Ducati 1-2 on the grid for Le Mans after crazy qualifying session

MotoGP 2022 – Round Seven
SHARK Grand Prix de France

A magnificent performance from Francesco Bagnaia at the SHARK Grand Prix de France saw him secure consecutive MotoGP pole positions for the first time this season, and with a new All Time Lap Record to boot. His 1:30.450 is the fastest two-wheeled lap seen around Le Mans and it also gives Ducati their first pole at the venue.

It’s double delight for the Ducati Lenovo Team too, with Jack Miller joining his teammate on the front row and Aprilia’s Aleix Espargaro’s remarkable run of form continuing as the number 41 takes a third consecutive front row.

French favourites Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) and Johann Zarco (Pramac Racing) had slightly tougher Saturdays. Quartararo will start fourth after getting pipped to the front row, and Zarco qualified sixth but has a 3-place grid penalty for disturbing another rider in Q2 which pushes him down to ninth on the grid.

The two Ducatis head the Aprilia, with Quartararo keen to push on from fourth. Bastianini was top Independent too, ahead of Mir now gaining a row as well as a place.

Teammate Alex Rins (Team Suzuki Ecstar) now heads the third row ahead of Martin, and it’s completed by Zarco.

It was frustration for the Repsol Hondas as Marc Marquez rolled out of his time attack, while Pol Espargaro was the rider affected by Zarco being slow on the racing line. They will line up in P10 and P11 respectively, with Independent Team counterpart Takaaki Nakagami (LCR Honda Idemitsu) completing the top 12.

MotoGP Rider Quotes

Francesco Bagnaia – P1

“It was definitely a positive day for us! This morning I had a great feeling with the bike, and then I struggled a little more with the higher temperatures this afternoon. However, the team made a small modification that improved my feeling and allowed me to be faster. I am happy, and I think I managed to get closer to the pace of Quartararo, who, in my opinion, is still the man to beat here. The conditions could be different tomorrow, so we’ll have to assess how to approach the race.” 

Jack Miller – P2

“I’m happy with how this weekend is going and the fantastic one-two finish in qualifying for the team. I had a great feeling with the bike from the start, and my pace is good. In FP4, I unfortunately crashed, but the team guys did an incredible job setting the bike up for Q2 in such a short time. Also, I have to thank Pecco. Having him as a reference definitely helped me today. I am satisfied and confident that I can have a good race tomorrow, even if it rains.”

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Aleix Espargaro – P3

“I honestly couldn’t have expected more. From my point of view, the last two laps were perfect. I’m losing a bit in the final sector of the track, which is the one I like the least, but as for everything else, we did an outstanding job. I must thank my team because over these two days, they modified the RS-GP to place me in the best conditions and with the crash in FP4, I gave them a bit of extra work! For tomorrow, I’m obviously hoping for a dry race, but Le Mans is always unpredictable, so we’ll give it our all in any case.”

Fabio Quartararo – P4

“I was disappointed about this fourth place at first, but two minutes later I was happy because I realised that we have a good and consistent race pace. I am quite happy: a 1’30.6 with our bike is a good lap. I felt like I was on the limit, I had nothing more left to give. I expect a different race than in Jerez. The tyre temperature and pressure are different here. We know that 27 laps is long, and we will have the opportunity to attack. I feel confident, dry or wet. I’m hoping for dry weather. I feel I’m on the pace. We can fight for the victory.”

Enea Bastianini – P5

“Things went well today, even though the front row was really within reach. We have shown we can be fast throughout the whole weekend and that hadn’t happened in the last GPs. So we can say we’re back. We had some technical issues during the weekend, but we’ll be ready tomorrow and in case it rains, to be starting near the front will surely be an advantage. Looks like Fabio (Quartararo) has a great race pace, but we’ll try to stay attached to him.”

Joan Mir – P7

“I’m happy with today’s qualifying. I didn’t think I would have to go through Q1, but in FP3 I just didn’t feel quite right, and it meant I wasn’t strong enough to finish in the Top 10. This is a track where you either feel good or you don’t. Then we changed some things on the bike and I immediately felt a lot more competitive and this allowed me to go through to final qualifying and to get a good lap time. I still feel like there’s a margin to make even more of a step, so I’m quite hopeful, especially if the race is dry.”

Alex Rins – P8

“The day was good; I improved compared to yesterday and I’m quite happy with my pace, especially in FP4. I tried the medium and the soft rear tyres, and I felt particularly good with the soft, but we don’t know what will be possible tomorrow. I feel calm and prepared for the race, even though it will be hard starting from P8. The weather looks pretty mixed for tomorrow, and it can be crazy here, so we need to be ready for everything!”

Marc Marquez – P10

“This morning our feeling and our pace was not bad, we also did a good lap – OK I followed Quartararo but I was feeling good and found good speed. In the afternoon with the warmer conditions, from FP4 I was not feeling as good as before with the bike and in the second run I was working a lot on my riding but I had a small crash. I went out in Qualifying with new tyres and was quite hopeful, but the speed simply was not there, nor was the feeling. We need to understand why. Normally I can adapt better to the conditions, but I couldn’t find the way today. But when you look at the lap chart, our rhythm is not that far and I think we can be fighting in the second group.”

Pol Espargaro – P11

“Today was a tough day, especially when the temperature rises because we struggled to match our speed from the morning. In the morning I was able to pass into Q2 even after the crash and already we knew the afternoon would be difficult. We didn’t maximise our performance in Qualifying because I found Johann on my last lap but at the end of the day I don’t think this made a big difference. A good start will be important tomorrow and with a long straight we have some potential to gain early positions and aim to be fighting with the second group.”

Takaaki Nakagami – P12

“Second day here in Le Mans and this morning (in FP3) we did a pretty good lap time and got into the top 10 which meant this afternoon we were directly in Q2. During the qualifying session, when the temperature was higher, we were definitely struggling with the side grip on the rear and we couldn’t get a good feeling on the rear grip. Tomorrow will probably be different conditions, it looks like it will rain so we’ll try a few things in the morning to be ready for the race.”

Marco Bezzecchi – P13

“I am very happy with today’s result: we made a good step forward both on the pace and on the flying lap. I am particularly satisfied with the pace on the long run and tomorrow this will be for sure helpful for the race. A real shame to have lost the Q2 by only 7 thousandths, but the Team did a great job and we are happy.”

Maverick Vinales – P14

“Overall, it was a good day, because as we continued working, we found some solutions to improve my feeling with the RS-GP. It is still hard for me to get the most out of the time attack, when you need to push a bit more, although I should point out that my good lap today was voided by the yellow flag. The fact that I have a good pace is positive but starting farther forward would definitely help us.”

Luca Marini – P15

“I expected more from the free practices to qualifying: everyone made a step forward in Jerez during the test and then again today with the change of the rear tire. The gaps are minimal and the level is very high. I have struggled a lot: I think I’m riding well, I brake at the right point, I work on the lines, but the lap time is always the same. In the FP1 I felt good, then I started to struggle even with the grip and it is difficult for me to turn the bike as I want. We hope for a good weather for tomorrow for recovering places.”

Fabio Di Giannantonio – P16

“I’m only half happy with today. On one side, we made another little step forward, from the other I was expecting something more. We tried some adjustments that unfortunately didn’t fully work and we lost our way a little. The others have improved more, that’s it. Too bad because in qualifying we did play our cards right. If it rains tomorrow, it’ll be my second time with a MotoGP bike in these conditions. We will try our best.”

Miguel Oliveira – P17

“Qualifying was difficult. We found some speed but not enough to be fighting for better positions. The team has been trying to work out how we can be faster here in Le Mans but we are just lacking a bit. We are looking forward to the race tomorrow to see what we can do. My FP4 was not too bad so to fight for some points is definitely the goal and if it rains then it’s welcome and we’ll try to use it to our advantage but we want more in the dry.”

Brad Binder – P18

“A difficult weekend so far. FP2 went quite well and this morning I felt good but I didn’t get a good first attempt in qualifying and then the tire for the second was jumping. 18th is not our position but we’ve got to work because we’re missing a little out there. We also weren’t that lucky today.”

Franco Morbidelli – P19

“Unfortunately, today we were greedy. We wanted to try a step from FP4 to qualifying that didn‘t work. In qualifying I felt good. I made a step compared to this morning and yesterday, but I wanted more after FP4, and instead we went worse. We will start tomorrow from an FP4 base and try to make a better modification. Let‘s see what the weather will be like and what happens.”

Andrea Dovizioso – P20

“We can’t be happy. I expected more in terms of speed and also of my lap time in Qualifying. We are in P20, because the speed is not good enough. I’m honestly disappointed, I was expecting more here in Le Mans. But when you analyze everything in the end, this is the outcome. When you can’t ride this bike like Fabio (Quartararo) because the characteristics of the machine are quite particular, this is what happens. To change that is difficult for me at the moment.”

Álex Márquez – P21

“Second day here in Le Mans and I’m not happy with the result, but I’ve recovered the feeling on the bike which is the most important thing for us. The qualy was not bad, but in Q1 everybody was really, really fast and there were impressive lap times. We were not able to do that fast lap, but at least we’ve recovered some feeling and confidence. For tomorrow, we’ll try to improve our rhythm in warm-up, then make a good start and give 100% like we did today in qualy.”

Remy Gardner – P22

“Another tough day for us here in Le Mans. Unfortunately, we were unable to do a good fast lap in the qualifying session this afternoon. We need to stay positive and keep working, while I’m hoping that KTM can help us where needed so we can improve our performance. I look forward to the race tomorrow, full gas!”

Darryn Binder – P23

“Today I managed to make a little step forward in Qualifying, which I’m quite happy with. I feel like I’m slowly but surely start to understand how I need to ride the bike in order to work a bit better. I feel like I could have maybe made another step, but we’ll try again tomorrow. Overall, I feel more and more comfortable on the bike and start to slowly learning things. Unfortunately, every weekend we start at zero again and it takes a bit longer to get to where you want to. But anyway, I’m feeling confident for tomorrow. Let’s see what the weather brings. Rain or shine – I’ll do my best.”

Raul Fernandez – P24

“It was quite a difficult day for me. After a full day on the bike yesterday, my hand is painful and it is complicated braking here with a wrist that is not at 100%. Tomorrow will be an interesting race because the weather is still a bit uncertain, so we will see what it has in store for us. It is an important race for my team, and I will give my best.”

Le Mans MotoGP Qualifying Times 2022

Zarco penalised three positions and will start from ninth on the grid

Moto2

Red Bull KTM Ajo’s Pedro Acosta has first pole position in the Moto2 class after breaking his own, hours-old All Time Lap Record at the SHARK Grand Prix de France. Jake Dixon (Inde GASGAS Aspar Team) qualified second and will be in a Red Bull KTM Ajo sandwich on the front row, with Augusto Fernandez was third in Q2. World Championship leader Celestino Vietti (Mooney VR46 Racing Team), on the other hand, could not escape Q1… and he’ll start 19th.

Behind Acosta, Dixon, Fernandez and Lowes, Albert Arenas (Inde GASGAS Aspar) qualified fifth on a 1:36.088. He will be joined on Row 2 by Alonso Lopez, who is in full-time at MB Conveyors Speed Up and has so far had the upper hand on deservedly hyped teammate Aldeguer in France.

Aron Canet (Flexbox HP40) took seventh, and Ai Ogura (Idemitsu Honda Team Asia) was eighth with the only flying lap which he could get in before crashing at La Chapelle. Rounding out the top 10 were Bendsneyder and Tony Arbolino (Elf Marc VDS Racing Team), who’ll be looking for more on Sunday – as well FP1 fast man Somkiat Chantra (Idemitsu Honda Team Asia) in 11th after he took a tumble at Chemin aux Boeufs.

Le Mans Moto2 Qualifying Times 2022

Moto3

It’s been domination from Dennis Foggia all weekend at the SHARK Grand Prix de France so far, and now the Leopard Racing rider and title contender has earned a career-first pole position.

The Italian’s 1:41.621 puts him 0.151 clear of team-mate Tatsuki Suzuki, with Jaume Masia (Red Bull KTM Ajo) completing the front row. Points leader Sergio Garcia (Gaviota GASGAS Aspar Team) was seventh in Q2, with teammate and Jerez winner Izan Guevara alongside.

Behind Foggia, Suzuki and Masia, Moreira heads Tatay in fourth and fifth. Rivacold Snipers’ Andrea Migno starts P6, completing the second row.

Garcia and Guevara are next up, with Rossi taking P9 on the grid via Q1. Öncü completes the top ten, ahead of Joel Kelso (CIP Green Power) and Ayumu Sasaki (Sterilgarda Husqvarna Max).

Joel Kelso – P11

“We decided to try and ride again today. Fortunately, we managed to get P13 in FP3 which means we didn’t have to go out in Q1. This was a positive as I didn’t want to be out on track any longer than I had to be! We finished P11 in Q2 which I am happy about. I am just still unsure if we are going to be able to race tomorrow. This weekend I have only been able to get through about 4 laps, as it is just not possible to do anymore with this injury. Whether I race or don’t I am staying positive though, because each week our pace is getting better!”

Le Mans Moto3 Qualifying Times 2022

MotoE Race One

Mattia Casadei (Pons Racing 40) is now an FIM Enel MotoE World Cup race winner! The Italian veteran saw off a serious challenge from compatriot Kevin Zannoni (Ongetta SIC58 Squadra Corse) in Race 1 at the SHARK Grand Prix de France to take his maiden win in the Cup. Zannoni threw everything into his bid for victory, but hit the deck on the final lap when he asked too much of his front tyre at Turn 13. Nevertheless, the speed was a warning shot for Sunday…

After that drama ahead, Dominique Aegerter (Dynavolt Intact GP) took second place and a valuable 20 points, with Hikari Okubo (Avant Ajo MotoE) completing the podium in a first rostrum finish for the Japanese rider.

There was drama as soon as the race started when Casadei’s team-mate and reigning Cup winner Jordi Torres fell in the pack as the they exited the Turn 3/Turn 4 chicane. Neither Niccolo Canepa (WithU GRT RNF MotoE Team) nor Xavi Fores (Octo Pramac MotoE) were able to fully avoid the stricken Spaniard, but after a check up at the medical centre Torres was confirmed with a broken fibula; unfit but otherwise ok.

The net result of that opening lap was that Casadei led Zannoni, Okubo and Aegerter, with Casadei looking like he might break away. However, he was reeled in by Zannoni as the eight-lap contest reached its halfway mark.

After biding his time for a handful of laps, the SIC58 rider then had a big look at race leader as they sped through Turn 1/Turn 2 for the final time. Casadei fended off that attack but Zannoni did not give up, pusing to the limit and then sadly just over it as his challenge came to an end at the penultimate corner when he folded the front. Rider ok, and surely eager to recharge for a Race 2 charge.

Up ahead, Casadei won unflustered by 0.8 seconds, while Aegerter had hustled past Okubo at Turn 3 on the second-last lap. Okubo was a maiden podium finisher in third though, just ahead of Matteo Ferrari (Felo Gresini MotoE), Hector Garzo (Tech3 E-Racing), Miquel Pons, and Eric Granado. The latter two, team-mates at the LCR E-Team, had managed to stay upright despite contact exiting Turn 14 in the closing stages of the race, and both will want more on Sunday.

Canepa made the chequered flag in eighth, Andrea Mantovani (WithU GRT RNF MotoE Team) took ninth as he sits in for Bradley Smith, and Alex Escrig (Tech3 E-Racing) was 10th all-told. Escrig had run as high as fourth in the early stages but lost three spots when he ran long at Chemin aux Boeufs (Turn 9/Turn 10) on Lap 2, then had to serve a long lap penalty for the shortcut. Fores ended up 12th and Zannoni was classified a finisher, but in 16th.

Granado won both races in Round 1 of the season at the Spanish Grand Prix, but his lead in the MotoE World Cup standings has now been cut to six points, with Aegerter second and Casadei 12 points further back in third.

MotoE Le Mans Race One Results 2022

SHARK Grand Prix de France Schedule (AEST)