quite good, as shown in FP3, and we know that Valentino is always able to bring something extra to the table on a Sunday. For sure, it will be another tough race, especially at the end of two full-on weeks of riding, but we’ll go into battle with 100% determination to get top results.”


MotoGP Qualifying Results

Pos Rider Bike Q Time/Gap
1 Maverick VIÑALES YAMAHA Q2 1m31.077
2 Jack MILLER DUCATI Q2 +0.076
3 Fabio QUARTARARO YAMAHA Q2 +0.145
4 Pol ESPARGARO KTM Q2 +0.231
5 Francesco BAGNAIA DUCATI Q2 +0.236
6 Brad BINDER KTM Q2 +0.312
7 Valentino ROSSI YAMAHA Q2 +0.359
8 Franco MORBIDELLI YAMAHA Q2 +0.489
9 Danilo PETRUCCI DUCATI Q2 +0.497
10 Andrea DOVIZIOSO DUCATI Q2 +0.504
11 Joan MIR SUZUKI Q2 +0.540
12 Takaaki NAKAGAMI HONDA Q2 +1.207
13 Iker LECUONA KTM Q1 (*) 0.156
14 Johann ZARCO DUCATI Q1 (*) 0.205
15 Miguel OLIVEIRA KTM Q1 (*) 0.282
16 Aleix ESPARGARO APRILIA Q1 (*) 0.353
17 Alex MARQUEZ HONDA Q1 (*) 0.639
18 Alex RINS SUZUKI Q1 (*) 0.716
19 Bradley SMITH APRILIA Q1 (*) 0.927
20 Tito RABAT DUCATI Q1 (*) 1.291
21 Stefan BRADL HONDA FP1 1.663

Moto2 Qualifying Report

A 1:35.271 for Luca Marini (Sky Racing Team VR46) – and a new lap record to boot – hands the Italian a second consecutive pole position of the season as he beat team-mate Marco Bezzecchi by just 0.036 in Moto2 Q2 at the Gran Premio TISSOT dell’Emilia Romagna e della Riviera di Rimini. Petronas Sprinta Racing’s Xavi Vierge completed the front row, 0.348 off pole position despite a late crash for the Spaniard.

2020 Misano II Moto2 front row
1 Luca Marini – Sky Racing Team VR46 – Kalex 1:35.271
2 Marco Bezzecchi – Sky Racing Team VR46 – Kalex +0.036
3 Jake Dixon – Petronas Sprinta Racing – Kalex +0.348

The first laps were slammed in and it was Bezzecchi who led the way from Vierge, but Marini’s second lap was absolutely incredible. Enea Bastianini’s (Italtrans Racing Team) FP3 lap record was a 1:35.649 in the morning, but that was obliterated by Marini. The Championship leader set a 1:35.271 to lay down the gauntlet, with Bezzecchi going P2, 0.195 seconds off. Aron Canet (Inde Aspar Team Moto2) and Jake Dixon (Petronas Sprinta Racing) got themselves into the top four in the early stages. too.

Sam Lowes (EG 0,0 Marc VDS) then jumped onto the provisional front row, 0.4 off, and went quicker on his next lap to get the gap down to 0.3, but the Brit remained P3. Meanwhile, Bezzecchi was on a charge and was right on Marini’s pace halfway around the lap. The Moto2 sophomore was then under his teammate’s blistering time by 0.032, but he couldn’t hold it to the line, ultimately missing out by 0.036. Just ahead of Bezzecchi was Vierge, who shot onto the front row in P3. That secured the position for Sunday although immediately after, the Spaniard tucked the front at Turn 1 – rider ok.

Lowes was then going great guns again and was less than a tenth away at the third checkpoint, but something went wrong in the fourth split and the British rider lost four tenths. Bezzecchi and Marini were again both setting a very similar pace to pole, but neither could maintain it to the line. Not that it mattered, as the Sky VR46 duo remained a class above in qualifying, the two Italians getting the business done on home turf once again on Saturday.

Despite his crash, Vierge kept P3 to secure his first front row start since the 2019 Dutch GP. Lowes threatened to displace the number 97 in the latter stages but couldn’t string a lap together, but the Brit will be pleased with P4, with a podium seemingly in sight for the rider who claimed P8 from pitlane last weekend. Bastianini will be hoping to challenge the leading Italians in the opening stages too in a bid to minimise the potential damage that could be caused with Marini and Bezzecchi on song.

Canet completes Row 2, the rookie sensation 0.532 from pole and having a much improved weekend at Misano second time around, but it was close as the Spaniard beat Jake Dixon by just 0.011. P7 is nevertheless Dixon’s best Moto2 qualifying result, and his first top ten since the 2019 Czech GP.

Beta Tools Speed Up’s Fabio Di Giannantonio lines up just behind Dixon in P8, and just ahead of teammate Jorge Navarro. Nicolo Bulega (Federal Oil Gresini Moto2) completed the top 10, the Italian seven tenths shy of compatriot Marini.

Augusto Fernandez (EG 0,0 Marc VDS) suffered a big crash at Turn 5 in Q2 – rider ok but to be reviewed on Sunday morning.

Moto2 Qualifying Results

Pos Rider Bike Q Time/Gap
1 Luca MARINI KALEX Q2 1m35.271
2 Marco BEZZECCHI KALEX Q2 +0.036
3 Xavi VIERGE KALEX Q2 +0.348
4 Sam LOWES KALEX Q2 +0.469
5 Enea BASTIANINI KALEX Q2 +0.518
6 Aron CANET SPEED UP Q2 +0.532
7 Jake DIXON KALEX Q2 +0.543
8 Fabio DI GIANNANTONI   ITA SPEED UP Q2 +0.657
9 Jorge NAVARRO SPEED UP Q2 +0.681
10 Nicolò BULEGA KALEX Q2 +0.708
11 Marcel SCHROTTER KALEX Q2 +0.762
12 Augusto FERNANDEZ KALEX Q2 +0.783
13 Tetsuta NAGASHIMA KALEX Q2 +0.816
14 Mattia PASINI KALEX Q2 +0.883
15 Hector GARZO KALEX Q2 +0.939
16 Thomas LUTHI KALEX Q2 +0.971
17 Lorenzo DALLA PORTA   ITA KALEX Q2 +0.974
18 Joe ROBERTS KALEX Q2 +1.125
19 Lorenzo BALDASSARRI   ITA KALEX Q1 (*) 0.175
20 Marcos RAMIREZ KALEX Q1 (*) 0.206
21 Stefano MANZI MV AGUSTA Q1 (*) 0.213
22 Edgar PONS KALEX Q1 (*) 0.422
23 Bo BENDSNEYDER NTS Q1 (*) 0.440
24 Simone CORSI MV AGUSTA Q1 (*) 0.631
25 Hafizh SYAHRIN SPEED UP Q1 (*) 0.740
26 Somkiat CHANTRA KALEX Q1 (*) 0.915
27 Kasma DANIEL KALEX Q1 (*) 1.280
28 Andi Farid IZDIHAR KALEX Q1 (*) 1.683
29 Piotr BIESIEKIRSKI NTS Q1 (*) 3.284

Moto3

Red Bull KTM Ajo’s Raul Fernandez clinched his third Moto3 pole position of the season at the Gran Premio TISSOT dell’Emilia Romagna e della Riviera di Rimini, putting in a late dash to take to the top. With just 30 seconds remaining on the clock, the Spaniard snatched it away from home hero Tony Arbolino (Rivacold Snipers Team) by a tiny 0.088, with fellow Italian Andrea Migno (Sky Racing Team VR46) putting in a late charge to lock out the front row, still within a tenth.

Moto3 front row
1 Raul Fernandez – Red Bull KTM Ajo – KTM – 1:41.705
2 Tony Arbolino – Rivacold Snipers Team – Honda +0.088
3 Andrea Migno – Sky Racing Team VR46 – KTM – +0.092

There was some drama earlier in the afternoon before the final charge, with last weekend’s San Marino GP winner John McPhee (Petronas Sprinta Racing) failing to make it out of Q1 and, as a result, starting 20th on the grid. Instead, it was Deniz Öncü (Red Bull KTM Tech 3) the first through from Q1, joined by eventual front row man Arbolino, Kaito Toba (Red Bull KTM Ajo) and Filip Salač (Rivacold Snipers Team).

Arbolino looked like he would be the star of the show too, with the Italian holding on to provisional pole heading into the final push of the session. A crash for Tatsuki Suzuki (SIC58 Squadra Corse) just ahead of him scuppered a chance to improve though, and Fernandez would go on to pounce. A late 1:41.705 from the Spaniard, despite being six tenths adrift of Celestino Vietti’s (Sky Racing Team VR46) new lap record set in FP3, was enough for Fernandez to take pole number three of the year.

The chequered flag came out not long after, with Vietti clinging on to the final front row place just behind Fernandez and Arbolino. His Sky Racing Team VR46 teammate Andrea Migno had other ideas, however, pushing him down to fourth before Albert Arenas (Gaviota Aspar Team Moto3) also pipped the number 13; the Championship leader making a valuable leap up from 16th to head the second row. Sterilgarda Max Racing Team’s Romano Fenati slots in just behind Vietti in sixth, meaning the number 55 has secured back-to-back slots on the front two rows of the grid for the first time since the Japanese and Australian Grands Prix back in 2017.

Fronting row three, meanwhile, is Q1 graduate Kaito Toba. He was set to be joined there by compatriot Suzuki, who was eighth quickest in the session, but the SIC58 rider was declared unfit for a broken wrist sustained in his crash, so Leopard Racing’s Jaume Masia moves up to start eighth. Reigning FIM Moto3 Junior World Champion Jeremy Alcoba (Kömmerling Gresini Moto3) will therefore get a third row start as he gains a place too, tenth fastest in the session but starting ninth. Dennis Foggia (Leopard Racing) will be the man completing the top ten on the grid.

As well as McPhee, who faces a fight back from 20th, there’s another name missing so far: Ai Ogura (Honda Team Asia). The man second overall in the standings, and polesitter last week, was P12 in Q2 but will start 11th, leaving him a little more work to do to take the fight to Arenas and cut back his five-point deficit.

Moto3 Qualifying Results

Pos Rider Bike Q Time/Gap
1 Raul FERNANDEZ KTM Q2 1m41.705
2 Tony ARBOLINO HONDA Q2 +0.088
3 Andrea MIGNO KTM Q2 +0.092
4 Albert ARENAS KTM Q2 +0.146
5 Celestino VIETTI KTM Q2 +0.168
6 Romano FENATI HUSQVARNA Q2 +0.256
7 Kaito TOBA KTM Q2 +0.258
8 Tatsuki SUZUKI HONDA Q2 +0.266
9 Jaume MASIA HONDA Q2 +0.339
10 Jeremy ALCOBA HONDA Q2 +0.424
11 Dennis FOGGIA HONDA Q2 +0.591
12 Ai OGURA HONDA Q2 +0.609
13 Deniz ÖNCÜ KTM Q2 +0.670
14 Filip SALAC HONDA Q2 +0.755
15 Stefano NEPA KTM Q2 +1.037
16 Ayumu SASAKI KTM Q2 +1.150
17 Barry BALTUS KTM Q2 +1.428
18 Sergio GARCIA HONDA Q2 +1.966
19 Gabriel RODRIGO HONDA Q1 (*) 0.341
20 John MCPHEE HONDA Q1 (*) 0.481
21 Darryn BINDER KTM Q1 (*) 0.494
22 Niccolò ANTONELLI HONDA Q1 (*) 0.528
23 Alonso LOPEZ HUSQVARNA Q1 (*) 0.645
24 Riccardo ROSSI KTM Q1 (*) 0.829
25 Ryusei YAMANAKA HONDA Q1 (*) 0.851
26 Khairul Idham PAWI HONDA Q1 (*) 0.987
27 Yuki KUNII HONDA Q1 (*) 0.994
28 Maximilian KOFLER KTM Q1 (*) 1.165
29 Carlos TATAY KTM Q1 (*) 1.195
30 Jason DUPASQUIER KTM Q1 (*) 1.571
31 Davide PIZZOLI KTM Q1 (*) 1.627

MotoE Qualifying

Jordi Torres (Pons Racing 40) took his first ever E-Pole – and first pole position in the Grand Prix paddock – on Saturday, coming out on top in another classic shootout to beat Matteo Ferrari (Trentino Gresini MotoE) by just 0.011. Points leader Dominique Aegerter (Dynavolt Intact GP) completed the front row for Race 1 of the FIM Enel MotoE World Cup at the Emilia Romagna GP.

There were no track limit infractions and no crashes in the session, but there was a splash of drama for Mattia Casadei (Ongetta SIC58 Squadra Corse) as he suffered an issue with his transponder. Given another E-Pole slot later in the session, the Italian got a second chance at it but it led to some last minutes nerves for the men on for a provisional front row start. Casadei’s lap, right at the end, wouldn’t show on timing screens – it would just appear once he crossed the line…

Ultimately though, Torres, Ferrari and Aegerter held on to much relief and a slight drum roll, with Casadei taking P7 and a third row start. In between the top three and the Italian, Row 2 is Eric Granado (Avintia Esponsorama Racing), Xavier Simeon (LCR E-Team) and Lukas Tulovic (Tech 3 E-Racing), the latter off the front row for the first time in 2020. Granado’s lap also merits a postscript, as the Brazilian was visibly cautious after falling foul of track limits in E-Pole last weekend.

MotoE Qualifying Results

Pos Rider Bike Time/Gap
1 Jordi TORRES Energica 1m43.154
2 Matteo FERRARI Energica +0.011
3 Dominique AEGERTER Energica +0.143
4 Eric GRANADO Energica +0.198
5 Xavier SIMEON Energica +0.263
6 Lukas TULOVIC Energica +0.278
7 Mattia CASADEI Energica +0.348
8 Mike DI MEGLIO Energica +0.691
9 Niki TUULI Energica +0.696
10 Alejandro MEDINA Energica +0.752
11 Alex DE ANGELIS Energica +0.836
12 Tommaso MARCON Energica +0.979
13 Niccolo CANEPA Energica +0.985
14 Xavi CARDELUS Energica +1.097
15 Josh HOOK Energica +1.348
16 Alessandro ZACCONE Energica +1.437
17 Maria HERRERA Energica +2.156
18 Jakub KORNFEIL Energica +2.811

MotoE Race One

Dominque Aegerter (Dynavolt Intact GP) emerged victorious from a last lap FIM Enel MotoE World Cup battle in Race 1 at the Gran Premio TISSOT dell’Emilia Romagna e della Riviera di Rimini, the Swiss rider beating title rivals Jordi Torres (Pons Racing 40) and Matteo Ferrari (Trentino Gresini MotoE) to the line as all three were covered by a tenth at the flag. To add some extra late drama, Ferrari crossed the line second but was demoted one position to P3 for exceeding track limits on the final lap.

It was Ferrari who got the holeshot into Turn 1 from second on the grid, with polesitter Torres slotting into P2. There was drama from the off though as Lukas Tulovic (Tech3 E-Racing) suffered a huge highside at Turn 2 in the middle of the pack, thankfully the riders avoided contact with Tulovic and the German rider headed to the medical centre for a check-up. Tech3 later confirmed Tulovic had suffered a broken third metacarpal bone in his right hand and he has some pain in his right ankle, but the doctors will decide tomorrow morning whether he is fit to ride in Race 2, which he wants to do.

After the shuffle at the start then, Ferrari was out front as a lead group of six formed by the end of Lap 1, with Aegerter grabbing second off Torres on Lap 2. Lap 3 then witnessed more drama – and it was big for both the race and standings. Free Practice pacesetter Eric Granado (Avintia Esponsorama Racing), having made his way past Mattia Casadei (Ongetta SIC58 Squadracorse) shortly before, went for an inside move on Xavier Simeon (LCR E-Team) at the tight Turn 4 right-hander. It looked like Granado had made the move stick but then the front of his Energica Ego Corsa suddenly washed away, with Simeon the unlucky party caught in the crossfire. Both riders were down and out of the race – thankfully ok – but that’s a disaster for their title hopes. It also means the duo will be starting from the back of the grid for Race 2 tomorrow…

That incident left a lead group of three riders up front, with Casadei 0.8 seconds adrift of Ferrari, Torres and Aegerter – the top quartet also the top four in the World Cup standings, making it a vital race. With three laps to go, Aegerter made his move on Torres at Turn 14 but the Spaniard was able to get the cutback – giving Ferrari a little bit of breathing space…

That was soon diminished though and at the start of the last lap, Aegerter again showed a wheel to Torres – and made a Turn 1 pass stick. Now, the top two in the standings were the top two in the race. Heading down the back straight into Turn 11, Ferrari remained ahead but you could tell what was coming: Aegerter was tucked into the slipstream of his rival and heading into Turn 14, the Swiss rider slammed up the inside of Ferrari and into the lead. Could the Italian hit back? Not quite, as Aegerter led through the final sector and held it into the final corner to claim a crucial Race 1 victory and his second win of the season.

In an attempt to beat Aegerter on the run to the line, Ferrari then exceeded track limits at Turn 16. Having crossed the line ahead of Torres, he was demoted one position and loses that chunk of points to boot, now back behind Torres overall. Nevertheless, the top three across the line were covered by just 0.103 seconds in whichever order!

Casadei took the chequered flag 2.5 seconds from victory to earn his fourth consecutive top five finish of 2020, with Tommaso Marcon (Tech3 E-Racing) completing the top five. Niccolo Canepa (LCR E-Team) finished P6, just over half a second ahead of a great gaggle of riders who battled it out for the remaining top 10 positions. Alejandro Medina (Openbank Aspar Team), Josh Hook (Octo Pramac MotoE), Xavi Cardelus (Avintia Esponsorama Racing) and Alessandro Zaccone (Trentino Gresini MotoE) crossed the line covered by just half a second to round out the top 10.

Alex de Angelis (Octo Pramac MotoE) and Mike Di Meglio (EG 0,0 Marc VDS) crashed unhurt in Race 1, and Niki Tuulu (Avan Ajo MotoE) jumped the start, given two Long Lap Penalties for the infraction.

Aegerter extended his lead in the standings to 19 points over Torres, with Ferrari two adrift of the Spaniard in P3. The podium finishers secure front row starts for Race 2 on Sunday as Race 1 results now set the second grid.

MotoE Race One Results

Pos Rider Bike Time/Gap
1 Dominique AEGERTER ENERGICA 0.000
2 Jordi TORRES ENERGICA 0.103
3 Matteo FERRARI ENERGICA 0.075
4 Mattia CASADEI ENERGICA 2.531
5 Tommaso MARCON ENERGICA 6.578
6 Niccolo CANEPA ENERGICA 7.695
7 Alejandro MEDINA ENERGICA 8.277
8 Josh HOOK ENERGICA 8.336
9 Xavi CARDELUS ENERGICA 8.553
10 Alessandro ZACCONE ENERGICA 8.640
11 Maria HERRERA ENERGICA 11.566
12 Jakub KORNFEIL ENERGICA 16.973
13 Niki TUULI ENERGICA 17.538
Not Classified
DNF Alex DE ANGELIS ENERGICA 4 laps
DNF Xavier SIMEON ENERGICA 5 laps
DNF Eric GRANADO ENERGICA 5 laps
DNF Lukas TULOVIC ENERGICA /
DNF Mike DI MEGLIO ENERGICA /

MotoE Championship Standing

Pos Rider Bike Points
1 Dominique AEGERTER Energica 82
2 Jordi TORRES Energica 63
3 Matteo FERRARI Energica 61
4 Mattia CASADEI Energica 51
5 Xavier SIMEON Energica 35
6 Eric GRANADO Energica 34
7 Niccolo CANEPA Energica 29
8 Lukas TULOVIC Energica 27
9 Mike DI MEGLIO Energica 25
10 Josh HOOK Energica 23
11 Tommaso MARCON Energica 22
12 Alex DE ANGELIS Energica 21
13 Alejandro MEDINA Energica 21
14 Xavi CARDELUS Energica 17
15 Alessandro ZACCONE Energica 15
16 Maria HERRERA Energica 12
17 Niki TUULI Energica 8
18 Jakub KORNFEIL Energica 8

2020 MotoGP Calendar

Rnd Date Circuit
1 08 March (Moto2/Moto3) Losail International Circuit
2 19 July Circuito de Jerez-Ángel Nieto
3 26 July Circuito de Jerez-Ángel Nieto
4 09 August Automotodrom Brno
5 16 August Red Bull Ring-Spielberg
6 23 August Red Bull Ring-Spielberg
7 13 September Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli
8 20 September Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli
9 27 September Barcelona – Catalunya
10 11 October Le Mans
11 18 October MotorLand Aragón
12 25 October MotorLand Aragón
13 08 November Comunitat Valenciana-Ricardo Tormo
14 15 November Comunitat Valenciana-Ricardo Tormo
15 22 November Autodromo Internacional do Algarve

Gran Premio Lenovo di San Marino e della Riviera di Rimini Schedule

Time Class Session
1620 Moto3 WUP
1650 Moto2 WUP
1720 MotoGP WUP
1805 MotoE Race 2
1900 Moto3 Race
2020 Moto2 Race
2200 MotoGP Race

Source: MCNews.com.au

Misano MotoGP Sunday Guide | Quotes from all riders after QP

2020 MotoGP Round Seven – Misano

Gran Premio Lenovo di San Marino e della Riviera di Rimini

Misano MotoGP Sunday Stats Guide


Maverick Viñales has qualified on pole position for the second time this season along with Austria. This is Viñales’ 11th pole in the premier class (his third in Misano), one less than Johnny Cecotto.

Maverick Viñales

This is the second successive Yamaha pole position at Misano (also with Viñales last year) and their seventh pole position since the track returned to the Grand Prix calendar in 2007.

Since 2007, only three riders have won the MotoGP race after qualifying on pole position in Misano: Casey Stoner (2007), Valentino Rossi (2009) and Dani Pedrosa (2010), with only Rossi riding a Yamaha.

Franco Morbidelli has qualified in second, equalling his best qualifying result since he stepped to MotoGP in 2018, along with Spain and Japan in 2019.

Fabio Quartararo has qualified third for his 18th front row start in MotoGP. On his 17 previous front rows, he went on to finish on the podium nine times, including two wins.

Valentino Rossi, who is the most successful rider on the current MotoGP grid at Misano with three wins, heads Row 2. This is his best qualifying here since he was second in 2016, when he also finished second for his most recent podium in Misano. He equals his best qualifying of the season so far from Andalucia.

Valentino Rossi

With Maverick Viñales, Franco Morbidelli, Fabio Quartararo and Valentino Rossi, this is the first time there are four Yamaha riders within the top four on the grid in the premier class since the 1988 Portuguese GP held in Jerez with Eddie Lawson, Wayne Rainey, Kevin Magee and Christian Sarron.

Jack Miller, who is the only rider who finished on the podium in the last two races, has qualified in fifth place for the second successive time (although he started from fourth in Styria), as the top Ducati rider. He will be aiming to take three successive podiums for the first time since 2014 in Moto3.

Francesco Bagnaia, who missed the last three races due to injury, has qualified sixth for the third time this year, along with Spain and Andalucia. He crashed out last year at Misano.

Alex Rins has qualified seventh for the second successive time (although he started from sixth in Styria) which are his best qualifying results since he was also seventh in Malaysia last year.

He and team-mate Joan Mir in eighth will be aiming to become the first Suzuki riders to stand on the podium at Misano since Chris Vermeulen and John Hopkins in 2007, which is also the only time so far that two Suzuki riders were on the podium in the MotoGP era.

Misano MotoGP Podium Stoner Vermeulen Hopkins
2007 Misano MotoGP Podium – Casey Stoner P1, Chris Vermeulen P2, John Hopkins P3

Andrea Dovizioso, who has been on the podium at Misano twice in MotoGP including a win in 2018 (the last win for Ducati at the track to date), has qualified ninth. It’s the fifth time this year he has failed to qualify on the front two rows of the grid.

Takaaki Nakagami has qualified in 14th as the highest-placed Honda rider. This is the first time there is no Honda rider within the top 12 on the grid since Honda came back to the premier class of GP racing in 1982 (excluding the 1982 French GP, which was boycotted due to safety concerns).


2020 MotoGP Misano Qualifying Quotes

Maverick Vinales – P1

“I‘m really happy because that lap was amazing! Not just because it gave me pole position, but more so because of the time itself. When I saw 1‘31.4s I thought “This is a good lap time!”. We knew our potential and took everything we had, and we made a really good lap. Honestly, I‘m quite happy and impressed that at the end of the day we were so fast. Breaking the lap record was really hard for me. This morning we were still riding 1‘31.9s. We weren‘t completely sure what we would be able to do in the afternoon, but I felt so good, especially in FP4 on the hard tyre. For tomorrow, we don‘t know what will happen, but today and also on Friday we were strong, so tomorrow we are going to try to be strong again. I will push from the beginning. For sure, the race will be very long and tough, so we‘re going to try to be smart, and then we‘ll see what we can do.”

Maverick Viñales
Franco Morbidelli – P2

“I am very happy: I was trying to make a good qualifying lap and I achieved it! At the finish line I was looking at the big screen, saw myself in first and I was hoping it would be my first pole position, and at my home GP. But unfortunately Maverick was faster. Second position is still an important spot to start tomorrow’s race from in order to have a good race. I have the chance tomorrow of taking my first MotoGP win and I will be trying to stay in the mix and see what happens. I’m feeling strong, but all the Yamahas are strong here, so I think there is still a little bit I need to improve. I’m ready to fight though.”

Franco Morbidelli chasing Jack Miller
Fabio Quartararo – P3

“It is good to be back on the front row, but today has been a bit strange. It’s like last year: we were super fast in FP3 but struggled with the front end in qualifying. I am pushing a lot and am on the limit but it wasn’t enough. The most important thing, of course, is the 27-lap race. I’m feeling positive because we have the pace for victory, so let’s see what happens. I’m really looking forward to it though, really confident, because we have the pace again. I think it could be a good fight tomorrow as all of us at the front have the same bike; it could make it very interesting. I’m hoping for a great battle.”

Fabio Quartararo
Valentino Rossi – P4

“My day was good. This morning was fantastic for me, because to finish FP3 in P1 is always a great feeling in Misano. Also, I had a good pace, and I felt good with the bike. Here at this track the Yamaha is very competitive, very strong. We need to come back at the top, to fight for top positions, because the two weekends in Austria were very difficult to manage. This afternoon we tried some different things. I was not fantastic, and everybody has big doubts about the tyres, both front and rear, because the choice is very open. So, we have to see, we have to fix some things. It‘s a shame about the front row, but starting from the fourth position is still good, and our pace is not so bad. It looks like the Yamahas have a very good pace. The battle will be hard as always, because especially Maverick, but also Quartararo and Franco, have been riding very well since Friday morning, so I think that we will have to start well, have to improve for tomorrow and try to fight for the podium.”

Valentino Rossi
Jack Miller – P5

“Not a bad day, I was fast since this morning, during the FP3 I had a small crashed but I’m ok. I did a decent lap on the qualifying and tomorrow I will start from the second row, so I’m happy, I did my best and tried to be fast as possible. I’m confident for tomorrow and we will do our best like always.”

Jack Miller
Pecco Bagnaia – P6

“I’m happy for today. My goal was the top 10 and tomorrow I will start from the second row and this is an important step for us. Yesterday I didn’t push at my maximum to understand my feeling, instead today I just thought about riding and I focused on it, carefree about my leg I’m confident for tomorrow, the only question will be the 26 laps of the race, because these days I never did a long run, but I’m feel ready.”

Alex Rins – P7

“I had good feelings today, better than yesterday, and I’m happy to start on the third row. I did my best lap during qualifying and I improved quite a lot during today, also my race pace is pretty strong. I think the race will be quite complex and it will be important to gain a good position in the early laps in order to fight later in the race.”

Joan Mir – P8

“We already knew that our fast lap wasn’t quite as good as the other guys, but we worked really hard and made some improvements which have helped, and in the end the grid position is OK. Another positive thing is that my race pace in FP4 was good with used tyres, so that gives me confidence. Tomorrow morning I will work a little bit more on getting the bike stopped, and let’s see what I can do in the race, the Yamaha riders will be hard to beat but I feel I can be competitive.”

Andrea Dovizioso – P9

“I’m happy because we were finally able to improve my feeling with the bike and today we got closer to the front riders. Unfortunately, we couldn’t do better than the ninth place in qualifying; our goal today was to finish at least in the second row because here in Misano the start is short and quite narrow. Now we will try to take another step forward in tomorrow morning’s warm-up. The goal for the race tomorrow will be fighting in the top five positions.”

Andrea Dovizioso
Johann Zarco – P10

“I want to be on the top 6, because be on the two first rows are very important for the race, but I had a freaky afternoon. During the FP4, first I had a technic problem, and then I had a crash ant it was a problem because this was the bike with I had to do the qualifying. The team did an amazing job because they change a lot of things in a short time and the bike was ready to the qualifying. It was very import because a top10 is better than a last position. I think I could be fighting for the top8 with the group in tomorrow’s race.”

Pol Espargaro – P11

“The same thing: when you know you have to go to Q1 then you don’t have any tyres for Q2. I was in Q2 with a used Front, with nine laps on it already, and a new rear. I was coming around for a similar fast lap-time for the second row but I lost the front. Our problem started in FP3 where I made a mistake. It’s been a little tougher than usual to focus this weekend so far and it cost me to go to the Q2. We would have been on the second row with our Q1 lap-time but it didn’t happen again. We’ll try again tomorrow.”

Pol Espargaro
Miguel Oliveira – P12

“It was a good day of work today. We didn’t manage to do a decent time attack in FP3, so we had to go through Q1. We got through, which was nice. Then in Qualifying 2, I had only one soft tire, so I waited until the end to go out. I pushed, did my two good laps, which were close to my personal best, but not enough to be closer to the front, at least in the second or third row. The race is tomorrow, anyway, so hopefully we can have a good start to fight for the top positions.”

Aleix Espargaro – P13

“I am pleased, although the final position leaves somewhat of a bitter taste in my mouth. We improved a lot, but I missed the top 10 in FP3 by a hair and, despite a great time, I didn’t go through in Q1. I’m comforted by the fact that the truly important positions are only a couple of tenths away and that tells me that the RS-GP is a top-level project. Tomorrow will be a strange race. We’ll see all the different tyre options on the track, I think for the first time. I am happy with my pace. It seems like it is good for something more than the top 10, but we also need to consider the difficulty overtaking.”

Aleix Espargaro
Takaaki Nakagami – P14

“We’re still not really competitive and the weekend has been a bit of a struggle so far. The lap times are so tight, I just missed the top 10 in FP3 this morning and we lost a lot of time yesterday on the set-up of the bike. But in FP3 today we definitely improved the bike, it was much more consistent. In Q1 I missed out by two tenths, but we did our best, of course. The lap times are so tight, so we’ll just forget today and will try to take another step tomorrow. It will be difficult in the race because we’re not in a good position on the starting grid, but 27 laps will be a long race and you never know about tyre life, so we have a chance. We’ll do our best and something around the top eight will be good.”

Danilo Petrucci – P15

“Definitely this was not the position I expected to get today in qualifying. The gaps are always very narrow, but unfortunately, I failed to set a good lap time. In the second lap available with the new tyre, I made several mistakes that didn’t allow me to improve. My pace for the race is more consistent, but it will be crucial to be able to start well to be able to stay hooked immediately to the front and have the chance to get a good result.”

Danilo Petrucci
Brad Binder – P16

“Difficult day today. We tried a lot with the set-up and found some things that improved the feeling but in some areas we did not quite get everything together as I would have like for qualifying. The good thing is that I have a very clear idea of what I want tomorrow. I think we can try it in Warm-up. It wasn’t a great qualifying but I know we can be better in the race for sure.”

Brad Binder
Tito Rabat – P17

“It was a good day, in FP4 I really enjoyed myself, I understood things about the bike. In qualifying, in the second start, I was overconfident with the rear wheel. I think it’s not a problem with the tire, but if we find the solution it will help me to have feeling in the first laps of the race and to have a good race”.

Tito Rabat
Iker Lecuona – P18

“Today has been a really difficult day for me. In FP3 I started with used tires and did a long run to check the pace for the race. This pleased me a lot because I managed to go fast with used tires. Later when I wanted to push for a lap time in order to go direct to a Q2 spot, I crashed and then I went out with the second bike but I couldn’t do anything to improve. In Qualifying, I felt good with the bike. I pushed a lot, therefore I don’t understand, why the lap time was just not coming. I need to check the data to understand this. The important day is tomorrow. I have a good pace for the race, so I stay optimistic.”

Iker Lecuona
Stefan Bradl – P19

“We tried a lot of different things today in order to improve our feeling and speed. There’s still something to find for the race and the bike is very physical here, especially with the bumps. Hopefully we can get some early overtakes in and then ride with the others to see where they are stronger and what advantage we can take.”

Stefan Bradl
Bradley Smith – P20

“If we look at yesterday’s performance, the situation is obviously frustrating. As is often the case, the reality is a compromise. We worked well on race pace and I’m rather pleased with that in terms of our expectations. I was lacking a few tenths on the flying lap to do better in qualifying. Thanks in part to the data we’ve collected, we have reached a good base, but then sorting the final details gets more complicated. We’ll try a couple of ideas tomorrow in warmup.”

Alex Marquez – P21

“It was not an easy qualifying for us, we knew coming into this weekend that it would be tough. We got some good information in FP4 and our overall pace is better than the position on the time sheet shows. In qualifying I wasn’t able to put together a good lap, my fastest lap did not have any of my best sector times. It’s quite difficult with the bumps. The good point is that tomorrow can only improve.”

Alex Marquez
Cal Crutchlow – Declared unfit

“After yesterday I actually felt quite good riding the bike, I had no particular pain in my arm. But unfortunately the arm was swollen after riding and the fluid build-up was a lot after the session so the doctors reviewed it this morning and declared me unfit to ride, with the reason being the risk of infection with the hole being open in my arm. You can see the muscle and touch the muscle through it and the fluid build-up is not coming out, we don’t want to start draining the arm all the time because I’ll be draining it all day. So along with Alberto (Puig) and Lucio (Cecchinello) the decision was made and I think the correct decision to rest and try to see whether we can come back in Barcelona in two weeks’ time.”


MotoGP Qualifying Results

Pos Rider Bike Q Time/Gap
1 Maverick VIÑALES YAMAHA Q2 1m31.411
2 Franco MORBIDELLI YAMAHA Q2 +0.312
3 Fabio QUARTARARO YAMAHA Q2 +0.380
4 Valentino ROSSI YAMAHA Q2 +0.466
5 Jack MILLER DUCATI Q2 +0.641
6 Francesco BAGNAIA DUCATI Q2 +0.643
7 Alex RINS SUZUKI Q2 +0.679
8 Joan MIR SUZUKI Q2 +0.691
9 Andrea DOVIZIOSO DUCATI Q2 +0.773
10 Johann ZARCO DUCATI Q2 +0.807
11 Pol ESPARGARO KTM Q2 +0.855
12 Miguel OLIVEIRA KTM Q2 +0.912
13 Aleix ESPARGARO APRILIA Q1 (*) 0.231
14 Takaaki NAKAGAMI HONDA Q1 (*) 0.318
15 Danilo PETRUCCI DUCATI Q1 (*) 0.354
16 Brad BINDER KTM Q1 (*) 0.470
17 Tito RABAT DUCATI Q1 (*) 0.727
18 Iker LECUONA KTM Q1 (*) 0.774
19 Stefan BRADL HONDA Q1 (*) 0.851
20 Bradley SMITH APRILIA Q1 (*) 1.102
21 Alex MARQUEZ HONDA Q1 (*) 1.269
22 Cal CRUTCHLOW HONDA FP1 1.340

MotoGP Qualifying Report

It was a truly spectacular second pole position of the season for Maverick Viñales (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) thanks to a new Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli lap record on Saturday, with the Spaniard’s 1:31.411 putting him ahead of second-placed Franco Morbidelli (Petronas Yamaha SRT) by 0.312. Third place went to World Championship leader Fabio Quartararo (Petronas Yamaha SRT)… and fourth place went the way of home hero Valentino Rossi (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) – making i the first time they’ve finished 1-2-3-4 in qualifying in the MotoGP era!

Viñales was the first rider to set a flying lap time in the second qualifying session, and a 1:32.130 was a solid opening time… but it was going to be beaten. Alex Rins (Team Suzuki Ecstar) was sat behind Viñales on the first lap but the Spaniard ran on at the end of the back straight, before Q1’s fastest rider Pol Espagraro (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) crashed at Turn 15. That brought out the yellow flags which saw Quartararo have to sit up and scrap the lap, but the Frenchman was getting the hammer down on his second time around…

Maverick Viñales

Another rider to be getting the hammer down was Free Practice pacesetter Rossi. The Doctor was further down the road from Quartararo and sure enough, the nine-time World Champion went provisional P1 to send the 10,000 Misano fans wild. However, Quartararo would soon demote Rossi to second with a 1:31.791, with the riders then pitting to push some fresh tyres in.

By this time, Viñales had slipped to P5 and was out on his lonesome on his second run. A personal best saw him stay fifth, before a faster lap then came in for the number 12. It was provisional pole, but only just – with the gap a tiny 0.004 as he then pitted again in a two-stop strategy. With the other riders back out for their second runs, Quartararo couldn’t improve his lap time on his first attempt, 0.038 the Frenchman’s deficit, as second fastest in Q1 Miguel Oliveira (Red Bull KTM Tech3) and Andrea Dovizioso (Ducati Team) quickly exchanging P6.

Rossi was then bang on the money but after losing two tenths in Sector 2, the Italian backed out of his lap. Compatriot Morbidelli and his team-mate Quartararo were then lighting the timesheets up in the first and second sectors, as Jack Miller (Pramac Racing) slotted himself into P6. Coming round the final sector, Morbidelli placed himself onto a dream provisional home Grand Prix pole position, and Quartararo unable to improve on his last flying lap. Was that it? Not quite…

Viñales was two-tenths under Morbidelli’s time as an absolute stunner started coming in from Top Gun. Nailing the final half of the lap to take the chequered flag with a new Misano lap record, and taking that accolade away from Yamaha test rider Jorge Lorenzo, Viñales’ time gave him plenty of clear air ahead of Morbidelli. The Italian is therefore forced to settle for a sterling second on home soil, but it’s his best qualifying result of the season.

Quartararo completes the front row, 0.380 adrift from Viñales. The 21-year-old didn’t sound too disheartened with P3 though, he’s looking strong to challenge for his third win of the season from the outside of the front row. Rossi spearheads Row 2 in P4, and that’s the number 46’s equal best Saturday afternoon result of 2020. Joining Rossi on the second row is Miller who improved on his last lap to get the better of injured teammate Francesco Bagnaia (Pramac Racing), but both Pramac riders had an upbeat qualifying in San Marino.

Rins is the leading Suzuki in P7, the Spaniard beating teammate Joan Mir by 0.012 in Q2 and the latter – like Miller – leaping up the leaderboard on his last lap. Dovizioso, the man second in the Championship, will have to start from P9 but race day is another day – as we’ve seen a good few times from the number 04. Johann Zarco (Esponsorama Racing) completed the top 10, while Pol Espargaro managed to get out on his second bike after his crash and finish less than a tenth ahead of Oliveira – the Q1 graduates ending Q2 in P11 and P12.

Yamaha are back! After two tougher rounds, no one could get within a tenth and a half of the YZR-M1s in qualifying, with polesitter Viñales really laying down the gauntlet ahead of Sunday’s crucial battle. Can anyone stop the Iwata onslaught in San Marino, and if not, who comes out on top in the Yamaha dogfight?!


Moto2 Qualifying Report

Sam Lowes (EG 0,0 Marc VDS) was the class of the field in Q2 at the Gran Premio Lenovo di San Marino e della Riviera di Rimini, taking pole position by over two and a half tenths and smashing the lap record in the process. However, the Brit will start from pitlane on Sunday due to a penalty, promoting second-placed Remy Gardner (ONEXOX TKKR SAG Team) to first on the grid. The third quickest man in Q2 was Championship leader Luca Marini (Sky Racing Team VR46), so he’ll start second.

Q1 at Misano saw one surprise as impressive 2020 rookie Aron Canet (Oceanica Aspar Team Moto2) struggled to move through, and he’ll be on the fight back on Sunday. Heading the session though was a turnaround of fortunes for last year’s near-winner Fabio Di Giannantonio (+Ego Speed Up), the Italian moving through to the fight for pole alongside Hector Garzo (Flexbox HP 40), Joe Roberts (Tennor American Racing Team) and teammate Marcos Ramirez.

The opening flying laps in Q2 saw former lap record holder Bezzecchi sit top of the pile, before Enea Bastianini (Italtrans Racing Team) took provisional pole. However, Lowes was flying and the British rider set a devilishly quick 1:36.666 to take charge, with Bezzecchi improving his time but slotting into second. Then, Lowes was going even faster – a lot faster at that. The number 22 came across the line to break the Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli lap record, and no one would threaten it.

Gardner was the man closest as he shot up from nowhere into second, set to start first, with Marini slotting into third on the timesheets and therefore the first of the top Championship challengers on the grid. Fourth in the session but joining the two on the front row will be Marco Bezzecchi (Sky Racing Team VR46), who went down at the final corner – thankfully unhurt – but lost his chance to improve…

Second in the Championship, Enea Bastianini (Italtrans Racing Team) will spearhead the second row, fresh from a Ducati MotoGP signature, and the Italian is set to take the battle to Marini and Bezzecchi as the Moto2 title fight looks set to heat up in Misano. Xavi Vierge’s (Petronas Sprinta Racing) sixth place in qualifying will see him start from fifth, his best qualifying result of the season and his best since the 2019 Malaysian GP., with Marcel Schrötter (Liqui Moly Intact GP) just over half a second away from Lowes in P7. The German will join Bastianini and Vierge on the second row.

2019 winner Augusto Fernandez was forced to settle for eighth in Q2, six tenths shy of his teammate’s time, the Spaniard heading Tetsuta Nagashima (Red Bull KTM Ajo) and Q1 graduate Fabio Di Giannantonio, who took P9 and P10 respectively. They will therefore complete the third row.

A first pole in four years for Lowes unfortunately won’t see the number 22 line-up at the front of the grid, but the stage is set for a classic.

Sam Lowes – P1

“For me this year since, well after Qatar, I’ve been strong and felt quite good, even in Austria at a difficult track for me, I was still quick. But we have to start from pitlane tomorrow. This is racing, sometimes you have things like this but I’m happy to come here this weekend, get pole and have good pace. Hopefully we can still score some points in the race.”

Misano 2020 Moto2 front row
1 Sam Lowes – EG0,0 Marc VDS – Kalex – 1:36.170
2 Remy Gardner – ONEXOX TKKR SAG Team – Kalex +0.254
3 Luca Marini – Sky Racing Team VR46 – Kalex +0.332

Moto2 Qualifying Results

Pos Rider Bike Q Time/Gap
1 Sam LOWES KALEX Q2 1m36.170
2 Remy GARDNER KALEX Q2 +0.254
3 Luca MARINI KALEX Q2 +0.326
4 Marco BEZZECCHI KALEX Q2 +0.371
5 Enea BASTIANINI KALEX Q2 +0.444
6 Xavi VIERGE KALEX Q2 +0.493
7 Marcel SCHROTTER KALEX Q2 +0.525
8 Augusto FERNANDEZ KALEX Q2 +0.658
9 Tetsuta NAGASHIMA KALEX Q2 +0.848
10 Fabio DI GIANNANTONI   ITA SPEED UP Q2 +0.849
11 Marcos RAMIREZ KALEX Q2 +0.913
12 Thomas LUTHI KALEX Q2 +0.915
13 Jorge NAVARRO SPEED UP Q2 +0.919
14 Hafizh SYAHRIN SPEED UP Q2 +0.936
15 Hector GARZO KALEX Q2 +1.158
16 Lorenzo DALLA PORTA   ITA KALEX Q2 +1.255
17 Jake DIXON KALEX Q2 +1.265
18 Joe ROBERTS KALEX Q2 +1.496
19 Nicolò BULEGA KALEX Q1 (*) 0.129
20 Lorenzo BALDASSARRI KALEX Q1 (*) 0.130
21 Stefano MANZI MV AGUSTA Q1 (*) 0.311
22 Aron CANET SPEED UP Q1 (*) 0.383
23 Simone CORSI MV AGUSTA Q1 (*) 0.492
24 Somkiat CHANTRA KALEX Q1 (*) 0.509
25 Kasma DANIEL KALEX Q1 (*) 0.762
26 Bo BENDSNEYDER NTS Q1 (*) 0.862
27 Andi Farid IZDIHAR KALEX Q1 (*) 1.409
28 Edgar PONS KALEX Q1 (*) 2.434
29 Jesko RAFFIN NTS Q1 (*) 3.304

Moto3

Ai Ogura (Honda Team Asia) took his maiden pole position on Saturday at the Gran Premio Lenovo di San Marino e della Riviera di Rimini, snatching the honour from Gabriel Rodrigo (Kömmerling Gresini Moto3) by just 0.016 in another tight qualifying session for Moto3. 2019 winner Tatsuki Suzuki (SIC58 Squadra Corse) completes the front row by an even smaller margin – with the top three covered by just 0.031 at Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli.

Ai Ogura (Honda Team Asia)

The fight to move through and take part in the fight for pole set the tone, with Tony Arbolino (Rivacold Snipers Team) coming out on top by less than a tenth to move through alongside Sterilgarda Max Racing Team’s Romano Fenati and Alonso Lopez, with BOE Skull Rider Facile Energy’s Ricardo Rossi the last graduate in a last minute shuffle.

In Q2 itself, the last minute dash was again the name of the game. It looked set to be another pole for Rodrigo as the flag flew, and Ogura’s laptime hadn’t initially looked like it would put him in the mix to challenge… but then came the final sector. Putting it together perfectly, the Japanese rider shot over the line and just snatched his maiden pole position.

Rodrigo was then forced to settle for second but has a nice clear view to Turn 1 on Sunday, with last year’s winner Suzuki setting himself up well for race day too in third. Andrea Migno (Sky Racing Team VR46) heads up Row 2 just behind them in a solid qualifying session, but the Italian will rue the tiny margin that kept him off the front row: 0.011.

Fenati put in Husqvarna’s best qualifying result since their return to the class this season as he lines up fifth, with Raul Fernandez (Red Bull KTM Ajo) completing the third row. Row 3 is headed by Styria winner Celestino Vietti (Sky Racing Team VR46), with the Italian joined by Jeremy Alcoba (Kömmerling Gresini Moto3) and Tony Arbolino (Rivacold Snipers Team). Filip Salač (Rivacold Snipers Team) completes the top ten.

That leaves a couple of high profile names missing… Championship leader Albert Arenas (Pull&Bear Aspar Team) will start 13th as he attempts to stop Ogura gaining on him, and third overall John McPhee (Petronas Sprinta Racing) suffered a crash early in Q2 and then ended up P17. Can they move back through to take the fight to Ogura?

2020 Misano Moto3 front row
1 Ai Ogura – Honda Team Asia – Honda – 1:42.403
2 Gabriel Rodrigo – Kömmerling Gresini Moto3 – Honda +0.016
3 Tatsuki Suzuki – SIC58 Squadra Corse – Honda – +0.031

Moto3 Qualifying Results

Pos Rider Bike Q Time/Gap
1 Ai OGURA HONDA Q2 1m42.403
2 Gabriel RODRIGO HONDA Q2 +0.016
3 Tatsuki SUZUKI HONDA Q2 +0.031
4 Andrea MIGNO KTM Q2 +0.042
5 Romano FENATI HUSQVARNA Q2 +0.201
6 Raul FERNANDEZ KTM Q2 +0.253
7 Celestino VIETTI KTM Q2 +0.378
8 Jeremy ALCOBA HONDA Q2 +0.405
9 Tony ARBOLINO HONDA Q2 +0.462
10 Filip SALAC HONDA Q2 +0.505
11 Sergio GARCIA HONDA Q2 +0.591
12 Riccardo ROSSI KTM Q2 +0.604
13 Albert ARENAS KTM Q2 +0.651
14 Jaume MASIA HONDA Q2 +0.688
15 Dennis FOGGIA HONDA Q2 +0.712
16 Stefano NEPA KTM Q2 +0.795
17 John MCPHEE HONDA Q2 +0.924
18 Alonso LOPEZ HUSQVARNA Q2 +1.315
19 Darryn BINDER KTM Q1 (*) 0.776
20 Niccolò ANTONELLI HONDA Q1 (*) 0.871
21 Ayumu SASAKI KTM Q1 (*) 1.040
22 Carlos TATAY KTM Q1 (*) 1.064
23 Davide PIZZOLI KTM Q1 (*) 1.112
24 Khairul Idham PAWI HONDA Q1 (*) 1.358
25 Kaito TOBA KTM Q1 (*) 1.374
26 Jason DUPASQUIER KTM Q1 (*) 1.473
27 Ryusei YAMANAKA HONDA Q1 (*) 1.539
28 Deniz ÖNCÜ KTM Q1 (*) 1.542
29 Barry BALTUS KTM Q1 (*) 1.578
30 Yuki KUNII HONDA Q1 (*) 1.914
31 Maximilian KOFLER KTM Q1 (*) 2.081

MotoE

There was a lot to smile about for some of the home heroes after FIM Enel MotoE World Cup E-Pole at the Gran Premio Lenovo di San Marino e della Riviera di Rimini, with Matteo Ferrari (Trentino Gresini MotoE) taking his very first E-Pole after snatching the honour from compatriot Mattia Casadei (Ongetta SIC58 Squadra Corse). The 2019 Cup winner and Misano victor won’t start from the front, however, with Casadei promoted to P1 as Ferrari serves a three-place grid penalty for his crash with Eric Granado (Avintia Esponsorama Racing) in Jerez. Third fastest in E-Pole was Xavier Simeon (LCR E-Team) as he pipped rookie Lukas Tulovic (Tech 3 E-Racing), but the German will move up to start alongside the Belgian on the front row.

The story of the day – as well as the polesetter, front row and penalty on the way – was a difficult E-Pole for Eric Granado as the Brazilian ran afoul of track limits and had his lap cancelled. He’ll therefore start from the back, and will be one to watch as he tries to move forward in the short dash of a MotoE race that awaits.

That drama came late as the runners headed out in the order set by their Free Practice times – with the fastest going last – creating plenty of stories throughout the field. Dominique Aegerter (Dynavolt Intact GP) wasn’t quite able to replicate his Jerez form, last year’s E-Pole winner Alex de Angelis (Octo Pramac MotoE) had a few big moments on his lap, and injury comeback kid Niki Tuuli (Avant Ajo MotoE) showed some solid signs before losing his advantage in the final sector . On Sunday, then, we can expect another incredible spectacle…

Behind the Casadei, Simeon, Tulovic front row, Ferrari will start fourth with Aegerter alongside him. Niccolo Canepa (LCR E-Team) completes that second row after a solid performance from the Italian on Saturday; the number 7 just hundredths off the Swiss rider ahead of him on the timesheets. Rookie and second in the Cup standings Jordi Torres (Pons Racing 40) heads the third row, ahead of a big leap forward for Tommaso Marcon (Tech 3 E-Racing) at Misano as he regains full fitness. The gap between the two was only 0.007!

Mike Di Meglio (EG 0,0 Marc VDS) took P9 as he looks for more in 2020, ahead of home hero Alessando Zaccone (Trentino Gresini MotoE), who completes the top ten. The Italian denied Tuuli the honour by just 0.010.

Keep an eye on those a little further back, too. After a dramatic start to his lap losing him time, Sammarinese rider de Angelis finds himself languishing in 16th and looking to move forward, and that couldn’t be more true for Granado either.  Australian Josh Hook will start from 15th place on the grid.

MotoE Qualifying Results

Pos Rider Bike Time/Gap
1 Matteo FERRARI Energica 1m43.580
2 Mattia CASADEI Energica +0.272
3 Xavier SIMEON Energica +0.372
4 Lukas TULOVIC Energica +0.447
5 Dominique AEGERTER Energica +0.626
6 Niccolo CANEPA Energica +0.641
7 Jordi TORRES Energica +0.682
8 Tommaso MARCON Energica +0.689 
9 Mike DI MEGLIO Energica +0.772
10 Alessandro ZACCONE Energica +1.107
11 Niki TUULI Energica +1.117
12 Alejandro MEDINA Energica +1.174
13 Xavi CARDELUS Energica +1.267
14 Maria HERRERA Energica +1.428
15 Josh HOOK Energica +1.582
16 Alex DE ANGELIS Energica +1.681
17 Jakub KORNFEIL Energica +2.173

MotoGP World Championship Points

Pos

Rider Bike Points
1 Fabio QUARTARARO Yamaha 70
2 Andrea DOVIZIOSO Ducati 67
3 Jack MILLER Ducati 56
4 Brad BINDER KTM 49
5 Maverick VIÑALES Yamaha 48
6 Takaaki NAKAGAMI Honda 46
7 Valentino ROSSI Yamaha 45
8 Joan MIR Suzuki 44
9 Miguel OLIVEIRA KTM 43
10 Pol ESPARGARO KTM 35
11 Franco MORBIDELLI Yamaha 32
12 Johann ZARCO Ducati 30
13 Alex RINS Suzuki 29
14 Danilo PETRUCCI Ducati 25
15 Alex MARQUEZ Honda 15
16 Aleix ESPARGARO Aprilia 15
17 Iker LECUONA KTM 13
18 Francesco BAGNAIA Ducati 9
19 Bradley SMITH Aprilia 8
20 Tito RABAT Ducati 7
21 Cal CRUTCHLOW Honda 7
22 Michele PIRRO Ducati 4
23 Stefan BRADL Honda 0

2020 MotoGP Calendar

Rnd Date Circuit
1 08 March (Moto2/Moto3) Losail International Circuit
2 19 July Circuito de Jerez-Ángel Nieto
3 26 July Circuito de Jerez-Ángel Nieto
4 09 August Automotodrom Brno
5 16 August Red Bull Ring-Spielberg
6 23 August Red Bull Ring-Spielberg
7 13 September Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli
8 20 September Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli
9 27 September Barcelona – Catalunya
10 11 October Le Mans
11 18 October MotorLand Aragón
12 25 October MotorLand Aragón
13 08 November Comunitat Valenciana-Ricardo Tormo
14 15 November Comunitat Valenciana-Ricardo Tormo
15 22 November Autodromo Internacional do Algarve

Gran Premio Lenovo di San Marino e della Riviera di Rimini Schedule

Time Class Session
1620 Moto3 WUP
1650 Moto2 WUP
1720 MotoGP WUP
1805 MotoE WUP
1900 Moto3 RACE
2020 Moto2 RACE
2200 MotoGP RACE

Source: MCNews.com.au

Riders and Team Managers reflect on Silverstone MotoGP

2019 MotoGP
Round 12 – Silverstone


Alex Rins – P1

“Today has been unbelievable. I won in Austin, beating Valentino. And now I’ve won here, beating Marc. These guys are very fast and are ‘legends’ of the sport. I knew it would be difficult to beat Marc today, but I really wanted to try, and it was fantastic to do it. In a couple of the sectors he was faster than me, but I could make it up in some other areas. But towards the end of the race I felt I had better pace than him, and I told myself that I must go for it and take the chance, I saw the opportunity and I made it happen. Big thanks to everyone in the team!”

MotoGP Rnd Silverstone alex rins podium
Alex Rins tops the podium from Marquez and Vinales – Silverstone MotoGP 2019 – Round 12
Marc Marquez – P2

“I am happy with the result for the championship but not the result for the race as to lose out in the final moment after leading is not the best feeling. Spending the whole race in front is difficult here because you use more of everything. I tried to go slow for one lap to see if Rins would lead, but he didn’t and I knew Viñales was behind us so I kept pushing. My target wasn’t the race, it was the championship and if the Yamaha riders arrived maybe we could have finished lower. In the last turn I had a moment on the front and had to close the gas which let Rins through but we are happy because we leave with 78 points over second but I hope Dovi is OK after a big crash like that, I hope he can recover well and return because it is always better when you earn the points fighting.”

MotoGP Rnd Silverstone Marquez
Marc Marquez & Alex Rins – Silverstone MotoGP 2019 – Round 12
Maverick Viñales – P3

“I don‘t know if I would have been able to make a move if I had been closer to the front-runners, because it‘s always difficult. I was closing the gap lap by lap, just a little, one or two tenths, but I couldn‘t close the big gap in just one lap. I tried my best and I think we got the maximum and maybe even more from our bike today. There are long straights here and at this track it‘s really about the engine, so we’re happy with third. We missed a bit of traction and top speed. In many corners I was much faster, but in others I was surviving the best I could. I think we improved the bike quite a lot during the weekend and that‘s the most important. At the test in Misano we’ll work on improving the grip. We‘re going to be very focused, do a good test, then we‘ll race some more, and we‘ll see what we can do.”

Valentino Rossi – P4

“It‘s another fourth place, but we‘re a bit disappointed. We expected more from this race, because I started from the front row and during the practice sessions I always had a good pace. Unfortunately, I suffered more today, especially with the rear tyre. Already from the beginning of the race I had less grip. I was able to keep a quite good pace going until midway through the race, I suffered very much in the second half, I had to slow down a lot. It‘s a shame, we had expected to fight for the podium. We wanted to do the race like Maverick, he did a great job, but unfortunately we were a bit slower.”

MotoGP Rnd Silverstone Rossi
Valentino Rossi – Silverstone MotoGP 2019 – Round 12
Franco Morbidelli – P5

“It was a great race for us, especially as throughout the weekend that this sort of result didn’t seem possible at times. I made a good start, was able to move into some interesting positions, and my feeling improved as the race went on. I fought with Crutchlow for a bit but was able to get away from him, and fifth is a good result for me and my crew. It’s a good point to start the next races from, and I feel that we can use what we’ve learned this weekend to improve further.”

MotoGP Rnd Silverstone Morbidelli
Franco Morbidelli – Silverstone MotoGP 2019 – Round 12
Cal Crutchlow – P6

“I tried my best at the start to be able to push, but the tyre wasn’t quite there. I felt a lack of grip immediately in the race and I knew I wouldn’t be able to battle with the other guys. It was pretty similar to what happed in Mugello. But to finish 19 seconds behind the winner here is not acceptable, not from me and not from my team. We tried our best this weekend and we had pace, there was no doubt about that. Yesterday I was able to go one and a half seconds faster than I was at the end of the race, it’s just strange how some tyres are fine and some aren’t. Don’t get me wrong, it would have been difficult to win the race regardless, but I should have been a lot further up than I was.”

MotoGP Rnd Silverstone Cal Crutchlow CALUK
Cal Crutchlow – Silverstone MotoGP 2019 – Round 12
Danilo Petrucci – P7

“I knew that today it was going to be a difficult GP for me and the incident at Turn 1 affected my race, because I had decided to stay on the outside line but found the bikes of Andrea and Quartararo in front of me and I lost a few places. I then began my recovery and it wasn’t easy to pass the other riders, but in the last ten laps I was quick and I set my fastest lap on the penultimate lap. For sure without the crash I could have finished higher up, but when you start so far behind anything can happen. I feel bad about this missed opportunity but above all I feel bad for Andrea, and I hope it was nothing serious.”

MotoGP Rnd Silverstone QP Petrucci
Danilo Petrucci – Silverstone MotoGP 2019 – Round 12
Jack Miller – P8

“I lost positions at the start of the race due to the accident between Fabio and Dovi. I tried to recover but I couldn’t get a good pace. The rear tyre didn’t help me. We took important points for the “Independent” classification.”

MotoGP Rnd Silverstone Jack Miller
jack Miller – Silverstone MotoGP 2019 – Round 12
Pol Espargaro – P9

“It was a difficult race and the temperatures were quite high at the end which made the track slippery, more than we expected, and I was struggling with the rear tyre. Anyway, we were in the group fighting for sixth and we should be happy. We took some good points and we are playing for the top ten in the championship. The bike is getting better and better and we are doing a good job to be competing with the Hondas and Ducatis. Misano next and it is not the easiest for me but I have been fast in the past. We have a test in a couple of days and we’ll see what we can do.”

MotoGP Rnd Silverstone Pol Espargaro KTM RC MotoGP Great Britain
Pol Espargaro – Silverstone MotoGP 2019 – Round 12
Andrea Iannone – P10

“I rode a good race, making up positions and managing to stay in the group with Aleix, Pol and Petrucci. Throughout the weekend we worked hard and I hope that some of the progress we made will help us in the upcoming races. Unfortunately, I lost ground in acceleration, even compared to my teammate, and that kept me from launching an attack on the riders ahead of me. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: we must never give up and today I confirm that once again.”

MotoGP Rnd Silverstone Andrea Iannone
Andrea Iannone – Silverstone MotoGP 2019 – Round 12
Pecco Bagnaia – P11

“To be honest, this is a good result, better than I expected. After a good Friday and the positive feelings of the FP3 and FP4, I have not found any more feeling. We have taken valuable points for the classification and I can’t wait to be in Misano.”

MotoGP Rnd Silverstone Pecco Bagnaia
Pecco Bagnaia – Silverstone MotoGP 2019 – Round 12
Sylvain Guintoli – P12

“The race felt good for me, I had strong pace, especially towards the end. I was hoping to be able to score points, but I didn’t expect this many and a 12th place. It’s fantastic that Alex put the bike on the top step, the team really deserve it and it just shows how much hard work and commitment they are putting in all the time. What a great weekend.”

MotoGP Rnd Silverstone sylvain guintoli
Sylvain Guintoli – Silverstone MotoGP 2019 – Round 12
Hafizh Syahrin – P13

“It was a hard and also a long race. I felt a little bit strange before the start of the race and I didn’t have too much confidence, because I was scared to crash in the race again for the third time in a row. So, in the beginning, I tried to ride safe and didn’t really find a good rhythm. But after ten laps, I could manage to come back step by step, I made my fastest lap on the last one. I’m really sorry to the team and everybody, because I was just lacking confidence. For sure, this will be a different story in Misano, I will work hard to build my trust again, also during the test, which will help me a lot.”

MotoGP Rnd Silverstone Hafizh Syahrin
Hafizh Syahrin – Silverstone MotoGP 2019 – Round 12
Jorge Lorenzo – P14

“Today went better than expected. Coming into this race I knew it would be difficult and I was thinking that maybe I will finish one minute or more behind the winner because all weekend I have been about three seconds slower than the fastest time. To finish within one minute of the winner and to take away two points is a good reward for a demanding race. I was able to learn more about how to conserve the tyres as well as testing my fitness so I am pleased. Right now I am sore, but I will be stronger for the Misano test and then again in a better physical condition for the Misano race.”

MotoGP Rnd Silverstone Lorenzo
Jorge Lorenzo – Silverstone MotoGP 2019 – Round 12
Karel Abraham – P15

“On Saturday we thought they wouldn’t let me race after the crash but they finally gave me the fit. During the race I had pain in the muscles of my hands, which were injuried by the crashed of Friday. I was close to retiring from the race but I thought about staying in case someone crashed and we could get some point and it eventually happened. After crashing, Tito was recovering little by little and I was afraid to make too much effort because I was close to pass out, but in the end I could get into the points ahead of him. I hope to be physically recovered for the Misano test on Thursday.”

MotoGP Rnd Silverstone Karel Abraham
Karel Abraham – Silverstone MotoGP 2019 – Round 12
Tito Rabat – P16

“The crash has been a shame because we did a great QP, a great warm-up and I was fighting with the group of Zarco, Petrucci and Espargaró but I made a mistake by forcing too much, I ran wide and when I was trying to pass to Guintoli my front wheel locked. It was very hot and the grip of the wheels changed a lot. I want to apologize to the team because we were doing a great job but I made a mistake.”

MotoGP Rnd Silverstone Tito Rabat
Tito Rabat – Silverstone MotoGP 2019 – Round 12
Takaaki Nakagami – P17

“I didn’t expect this crash during the weekend, from Friday to the warm-up we did a great job and gradually close the gap. I expected our pace to be about 2 minutes high to middle and we made a good start. In the beginning I lost a bit of time with Pol (Espargaro) but once I overtook him I started to recover my pace and followed Jack (Miller) again. But at turn 16, after the apex when I came off the brake and started to touch the throttle, I lost the front grip and had no chance to recover it. I’m very disappointed and sorry for the team because the weekend was not so bad and our pace suggested we could fight for the top seven or eight. But we lost this opportunity and I’m very disappointed in myself, but these things happen in racing because I was pushing.”

MotoGP Rnd Silverstone Nakagami G
Takaaki Nakagami – Silverstone MotoGP 2019 – Round 12
Miguel Oliveira – DNF

“It was a disappointing race to crash with Johann. There is nothing else to say, I was feeling confident, the bike was feeling good, it was a realistic opportunity to finish inside the top 10 again, but unfortunately it ended too early. I’m looking forward to the next one.”

MotoGP Rnd Silverstone Miguel Oliveira
Miguel Oliveira – Silverstone MotoGP 2019 – Round 12
Aleix Espargaro’ – DNF

“My start was very good, but then I lost a couple of positions after the accident involving Dovi and Quartararo. I managed to recover quickly and my pace wasn’t bad. I battled with Petrucci and my brother for a while, but it was not easy to stay out front. I felt like I had a good pace, maybe slightly better than theirs. Unfortunately, less than two laps from the finish, the bike stopped. It’s a pity after everything we had done.”

MotoGP Rnd Silverstone Aleix Espargaro
Aleix Espargaro – Silverstone MotoGP 2019 – Round 12
Fabio Quartararo – DNF

“[Alex] Rins had a small slide in front of me and I shut the throttle a little too much to avoid him and then highsided. It’s a pity for the result, but more importantly I hope that Andrea [Dovizioso] is OK. It was a racing incident, and just bad luck for both of us. All weekend we were fast and the worst position of the weekend was fourth in qualifying. I had the same pace as the top guys and I’m really happy with the improvements we made this weekend. The team made a big step forwards together and it’s something we can build on.”

MotoGP Rnd Silverstone Quartararo
Fabio Quartararo – Silverstone MotoGP 2019 – Round 12
Johann Zarco – DNF

“It was a shame about the crash because the race was interesting. I was in control and looking to overtake Miguel in that slow corner – as I was doing to a few others in practice – and in the end I just had to apologise to him for destroying his race. The whole weekend I showed a bit better pace. I will just have to wait for Misano now and hope to have the same kind of feeling.”

MotoGP Rnd Silverstone Johann Zarco KTM RC MotoGP Great Britain
Johann Zarco – Silverstone MotoGP 2019 – Round 12

Team Managers

Massimo Meregalli – Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Team Director

“We expected to be more closely to the front and join the fight with the two leading riders, but at the beginning of the race we saw that it was going to turn out differently. That said, our performance is improving, we are making consistent progress. Maverick’s third place is the consequence of hard work. Vale had been strong all weekend, but he had a different feeling this afternoon due to grip issues and tyre degradation, especially in the final stages of the race, but he still took fourth. Anyway, this round has been positive overall. The most important thing we take away from this weekend is that our riders were more comfortable with the bike in all sessions. We know what we would like to work on at the upcoming Misano Test, so we‘re looking to make further steps.”

MotoGP Rnd Silverstone Vinales
Maverick Vinales – Silverstone MotoGP 2019 – Round 12
Wilco Zeelenberg – PETRONAS Yamaha Sepang Racing Team Team Manager

“It could have been a great weekend, but we’re leaving with mixed fortunes. Fabio had bad luck with the DNF, but Franco had a very good race and made great progress. Both his pace and his strategy were good, and it’s a shame that he couldn’t quite chase down Valentino [Rossi] at the end. It’s disappointing for Fabio as he could have been fighting for the win with the pace that he had, but that’s racing – these sort of things can happen.”

MotoGP Rnd Silverstone Fabio Quartararo
Fabio Quartaro – Silverstone MotoGP 2019 – Round 12
Mike Leitner – Red Bull KTM Team Manager

“We are very happy with Pol’s race performance and to be so close to sixth position when everybody had to manage the tyres and fuel. Again a single-digit result is very good for us, the project and for Pol especially after Red Bull Ring where he wasn’t able to finish. We are happy because we know this track is very difficult. We are not so happy with the race crash from Johann and it was unlucky that he hit Miguel and both riders went out. We have to take it like it is. I’m happy for Hafizh in P13 and it shows that he is getting better and better with the KTM. We know we have to push and work hard to make a step but we are at a point where we can fight for single-digit race results, which is our target this year. We are looking forward to the Misano test now and preparation for the race there.”

MotoGP Rnd Silverstone Pol Espargaro KTM RC MotoGP Great Britain
Pol Espargaro – Silverstone MotoGP 2019 – Round 12
Hervé Poncharal – Red Bull KTM Tech3 Team Manager

“It’s a big shame to end up a weekend like that. I am very sad and also disappointed because this is not what should happen in between experienced riders, especially on the same brand. It was early stages yet, we had everything under control like we planned and Miguel was having his own race, trying to save the tyres. The target was a top 10 finish and I think it was really possible. The race is the fruit of long, long hours, everybody is working hard and to see it ending like this, is just a pity. Johann came to apologize to Miguel and to me, but in a way it’s something, I can not digest. It’s a bitter feeling. I’m not happy at all, but this is part of racing, unfortunately. On the other side, we were really working hard with Hafizh the whole week to tell him ‘You haven’t seen the flag till we came back from the summer break. It’s very important for you to get your confidence back and not to do anything stupid.’ He had a cautious race in the beginning. You could see that he was not trying too hard and quite scared to do any mistake. But in the end, he had a great battle with Lorenzo, who is a multiple World Champion on a factory Honda, so I think he learned quite a lot. He passed him with two laps to go and did his fastest lap on the very last lap. Clearly, that means, he was having a little bit of pace still in his pocket. This is a good result for him, because some points are important, finish the race and having a good fight. So, let’s take the positives of the whole weekend; we are competitive. Let’s go to the next round!”

MotoGP Rnd Silverstone Fri Oliveira
Miguel Oliveira – Silverstone MotoGP 2019 – Round 12

Source: MCNews.com.au

Alex Rins claims Silverstone victory by 0.013s

2019 MotoGP
Round 12 – Silverstone


Alex Rins put in a surprise performance at the newly resurfaced 5,900m Silverstone circuit, where beautiful weather was a consistent feature all weekend, culminating with an air temperature of 31°C on Sunday, making this the hottest race-day of the year so far. The action was heating up on track too, with Rins timing a last corner manoeuvre to perfection, to beat Marc Marquez to the line by just 0.013-seconds, the second time this has happened to Marquez in as many races.

MotoGP Rnd Silverstone Start
Silverstone MotoGP 2019 – Round 12

A duel from almost the first to last, the race is the equal fourth closest premier class finish – and one very much written straight into the history books. Maverick Viñales completed the podium and closed in in the latter stages, but the battle remained Marquez vs Rins to the line.

Marquez got a storming start from pole, streaking away from the line as Valentino Rossi slotted into second but some huge drama hit just behind. A crash for Fabio Quartararo saw the rookie slide out and unfortunately for the man behind him, Andrea Dovizioso, the stricken bike was unavoidable. The Italian hit the Yamaha and both machines and men slid out into the run off, out of the British GP.

That left Marquez, Rossi and Rins at the head of the race, and the number 42 wasted no time attacking the ‘Doctor’ for second, tagging right on to the rear of Marquez as soon as he was past. From there the two began to pull away, and Rossi was left with teammate Viñales to contend with as the number 12 plowed past Franco Morbidelli and started to cut down the gap.

MotoGP Rnd Silverstone Marquez
Marc Marquez & Alex Rins – Silverstone MotoGP 2019 – Round 12

Then Rins ran wide and Viñales did just behind, leaving both men with a little more work to do. Heads back down though, they both set about getting back into the tow of the machines ahead. Rins got back on terms with Marquez, and with 14 to go Viñales was pulling alongside Rossi. Move made and cleanly past, the gap to the two ahead was now the key focus for ‘Top Gun’.

Not long after, Rins attacked. Around the outside, the Suzuki rider swept past in a stunning move for the lead, and breath was held around the track. Was this a deciding moment? Ultimately it didn’t last long, however, and Rins even specified: “I let him back past, I didn’t want him to see my weaknesses.”

And so it came down to a duel to the end, and what a duel it was. The two remained tagged together as the laps ticked down and everything was set up to perfection for a final lap showdown, although the Suzuki rider had a wobble at Turn 9 after a look behind to check on the approaching Viñales. Regrouping quickly, Rins then took another nibble on the penultimate lap, getting past Marquez for just about a corner before the reigning Champion struck back…and then came a dress rehearsal of sorts.

MotoGP Rnd Silverstone Rins
Alex Rins – Silverstone MotoGP 2019 – Round 12

Coming around the final corner to start the final lap, the Suzuki swept around the outside and was alongside Marquez as the two went elbow to elbow, but Rins ended up on the green stuff and Marquez held firm. The number 42 also lost a few metres with the move, and the pressure was on for the remaining five kilometers of the race. Was there time to catch and pass the man in such charge of the Championship?

Through Maggots and Becketts, the Yamaha of Viñales was almost as close to Rins as Rins was to race leader Marquez, with the number 12 on the limit to try and get in the fight. As the corners passed, however, the Honda and Suzuki edged away – and Rins was more than simply hanging in there. With three corners left the Suzuki was Marquez’ shadow, but was there time? The dress rehearsal from a lap before gave us a clue of what was in store: it was going to go down to the final corner.

Rins had showed some incredible speed there throughout the race, and the number 42 credited that as a big part of his being able to stay with Marquez. That was now his ace, and as the Honda rider tried to defend, the Suzuki unleashed its awesome corner speed as Rins ran wider and then cut back, barrelling alongside Marquez towards the line. And, by hundredths, coming out on top.

MotoGP Rnd Silverstone Vinales Rossi
Maverick Vinales & Valentino Rossi – Silverstone MotoGP 2019 – Round 12

The win was the fourth closest in premier class history, Rins’ second of the season and the first time the gloves have come off for the number 42 in a last lap fight for a premier class victory. 40 years since Sheene vs Roberts was split by 0.030, Rins beat Marquez by just 0.013. For the reigning Champion, it was also a second final corner defeat in a row.

MotoGP Rnd Silverstone MotoGP Photo Finish
Vinales v Marquez – Silverstone MotoGP 2019 – Round 12

Viñales, then, was forced to spectate around the final sector, but the 2016 Silverstone winner said he got the maximum from the machine for his 60th podium in third. Teammate Valentino Rossi took fourth and the top Yamaha results continued as Morbidelli completed the top five. The number 21 was also the top Independent Team rider.

He stole that honour from home hero Cal Crutchlow as the Brit took P6, crossing the line half a second ahead of Danilo Petrucci, with Jack Miller and Pol Espargaro not too far behind either as they took P8 and P9 respectively. Andrea Iannone completed the top ten after a solid Sunday showing from the Italian.

MotoGP Rnd Silverstone Crutchlow
Cal Crutchlow – Silverstone MotoGP 2019 – Round 12

Francesco Bagnaia, Sylvain Guintoli, Hafizh Syahrin, Jorge Lorenzo and Karel Abraham completed the points.

Johann Zarco didn’t finish after he came into contact with Miguel Oliveira and they both went down, the Frenchman subsequently penalised with three grid positions at his next race. Takaaki Nakagami and Tito Rabat crashed but rejoined, Aleix Espargaro suffered an issue and, of course, neither Quartararo nor Dovizioso saw the flag.

Dovizioso, after examination, was given the all clear and returns home from the UK as normal, although he and Quartararo will need to be declared fit in Misano having suffered concussion.

Alex Rins – P1

“Unbelievable, unbelievable! I’ve beaten two legends: Valentino in Texas, Marquez here in Silverstone. It was so crazy. I beat him today but now I need to continue; I know it will be difficult. I made some mistakes, I nearly crashed at the first corner – I had a big moment. Two laps to the end I crossed the line very close to Marc and I thought the race was over but then I saw one lap remaining and thought: ‘wow, Alex, come on you need to keep pushing’. I was able to cut a lot of time in the first and second sectors and then in the last sector Marc was much stronger than me. Into Turn 16 he was able to brake really hard. The last lap was unique though and it was possible for me to overtake. I have a lot of confidence with my Suzuki right now. We work so hard during the practices to get the feeling right and I was able to play with my bike to brake harder.”

MotoGP Rnd Silverstone Rins
Alex Rins – Silverstone MotoGP 2019 – Round 12
Marc Marquez – P2

“I am happy with the result for the championship but not the result for the race as to lose out in the final moment after leading is not the best feeling. Spending the whole race in front is difficult here because you use more of everything. I tried to go slow for one lap to see if Rins would lead, but he didn’t and I knew Viñales was behind us so I kept pushing. My target wasn’t the race, it was the championship and if the Yamaha riders arrived maybe we could have finished lower. In the last turn I had a moment on the front and had to close the gas which let Rins through but we are happy because we leave with 78 points over second but I hope Dovi is OK after a big crash like that, I hope he can recover well and return because it is always better when you earn the points fighting.”

MotoGP Rnd Silverstone Marquez
Marc Marquez – Silverstone MotoGP 2019 – Round 12
Maverick Viñales – P3

“I don‘t know if I would have been able to make a move if I had been closer to the front-runners, because it‘s always difficult. I was closing the gap lap by lap, just a little, one or two tenths, but I couldn‘t close the big gap in just one lap. I tried my best and I think we got the maximum and maybe even more from our bike today. There are long straights here and at this track it‘s really about the engine, so we’re happy with third. We missed a bit of traction and top speed. In many corners I was much faster, but in others I was surviving the best I could. I think we improved the bike quite a lot during the weekend and that‘s the most important. At the test in Misano we’ll work on improving the grip. We‘re going to be very focused, do a good test, then we‘ll race some more, and we‘ll see what we can do.”

MotoGP Rnd Silverstone Vinales
Maverick Vinales – Silverstone MotoGP 2019 – Round 12

That’s it from Silverstone, with six different winners in the last six races at the track made a reality by Alex Rins after a truly history-making stunner of a showdown. Next it’s Misano and Marquez’ advantage has increased once again, but it’s twice in a row the reigning Champion has been pipped to the post on race day. Will it continue on the Riviera di Rimini? Find out in three weeks time.

MotoGP Rnd Silverstone Podium Marquez Rins Viñales
MotoGP Podium 1) Alex Rins, 2) Marc Marquez, 3) Maverick Vinales – Silverstone MotoGP 2019 – Round 12

Source: MCNews.com.au

Marquez claims tenth Sachsenring win in a row | Miller sixth

MotoGP 2019

Round Nine – Sachsenring
MotoGP Race Results / Report


Marc Marquez proved who’s boss at Sachsenring over the weekend taking his tenth victory at the track in a row, having claimed an early lead from Turn one and then proceeding to lead for the entire duration, finishing +4.587 ahead of Maverick Vinales.

Marc Marquez

“My plan was try to lead from the beginning to the end, that was my mentality. For that reason the start wasn’t perfect but I took a lot of risk in the first corner, I braked so late and I was able to be in there and then the first two laps I was just cruising and trying to understand the limit of the track after the rain. Then when I saw the tyres were ready, I was ready and the bike was ready, then I started to attack. I started to do low 1:21s, that was my rhythm in the first ten laps, and apart from that, when I saw Rins was three seconds behind me, then I started to save the tyre and finish the race.”

MotoGP Rnd Sachsenring Germany Marquez Podium
Marc Marquez – Sachsenring Round 9 – MotoGP 2019

That makes it ten wins in a row in Germany for the reigning Champion, all from pole, with Maverick Viñales and Cal Crutchlow completing the podium. Marquez’ win for the seventh successive time in the premier class at the Sachsenring also equals Valentino Rossi’s record of premier class wins in a row at one venue, set in Mugello from 2002-2008.

Despite a bad start Marquez kept it pinned into Turn 1, the last of the late brakers able to emerge in the lead as Fabio Quartararo slipped back from second to sixth at the start; Viñales, Jack Miller, Alex Rins and Crutchlow all getting past the Frenchman. The first shot of drama would come from the Frenchman too as Quartararo’s race suddenly ended at Turn 3 on Lap 2, the rookie going to get back past Ducati Team’s Danilo Petrucci but the front washing away in his first ever premier class crash out of a race.

MotoGP Rnd Sachsenring Germany Marquez
Marc Marquez – Sachsenring Round 9 – MotoGP 2019

The battle at the front at that point was more a freight train, with Marquez conducting the pace from Viñales as Crutchlow and Rins demoted Miller down to fifth. The top four started to edge clear of the rest, but edging clear of everyone was King of the Ring Marquez as a 1:21.228 – a new lap record – on Lap 5 saw his lead creep up to just under a second. The man in second was Rins, and he was also stretching his advantage over Viñales and Crutchlow to the same distance, but Marquez was in the groove.

The seven-time Champion showed exactly why the Sachsenring is his playground, not powering away at a rapid rate but instead eking out a tenth here and there, his lead gradually increasing until he suddenly put the hammer down. Lap 10 saw Marquez go 0.4 faster than Rins as the gap rose above the two-second barrier. From then on, there was no stopping the now ten-time Sachsenring winner.

MotoGP Rnd Sachsenring Germany Cal Crutchlow
Cal Crutchlow – Sachsenring Round 9 – MotoGP 2019

The battle for the second and third steps on the podium was heating up, however. Crutchlow was shadowing Viñales, who in turn was sitting a second back from Rins, with the gap remaining constant between the trio as we passed the mid-stage of the race. And the battle for fifth place was very much on as Ducati Team’s Andrea Dovizioso and Petrucci were going head-to-head with fellow GP19 rider Miller, Joan Mir, Valentino Rossi and Aprilia Racing Team Gresini’s Aleix Espargaro in a close fight for big points.

Nearer the front though, disaster then struck at the top of ‘The Waterfall’ for Rins. 0.9 clear of Viñales and Crutchlow, the Suzuki man suddenly skitted out at Ralf Waldmann corner for his second consecutive DNF. With the man on the chase down and out, it left Marquez with an unassailable 4.9 lead.

The last ten laps were just about controlling the gap for Marquez as he saw a 10th Sachsenring win appear ever closer, but who would finish second? Crutchlow had been attached to Viñales’ back wheel for some time to put the Spaniard under pressure and with two laps to go, the duo were separated by nothing.

MotoGP Rnd Sachsenring Germany Vinales Crutchlow
Maverick Vinales – Sachsenring Round 9 – MotoGP 2019

But the number 35 then had a scare at Turn 10; a warning sign that saw Crutchlow running wide and subsequently keeping it calmer to give up the chase. Just ahead, Marquez crossed the line to win his fifth race of 2019, the seventh consecutive year he’s won five or more races in a premier class season – a record that sees him surpass MotoGP Legend Giacomo Agostini and nine-time Champion Rossi, both of whom managed to do it for six straight years.

Viñales crossed the line to take his second straight podium, with Crutchlow getting his equal best result of the year in third and his first rostrum since Qatar GP. The Brit’s ride was even more impressive as he battled a torn anterior cruciate ligament and a small fracture to the top of his tibia this weekend following a cycling mishap. Behind the top trio, meanwhile, there were important points in the Championship to be decided just down the road.

MotoGP Rnd Sachsenring Germany Jack Miller
Jack Miller & Valentino Rossi – Sachsenring Round 9 – MotoGP 2019

Rossi had lost touch on the battle for fourth in the latter stages, and it was Mir vs the three Ducatis. With Marquez out in front, second in the Championship Dovizioso needed to limit the damage as much as possible but Petrucci wasn’t going to let his teammate have it all his own way. The Italians exchanged P4 at the bottom of ‘The Waterfall’ before Dovi went to get back past Petrucci into Turn 1 with three to go and they both ran wide; Miller diving up the inside of both.

Dovizioso was aggressive though and attacked the Australian as the battle between the Ducatis went down to the wire, Petrucci leading them onto the last lap. The Mugello winner would ultimately hold fourth as the chequered flag came out, a terrific performance after his big crash in Q2, with Dovizioso producing another fine fight back to take P5 from P13 on the grid. Miller was forced to settle for a solid sixth.

MotoGP Rnd Sachsenring Germany Petrucci Dovi
Dovizioso chases down teammate Petrucci – Sachsenring Round 9 – MotoGP 2019

Mir picked up his third consecutive top ten in seventh, a great ride from the rookie, with Rossi ending his run of three-straight DNFs with a P8 at the Sachsenring. Franco Morbidelli finished ninth in Germany, the first time he’d raced in the premier class at the track after missing out last year, with Jorge Lorenzo’s replacement Stefan Bradl grabbing his second top ten of the season in front of his home fans.

Tito Rabat put in a stunner to take P11 from last on the grid, ahead of a tougher race for Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Pol Espargaro. Andrea Iannone was 13th and top Aprilia after a crash for teammate Aleix Espargaro, with Takaaki Nakagami riding through the pain barrier to P14. Karel Abraham completed the points.

MotoGP Rnd Sachsenring Germany MotoGP Podium
Marquez took the win from Vinales and Crutchlow – Sachsenring Round 9 – MotoGP 2019

The summer break is now upon us and Marquez will doubtless be the most relaxed after extending his lead once again. But next up is Brno and it’s a good venues for some key rivals…as well as a few weeks away, giving the likes of Quartararo time to come back swinging. Will the reign continue? The Monster Energy Grand Prix České republiky will decide…

MotoGP Results


Source: MCNews.com.au

Motorcycle Racing A Second At A Time

One second is a lifetime on a racetrack. At the highest levels of international roadracing, that critical measurement can mean more than a change in finishing order; it’s the difference between a factory ride and unemployment, a bright future and early retirement. At the season-opening Qatar Grand Prix at the Losail International Circuit, a second was the difference between the sweet taste of victory and an also-ran.

Suzuki factory rider Álex Rins needed 24 months of intense bike development to lap the 16-turn, 3.34-mile circuit a full second faster—1:55.069 versus 1:56.157—than Maverick Viñales did on his way to the race win in 2017, the first year of the current Michelin spec tires. And even then, despite leading three laps, Rins only finished fourth in this year’s grand prix. One spectacular lap in the middle of a 22-lap race holds only so much value.

MotoGP is a game of strategy: Ride as fast as possible without scorching your tires. Times in the early to middle stages of the race often vary by as much as a second from the outright best lap, sometimes more. At Qatar, the leading pack dropped the hammer during the final quarter of the race, freeing itself from the rest of the field when it mattered most. After 42 minutes of racing, 0.6 second—the tiniest fraction of the overall race time—separated the top five.

One Mississippi—147 feet at 100 mph. “I tried to be there,” second-place finisher Marc Márquez said after the race, “to push a little, and just be there until the end.” Exactly.

Source: MotorCyclistOnline.com

Fabio Quartararo fastest at Jerez Official Test | Miller P13

MotoGP 2019

Official Jerez Test


Fabio Quartararo made history on Saturday setting a record for youngest pole setter, however Sunday wasn’t to be his day with a mechanical issue putting an early end to his race, while fighting for the podium. Further proving his speed, Quartararo topped the Jerez Monday test, half a second faster than his pole winning lap time.

MotoGP Rnd Jerez Sat Fabio Quartararo
Fabio Quartararo

The 1’36.379, set near the end of play, put him 0.418 ahead of Cal Crutchlow and 0.714 ahead of Franco Morbidelli at the Official Test.

Fabio Quartararo – P1

“All the frustration from yesterday was compensated for by the excellent day of testing we had today. We tried several different setups and a new front fork. The results were very positive, and it’s something that we will continue investigating in the future. We also managed to find a very good pace with used tyres and we worked with the hard compound for many laps. At the end of the day we tried a time attack and it went very well. This was the first time that the grip has been so good at this track. On my last three laps I was on the limit and I saw that I could not improve much more, with us putting in three times in the 1m 36s. I am very happy with the work that we’ve done and I want to thank the whole team. I can’t wait to get to Le Mans, my home Grand Prix, and to carry on enjoying riding the bike.”

MotoGP Rnd Jerez Sat Morbidelli and Quartararo
Fabio Quartararo and Franco Morbidelli celebrated topping qualifying earlier, with Quartararo’s weekend ruined by mechanical issues in the race

Quartararo did 73 laps on Monday and left it late to put in his fastest on Lap 70, following it up with another not far off the same pace. He had internal fork updates to try, the same as the factory Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP team, but set his fastest lap with the previous regardless.

Teammate Morbidelli was also late mover up the timesheets into third and his best of a 1’37.093 was set on his penultimate lap of 82. He had a Yamaha aero update to try.

Franco Morbidelli – P3

“We worked on a few very specific areas during this test, with the aim of improving the setup of the bike. We found some new solutions that I believe will be useful at upcoming rounds this season. During the race I never felt comfortable with the front end, and today we were able to improve that feeling. We also worked on rear grip, something that we lacked a little during the weekend. We have found solutions and this is important on days like today. We have pace and the feeling is pretty good now.”

MotoGP Rnd Jerez Sun Franco Morbidelli
Franco Morbidelli

Meanwhile, Maverick Viñales was the fastest Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP rider in fifth, 0.847 off the top after an impressive workload of 94 laps, with teammate Valentino Rossi ending the day in P17 after 74 laps.

Maverick Vinales – P5

“We tested many items today. I did a lot of laps on race tyres, which wasn’t bad. I was riding quite well over a race distance, but anyway we need to keep improving. Le Mans is a track where the grip level is quite good, so I’m not too worried about it. It’s a good track for me, so my mind is already there at the French GP. We have found some positives and negatives in today’s test, as always, but nothing special. There are still some things to improve, especially on my side, my riding style, and we need to find something to improve the traction. But I’m not worried because my race pace was there, I was feeling close to the top.”

MotoGP Jerez Test Vinales
Maverick Vinales
Valentino Rossi – P17

“We had a programme for today. We had some things to try to improve the package, especially working on the acceleration, on the grip, all these things. The test wasn’t too bad. We didn’t find something that will change our lives, but there were some details that, if you put them all together in the package, maybe we can be stronger. I also had to try the two tyres for Michelin. These are two tyres we will use in Austria and Buriram. They are harder and stronger, but I wanted to try them, because usually we suffer a little bit with that type of tyre, but it wasn’t a time attack.”

MotoGP Jerez Test Rossi
Valentino Rossi

They were working on some chassis settings but mainly electronics, aimed at improving throttle connection. Petronas Yamaha SRT also had throttle connection updates but the Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP riders were working on further versions.

At Honda, one big focus for Crutchlow was the start; clutch feel and electronics. He did 78 laps, was the man deposed by Quartararo’s late lunge, and did his fastest lap on a new rear medium compound tyre from Michelin featuring new technology for improved grip and consistency.

Cal Crutchlow – P2

“It was a good day. I had no real complaints throughout the day, we just tried the setting of the bike, we didn’t try anything new. Our programme wasn’t to try anything new, we needed to concentrate on set-up. I went to a more drastic setting than I did over the race weekend and I felt maybe a bit more comfortable. I was definitely a lot faster than yesterday, consistently, and we put that down to also using the hard rear tyre and not being able to in the race. I spent a lot of time evaluating that hard rear tyre and I felt good with it. The team is pleased and I’m pleased with how the day went, but as I said yesterday I can’t be pleased with how the race panned out. I finished eighth and there’s no reward for going fast on a Monday in Jerez, but I felt good and it shows that yesterday I should have been faster and should have chosen the hard rear tyre.”

MotoGP Jerez Test Cal Crutchlow
Cal Crutchlow

The tyre was one of two additions to the race weekend allocation – the other being a medium rear with a different casing especially for Spielberg and Buriram, to be assessed further – and it will now be used in the allocation.

A little further down the timesheets, Jerez winner Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team) ended the day in seventh after 75 laps, and set his quickest on the bike that wildcard and test rider Stefan Bradl rode in the race with carbon fibre chassis additions.

MotoGP Jerez Test Marquez on Bradls bike
Marc Marquez

Jorge Lorenzo (Repsol Honda Team) had a slightly modified seat and ended the day in P9 after 93 laps, and the five-time World Champion had two crashes.

Marc Marquez – P7

“We tried many things today and it was a really positive test as we were able to focus on the concept of a few things, not the details. When we finished with everything I stopped a bit early because the feeling was good with the bike and sometimes it’s best to stop when you’re feeling good. I tried Bradl’s bike to understand the concept, it was positive and we are ready for the next round.”

Jorge Lorenzo – P9

“Today we were able to do a lot of laps and try many things. This was important for us as we are still trying to catch up on the time we missed testing at the start of the season. We found some interesting things for races to come. The day was upset by two crashes. It isn’t how we wanted to end the test with a crash. I am OK, sore but OK. Thank you to the Repsol Honda Team and HRC engineers for working hard all weekend and today during the test.”

MotoGP Rnd Jerez Sat Lorenzo
Jorge Lorenzo

Takaaki Nakagami was another late crasher and he ended the day in tenth, an infinitesimal 0.002 off Lorenzo.

Takaaki Nakagami – P10

“The test was going well, but unfortunately I had a crash in the last few minutes. I’m ok though and it was a really important test for us. We tested some small things back-to-back and the bike is working well, like the weekend. We didn’t focus on our performance on the first lap, but the lap time was really consistent and I had a better feeling on the bike than over the weekend. I’m pretty happy with how we worked today, so we’re ready for the next race in Le Mans. We just need to keep going.”

MotoGP Jerez Test Takaaki Nakagami AX
Takaaki Nakagami

For KTM the timesheets made for good reading with Pol Espargaro as he ended the day in fourth, 0.735 off P1 after 63 laps, with teammate Johann Zarco in P16 after 71. They tested chassis parts, chassis settings and some engine parts.

Pol Espargaro – P4

“Tiring day but happy with the result. KTM have worked very hard in the winter and delivered some things that we could not test until Le Mans and here because of the overseas races. We improved on some areas of the engine and also the chassis and found a good balance. We tried different configurations and I think with what we did on the engine we have more room to play, which is good. I’m happy we keep developing and keep improving.”

MotoGP Jerez Test Pol Espargaro
Pol Espargaro
Johann Zarco – P16

“I expected to have a good day and after a race it is useful to be on track again and have a reference from the weekend: after just three laps you are ready to start the work. We tried things looking for confirmation for the technicians and that means a bit of up-and-down and it can be hard to have a consistent feeling. Fabio did an amazing lap-time with that new rear Michelin and I tried it too and had a small improvement over qualifying. Anyway, many laps done and lots of information for the team. We made a little step to let me have more feeling on the front into the fast corners, and from that we tried to improve the rear and could work there.”

MotoGP Jerez Test Johann Zarco
Johann Zarco

Red Bull KTM Tech 3, meanwhile, ended the test in P21 for Miguel Oliveira and P22 for Hafizh Syahrin. They had 2019 KTM tail and exhausts to test.

Miguel Oliveira – P21

“Today was quite long, as we had many things to test. But finally, it has been positive because I was much faster with the ‘race condition bike’ than yesterday. I just missed the fast lap at the end. I used a medium front tyre with a soft rear, which was not the best choice, so I had to stop and change the front tyre, therefore I reused the soft rear and was not able to get this ideal lap in. I’m a bit disappointed for this, but we tested things here, which we think have great potential to help me in the future.”

MotoGP Jerez Test Miguel Oliveira
Miguel Oliveira
Hafizh Syahrin – P22

“Today has been a very positive day, because we did a big step compared to last weekend as during the Grand Prix I was struggling, the condition of my body was not good and on the last day, I just found a good feeling with the bike and also my body was better. In the race I set my fastest time. During the test today, we tried some new parts, which were better for me. But so far, we are not able to use the advantage of the new tyre for the corner speed. We found a very small improvement, so we still need to get better with the bike. At the moment this is not easy, but I hope it’s getting better and better in the future and I give my best to improve at the next round.”

MotoGP Jerez Test Hafizh Syahrin
Hafizh Syahrin

At Suzuki, Joan Mir was working on setting the bike up more for his style and he ended the day in sixth after more than 80 laps.

Joan Mir – P6

“I’m really happy with today, especially as I did so many laps. I found I was able to increase my pace and build on the lap times I set during the weekend. I feel that my settings for Le Mans will be good as we tried a lot of different things here. I had a crash today, but it was without consequences and I’m happy to have been back on my bike and always learning.”

MotoGP Jerez Test Joan Mir
Joan Mir

Suzuki had a new swingarm, and a new swingarm attachment was also spotted in the Hamamatsu factory’s garage as it broke cover for the first time, but Alex Rins ran on and damaged it soon after. He nevertheless did 69 laps with a best of 1’37.275 to put him in P8. Test rider Sylvain Guintoli was also out on track and he put in 79 laps.

Alex Rins – P8

“Today we’ve done a full day of work, testing a lot of things and completing a lot of laps. We found a lot of positive things, and I liked the settings that we tried. Now we head to Le Mans with a really strong package and I’m happy with what we’ve done. I ran off when trying the new swingarm device, so I didn’t get to try it much. Instead we went back to our original plan of testing a new swingarm and focusing on electronics.”

MotoGP Jerez Test alex rins
Alex Rins

Ducati weren’t inside the top ten by the end of the day. Andrea Dovizioso was P11 after 52 laps with a best of 1’37.601, but he wasn’t trying any particular new parts, instead focusing on big setup changes they’d not use time for during a race weekend.

Andrea Dovizioso – P11

“Post-race tests are always useful, because they allow you to work without pressure and evaluate some modifications that you usually don’t have the time to try during a race weekend, where track time is limited. Despite not having anything new, we were able to work on several details, both in terms of setup and electronics, to have a better understanding of how the bike reacts. We gathered some important data, which we’ll be able to use in all tracks from now on. Also, we tested a new medium-spec tyre, with positive outcomes. There is always room for improvement, both for the rider and the bike, and we’ll go to Le Mans with clearer ideas about how to do it.”

MotoGP Jerez Test Andrea Dovizioso
Andrea Dovizioso

Dovizioso’s teammate Danilo Petrucci was P14, focused on working on setup and “some new parts” and spending the majority of his time on the hard tyre. The two were split by Pramac Racing duo Francesco Bagnaia and Jack Miller.

Danilo Petrucci – P14

“In these tests, we focused on preparing for the next round without going for a ‘time attack’. I tried some different components and several setup changes, only using hard tyres and taking them over the race distance to understand how to improve our pace. In particular, we worked to maximize both stability under braking and corner speed, finding some solutions that should work well in Le Mans. I’m quite happy with what we tried and the feeling with the bike is good, so I hope to be able to make another step forward in France.”

MotoGP Jerez Test Danilo Petrucci
Danilo Petrucci

All four were covered by just over a tenth, and the gap from Bagnaia back to Miller was only 0.003. Another tiny gap put Tito Rabat in P17, just 0.005 off Rossi, with teammate Karel Abraham only 0.014 in further arrears. Finally, Aprilia were out on track with Aleix Espargaro and test rider Bradley Smith as Andrea Iannone missed the test due to the after effects of his Saturday crash.

Espargaro did 80 laps and was just 0.038 off Petrucci to take P15, testing rear suspension setups, traction control configurations, weight distribution and torque delivery, and Smith was only 0.002 off Abraham after 82 laps. He had some new parts and was also working on setups and tyre evaluation.

Aleix Espargaro’ – P15

“This day of testing was very important for us. In fact, I was the first one out on the track. We worked non-stop, both in anticipation of Le Mans and to continue development on the RS-GP. As always when testing, some solutions return better results than others. It will be essential to carefully analyse the data collected today to decide which line to follow in the upcoming rounds.”

MotoGP Jerez Test Aleix Espargaro
Aleix Espargaro
Bradley Smith – P20

“It was a rather busy day. We worked on three fronts: the hard front tyre, which we confirmed as the right choice for our bike on this track, weight distribution and some components we needed to evaluate in terms of performance and reliability. Since I got close to Andrea’s and Aleix’s performance, the feeling is that I can contribute to overcoming the limits that the factory riders are highlighting. It is not an easy process. It takes time, but we have a structure capable of doing it. I think that in the coming months we’ll be able to make some targeted changes in our weaker areas.”

MotoGP Rnd Jerez Bradley Smith
Bradley Smith
Andrea Iannone – NC

“I tried, but I was lacking strength in my foot to shift gears. It’s a pity because I would have liked to use the day of testing to confirm the positive note on which we had begun to work in FP4 where, before the crash, I was doing rather well. We received some confirmation from Aleix in the race and that is definitely positive. From tomorrow I’ll begin my recovery, but I am sure that I’ll be able to be at 100% for the Le Mans weekend.”

MotoGP Rnd Jerez Andrea Iannone
Andrea Iannone

That’s it from Jerez for the one-day Official Test for the premier class, although Moto and Moto3 will be back out on track on Tuesday.

Official Jerez Test 2019 – Timesheet

Pos Rider Time
1 QUARTARARO, Fabio 01:36.0
2 CRUTCHLOW, Cal 0.418
3 MORBIDELLI, Franco 0.714
4 ESPARGARO, Pol 0.735
5 VIÑALES, Maverick 0.847
6 MIR, Joan 0.854
7 MARQUEZ, Marc 0.881
8 RINS, Alex 0.896
9 LORENZO, Jorge 1.087
10 NAKAGAMI, Takaaki 1.089
11 DOVIZIOSO, Andrea 1.222
12 BAGNAIA, Francesco 1.319
13 MILLER, Jack 1.322
14 PETRUCCI, Danilo 1.341
15 ESPARGARO, Aleix 1.379
16 ZARCO, Johann 1.516
17 ROSSI, Valentino 1.677
18 RABAT, Tito 1.682
19 ABRAHAM, Karel 1.696
20 SMITH, Bradley 1.698
21 OLIVEIRA, Miguel 2.27
22 SYAHRIN, Hafizh 2.674
23 GUINTOLI, Sylvain 3.258
NC IANNONE, Andrea
NC BRADL, Stefan

Source: MCNews.com.au

Riders and Team Managers reflect on #SpanishGP

2019 MotoGP
Round Four – Jerez
Rider Quotes


Marc Marquez – P1

“This race was a mental race, more than a physical one. After the mistake in Austin it wasn’t easy to lead the race like that from beginning to end, but I knew I had the pace to do it and the bike to do it. I wanted to do a race like in Argentina and at the start in Austin to prove it was a mistake there. I felt good all weekend, smooth, comfortable and able to ride how I want. Thanks to the Repsol Honda Team, they’ve done an amazing job over the last few weeks and here this weekend. It’s great to be leading the championship again.”

MotoGP Rnd Jerez Sun Marc Marquez
Marc Marquez – Jerez MotoGP 2019
Alex Rins – P2

“It’s incredible to get a win and then a 2nd place. I feel very happy; this race was really difficult and starting on the third row made it harder. I gave 100% and I knew that my race pace could be close to Marc’s, so I planned to try and get a good start and go towards the front. The Spanish fans were amazing today, I could see Peluqui corner full of fans and it gives me a real boost every lap. I want to keep up this consistency and I hope for another good finish in Le Mans.”

MotoGP Rnd Jerez Sun Alex Rins
Alex Rins – Jerez MotoGP 2019
Maverick Viñales – P3

“To be on the podium feels like a victory to me. I saw that Dovi and Petrucci were behind me, together, so I thought “Woah, Dovi is going to push, so it‘s going to be difficult”, so I just tried to do my best laps and ride the best sectors I could. Honestly, it was difficult because I had just a little bit of tyre left at the end. I don‘t know if I could have done more laps like that last lap, but I‘m happy because the bike was good at the end. It was very important to demonstrate that we could be there. We recovered a lot of confidence, especially with the front tyre. We‘ve done something different on the bike, that gives me more consistency at the start so I can be much more precise. I‘m really happy because we didn‘t lose any positions at the start, we even gained one, and then another during the race. We‘ve been working really good during the whole weekend. After FP3 we were out of Q2, which means that, since then, we‘ve improved the bike quite a lot. Today was a good test to see where we are. It‘s important that we weren‘t so far from the front in the end. The most important thing is to be on the podium consistently. If we give our best, I think I can arrive at the top, but honestly there‘s no time to relax. Especially tomorrow, we need to do a good test. It‘s very important tomorrow to get everything done and go to Le Mans with a good mindset.”

MotoGP Rnd Jerez Sun Maverick Vinales
Maverick Vinales – Jerez MotoGP 2019
Andrea Dovizioso – P4

“If we consider the issues we’ve always had in the past at Jerez, we can be satisfied with both our pace and the gap from the front at the end of the race. That said, it’s a pity we couldn’t step on the podium, which was our goal. The race was faster than what we expected, and I lost too much ground at the start. In the final phases, I took quite a few risks to cut the gap from Viñales, but I was still losing too much ground in the faster corners to be able to attack him under braking. We knew that on fast-flowing tracks such as this one we would have struggled a bit more. We need to improve our corner speed, we have done that to some extent already and we’re not far from our rivals, so tomorrow we’ll keep working in this direction.”

MotoGP Rnd Jerez Sun Andrea Dovizioso
Andrea Dovizioso – Jerez MotoGP 2019
Danilo Petrucci – P5

“Overall, I’m happy with the way we managed a race that proved to be a bit trickier than what we expected. Early on, I simply tried to stay calm and collected to preserve the tyres for the final laps, and honestly I thought the podium was within our reach, but unfortunately it wasn’t the case despite the fact that both Andrea and I gave our 100 percent until the very end. I lacked a bit of corner speed and I couldn’t be as efficient as I would have liked under braking. To finish in the top-three, this year, it’s necessary to iron out every single detail and, in my case, to start from a better position on the grid. That said, it’s been a positive weekend. We collected important points for our championship and, starting tomorrow, we’ll keep working as hard as ever to get closer to the front.”

MotoGP Rnd Jerez Sun Danilo Petrucci
Danilo Petrucci – Jerez MotoGP 2019
Valentino Rossi – P6

“We made the choice of the tyre at the very last moment. I wanted to race with the medium, but later the temperature rose a lot and we thought “Medium or hard? Medium or hard? Medium or hard?”. In the end we put in the hard, and I think this is the big thing we could have changed. I’m very curious to try the race with the medium, because at the end Maverick was good. I did a good start, but at the beginning I didn’t have enough pace to overtake, but on the second half of the race I was good. I was stronger and my pace wasn’t too bad, good enough to overtake, go, and take some points, which are good for the championship. I think that if I had started more towards the front I could have stayed with the front group, around where Maverick was. The pace of today’s race was very, very fast. I was like 25 seconds faster than my race last year, the gap to first position is less, I felt more comfortable on the bike, and especially on the last lap I was fast. Now we have to concentrate on the next few races.”

MotoGP Rnd Jerez Sun Valentino Rossi
Valentino Rossi – Jerez MotoGP 2019
Franco Morbidelli – P7

“With this seventh position we have rounded off a good weekend for us. We were very quick at the start of the race and I was feeling good and comfortable with the pace of the front runners. I also felt comfortable with the tyres, although as the laps went by I lowered my speed because that changed. In the end, we managed the tyre wear well, so that on the last few laps we would have the ability to fight for the top Independent Team Rider honour with Cal Crutchlow. It’s the first time we have achieved this, so it’s a positive thing that we should repeat many more times. This is a good result for us and it shows that we are improving every day. Now we will try to do a good job at tomorrow’s test, which is also here at Jerez, to be as prepared as possible for Le Mans.”

MotoGP Rnd Jerez Sun Franco Morbidelli
Franco Morbidelli – Jerez MotoGP 2019
Cal Crutchlow – P8

“I never really found a good setting all weekend, I think if I’d been able to find a better setting I would have been able to use the hard rear tyre. This morning I was quite fast on the hard rear tyre, but I wasn’t confident enough to use it in the race because I didn’t know if I was going to have a bad feeling with it like the last couple of days. So I opted to go with the medium and it was the wrong choice – it’s as simple as that. But I tried my best and eighth place was better than not finishing today, for sure. We need to work on the setting of the bike, that’s the main thing, as I don’t feel very comfortable at the moment, as you saw in the race.”

MotoGP Rnd Jerez Sun Cal Crutchlow
Cal Crutchlow – Jerez MotoGP 2019
Takaaki Nakagami – P9

“At the end of the race we were quite competitive and the lap time was consistent, in the low 38s and on the last lap I did very close to the best time, but it was too late. The first lap was much better than at the other circuits, but we are still missing a bit of aggression on the riding and I lost a few positions at the start of the race. We have to focus on that point because during the race and at the end of the race we were quite strong. It’s another top 10, P9 is not too bad but we can improve a lot for the next race and keep improving.”

MotoGP Rnd Jerez Sun Takaaki Nakagami
Takaaki Nakagami – Jerez MotoGP 2019
Stefan Bradl – P10

“I am very happy with the result because we have done a good job over the last months testing. We found positive things and turn it into a result which is important to me, reinforcing in myself that I have the speed. It’s also important for the team around me, the guys work a lot away from the races so these points and the positive feedback is a reward for them. The work we are doing now will be important for the future. Thanks to my team and to HRC for all their efforts.”

MotoGP Rnd Jerez Sun Bradl
Stefan Bradl – Jerez MotoGP 2019
Aleix Espargaro – P11

“In the very early stages of the race, I struggled to find traction, but after just five or six laps I began to feel more at ease, and I was lapping with a good pace. The situation got even better in the last ten laps, where I was decidedly consistent. I began to make up ground on the group of riders ahead of me and I knew I could battle with Nakagami and Crutchlow, who I was getting closer to. Unfortunately, it wasn’t possible because Miller hit me as I was overtaking him. I was already all the way on the inside of the turn and it was a rather violent blow. Fortunately, I was able to keep it upright. However, that made me lose a position to Bradl. The race was our best track session of the weekend and that makes me happy. Right now, obtaining the maximum result and not making mistakes is the important thing, and today we were able to do that. Tomorrow will be another very important day of testing. I’ll be the first one out on the track, and we will keep working hard to improve.”

MotoGP Rnd Jerez Sun Aleix Espargaro
Aleix Espargaro – Jerez MotoGP 2019
Jorge Lorenzo – P12

“It has been a difficult end to the weekend, we wanted to be stronger but I am still not comfortable on the bike. We are still lacking kilometers compared to the other Honda riders. Today especially I was not comfortable on the bike and it was a very difficult race. Tomorrow’s test will be important for us to try and improve my feeling, especially on corner entry where I think I am losing the most. We have to keep working.”

MotoGP Rnd Jerez Sun Lorenzo
Jorge Lorenzo – Jerez MotoGP 2019
Pol Espargaro – P13

“I did a good race. I suffered with the grip in the beginning but caught Lorenzo and passed him. I then just misread my pitboard and eased off a lap earlier. It was one of the biggest mistakes in my career. I was so focussed and so on the limit that I was not thinking about anything else except that Jorge would not pass me back. In the end we lost one position and also I would have been closer to the winner in terms of race time. I know we also had good lap-time speed today. We have a lot to do tomorrow now and to compare what we had in Le Mans and also this weekend.”

MotoGP Rnd Jerez Sun Pol Espargaro
Pol Espargaro – Jerez MotoGP 2019
Johann Zarco – P14

“Tough today. I wanted to overtake more riders but I was on the limit for a lot of the race and losing in acceleration, so it was complicated to pass people on the brakes. I could keep some pace and kept with Pol but in the second half of the race I had to set the target of just finishing. I think we will take some good information in the Monday test. We had some improvement during the weekend but we need to take the general feeling on the bike higher.”

MotoGP Rnd Jerez Sun Johann Zarco
Johann Zarco – Jerez MotoGP 2019
Tito Rabat – P15

“Well, after a complicated weekend we have understood a lot of things, we have improved the grip. Now the objective is to make the bike a bit more agile during the race so that we can reach with more strength at the end of the race, catch a slightly higher pace with less effort. But hey, it has been for me super important this point, at least one point goes well. Looking forward to the test tomorrow, we will work on the bike, continue working on braking and level up.”

Karel Abraham – P16

“I am very angry. There are already two races in a row in the same position, 16th. It is a pity. I made a mistake at the beginning and I hate to start like this the second year, it was very bad and it is impossible to go back. Anyway, the first lap was good, the first part of the race was good, so Tito overtook me, it was still good, but unfortunately I started to lose the lead and I made two mistakes in turn 6. Then Tito opened quite a distance when I made a mistake and then squeezed but I was left with the same gap behind Tito, but I could not cut him, it was very hard.”

Bradley Smith – P17

“At the start of the race I was a bit rusty, but then things improved. Unfortunately, the medium front tyre did not help me to be incisive in braking, but I haven’t been able to try the hard compound much on the RS-GP and that is one of the things I intend to do in the tests tomorrow. This morning I felt good, but the high temperatures in the afternoon changed things. In the finale, I managed to ride better and be more decisive in the battle against the other riders. Overall, it was a positive weekend for the type of work that we are doing.”

MotoGP Rnd Jerez Sun Bradley Smith
Bradley Smith – Jerez MotoGP 2019
Miguel Oliveira – P18

“It has been a difficult race, I couldn’t manage to stay up with the riders in front of me. So I just kept my rhythm, pushed every lap and took home 18th position. The team tried many things to help me but it seems like this weekend with the new parts, it was hard to find our balance with the bike again that we built through the tests and the first races. Now with the new material, I think we need a bit more time to find solutions to help me being comfortable and fast on the bike.”

MotoGP Rnd Jerez Sun Miguel Oliveira
Miguel Oliveira – Jerez MotoGP 2019
Hafizh Syahrin – P19

“We tried some different things in the warm-up this morning and I have to admit that I didn’t think it was a big improvement but the feeling was a bit better. In the race I did my fastest laps of the weekend and caught up with [Bradley] Smith and Miguel until eight laps to go I couldn’t keep the pace anymore because the rear was sliding quite a lot and I couldn’t open the gas like I wanted to. Anyway, I keep believing in myself, stay positive and we for sure keep working hard for the next round in order to be better for the home Grand Prix for my team.”

MotoGP Rnd Jerez Sun Hazifh Syahrin
Hafizh Syahrin – Jerez MotoGP 2019

Jack Miller – DNF

“I am very sorry because it is always a shame to fall with a few laps to go. I am especially sorry for the team that did a great job in these three days in Jerez. I tried to stay with the group fighting for the podium then I felt that I no longer have feeling. I’ll be back stronger at Le Mans.”

MotoGP Rnd Jerez Sun Jack Miller
Jack Miller – Jerez MotoGP 2019
Pecco Bagnaia – DNF

“It was a difficult race because I didn’t get off to a good start. My race pace was not bad but when I tried to overtake Espargaro I made a small mistake and crashed. It’s a shame because we worked well this weekend. I can’t wait to be at Le Man, a track I really like.”

MotoGP Rnd Jerez Sat Pecco Bagnaia
Pecco Bagnaia – Jerez MotoGP 2019
Joan Mir – DNF

“I’m disappointed that I didn’t finish the race, because I had good potential this weekend, but racing is like this. I was happy with my feeling, and when I was catching the group in front I felt good. I really like Le Mans and I hope I can do a great race there and get the result that I know I’m capable of.”

MotoGP Rnd Jerez Sun Joan Mirr
Joan Mirr – Jerez MotoGP 2019
Fabio Quartararo – DNF

“You could say that I am both disappointed and happy. The race was very good; I felt very good on the bike and it was fantastic to ride with the top riders. That was until we suffered a small mechanical problem with the gear shifter. It’s something very small but it affected us a lot, forcing us to abandon the race. Despite this, I’m happy with the work that we’ve done during the weekend and we will continue in the same way at the coming races. The whole team have done an exceptional job, but in this sport there are things that you can’t control. As we did in Qatar, we will take away the positives – there were many of those at this GP. Before the season began, none of us expected to be fighting for the podium and to get a pole position in the fourth race of the year, so we should be happy with the work that is being done. I’m looking forward to the next race, which is the only home GP I have – I hope to do my best.”

MotoGP Rnd Jerez Sat Fabio Quartararo
Fabio Quartararo – Jerez MotoGP 2019
Andrea Iannone – DNS

“I am sorry that I wasn’t able to be out there on the track. Yesterday in FP4 it seemed like we had found a positive direction for the weekend, but unfortunately the crash kept us from continuing our work. I hope to be at full fitness and back in the saddle as soon as possible. I am staying positive and confident.”

MotoGP Rnd Jerez Andrea Iannone
Andrea Iannone – Jerez MotoGP 2019

Team Managers talk Jerez MotoGP

Davide Brivio – Suzuki Ecstar Team Manager

“Alex did a great job, starting 9th in Jerez and recovering to 2nd is not easy at all, it’s one of the most difficult tracks to make up places. He did a great race, and his pace was very fast until the end. So, I want to congratulate him, and also to say thank you to all the team. I’m happy about Joan’s race, because despite the crash with 3 laps to go, he had good pace and was very close to the top in terms of lap times. So overall it’s been a positive day.”

MotoGP Rnd Jerez Sun Alex Rins
Alex Rins – Jerez MotoGP 2019
Massimo Meregalli – Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Team Director

“Considering where we were at after FP3, we welcome today‘s results with open arms. A lot of work has been done this weekend. We found a good set-up for Maverick in FP4. He had a really good start and positioned himself at the back of the front group, that was a key factor for today‘s podium. Also, he kept a really good pace the entire race and fended off Dovizioso, setting a 1‘38.1s on the last lap. We‘re very pleased with this third place, because it‘s a great confidence booster after a couple of tough races for him. Valentino‘s race had been compromised by the Q1 session and, at a track like this, starting from the fifth row is a huge set-back. The beginning of his race wasn‘t as good as usual, and he wasn‘t feeling comfortable with the hard front tyre for most of the race. Still, there are some positives to take away from this round. We arrived here with some doubts, because the last two years we have struggled here, so today‘s third place is a testimony to the hard work we have done and improvements we have made over the winter. Tomorrow we have a few things that we would like to try, especially concerning the electronics settings. If we find positive results, then we will use this new solution in Le Mans.”

MotoGP Rnd Jerez Sun Maverick Vinales
Maverick Vinales – Jerez MotoGP 2019
Mike Leitner – Red Bull KTM Team Manager

“A weekend with some problems and it looks like we struggle more with rear grip here compared to some other places. The riders pushed to the maximum and Pol made a great race. In the end a small mistake led to a big consequence and I feel very sorry for him. He could have been 12th but did well anyway. Johann was also in this group. Pol’s fastest lap-time was just 0.5 slower than the race winner and we are twenty seconds behind Marquez: these are not horrible figures but we know we have to help the riders more and we will work hard in the company to make the bike better.”

MotoGP Rnd Jerez Sun Pol Espargaro
Pol Espargaro – Jerez MotoGP 2019

2019 MotoGP – Round Four Results

Pos Rider Bike Time/Gap
1 Marc Marquez Honda 41’08.685
2 Alex Rins Suzuki 1.654
3 Maverick Viñales Yamaha 2.443
4 Andrea Dovizioso Ducati 2.804
5 Danilo Petrucci Ducati 4.748
6 Valentino Rossi Yamaha 7.547
7 Franco Morbidelli Yamaha 8.228
8 Cal Crutchlow Honda 10.052
9 Takaaki Nakagami Honda 10.274
10 Stefan Bradl Honda 13.402
11 Aleix Espargaro Aprilia 15.431
12 Jorge Lorenzo Honda 18.473
13 Pol Espargaro KTM 20.156
14 Johann Zarco KTM 26.706
15 Tito Rabat Ducati 28.513
16 Karel Abraham Ducati 36.858
17 Bradley Smith Aprilia 41.39
18 Miguel Oliveira KTM 41.57
19 Hafizh Syahrin KTM 50.568
Not Classified
43 Jack MIller Ducati DNF
36 Joan Mir Suzuki DNF
20 Fabio Quartararo Yamaha DNF
63 Francesco Bagnaia Ducati DNF

2019 MotoGP – Round Four
MotoGP Championship Points Standings

Pos Rider Bike Points
1 Marc Marquez Honda 70
2 Alex Rins Suzuki 69
3 Andrea Dovizioso Ducati 67
4 Valentino Rossi Yamaha 61
5 Danilo Petrucci Ducati 41
6 Maverick Viñales Yamaha 30
7 Jack Miller Ducati 29
8 Takaaki Nakagami Honda 29
9 Cal Crutchlow Honda 27
10 Franco Morbidelli Yamaha 25
11 Pol Espargaro KTM 21
12 Aleix Espargaro Aprilia 18
13 Fabio Quartararo Yamaha 17
14 Jorge Lorenzo Honda 11
15 Francesco Bagnaia Ducati 9
16 Joan Mir Suzuki 8
17 Miguel Oliveira KTM 7
18 Johann Zarco KTM 7
19 Stefan Bradl Honda 6
20 Andrea Iannone Aprilia 6
21 Tito Rabat Ducati 2
22 Karel Abraham Ducati 0
23 Hafizh Syahrin KTM 0
24 Bradley Smith Aprilia 0

Source: MCNews.com.au

Qatar MotoGP Test Yamaha 1-2 | French teenager stars

2019 MotoGP
Qatar Test – Final Wrap


Maverick Viñales (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) left Losail International Circuit after having topped two of the three days. Overnight a 1m54.208s was the benchmark for others to measure up to after three days of testing, Vinales was 0.233 clear of Petronas Yamaha rookie Fabio Quartararo, an incredible performance from the 19-year-old Frenchman.

MotoGP Test Qatar Day Maverick Vinales
Maverick Vinales – 2019 MotoGP Qatar Test – Day 3

Valentino Rossi (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) was back inside the top four just behind Marquez on the final day, with Jorge Lorenzo (Repsol Honda Team) another resurgent runner as he completed the top five just ahead of Franco Morbidelli (Petronas Yamaha). On combined times over the three days those riders were all one place further back as Suzuki’s Alex Rins’ time from day two was good enough for third quickest overall at the test.

Maverick Viñales – P1

“Honestly, I have been riding really good on the track, I felt like I was going very fast with the amount of grip that the track provided today. But we need to improve. I don’t have really good grip on the edge, so we need to keep working, especially in that area. On the acceleration side we improved quite a lot since Sepang, and at the moment I’m quite satisfied with what we have in the braking area. My race pace is not bad, I tried ten laps just to understand how the bike is doing, but it was very cold for the medium tyres. Anyway, I rode quite well, with quite a good rhythm. Maybe I could have pushed a little more. However, we still need to improve for the race. I think we are going to be ready. The race will be very important for us. Our bike has really positive points, but also a few negatives, so we now need to come to a conclusion and see where we can improve.”

MotoGP Test Qatar Day Maverick Vinales
Maverick Vinales – 2019 MotoGP Qatar Test – Day 3
Valentino Rossi – P5

“Today was a good day, we worked in a good way and I was quite strong. Also, with the race tyres my pace is quite good, and in the time-attack I was also OK. I’m in P5 at the end of the three days, which is not so bad. For me, also the race pace is quite good, although I think we will need something more to be able to try to fight. But today we already closed the gap by a lot, as we put it all together, with all the staff. I think that, for this night, we’re done, and we’ll see in two weeks if it’s enough.”

MotoGP Test Qatar Day Rossi
Valentino Rossi – 2019 MotoGP Qatar Test – Day 3
Massimo Meregalli – Monster Energy Yamaha Factory Racing Team Director

“In the end, this test has been very productive. We came here to confirm the good points we found in Sepang. The riders’ feedback has been positive, even though the condition of the track has never been good during these three days. As this was an aspect that caused us to suffer in the past, we’re satisfied with our performance. Maverick has been impressive throughout the test, both with his best flying lap, a 1’54.2s, and his consistency. Vale, however, suffered a problem on Day 2, but today they were able to solve the issue and we found a good improvement, resulting in a 1’54.6s. We were able to try different items, including a new rear seat with different aerodynamics. We weren’t able to complete our entire schedule – due to the strong and bothersome wind – the race simulation included. Our engineers will use the coming break to analyse all the data in order to finalise the best set-up for FP1, that we are really looking forward to.”

Quartararo, meanwhile, did 48 laps and showed his Day 2 showing was far from a fluke, with teammate Franco Morbidelli shooting up the timesheets to sixth on Monday too. That makes good reading for both the Iwata marque and the new Petronas Yamaha SRT team, with all Yamahas in the top six on the final day, and the top seven on combined times.

Fabio Quartararo – P2

“It has been a very positive day for us. This morning the day wasn’t looking so good because it was cold and there was sand on the track, but in the end the wind dropped and once again every time I went out on track I felt better. So far this year I have only had six days on the bike and to be honest I feel very comfortable with it. I have managed to do a couple of really fast laps and that is what we were lacking at Sepang. Here we have not struggled to do the lap times, we were on the pace quickly and they have been fast. It was also good to get a race simulation in. Compared with the one I did at Sepang, this one was better in terms of my pace but it was also difficult because I was riding alone virtually the whole time. I think we are making gradual, non-stop progress.”

MotoGP Test Qatar Day Quartararo
Fabio Quartararo – 2019 MotoGP Qatar Test – Day 3
Franco Morbidelli – P7

“I am really happy with this three-day test in Qatar, we have tried a lot of different configurations. I have struggled a little to get completely comfortable with certain aspects but today we managed to get to the bottom of a few little problems. Now we just have to put it all together for the Grand Prix. Finally we have been able to make a good time attack. In general we have done a good job, now we just need to refine a few details to make sure we are competitive over race distance and also over one lap. With the data we have been able to gather here I am confident we can find the perfect package for the race and I am really happy with the job done by the whole team.”

MotoGP Test Qatar Day Franco Morbidelli
Franco Morbidelli – 2019 MotoGP Qatar Test – Day 3
Wilco Zeelenberg – Petronas Yamaha Sepang Racing Team Manager

“The test here in Qatar has gone even better than we expected. We know that the Yamaha is quite suited to this track but obviously the lap times from Fabio [Quartararo] have been incredible and were beyond our expectations – everything went very smoothly for him. With Franco [Morbidelli], we have struggled quite a bit on crazy things. These things happen at testing, so I hope we have solved the majority of the issues. Even though the first few days didn’t go perfectly, he did a great job that allowed him to set a good lap time tonight. Looking back on our preseason as a whole I can only say that I think we can be proud of what we have created and everything we have achieved as a team so far. At the same time, we also need to be realistic and remember that we haven’t scored any points yet in the championship. It looks like things are under control for the moment, so let’s start racing!”

Repsol Honda were the only other team and manufacturer to mix it with Yamaha on Monday, although both machines took tumbles – riders ok. Marc Marquez was third on day three with a 1m54.613s and did 53 laps, again showing the capacity to put more mileage on his shoulder, and teammate Jorge Lorenzo took P5 just 0.040 off Marquez and 0.002 off Rossi.

Marc Marquez – P4

“I feel ready today, ready to start the season. Like yesterday we did a lot of laps, worked well and made some more steps. We’re still not 100% but we have a good feeling. Qatar is a track where normally we struggle, but at this test we are there with everyone else. It was a bit difficult with the wind and the temperature on track tonight but we still did what we needed to.”

MotoGP Test Qatar Day Marc Marquez
Marc Marquez – 2019 MotoGP Qatar Test – Day 3

After two much tougher days on the timesheets, hovering outside the top 15 as he both changes bike and comes back from a scaphoid broken only a month ago, five-time World Champion Lorenzo catapulted himself up to a 1m54.653s on Day 3.

Jorge Lorenzo – P6

“We started the test not adjusting the setting. When we started to work on the setting we were able to improve the bike and our speed. I could ride the bike better, we improved things a little here and a little there and made a big step to be competitive already. We’re very satisfied, the potential is certainly there and it is just my third day as an official Honda rider because before I wasn’t fully fit. When I’m fit and riding better, we can be even stronger.”

MotoGP Test Qatar Day Lorenzo
Jorge Lorenzo – 2019 MotoGP Qatar Test – Day 3

Takaaki Nakagami (LCR Honda Idemitsu), meanwhile, also had a solid final day as he finished the Qatar Test in eighth despite a crash, and the Japanese rider concludes testing with a sheet of consistent top tens. He did 50 laps with a best of 1m54.789s, with teammate Cal Crutchlow (LCR Honda Castrol) down in P17.

Takaaki Nakagami – P9

“I had a pretty nasty crash during the test, but fortunately I am ok. When I had the crash I took a fair bit of impact to my body, but I am thankfully fine apart from a little pain. In few days I’ll be good again. After the crash it was difficult, but we were able to improve the feeling and the lap time, so I am really happy to end the test like this. Now the pre-season tests are over, and I think we are ready for the season to start. I am hugely motivated to go racing, and happy with the whole LCR Honda IDEMITSU team. They have done a great job during testing, and I want to thank them for their efforts.”

MotoGP Test Qatar Day Nakagami
Jorge Lorenzo – 2019 MotoGP Qatar Test – Day 3
Cal Crutchlow – P17

“Today my feeling was a little bit better with the bike, but we only had limited resources as realistically there was only one bike to use. Overall, I felt we improved the setting of the bike. Unfortunately, halfway through the session I had a crash, and it took us quite a bit of time to rebuild that machine. We went back out and did a couple of runs, and then we wanted to make a bigger change and that took some time again. We’re very pleased with the work we have done, and while we’re not pleased with the position, we never went after a lap time today. Overall, I think we have a better pace than what the position says because we just stuck with the medium compound tyres tonight. We’ll see what we can do in a couple of weeks’ time back here in Qatar, but we are all looking forward to being back racing.”

MotoGP Test Qatar Day Crutchlow G
Jorge Lorenzo – 2019 MotoGP Qatar Test – Day 3

Another big headline on the last day of pre-season came from the consistently impressive Pol Espargaro (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing), who was a stunning seventh on a best effort of 1m54.770s. The Spaniard put in 37 laps as the Austrian factory continue working on the details, and

Pol Espargaro – P8

“I’m impressed by the potential of our bike and what we have done here. This is normally a track where we have struggled the last two years but to see us just half a second away is great. We did a good job, a good lap and a good rhythm. The conditions can change for the race but we can take a positive feeling from this test and have a good target for the GP. We still need to work carefully and concentrate on what we are doing. The conditions at the end were tough with the humidity going up and the temperatures dropping. There were a lot of crashes. Anyway, I think we can think big, and we have to do the best we can in the race but also be safe to not lose those first points of the season.”

MotoGP Test Qatar Day Pol Espargaro
Pol Espargaro – 2019 MotoGP Qatar Test – Day 3

The second quickest KTM was actually Miguel Oliveira (Red Bull KTM Tech3) on Monday as the Portuguese rookie was within around a second of Espargaro. Johann Zarco (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) was a little further down the timesheets on Monday in P22.

Miguel Oliveira – P20

“Today we definitely found harder conditions than the two previous days because of the wind. We started a bit slow in terms of lap time but then I was picking up the pace and riding quite good. Unfortunately, a crash ended the test, but I felt I was coming stronger and also the team made quite a few changes to the bike, with which I was very satisfied.”

MotoGP Test Qatar Day Miguel Oliveira
Miguel Oliveira – 2019 MotoGP Qatar Test – Day 3
Johann Zarco – P19

“A bit sad with the crash. It was colder and the Medium tyre was not good enough for me so I could not improve my performance. It was a shame because it was then hard to make another step. Anyway, I got more information and experience and maybe we found a limit, so we need to work more and move that onwards. I’m too slow at the moment – for the final day here anyway – but in consistency I am not too bad and we’ll see where I can be for the race weekend. I’m quite impressed by Pol’s performance today and I’m happy for him.”

MotoGP Test Qatar Day Zarco
Johann Zarco – 2019 MotoGP Qatar Test – Day 3
Hafizh Syahrin – P23

“I’m very happy to improve my lap time and as well about the work on the last day with the team. We know, that we are still very far, although we were quicker. I started to understand a little bit how to adapt to the bike. We tried a race simulation, which was not really bad, but also not very fast, as we needed to understand the bike. At the same time, I did a race distance for the very first time with the KTM. We need to push harder during the race weekend, this is sure. Let’s see what we can do there.”

MotoGP Test Qatar Day Hazifh Syahrin
Hazifh Syahrin – 2019 MotoGP Qatar Test – Day 3

Danilo Petrucci (Mission Winnow Ducati Team), meanwhile, retained his stronghold on the timesheets amongst the Borgo Panigale machines. The Italian was ninth on Day 3 after another 43 laps, with teammate Andrea Dovizioso down in P15 after 50 laps, but the pair were focused on long runs and race set-up.

Danilo Petrucci – P10

“Today we faced a bit more difficulties than expected as the conditions were quite windy, which prompted us to change the setup of the bike. However, we reacted quite well because, once I put the soft tyre on, we were able to post the best provisional time right away. Then, we switched our focus back to the race, running a simulation together with Andrea and trading positions, like what we did in Malaysia. I’m happy with the feeling with the bike: despite the colder track temperatures, we managed to be fast and I’m confident we’ll be ready come race time.”

MotoGP Test Qatar Day Petrucci
Danilo Petrucci – 2019 MotoGP Qatar Test – Day 3
Andrea Dovizioso – P15

“This closing day was complicated a bit by the wind, which didn’t allow to completely follow our program. We focused on some aspects and, while we’re not far from our rivals, there is still room for improvement. Honestly I can’t say I’m completely satisfied, but I’m also convinced we have strong potential and I’m confident we can have a strong race. We collected plenty of interesting data and it will be important to make the most of it to make sure we’re as ready and competitive as possible in two weeks’ time.”

MotoGP Test Qatar Day Andrea Dovizioso
Andrea Dovizioso – 2019 MotoGP Qatar Test – Day 3

The engine and fairing and bigger decisions were already made before the end of action. Jack Miller (Alma Pramac Racing) improved to tenth on his final of 57 laps, and his teammate, rookie Francesco Bagnaia, wasn’t far off in P13 – just two tenths in arrears. He was closely followed by Reale Avintia Racing’s Tito Rabat.

Jack Miller – P11

“I’m satisfied with these three days of testing. We did a good job and the race pace was very good. At the end of the day, we tried a time attack with a good lap time even if the conditions of the track were not the best. There are still some details that we need to improve but we are in the right direction.”

MotoGP Test Qatar Day Jack Miller AX
Jack Miller – 2019 MotoGP Qatar Test – Day 3
Pecco Bagnaia – P13

“All things considered, I’m glad about these days of testing. I think that day after day we have improved in many areas. We only did one time attack but the chrono was not a goal. The important thing was to be confident about the race pace and we did a good long run. I’ll be back in Qatar in 10 days with great motivation.”

MotoGP Test Qatar Day Bagnaia
Pecco Bagnaia – 2019 MotoGP Qatar Test – Day 3

Between that Ducati invasion were nestled both of the Team Suzuki Ecstar machines. Although third overall from his Day 2 laptime, Alex Rins ended Monday in P11 on a 1m54.852s after 41 laps and rookie teammate Joan Mir was the second quickest rookie in P12. The gap between the two Hamamatsu factory machines was only a tenth and a half…

Alex Rins – P3

“My feeling was incredible and I’m very happy. As you can see from the time sheet, my pace is there, but when pushing for my best lap time I had a small crash. All of the requests I’ve given to Suzuki this winter, they have fulfilled. I feel very positive about the way the bike has been developed – it was a challenge to improve it because the base was already very good. For sure it will be tough when we start the first race, there will be a lot of fast riders and everybody is excited to start.”

MotoGP Test Qatar Day alex rins
Alex Rins – 2019 MotoGP Qatar Test – Day 3
Joan Mir – P12

“I’m really happy about the pace we have, and also about my feeling with the bike. We’ve made another step forward, which is really important for the race. We feel well prepared for the start of the season, although I couldn’t quite get the lap time I wanted due to a small mistake on my flying lap. But I feel I have potential and I’m close to the pace of the top guys, just a couple of tenths per lap down on them. There’s always more work to do, but overall I feel positive about what we’ve achieved in these days.”

MotoGP Test Qatar Day joan mir
Joan Mir – 2019 MotoGP Qatar Test – Day 3

Aprilia, meanwhile, were happy with their improvements and although Andrea Iannone (Aprilia Racing Team Gresini) was P16 and Aleix Espargaro P19, they were focusing more on longer runs, for Espargaro especially – and overall across the test Espargaro was P14. The Noale factory were also happy with the adaptation shown by Iannone after the Italian had to sit out much of Sepang with illness, which is a big positive after a difficult recent run.

Aleix Espargaro’ – P14

“Today we had a true race simulation planned to prepare the base for the first race. I was obviously unable to be fast on the flying lap like I was yesterday, but that was definitely not the goal. It was also important because we brought to light a few things that need to be sorted for the race. That is why you do the simulations and now the engineers will have a large amount of data to work on. The 2019 RS-GP is significantly better than the 2018 version. Now we need to work to make the bike fast throughout the entire race distance.”

Andrea Iannone – P18

“Today was the most positive day of this test session. I am not focusing on the standings. We had another tyre available to do a time attack, but I think that it is more important to keep working on the RS-GP. Our priority is to arrive at the race with a bike that is more manageable and to successfully improve turning – aspects we need to focus on. I generally don’t make predictions and I like to keep my feet on the ground. We’ll need to take full advantage of the technical package we have available to us and then draw the sums at the end of the race.”

Bradley Smith – P22

“I think that the package Aprilia has for the season start is good. These were three days of rather intense tests. I worked both on solutions to use already here in Qatar and on developments focused on the mid to long-term. This latter aspect kept me rather busy. In two weeks I’ll be on the track in a wild card slot, but I think that improving the RS-GP over the long term is the most important thing. I kept the guys on the team busy, both with the many changes and with a little crash today, but I have to say that they did a fantastic job.”

MotoGP Test Qatar Day Iannone
Andrea Iannone – 2019 MotoGP Qatar Test – Day 3

That’s it from Qatar and preseason is officially over – now all that remains is to race. With fifteen riders ending the test within a second, KTM in the top ten, the likes of Quartararo looking incredibly fast…what will the VisitQatar Grand Prix bring? Find out from the 8th to 10th March.


MotoGP Qatar Test 2019
Day Three Times

  1. VIÑALES, Maverick – Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP 1:54.208
  2. QUARTARARO, Fabio – Petronas Yamaha SRT +0.233
  3. MARQUEZ, Marc – Repsol Honda Team +0.405
  4. ROSSI, Valentino – Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP +0.443
  5. LORENZO, Jorge – Repsol Honda Team +0.445
  6. MORBIDELLI, Franco – Petronas Yamaha SRT +0.452
  7. ESPARGARO, Pol – Red Bull KTM Factory Racing +0.562
  8. NAKAGAMI, Takaaki – LCR Honda IDEMITSU +0.581
  9. PETRUCCI, Danilo – Mission Winnow Ducati +0.610
  10. MILLER, Jack – Alma Pramac Racing +0.643
  11. RINS, Alex – Team SUZUKI ECSTAR +0.644
  12. MIR, Joan – Team SUZUKI ECSTAR +0.789
  13. BAGNAIA, Francesco – Alma Pramac Racing +0.866
  14. RABAT, Tito – Reale Avintia Racing +1.021
  15. DOVIZIOSO, Andrea – Mission Winnow Ducati +1.025
  16. IANNONE, Andrea – Aprilia Racing Team Gresini +1.135
  17. CRUTCHLOW, Cal – LCR Honda CASTROL +1.482
  18. OLIVEIRA, Miguel – Red Bull KTM Tech 3 +1.565
  19. ESPARGARO, Aleix – Aprilia Racing Team Gresini +1.606
  20. SMITH, Bradley – Aprilia Factory Racing +1.864 0.258
  21. ABRAHAM, Karel – Reale Avintia Racing +1.913
  22. ZARCO, Johann – Red Bull KTM Factory Racing +1.954
  23. SYAHRIN, Hafizh – Red Bull KTM Tech 3 +2.163

MotoGP Qatar Test 2019
Combined Classification

  1. Maverick VIÑALES Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP 1:54.208
  2. Fabio QUARTARARO Petronas Yamaha SRT 1:54.441 0.233
  3. Alex RINS Team SUZUKI ECSTAR 1:54.593 0.385
  4. Marc MARQUEZ Repsol Honda Team 1:54.613 0.405
  5. Valentino ROSSI Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP 1:54.651 0.443
  6. Jorge LORENZO Repsol Honda Team 1:54.653 0.445
  7. Franco MORBIDELLI Petronas Yamaha SRT 1:54.660 0.452
  8. Pol ESPARGARO Red Bull KTM Factory Racing 1:54.770 0.562
  9. Takaaki NAKAGAMI LCR Honda IDEMITSU 1:54.789 0.581
  10. Danilo PETRUCCI Mission Winnow Ducati 1:54.818 0.610
  11. Jack MILLER Alma Pramac Racing 1:54.851 0.643
  12. Joan MIR Team SUZUKI ECSTAR 1:54.997 0.789
  13. Francesco BAGNAIA Alma Pramac Racing 1:55.074 0.866
  14. Aleix ESPARGARO Aprilia Racing Team Gresini 1:55.173 0.965
  15. Andrea DOVIZIOSO Mission Winnow Ducati 1:55.205 0.997
  16. Tito RABAT Reale Avintia Racing 1:55.229 1.021
  17. Cal CRUTCHLOW LCR Honda CASTROL 1:55.247 1.039
  18. Andrea IANNONE Aprilia Racing Team Gresini 1:55.343 1.135
  19. Johann ZARCO Red Bull KTM Factory Racing 1:55.716 1.508
  20. Miguel OLIVEIRA Red Bull KTM Tech 3 1:55.773 1.565
  21. Karel ABRAHAM Reale Avintia Racing 1:55.951 1.743
  22. Bradley SMITH Aprilia Factory Racing 1:56.072 1.864
  23. Hafizh SYAHRIN Red Bull KTM Tech 3 1:56.371 2.163

Source: MCNews.com.au