Riders reflect on opening day of practice at Mandalika #IndonesianGP

MotoGP 2022 – Round Two
Pertamina Grand Prix of Indonesia – Friday Quotes

Fabio Quartararo – P1

“Basically, I was not there this morning, because Franco was within the top 5, so it was my fault. I tried my best on the hard tyre in the morning, but it was not working for us. Tomorrow, we will try it again in hotter conditions, but it was not easy. In the afternoon, I felt much better in much better conditions. I had a small issue, but then at the end I adapted quite quickly, and I managed to get in a great lap. This is the first time this year that I finished a practice feeling really confident. In the test here I also felt confident, I felt fast, and I think today’s result is a good way to bounce back from what happened in Qatar, which was disappointing. Even if it’s just a free practice, it’s good to have a taste of being in a better position and being faster.”

Franco Morbidelli – P2

“Many things were different compared to the test: the tyres, the tarmac. So, it was really difficult to change things on the bike, because many key elements had changed this Friday. So, today we just tried to adapt to the new situation, and we did quite well, because we were decently fast, and finally also on new tyres Fabio and I were fast. Overall, a positive day for us I would say. I feel good. I was feeling good in Qatar too, but it‘s still early and it‘s difficult to make predictions this early on.”

Johann Zarco – P3

“Definitely a very positive first day, I was able to go well in both sessions. Having done the test here has definitely helped me to get familiar with the track. It will be important tomorrow to get into Q2 right away and have a good qualifying session.”

Jorge Martín – P4

“This morning I wanted to get confident with the bike and the track. In the afternoon session I already felt much better and in fact I finished in fourth position. The sensations are very positive and I’m confident.”

Enea Bastianini – P5

“We did a good job, especially in FP2. The track was quite damp this morning and we took the opportunity to work on this type of conditions as well – especially as it’s never been my best scenario. The track conditions changed in the afternoon: different grip, different tyres… I had to come up with a plan on the fly and despite a mistake towards the end, things went well. We’re still not 100% and we’ll need to make another step tomorrow – and hopefully the track will also improve. We only worked with medium tyres and soft ones for the time attack… We’ll have to try the harder option too, but today I chose to play safer.”

Jack Miller – P6

“I had a lot of fun today, and I’m satisfied with this first day. The circuit management did an incredible job, and with the new asphalt, the track conditions have improved a lot. I thought we would have to start the day with the rain tyres because with the rain this morning, there were still some wet patches, but we were able to use the slicks straight away, and even in the wettest spots, the grip level was good. The surface was still pretty dirty, but the track has cleaned up after the first few sessions. In FP2 this afternoon, I tried to do a long run, and the pace is good, so I’m satisfied. Now the goal will be to be able to confirm the good results tomorrow morning in FP3 and get a good placement in qualifying.”

Aleix Espargaro – P7

“A pretty stressful but positive day. The new asphalt is definitely an improvement over the tests and, despite having less positive sensations than in Qatar, I was still able to be fast. Even this morning, in the worst conditions for my style – a damp track and slick tyres – the RS-GP performed well. Overall a good day even though qualifying here will be the real crux of the weekend: it’s not easy to overtake here, so starting as far ahead as possible could affect the race”.

Alex Rins – P10

“Today was a difficult day for me, I didn’t sleep much at all last night; I think only around four hours. For this didn’t feel right from a physical point of view, and I’m actually surprised that I managed to get into the Top 10. My FP2 session was quite nice, and with the softer tyres I had some better pace, but the yellow flags cost me in the end.”

Andrea Dovizioso – P11

“I still have to work a lot on learning how to ride the bike the correct way and until I manage to do that correctly, I have to basically put in double the amount of work. I still need some improvement and especially, when the grip is like this. I did a different strategy and started with the soft tyre, but it didn’t work. I managed to do some laps behind Franky (Morbidelli), which was very important to see how the bike is ridden correctly. The condition of the track was a bit better than during the test, there is still a line and you have to be really careful, when you leave it. This is going to be difficult for the race.”

Takaaki Nakagami – P12

“Today, FP1 was tricky, it was mixed conditions and difficult to understand. But FP2 was dry and we tried to understand the new asphalt with the new casing of the tyre compared to the test. It was a positive day for us, there were a lot of things we were able to understand about the feeling of the bike and also the feeling of the tyre. The feeling of the bike today was good, just at the end of FP2 we were missing a good qualifying lap, but we can definitely have a good improvement tomorrow. I’m excited for qualy, we’re ready to take a step forward.”

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Maverick Vinales – P13

“We have done a good job on the track, today we had different conditions between the two sessions but the behaviour of the new asphalt was definitely positive. The situation for me is definitely better than Qatar even if still not perfect. This is demonstrated by my fast lap, where I made more than one mistake, which means that there is room for improvement. We know we have work to do, my adaptation to the Aprilia is not finished and we have to continue on this path”.

Fabio Di Giannantonio – P14

“I’m very happy with how today went: we made a great step with the bike compared to Qatar and I found back the type of feeling I had during the first tests. We were quick with both medium and softer tyres. To tell the truth, I couldn’t put together the perfect lap with the latter, so that means I still have some margin for tomorrow’s qualifying. Now we need to work on the rear-end of the bike, but the feeling with the front-end is there and that’s important.”

Marco Bezzecchi – P15

“I’m happy with the new asphalt in the T1, they did a good job, while the rest of the track remained very similar to the test. I had a strong start and I’m happy: the pace is good too and I can make a step of a few tenths in some points in view of qualifying. I worked hard, I tried both soft and medium, I felt good with both but I haven’t made a decision about it yet. Let’s make the most of tomorrow’s sessions to understand in which direction to move.”

Álex Márquez – P16

“We’re still discovering many things with this new bike. In Qatar, we discovered the front feeling is where we need to focus. With my riding style I’m suffering a lot and maybe even more than the other (Honda) ones. We are asking for some better turning, better stopping when braking and I’m sure that when we find a solution, the step forward will be big. We still have some of the same issues as in Qatar as we’re struggling with the front end and we need to understand better what’s going on and improve. Tomorrow it will be important to try to make the bike more precise when we’re braking, to get the lap time we want.”

Raul Fernandez – P17

“Today was a really positive day for us because I have such a better feeling with the bike than I had in Qatar. We improved a lot firstly, but I am also approaching this Grand Prix from a different perspective as I try to focus on the way my body is moving on the bike rather than making so many changes on the bike itself, and it has been working for me so far. Tomorrow, we will have another opportunity to improve. If we continue to work like we did today, we can fight for a spot in Q2. This is our target.” 

Remy Gardner – P18

“It was very hot today here in Lombok. The track was a bit tricky this morning due to the heavy rain just before the start of the day, but in the afternoon it was better and it allowed us to push more. We changed a bit the settings of the bike, to which I need to adapt, but I think that tomorrow we can take a further step.”

Pol Espargaro – P19

“When we look at the day overall it’s a good day. We started well with P1 in the morning and then in the afternoon our speed was not too bad. There was a problem with the front brake during our run with the soft tyre so I couldn’t improve like I wanted to but before that we were able to run inside the top five. There was the potential to be in the top five and sadly these kinds of problems can happen, we are not worried about it. The important thing is that the lap time is coming, when I want to push – I can push and get the lap time. Tomorrow is a new day and hopefully the morning is dry so we can improve to Q2, I have the speed.”

Joan Mir – P20

“Today’s FP2 was tough, we had some minor mechanical issues which meant that I couldn’t tie everything together. I started to feel better with the bike at the end of the session, I had a soft tyre and I was getting faster, in fact I felt pretty good with those tyres, but I got caught by the yellow flags and lost my laps. The day didn’t go as I expected, but we still have time to fix the bike and improve our pace, it won’t be easy because rain is coming, but we won’t give up and we feel optimistic.”

Francesco Bagnaia – P21

“I’m thrilled with the work we did today. Unfortunately, we were unlucky because I got both yellow flags in the final minutes of FP2 and could not finish my time attack. Anyway, I have found a good feeling with the bike, and the pace is very good. The track conditions are better than the test, and I feel good with the tyres brought here by Michelin, which make our bike much more stable. We definitely have the potential to be in the top ten in FP3. Let’s just hope it doesn’t rain and that we have at least a chance to try a time attack tomorrow morning.”

Marc Marquez – P22

“Today in the morning we were able to go quite well but then in the afternoon we had a crash when it was not the time to have a crash. This can happen when you are pushing for one fast lap. We still need to work on what tyre will be best for the race, this will be the main objective for tomorrow. Before the crash it was OK, but we will have to see what the situation is tomorrow. Not happy for the result and hoping for dry conditions tomorrow morning.”

Darryn Binder – P23

“This morning was quite difficult. The conditions have been a bit mixed at the beginning of the session. I did a couple of laps on the wets, stopped, put in the slicks, but I just struggled to gain enough confidence to cross the wet patches. With this big bike and so much power every time you touch the wet patches and it moves, I get a little bit nervous, so I struggled to get comfortable this morning. Anyway, it was a learning experience nonetheless. FP2 was quite good. We really tried to improve a lot. I felt quite good and felt that the tyres are different to the test. The grip on the tyre seems to be less than what we had at the test. So I was just really trying to understand that and trying to make changes to improve. I have a better understanding now after FP2 and I think we can work on some things for tomorrow. I still need to learn how to really push 100% on the first lap with a new tyre to get the absolute maximum. Overall, I’m quite happy with how things went. Hopefully we can improve tomorrow if the weather stays stable.”

Luca Marini – P24

“An unlucky day: a stone hit my radiator and I lost a lot of time into the garage. We couldn’t understand what was happening to the bike, it’s something that can happen with a track in these conditions. The feeling is quite good, we are all very close, the sensations are similar to the test, but the rear tire is completely different and it is difficult to manage the rear speed. I have to adapt, I will have to change something and make a step forward on the electronics. In February here, I had the impression of having everything under control, but now the new tire is very sensitive to temperature. But I’m confident, I know we can get closer tomorrow.”

MotoGP Friday Combined Times

2022 MotoGP Round Two
Time Schedule (AEDT)

Saturday

Sunday

2022 Provisional MotoGP Calendar

(*Subject to change*)