Marc Márquez second in Misano Friday practice as Ducati teammate Bagnaia finishes nineteenth
Marc Márquez ended Friday Practice at Misano in second place, just over a tenth of a second off the fastest time, while Ducati Lenovo teammate Francesco Bagnaia was nineteenth and must go through Q1.
- 2nd
- 19th
- just over a tenth of a second
- 13 laps
What Happened
The Ducati Lenovo Team began its home weekend at the Misano World Circuit 'Marco Simoncelli' with a mixed opening day. Marc Márquez, the quickest rider in FP1, moved back to the top of the times with ten minutes left in Practice before finishing second, just over a tenth of a second behind the day's fastest time. Francesco Bagnaia, eighteenth in the morning, made a step forward on lap time early in the afternoon session but could not make the difference towards the end, ending nineteenth. That result means Bagnaia will have to tackle Q1.
- Alex Márquez (Gresini Racing MotoGP) – third
- Fabio Di Giannantonio
- Franco Morbidelli (VR46 Racing Team)
- Four Ducatis in total finished in the top five
just over a tenth of a second
He finished the session second after leading the times with ten minutes remaining.
- 10:10 – Free Practice 2
- 10:50 – Q1
- 11:15 – Q2
- 15:00 – Sprint, the thirteenth of the season, over a 13-lap distance
“It went as expected. We worked on the set-up and on tyre evaluation, trying to get as ready as possible for the races while avoiding pushing hard for too many laps. We have the single-lap speed, while over the longer distance we don't fully know how consistent we can be. We will keep focusing on this. Misano is a high-grip, very tight and very demanding circuit, and this is why we are all very close lap-time-wise. There are many competitive riders at this track, so it'll be important to stay in the top three or four.”
“We have been struggling to understand the bike behaviour in the last three rounds, especially regarding the engine brake and rear-end grip. It's a situation that had never appeared beforehand, but the bike is now quite nervous and it is difficult to feel the differences in set-up. While comparing our data with the other Ducati riders, it's clear that there are differences under braking, mid-turn as well as on corner exit, but for some reason we're unable to replicate the same behaviour. We're still working relentlessly in order to find a solution ahead of tomorrow and Sunday.”
Why this matters
This is Ducati's home round at the Misano World Circuit, and the split result leaves the two Ducati Lenovo riders in very different positions going into Saturday. Márquez is fighting near the front, while Bagnaia's nineteenth place means an extra qualifying round before he can even chase the Sprint. Fans following Ducati at its home track get one rider in contention and one still searching for a fix to a handling problem.
Terms in This Story
- Q1
- The first part of qualifying, in which riders set timed laps to earn a place in the next qualifying session; riders who do not progress start the race from the positions they set there.
- Sprint
- A shorter race held on the Saturday of a Grand Prix weekend in addition to the main race, with its own result and points.
- engine brake
- The braking effect created by the engine when a rider closes the throttle, which can be adjusted in the bike's electronics and affects how the bike behaves entering a corner.
- set-up
- The combination of mechanical and electronic adjustments made to a racing bike to suit a particular circuit and rider.
Summarised from the linked release; details can be imperfect — always verify against the original source.