MotoGP Race And Practice Results

Stefano Manzi set the quickest time in the morning's session on his Triumph, ahead of Dominique Aegerter. 

Can Oncu, Lorenzo Baldassarri, Federico Caricasulo and race-winner Andy Verdoia rounded out the morning's top six, putting four different manufacturers in the top five.

Results:

Fabio Quartararo ended the Monday test at Barcelona as fastest, with a time that was nearly three quarters of a second faster than his fastest lap on Sunday. Pecco Bagnaia ended the day in second, just four thousandths off the time of Quartararo, while Johann Zarco was third fastest, and Aleix Espargaro was fourth fastest.

Not too much should be read into the times. Track conditions on a Monday after a race are always much better than on race day, with nobody having removed the Michelin rubber laid down during the race. In Barcelona, where the track has very low grip, the additional grip was almost welcome, making the track feel almost like a normal circuit. The downside of course is that it makes comparisons with the data and feeling of Sunday difficult, though the data itself is still valuable.

With 11 races left in the MotoGP season, this was the test used to evaluate aero for the remainder of 2022. Aprilia, Ducati, Honda, and Suzuki had all brought aero updates, while Yamaha and KTM went back to retest the two options they have already used this year. For Fabio Quartararo, it was a chance to try the new low downforce aero he had debuted at Mugello, but the test merely reconfirmed his decision to ditch the new aero for the race in Italy. They lost too much to wheelie in acceleration than they gained on the straight on top speed.

Similarly, the KTM riders stuck with their aero update already used this year, which consisted of removing the side pods to reduce the resistance to turning.

Aprilia brought the biggest update, a new fairing with a wider bottom half and a longitudinal ridge. Though the Aprilia riders did not speak after the test, we can assume that the new fairing is to help produce ground force in the corner and perhaps function like side pods, perhaps pre-empting any attempt at restricting aero add-ons.

Aleix Espargaro also tried the tail wing and aerofoil-style tail section Lorenzo Savadori tested at Mugello.

Suzuki also brought a new fairing, which Joan Mir tested alone, Alex Rins ruled out due to a fractured wrist. Mir was positive, and told us it helped reduce wheelie, and that on the basis of his feeling in the test, he would be keen to have it for the Sachsenring, where wheelie is a big problem.

Ducati brought a revised version of the 2022 fairing, already being used by the factory and Pramac riders. The fairing is slightly larger than GP22 version, providing a fraction more protection while still making the bike easy to turn, and even helping with top speed.

Enea Bastianini also tried the new fairing, and was keen to use it on his GP21. He felt it would work well at tracks with fast changes of direction, saying that it would be well-suited to a track like Silverstone. He had no idea whether he would get the fairing after the summer or not, however.

Honda also had a new aero package, a lower downforce package which Pol Espargaro tested. That helped with the wind, Espargaro said. Espargaro also tested the swingarm and chassis used by Taka Nakagami this weekend, confirming that the differences were small.

Apart from aero, there were swingarms and frames also being tried, as well as a lot of setup changes. At KTM, they were working with different front fork setups in the pursuit of more feel and confidence. For Remy Gardner, they found a better feeling by torquing a bolt at the rear of the bike to improve the feeling at the front. Gardner would not be drawn on precisely which bolt it was.

The satellite RNF WithU riders had a good test as well. Andrea Dovizioso found a setting which helped him brake without locking the front, something which helped a lot, while Darryn Binder felt improved confidence from the front with some fork changes.

The paddock packs up now and heads north for the next two rounds, starting at the Sachsenring. But first, a week to rest and recover.

Times:

The incessant heat of Barcelona was always going to cause some drama in the premier class but it was not quite the kind we expected to have. Despite all the talk about tyre preservation ahead of the 24-lap race, Fabio Quartararo set an impressive pace at the front of the field to take a dominating victory by over six seconds. Poleman Aleix Espargaro seemed to have the speed to take second place but a rookie mistake saw him celebrate one lap too early and allowed the Pramac Ducati duo of Jorge Martin and Johann Zarco to join Quartararo on the podium.

Although the bulk of the race was not particularly action-packed, it was bookmarked by significant events, starting with Quartararo getting the holeshot into turn one over Espargaro while just behind them, Takaaki Nakagami lost the front on the brakes and unluckily tagged both Pecco Bagnaia and Alex Rins, taking them into the gravel with him. That left the Pramac boys with the task of chasing the two race favourites left in contention, with Pol Espargaro and Joan Mir close behind – the Suzuki man particularly impressive coming from 17th on the grid. Luca Marini, Maverick Viñales and the Gresini boys completed the top 10 after the opening lap, with the factory KTMs knocking at the doors as well.

Quartararo’s early pace gave him half a second of advantage straight away, while Martin attacked Aleix Espargaro to lead the pursuit by lap three, dropping Zarco one second back. Another second behind the Frenchman, the younger Espargaro was under pressure from Mir and Marini, the duo quickly getting ahead of the Honda and frequently swapping places in the lead of the group, while Espargaro lost more positions to Bastianini and Viñales, dropping into the clutches of the factory KTMs and continuing to fade. However, Bastianini’s comeback did not last much longer, as he crashed out of seventh position on lap eight, swiftly followed by his teammate, Fabio Di Giannantonio, replicating the mistake at turn 13 by the end of that same lap.

Back at the front, Quartararo extended his advantage to over 2.5 seconds on lap eight, Martin leading the pursuit with Espargaro in tow. The Aprilia man managed to overtake the youngster at the start of lap 10 but had a 3.3-second gap to close if he wanted to challenge Quartararo as well. Although Zarco had rejoined the podium party and was close behind his teammate, didn’t really swap paint and were biding their time to retaliate against Espargaro. Meanwhile, Mir was dropping Marini in the fight for fifth and Alex Marquez had admirably joined the top 10 party as the standout Honda, with Nakagami and Bradl having crashed out and Espargaro steadily fading to the back of the field.

Although the pace started to settle at the halfway point of proceedings, Quartararo still managed to increase his advantage to four seconds, while Aleix Espargaro could not quite shake off Martin and Zarco. The status quo was maintained in the top 10 for the next few laps, with significant gaps from fifth place onwards, Espargaro the only rider under pressure at that stage. With nine laps remaining, Martin pulled alongside the Aprilia man into turn one and deposed his compatriot of second, but Espargaro was not keen to give up just yet, glued to the Ducati’s tail. Zarco kept close but was saving his first attack, hoping that the harder rear tyre would present an advantage at the right time.

With Quartararo off in the distance by five long seconds, all the attention was on the battle for second, where Espargaro returned the favour to Martin at turn one with four laps remaining. The poleman picked up the pace in an attempt to shake off the Ducatis and it seemed to work, Martin quickly dropping half a second back and out of overtaking range for the next couple of laps. There was still a smidgen of drama in store though, Espargaro’s maths failing him as he entered the final lap, disgruntledly waving to the fans and unintentionally gifting Martin and Zarco the remaining podium positions. By the time the Spaniard realised his mistake, Mir had gone past as well and although he snatched fifth back from Marini, it was a massive own goal in the world championship standings. Teammate Viñales came home in seventh position, ahead of the KTMs of Brad Binder and Miguel Oliveira, while Alex Marquez rounded out the top ten as the top Honda, coming from last on the grid and after a massive tumble in practice.

Quartararo’s undisputed victory and Espargaro’s rookie mistake helped the Frenchman extend a 22-point advantage in the world championship standings, while Bastianini drops a sizable 53 points back, as the headliner of Ducati’s title bid, with Bagnaia dropping to fifth, 66 points back.

Results:

Beautiful Barcelona deserved to start the day with a good old Moto3 scrap and the Spanish flag got put to good use at the end of a closely-fought 21-lap race, after Izan Guevara made a very late escape to secure victory on home soil. If the Spaniard was a familiar sight in parc fermé, David Muñoz enjoyed the views from the podium for the first time in only his second Grand Prix start, after putting in a fantastic performance to recover from 20th on the grid and climb onto the second step of the podium. Tatsuki Suzuki secured back to back podiums after a last-lap final-corner move on the championship leader.

The start of the action had some different contenders at the front, with Dennis Foggia making a great start from pole to lead the way ahead of Guevara, while Riccardo Rossi and Sergio Garcia jumped ahead of front row starter Deniz Öncü. Having started 10th on the grid, Suzuki was immediately in the mix for the top five, while Jaume Masia lost even more ground from 14th on the grid, dropping down to 18th on the opening lap.

Although he had a sizeable leading group in tow, Foggia was untroubled for the first couple of laps, as the Aspar duo kept each other entertained behind him. Foggia was soon accompanied by his own teammate for assistance but as soon as Suzuki got to the front on lap four, the spotlight turned to the squabble between him and Guevara for the lead of the race. The two traded top spot countless times over the next couple of laps but then Garcia had a go at the lead heading into turn one on lap six.

The Aspar and Leopard Racing duos continued to be in the limelight, all four men taking turns at the front, but they still had a massive group in tow. The exclusive party was spoiled on lap seven, when Foggia had to retire with mechanical issues – back-to-back DNFs making a serious dent in his title bid. That left teammate Suzuki alone to fend off the Aspar machines, but he also had new rivals to contend with, the likes of Öncü and Ryusei Yamanaka spicing things up in the leading group of 20 men, which also included replacement rider David Salvador, rookie sensation Muñoz and a resurgent Masia. Unfortunately, Salvador did not get to enjoy the best kind of airtime as he was soon tagged by Yamanaka at turn 10 and the incident also took Dani Holgado out of contention. The incident not only reduced the leading group, but it also caused a split amongst the contenders, with Suzuki, Guevara, Öncü, Garcia, Muñoz, Adrian Fernandez and Masia stretching a 1.5 second advantage ahead of the pursuit led by Kaito Toba.

Back at the front, it was the turn of Öncü and Muñoz to have an opportunity to lead the race at the halfway point of proceedings but the achievement was short-lived as Guevara and Masia reclaimed control, but the frequent exchanges at the front allowed the chasers to bridge the gap, with Toba, John McPhee, Rossi, Joel Kelso, Carlos Tatay and Xavier Artigas back in the mix – a third group less than a second back with 8 laps to go.

Guevara made what eventually proved to be the decisive move at turn one with seven laps remaining, quickly stretching a gap of half a second. Fully aware of his teammate’s pace, Garcia quickly made his way to the front of the pursuit and went unchallenged for a couple of laps, allowing him some time to reel in the leader, but he struggled to get within half a second of Guevara. With Guevara setting a rapid pace at the front, only Garcia, Muñoz and Suzuki seemed able to just about keep up with three laps remaining, while Öncü, Masia & Co dropped almost a second behind. Despite Guevara’s gap rarely growing too much over half a second, moments at turns 5 and 10 for Garcia on the penultimate lap suddenly allowed his teammate one second of breathing room going into the final lap.

While Guevara enjoyed his escape at the front, Garcia was under attack from both Muñoz and Suzuki, the trio continuing to squabble until the chequered flag. Muñoz made his move for second place at turn one and then defended beautifully to secure the position, while a desperate dive at the final corner from Suzuki demoted Garcia off the podium. Öncü crossed the finish line some seven tenths of a second later, taking sixth place ahead of McPhee, Masia and Rossi, although the Italian was soon demoted to 11th position for failing to comply with a long lap penalty, which promoted Fernandez and Artigas to the top 10. Guevara’s joy on home soil also helped him reduce the gap to Garcia in the world championship standings to 16 points, while Masia drops 47 points back and Foggia a painful 55.

Results: