MotoGP thrills and spills in FP2 at Mandalika

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

After seeming to struggle in FP1 defending World Champ Fabio Quartararo bounced back in FP2 to end Friday quickest while his team-mate Franco Morbidelli made it a Yamaha 1-2.  

That came despite a technical problem for Quartararo early on in the session with the YZR-M1 stalling out on the track and forcing the young Frenchman to push the bike through gravel traps before then getting towed back to the pits by a scooter. Perhaps it was that frustration that wound him up for that late attack that fired him to the top of the time-sheets…

Massimo Meregalli – Monster Yamaha Team Director

“It was a productive first day for us at the Mandalika track. The two key elements to this round are the track‘s new asphalt improving day by day and the extremely hot weather conditions. Fabio did a really good job turning a difficult day into a good result. He was struggling to find a good feeling in the morning, and a little issue at the start of FP2 cost him further time, but he showed great maturity, and he and his crew got the job done. Franco‘s hard work today is bearing fruit. He and his crew are working in the right direction. He seems to come to terms with the Mandalika track more and more each time he heads out, and his lap times reflect that. A 1-2 is a very encouraging start to the race weekend, but it’s early days. We will make sure to remain focused because the conditions can change here in the blink of an eye. Today we’ve already been able to compare different tyre compounds. That gave us useful information about which tyres we will most likely choose for the race, but we will do some further experimenting tomorrow.”

Johann Zarco was once again quickest Ducati, this time ahead of Jorge Martin, Enea Bastianini and Jack Miller made it a Ducati 3-4-5-6.  Factory rider Pecco Bagnaia though finished the session way down in P21 after getting caught out by yellow flag sectors late in the session when round one victor Enea Bastianini fell late in the session, along with Marc Marquez.

Aleix Espargaro continued to show good pace to end Friday seventh quickest ahead of the Red Bull KTM duo of Brad Binder and Miguel Oliveira while Alex Rins rounded out the top ten. 

After figuring highly in FP1 the Repsol Honda duo were off the pace in FP2, after topping the morning session Pol Espargaro was P19 in FP2 while Marc Marquez was also back behind plenty of rookies in P22!  

Marc had a couple of big high-speed rear slides in the first ten minutes of the session that he did well to save.  That trend continued throughout the session, with Marc never really looking to have a settled bike, set-up problems or testing with limited grip with a view to a hot 27 lap race distance on Sunday…?  Marquez had been second halfway through the session but then slipped down the order as the rest of the field improved later in the session when, in the dying seconds of the session he had a slide that he was unable to save, as a result he took a high speed tumble through the gravel trap…  He walked away but one would imagine he will be a bit sore and sorry when he wakes up tomorrow…  

Takaaki Nakagami was top Honda in P12 just behind Andrea Dovizioso. 

MotoGP Friday Combined Times

Moto2

Jake Dixon has left his mark on the first day of the Indonesian Grand Prix with the fastest time in the intermediate category. The British rider has completed two consecutive fast laps, 1:36.380 first and 1:35.897 later, which have allowed him to lead the second session of the day and finish the first free practice sessions as the fastest rider in Moto2. 

The Inde GASGAS Aspar Team rider praised the Indonesian track, as he considers it suits his riding style. At the Mandalika circuit, Dixon has been able to show his potential, and he aspires to do it again both tomorrow, in qualifying practice, and on Sunday in the race.

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Dixon led a session in which Qatar Grand Prix winner Celestino Vietti was second and compatriot Sam Lowes finished third.

Pedro Acosta (Red Bull KTM Ajo) has been given a Long Lap penalty for the race on Sunday for crashing while not respecting a yellow flag in FP2.

Jake Dixon – P1

“Good first day. The track is amazing, the layout suits my style, I like fast corners. The bike is also amazing, I can’t say enough about it. When you have a bike underneath you, you can really show your potential. The team allows me to do that. I think that, as the season goes on, we will be really strong. Today I felt incredible, but we need to keep working: I’m fast today, but we need to continue like this tomorrow and on Sunday. I still have some work to do on myself, I feel like there are some areas where I can improve, but, for day one, I’m really happy.”

Celestino Vietti – P2

“We got a very good start here in Indonesia too and I’m happy: the sensations are very similar to those of Qatar. I like the track, the asphalt is very particular and the T1, the only one resurfaced after the tests, is very different from the rest of the track. Overall the feeling is good, we were able to try both in the dry and in the wet, I have struggled a little in the second sector, but we can make a step forward for qualifying.”

Moto2 Friday Combined Times

Moto3 Friday Combined Times

2022 MotoGP Round Two
Time Schedule (AEDT)

Saturday

Sunday

2022 Provisional MotoGP Calendar

(*Subject to change*)