GP TIM di San Marino e della Riviera di Rimini

FIM MotoGP World Championship

Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli, San Marino

September 9, 2016

Free Practice Two Results (all on Michelin tires):

1. Pol ESPARGARO, Spain (YAMAHA), 1:32.769

2. Dani PEDROSA, Spain (HONDA), 1:32.834

3. Andrea DOVIZIOSO, Italy (DUCATI), 1:32.901

4. Jorge LORENZO, Spain (YAMAHA), 1:33.056

5. Marc MARQUEZ, Spain (HONDA), 1:33.196

6. Valentino ROSSI, Italy (YAMAHA), 1:33.387

7. Cal CRUTCHLOW, UK (HONDA), 1:33.500, crash

8. Scott REDDING, UK (DUCATI), 1:33.552

9. Hector BARBERA, Spain (DUCATI), 1:33.581

10. Maverick VIÑALES, Spain (SUZUKI), 1:33.629

11. Aleix ESPARGARO, Spain (SUZUKI), 1:33.643

12. Danilo PETRUCCI, Italy (DUCATI), 1:33.803

13. Alvaro BAUTISTA, Spain (APRILIA), 1:33.846

14. Michele PIRRO, Italy (DUCATI), 1:33.885

15. Alex LOWES, UK (YAMAHA), 1:34.154

16. Eugene LAVERTY, Ireland (DUCATI), 1:34.457

17. Stefan BRADL, Germany (APRILIA), 1:34.631

18. Yonny HERNANDEZ, Colombia (DUCATI), 1:34.719

19. Tito RABAT, Spain (HONDA), 1:34.725

20. Jack MILLER, Australia (HONDA), 1:35.062

21. Xavi FORES, Spain (DUCATI), 1:36.046

22. Andrea IANNONE, Italy (DUCATI), no time recorded

More, from a press release issued by Marc VDS Racing:

Miller and Rabat start battle to master Misano

Hot and humid conditions at the Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli meant the opening day of practice for round 13 of the MotoGP World Championship proved problematic for Team Estrella Galicia 0,0 Marc VDS riders Jack Miller and Tito Rabat.

Australian Miller was in dazzling form in this morning’s FP1 session, as he focused on evaluating two new Michelin front tyres (soft and medium) that have been added to the allocation for the first time in 2016.

Designed for better stability and improved consistency over race distance, Miller quickly established a fast rhythm around the tight and twisty 4.2km Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli and a best lap of 1’34.143 was just over 0.5s away from the top three.

A sharp rise in track temperature this afternoon though stalled Miller’s progress, and despite his best efforts he was unable to replicate the blistering speed he demonstrated so effectively this morning.

With surface temperature up from 27 to 43 degrees, Miller encountered unexpected grip issues that he will work hard to solve in advance of qualifying tomorrow, which looks set to be staged in scorching hot conditions again.

Miller’s strong showing in FP1 meant he ended the day in a promising 16th position and only 0.5s away from the top 10.

Spaniard Rabat suffered a fast crash in FP1 this morning at turn 13 and he took another tumble at turn 14 in the considerably hotter conditions in the early part of the second 45-minute session.

The remainder of the session was a confidence building exercise for the Spaniard, who rode with typical determination and courage to overcome a lack of grip and feeling to set a best time of 1’43.725.

That was a big improvement of almost 0.6s from the 2014 Moto2 World Champion.

Jack Miller: 16th – 1’34.143

“I felt great this morning and the bike was really comfortable to ride. I was really happy and I felt inside my comfort zone when I did my best lap in FP1. But it was a completely different story this afternoon and I couldn’t even get close to my best lap time even though it felt like I was pushing like crazy. I just didn’t feel comfortable. The track temperature increased by around 20 degrees and it completely transformed the performance of the bike. It is a big disappointment and I’ve got to look through the data tonight to come up with a solution for FP4 and qualifying tomorrow when it will be hot again.”

Tito Rabat: 21st – 1’34.725

“I had a few issues with front feeling this morning and I was lucky to escape without injury after the fast crash at turn 13. The hotter conditions this afternoon made the track very difficult and unfortunately I had another crash. After that it was difficult for me to recover my confidence, but when the situation is complicated like now all you can do is remain motivated and keep pushing on track. I improved my pace at the end of FP2 but clearly it is not enough. I am giving my all and so is my crew, so it is difficult to understand what more we can do. But I will keep trying and be as best prepared as I can for the race on Sunday.

Michael Bartholemy: Team Principal

“This morning was actually a decent start with Jack competitive and not far off top six pace, so we went into the second session confident that he could be challenging for the top 10 again. But as the temperature rose for FP2 it was obvious that he encountered some problems, particularly with the front tyre. We are struggling a little bit to find a direction with the new front tyre options that are available this weekend, so we have to work hard to find a solution tomorrow. Tito had a couple of crashes today that inevitably dented his confidence and I was happy to see him continue to push and improve his pace to set a respectable lap time.”

More, from a press release issued by Aprilia:

THE MOTOGP WEEKEND STARTS WELL FOR APRILIA

AT MISANO BOTH BAUTISTA AND BRADL SEEM TO BE ON THE RIGHT PATH FOR SETTING UP THEIR RS-GP MACHINES

The first two free practice sessions at Misano tell the tale of an Aprilia that is approaching the thirteenth MotoGP Championship round on the right foot. In the morning FP1 session, Bradl was the best Aprilia Racing Team Gresini rider with the twelfth best time at 1’34.126, just over six tenths (675 thousandths) behind the best time.

In the afternoon session, Stefan began with the same confidence, staying among the best until a crash in the initial phases of the session forced him to change bikes, slowing his pace and keeping him from improving on his time from the first session, which was well within his potential. This meant that his teammate Bautista was more in the limelight with a best time of 1’33.846, a clear improvement compared with FP1 (shaving off 65 tenths). The Spaniard finished the session in thirteenth place.

ALVARO BAUTISTA

“We started off well. Even this morning in the first session, I finished a second behind the top time without ever changing the tyres. In the afternoon we decided to try a new frame setting, partially because we conducted two days of testing here, so we have plenty of information to work with. We found several positive things with this new configuration. There are a few aspects that need to be improved, but in general we were quite satisfied. Then, in the afternoon we had the best lap we have ever done with the RS-GP, so we can say that the day went very well. Tomorrow we will try to improve on those aspects that are still not perfectly fine tuned with this new setting in order to gain a few more tenths”.

STEFAN BRADL

“A day of ups and downs. This morning we had a very good FP1 session. Unfortunately, in FP2 after a rather fast first run I crashed on turn 14. Consequently, I had to use the second bike for a few laps with a different chassis configuration while my mechanics fixed the first one. When I got back on the track, I was unable to find the right pace in the last part of the session. A pity, because we could have kept improving, but I am confident for tomorrow that we are moving in the right direction”.

More, from a press release issued by Pramac Racing:

Scott ends up with a good 8th position on friday at Misano. Petrux is 12th

The Friday of the Gran Premio di San Marino e della Riviera di Rimini ends up with a positive eighth position for Scott Redding and the twelfth position for Danilo Petrucci, who had to deal with low grip issues on the rear.

In a day marked by the accident of Andrea Iannone, who we hope to see back riding his Ducati Desmosedici tomorrow, the FP1 reserved two bad surprises for Petrux and Scott during the final part of the session. Danilo crashed, fortunately without consequences, and this caused serious damages to the bike. Redding had to stop on his fastest lap of the last run due to an engine failure.

Things went better in FP2, when Scott found more feeling finishing with a lap-time of 1’33.552, which gave him the eighth position, one-tenth of a second from the second row. For Petrux, something to fix with the bike and the twelfth time (1’33.803), only two tenths behind the Top 10.

8th – Scott Redding

1’33.552

The feeling was not bad in the morning and in the afternoon, especially on the front where we usually have a bit more difficulties. In the end, we put the soft tire to set the time and things did not go badly. The feeling is that there is still much room for improvement, that is why I am satisfied. The problem of the FP1? Nothing in particular, things that can happen. We lapped a lot with that engine.

12th – Danilo Petrucci

1’33.803

Honestly we were struck by the fact that the hard rear tire did not work. This has caused us difficulties as we can not use it in the best way. We put the soft tire during the last three laps but there was no time to be effective. I am confident: I like riding here. We are suffering from the comparison with the factory bikes in the last few GP. But here I think we can get closer.

More, from a press release issued by Aspar Team:

Pull&Bear Aspar Team get to work at San Marino GP

Eugene Laverty and Yonny Hernández complete first day at Misano with good feelings and sights set on Q2

The MotoGP World Championship went from the cold of the later British summer to the heat of the Adriatic coast today as track temperatures hit 40ºC at Misano for the opening free practice sessions of the San Marino GP. The heat was the main talking point of a day that saw Pol Espargaró, the Spaniard lapping six tenths shy of the fastest ever lap here with a time of 1’32.769 as only Dani Pedrosa and Andrea Dovizioso joined him inside the 1’33 mark. Jorge Lorenzo was fourth fastest ahead of Marc Márquez and Valentino Rossi, with, Cal Crutchlow, Scott Redding, Héctor Barberá and Maverick Viñales completing the provisional top ten positions that would give direct access to Q2, with just 0.860 seconds from Espargaró to Viñales. Xavi Forés today took the place of the injured Loris Baz, with factory Ducati rider Andrea Iannone now also a doubt for Sunday’s race after damaging his back in a crash this morning.

Pull&Bear Aspar Team riders Eugene Laverty and Yonny Hernández finished the day in eighteenth and twentieth place respectively, the Irishman bouncing back from a crash on his fifteenth lap this morning to improve his pace on old tyres this afternoon. Laverty has saved some fresh rubber for tomorrow as he launches his own personal quest to qualify for Q2. Yonny Hernández was less than three tenths off his team-mate’s best lap this afternoon, the Colombian completing 37 laps as he worked out where and how to improve his speed. Hernández is also targeting a place in Q2 tomorrow as he aims for more points in Sunday’s race.

18th Eugene Laverty 1.34.457 (32 laps): “It has been a mixed first day, on the one hand I am disappointed with the first session because a crash halfway through made our work more difficult, but at the same time I am happy with the afternoon session. We worked with old tyres and set some good lap times. I wanted to focus our work in this direction and then we can use some fresh rubber tomorrow to try and make it into Q2. The crash was just because of a cold tyre – I was on my out lap and trying to be careful but wasn’t careful enough. With regard to the tyre choices we have here, the softs work better but we need to keep the temperature in them to make them work.”

20th Yonny Hernández 1.34.719 (37 laps): “We have made some progress with the electronics but still have a problem with the gearing. We are fast through the first two sectors but still need to work on the third and fourth, which is where we lose time. We know what we need to improve, which is the positive thing from today, so hopefully we can be a little closer to the front tomorrow. I would like to be fighting for a place in Q2 tomorrow and for a top ten finish on Sunday. The tyres Michelin have brought here are obviously harder but the hot conditions are good for me. I haven’t had any issues with them but we won’t decide which to use until tomorrow.”

More, from a press release issued by Monster Yamaha Tech 3:

Espargaro superbly finishes on top to complete perfect opening day in Misano

The Monster Yamaha Tech3 team rider Pol Espargaro ignited his San Marino GP campaign with a highly positive start aboard the Yamaha YZR-M1 after completing the first day of action at the top of the field. The 25-year-old got straight into action in the opening shakedown and after commencing his set up work, he impressively concluded the practice in second but only a mere tenth of a second behind the leader. The afternoon session began with the weather conditions still being perfect and Espargaro carried on from where he left off. His lap times progressively improved before he blazed across the finish line to post a scorching lap time of 1’32.769 which left him 0.069 clear of the next rider. The outstanding performance marks the perfect comeback from an unfortunate crash at Silverstone, where he was lucky to escape any serious injury and he will look to continue the momentum tomorrow by seizing a top tier grid position.

On the other side of the Tech3 pit box, Alex Lowes impressed once again by ending FP2 in 15th as he stands in for his compatriot Bradley Smith. The young Briton commenced his first outing on the YZR-M1 at the San Marino track with a solid run to 18th in the morning as he continued to gather experience. The confident 25-year-old outlined his determination to succeed by completing more laps than any other rider in the session that saw 16 competitors covered by one second. After midday, he proceeded to make further strides forward and eventually sped to his personal best that was notably only just half a second from top ten. The British star now aims to carry on his progression by clinching a strong qualifying position tomorrow for Sunday’s 28-lap sprint.

Pol Espargaro

Position: 1st Time: 1’32.769 Laps: 40

“It’s a great feeling to end the day in first, even if it is just the beginning of the weekend and with the plans that we have for tomorrow, we hope to continue progressing. Today the bike ran really well and I felt very comfortable on it at the Misano circuit. In addition, the tyres that Michelin brought here have allowed me to ride my Yamaha more in a way that I want to. The rear hard compound has a lot of grip and performed well whilst braking. The end result is a small trophy but the important work starts tomorrow, so tonight we will check some data to improve a bit because there is not much of a gap between the other riders. Another positive from today is that my physical condition after the nasty crash in Silverstone is not affecting my riding whilst on track. Therefore, I look forward to getting back on the Yamaha and I will do my absolute best to get a solid grid position for Sunday’s race.”

Alex Lowes

Position: 17th Time: 1’34.154 Laps: 43

“I have really enjoyed my first day on the YZR-M1 at Misano and I feel that we are certainly making steps forward. In all honesty, riding this bike at this track is fantastic, plus it’s so different to the other motorcycles that I have used here and I mean that in a very positive way. I am increasing my knowledge and the faster I go, the more I have to change my style step by step, but I think we are getting closer to the mid-pack riders. The good thing is, I know what I have to do to advance which is improve my smoothness on the bike in terms of body position, plus I also need to keep building my confidence on corner entry. With a good rest tonight, I will be able to digest all the new information which will set me up for tomorrow’s qualifying. All in all, I have to say that I really liked riding the Yamaha at another track and the sun was shining too which is always good, so I am fired up for the rest of the weekend.”

More, from a press release issued by Movistar Yamaha:

STRONG START AT SUNNY MISANO FOR MOVISTAR YAMAHA MOTOGP

Movistar Yamaha MotoGP‘s Jorge Lorenzo and Valentino Rossi got down to business during a perfectly sunny first day at the Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli. They completed 37 and 40 laps respectively to find good set-ups for their YZR-M1s for Sunday‘s ‘Grand Prix di San Marino e della Riviera di Rimini’ and finished the day in fourth and sixth place.

Misano Adriatico (Italy), 9th September 2016

Movistar Yamaha MotoGP‘s Jorge Lorenzo built up a fast pace at start to the ‘Grand Prix di San Marino e della Riviera di Rimini’ weekend, clocking the fourth fastest time on the first day of practice at the Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli. Teammate Valentino Rossi also featured as one of the key protagonists in the rankings of the first two sessions and ended the day in sixth place.

Lorenzo made a great start this morning and was quick to find a solid pace around the Misano Circuit. He used the 45 minutes of free practice to find a good set up for the track and worked hard as the times dropped towards the end of the session. With less than half a second covering the top ten in FP1, he secured a top5 placement with a 1’33.774s best lap.

Feeling comfortable with the setting he and his team had established in the morning, the defending World Champion found a good rhythm in the afternoon. Though he had already used his second set of tyres midway through FP2, leaving him with no spare tyres at the end, he was still able to make a solid improvement over the two sessions. The Mallorcan took more than 0.7s off his time with a 1’33.056s lap at the end of the session, to finish in fourth place in the combined standings.

Rossi made a perfect start to his home GP weekend today under hot and sunny conditions. He spent the first part of the session focusing on the balance of his bike, before it was time to put his YZR-M1 to the test. Cheered on by the passionate Italian fans, the local hero put his head down at the end of the session to take first place from Pol Esparagaró, by 0.136s, with 1’33.451s lap for a Yamaha 1-2.

The Italian kept his form in the afternoon session as he put his attention towards elongating the life of his front tyre. Despite the hot conditions and traffic on the track he steadily improved his lap times to move up the order into the top three towards the end of the day. His best lap, a 1’33.387s, set before a last-minute flurry of activity, saw him finish in sixth place in the combined free practice times.

MASSIMO MEREGALLI

TEAM DIRECTOR

We’ve made a good start to the weekend today. Jorge quickly found a good basis setting and he carried good speed throughout the two sessions. He could have been even faster if he had changed the tyres later on in the FP2 session. Vale had a solid start to the weekend, topping FP1, but with the temperature rising in the afternoon he suffered from front closing, especially in the fastest sector of the track. We have collected enough data for our engineers to take counter-measures and perfect the setting for tomorrow.

JORGE LORENZO

I‘m very happy because finally, after a long while, I feel comfortable again with the bike‘s setting and I can ride like I want and keep up a constant pace. We decided to change the front and rear tyre really quickly during the practice, so we didn‘t have the advantage to put in a new tyre at the end of the session like the rest of the riders. Because of that we couldn‘t be a little bit faster, but anyway I had a good pace and good feelings. Let‘s try to make another step tomorrow.

VALENTINO ROSSI

We started very well this morning. With the cooler temperatures this morning I was stronger, but in the afternoon we suffered a bit more, like more or less everybody else, and it became more difficult. We have a lot of work to do because we are a bit on the limit with the front tyre, so we need to try to find the right balance, also considering that the race will be very long.

More, from a press release issued by Repsol Honda:

Pedrosa second quickest, Marquez fifth on Day 1 at Misano

On the opening day of the Gran Premio di San Marino e della Riviera di Rimini, Repsol Honda Team’s Dani Pedrosa missed the top spot of the timesheet by a mere 65 thousandths of a second, while teammate and Championship leader Marc Marquez wrapped up the day in fifth position, just over four tenths of a second down on the top time.

Both Marc and Dani had started the day positively, working on the setup of their RC213V and making the best of the almost ideal track and ambient conditions, thoroughly testing several specs of the tyres Michelin brought for the weekend.

Marc was fourth fastest in the morning despite a very small crash at Turn 10, while Dani’s best effort put him in P6.

Dani Pedrosa

2ND 1’32.834

“We’ve started in a positive way and I’m obviously very happy. It will be important to remain totally focused for tomorrow. Luckily we had the chance to try almost all the tyre specs, as the track conditions were ideal—very grippy. In the test after the Brno race, we made a small change in the setting, which I liked. We have continued working in that direction, not making too many changes, first in Silverstone and now here. We’re gaining some confidence step by step, and now we must continue like this, keeping a good pace and making the right tyre choice for the race.”

Marc Marquez

5TH 1’33.196

“I’m happy with how the day went overall. I think we worked pretty well and we’ve tried out almost every tyre as we didn’t want to make the same mistake we made in Silverstone. In the morning I had a strange feeling with some different front tyres; I pushed the front in a slow corner and lost it, although I was already looking for the limit at that point. Honestly we’ve suffered less than we had initially expected; in fact, I was able to be among the fastest riders and I think that if we continue to work well we can have a good weekend”.

More, from a press release issued by Avintia Racing:

Top 10 for Hector Barbera on the opening day at Misano

Avintia Racing rider Hector Barbera had a positive start on the first day of practice for the Grand Prix of San Marino. Following a difficult weekend at Silverstone, Barbera went a step back with his Ducati settings and today he was in the top 10 in both free practice sessions. The standings are tight and this morning, the first 15 riders were within less than a second. In the afternoon, the track temperature raised and all the riders struggled to improve their pace, but this was not a problem for Barbera who finished the day ninth fastest.

With Loris Baz recovering after a huge crash in England only five days ago, Xavi Fores took the taste of MotoGP for the very first time in his career today. But the Spaniard struggled more than he expected in his Desmosedici GP14.2 learning process, a bike completely different from the Ducati Panigale he races in WSBK. Although he knows the circuit very well, the extra power and lightness of the bike, but mainly the carbon brakes and tyres, made things difficult for Fores. But even though, he was able to improve his pace considerable from the morning to the afternoon.

Hector Barbera | 1’33.581 | P9

“After the difficult weekend at Silverstone, today I recovered the feeling. We went back with the set up of the bike, and we used the one that we were using before UK, because last weekend we lost the way. But today we made a good start and although everything is tight, we managed to be in the top ten in both sessions. This is quite important. I think that tomorrow it will be possible to improve even more, but everybody is pushing hard and at this track two tenths make all the difference. We started with the right foot and this is important. Tomorrow my aim is to get in Q2, but t will be crucial to work for the race during FP4, because Sunday is race day and I want to get a strong result.”

Xavi Forés | 1’36.046 | P22

“I enjoyed the day, but it has been more difficult than I expected. Everything is different compared to the bike I’m used to ride. The bike is much more powerful, stiffer and smaller, and the brakes are very different… To be honest I’m struggling to get adapted, but the main thing is that I managed to improve in every exit. It was important to spend time on the track and accumulate some kilometres to get used to the bike. I also was able to watch other riders and learn from their lines. Today was a learning day. From the morning to the afternoon I’ve improved almost 1.5s, and this was my highlight today. My target is to finish the weekend with less than 2 seconds gap to the fastest lap, but overall I want to enjoy and make a good race for the team.”

More, from a press release issued by Dorna:

Pol Espargaro takes first blood as MotoGP hit Rossi’s hometown

The year of Independent Team glory continues as Monster Yamaha Tech 3 rider rules Day 1 at the #SanMarinoGP

After Movistar Yamaha MotoGP home hero Valentino Rossi went fastest in FP1 at Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli, his teammate and arch-rival Jorge Lorenzo struck back in the afternoon to initially top FP2 – before Monster Yamaha Tech 3 rider Pol Espargaro made good on his great form in the morning to take the top spot. Repsol Honda Team rider Dani Pedrosa was finally second quickest by the end of the day, ahead of home hero Andrea Dovizioso (Ducati Team) – who took over in FP2 as the fastest Italian on Day 1.

Pol Espargaró, who had a big crash at the start of the British GP that saw him forced to pass a medical on Thursday ahead of the Gran Premio TIM di San Marino e della Riviera di Rimini, showed incredible pace during the first session of the day before pushing himself even further up to take the top spot in FP2 and prove fastest on Friday. 3-time world champion Dani Pedrosa got back to his front-running best at Misano, as he narrowly missed the top to end the second session and day in P2. Pedrosa, a former winner at the track, was the fastest Honda on Day 1 as teammate and points leader Marc Marquez ended Friday in P5.

Andrea Dovizioso was third fastest as the Ducati rider put in a last dash for the top, with red sectors but ultimately not quite taking over at the front. ‘DesmoDovi’, who twisted his knee in a crash in a private Ducati test at Misano before the British GP, looked on good form and leads the Borgo Panigale factory’s charge at another home venue, as teammate Andrea Iannone missed FP2 and underwent Medical Examination after a fast lowside crash in FP1.

Austrian GP first-time winner Iannone will be assessed once more on Saturday morning, with the Italian initially returning to the box before undergoing further examination at the mythical manufacturer’s second home race of the year.

Reigning champion Jorge Lorenzo (Movistar Yamaha MotoGP) was fourth fastest after topping the second session of the day for a time, as the 5-time world champion gets back on soil that has seen him enjoy incredible success. Lorenzo’s race rhythm was consistent as is often the case, as the ‘Spartan’ just beat teammate Valentino Rossi in the combined times on Friday as the morning’s fastest rider ended the day P6.

Cal Crutchlow (LCR Honda) suffered a lowside in FP2 and ended the day in P7, ahead of Octo Pramac Yakhnich rider and compatriot Scott Redding. Hector Barbera (Avintia Racing) was ninth, ahead of Silverstone winner Maverick Viñales (Team Suzuki Ecstar), who had a more difficult afternoon to round out the top ten.

One on-track incident of note saw Aleix Espargaro and Rossi get close in the final corner, with the Italian making sure Espargaro had a clear idea of his opinion on the event.

FP3 at 9:55 local time (GMT+2) sees MotoGP™ decide direct entry into Q2 qualifying later in the afternoon, ahead of the race on Sunday in the Gran Premio TIM di San Marino e della Riviera di Rimini.

Nakagami remains top as FP2 concludes on the Riviera di Rimini

Takaaki Nakagami (Idemitsu Honda Team Asia) went fastest on Friday at Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli, after proving the quickest man on track in FP1 and retaining the momentum to keep the top spot at the end of the day. 

Reigning champion and points leader Johann Zarco (Ajo Motorsport) was second quickest, with Lorenzo Baldassari (Forward Racing) proving the top Italian in P3.

Nakagami, who won his first race in the Dutch GP earlier in the year, has a great record at Misano World Circuit and will be looking to chase his second GP win of the season. With the championship so close at the top, contenders for the win who find themselves slightly further down the leaderboard could play a big role in the remainder of the season, and Nakagami staked his claim once again as a Moto2™ frontrunner.

Zarco is another whose record at Misano makes for impressive reading, including the victory in 2015 on his way to the title, and the Frenchman faced down Day 1 of his pivotal weekend well with the second fastest time of the day. The gap at the top is now only ten points between Zarco and closest challenger Alex Rins (Paginas Amarillas HP 40), with Rins also having a good start to the Gran Premio TIM di San Marino e della Riviera di Rimini; in P4 on Friday. Fellow championship frontrunner Sam Lowes (Gresini Racing Moto2) had a more difficult day 1 at Misano, as the Brit was P12 on the timesheets by the end of FP2.

Lorenzo Baldassari (Forward Racing) put in a last dash in FP2 to take P3, with Silverstone winner Tom Luthi (Garage Plus Interwetten) completing the top five in a solid first day of action in Misano. Jonas Folger made good on morning promise to end the day in P6 as the fastest Intact Dynavolt GP rider, with Simone Corsi the second home hero on the timesheets for Speed Up Racing. His compatriot Mattia Pasini (Italtrans Racing Team) was eighth fastest on Day 1, just ahead of Sandro Cortese (Dynavolt Intact GP). Franco Morbidelli (Estrella Galicia 0,0 Marc VDS) completed the top ten on Friday at his home circuit of Misano, with teammate Alex Marquez ending the day in P13.

Moto2™ will follow MotoGP™ out on track on Saturday for FP3, before the intermediate class go into qualifying for the San Marino GP at 15:05 local time (GMT+2).

Bastianini lays down a marker on the Riviera di Rimini

2015 winner Bastianini leads the way into Saturday at home venue Misano

After an FP1 session that saw 2015 winner Enea Bastianini (Gresini Racing Moto3) take the top spot, the afternoon in Misano saw hotter track temperatures take over but the 2015 winner keep his place at the top of the timesheets, as the local rider dueled it out with Red Bull KTM Ajo rider Brad Binder. Binder, who leads the title chase by 86 points, ended the day in P2, ahead of Leopard Racing’s Austrian GP winner Joan Mir.

Bastianini took his first win at Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli in 2015, and the return to home soil for the Italian got off to a great start as he topped both sessions of the first day. Looking to move back up ahead of compatriot Francesco Bagnaia (Gaviota Mahindra Aspar) in the title fight into P3, the ‘Beast’ made his intentions clear on Friday. Binder, after a technical issue cut his FP1 slightly short, was back out in force on Friday afternoon as the South African points leader hovered near the top and was fastest for a time, before ending the day in P2. With an 86 point cushion at the top of the standings, Binder will feel confident ahead of qualifying. Joan Mir was third fastest with an impressive lap time for the Leopard Racing rookie, although the Spaniard did suffer a run off on another attempt at a hot lap. With the raw pace looking impressive, the Austrian GP winner set himself up well for the San Marino GP in P3.

Jakub Kornfeil (Drive M7 SIC Racing Team) impressed on day 1 on the Riviera di Rimini to go fourth fastest, ahead of Bastianini’s rookie teammate Fabio Di Giannantonio, who had another great day in the world championship to lock out the top 5. Title contender Jorge Navarro (Estrella Galicia 0,0) was sixth, with Livio Loi (RW Racing GP BV) in P7 in an impressive Friday showing. Philipp Oettl (Schedl Racing GP) remained in P8 at the end of the day with his FP1 laptime, ahead of Andrea Migno. Migno was the fastest Sky Racing Team VR46 rider at their home GP in P9, with teammate Nicolo Bulega ending the day in P13.

Local rider Niccolo Antonelli (Ongetta-Rivacold) was ninth fastest in FP2 and tenth on combined times, ahead of Gaviota Mahindra Aspar rider Jorge Martin. Martin’s teammate Francesco Bagnaia was unable to finish his Friday as planned after a problem with the clutch, and was down in P17 for the final few minutes of the second session before ending up P25. The Italian and polesitter last time out will be looking to quickly move up the timesheets when he gets back out on track on Saturday as qualifying takes place for Mahindra’s 100th race in the world championship.

Moto3™ will return for FP3 at 9:00 local time (GMT +2) on Saturday, before qualifying later in the afternoon for the Gran Premio TIM di San Marino e della Riviera di Rimini.

More, from a press release issued by LCR Honda:

STEADY START FOR CRUTCHLOW IN SAN MARINO

With beautiful sunshine beating down all day on the Misano circuit, Cal Crutchlow made a solid start to practice for this weekend’s San Marino and Rimini Riviera Grand Prix. The British rider is the man in form in the MotoGP World Championship, and backed up his recent performances with the seventh-fastest time overall in the two Friday free practice sessions.

The LCR Honda man was fearful before work began that the tight Italian track wouldn’t suit his Castrol branded Honda RC213V, but showed that with the work he and the team have done throughout the season he can still challenge for the top positions. He suffered a minor crash halfway through the second section at the slowest corner on the track, but came back to post his best lap and finish the day seven-tenths down on the top time.

#35 Cal Crutchlow – 7th (1’33.500)

“Today wasn’t so bad to be honest, we worked hard with the setting of the bike and we tried both the medium front and the new harder option. I didn’t have a great feeling with either really, but the bike is still working ok.”

“We’re happy enough with certain things on the bike, but not so happy in other areas which is where we need to work. I had a really strange, small crash which having looked at the data we know why. It’s something typical of this year’s Honda, overheating the front tyre under braking and being unable to turn the bike.”

“I’m looking forward to tomorrow, there’s still lots of work to be done, but I think we can do a good job this weekend now.”

More, from a press release issued by Ducati Corse:

Andrea Dovizioso third after first day of TIM San Marino GP practice at Misano. Andrea Iannone crashes in morning session and cracks a vertebra. Michele Pirro fourteenth with the Test Team Desmosedici GP

Andrea Dovizioso finished the first day of free practice action for the TIM San Marino GP in third place today. Racing at his home circuit, the Ducati Team rider set the third quickest time of 1’32.901 in the afternoon after clocking seventh in the FP1 morning run.

Andrea Iannone on the other hand crashed at Turn 13 on the fifth lap in the first free practice session and, rolling over in the gravel, suffered bruising on his back. He was first taken to the circuit medical centre and then in helicopter to the Bufalini Hospital in nearby Cesena. The rider from Vasto had a CT scan which revealed the presence of a fracture of the T3 vertebra. The circuit doctors opted to have a look at Iannone again tomorrow morning before deciding if the Italian can take to the track again in FP3.

Michele Pirro, who is entered as a wild-card rider on the Desmosedici GP of the Ducati Test Team, finished today in 14th place.

Andrea Dovizioso (Ducati Team #04) – 1’32.901 (3rd)

“I am satisfied with how we worked today, and the fact that in the afternoon we made a good step forward. We started off by doing some tyre and set-up tests and we always improved our times, and this is always important. We are in line with the quickest riders but I think that tomorrow we will have to improve even further, in order to stay with the top guys, and so we’ll focus on these final details.”

Andrea Iannone (Ducati Team #29) – 1’34.699 (19th)

“On the fifth lap of FP1 I lost the front at Turn 13, crashed and began to roll in the gravel. Unfortunately I suffered a compression on my back and the checks showed that the T3 vertebra was cracked. The doctors decided to check me again tomorrow morning, before giving me the OK for the race: I hope to get some rest tonight and wake up without being in too much pain, because I am really keen on racing here at Misano.”

Michele Pirro (Ducati Team #51) – 1’33.885 (14th)

“We are not every pleased with today’s performance, but we focussed on a few important tests in view of the race. We picked up some good information and I think that tomorrow it will be possible to make a considerable step forward. The team is working well and I’ll do my best to improve our position tomorrow.”

More, from a press release issued by Team Suzuki Press Office:

TOP-1O FOR VIÑALES & SUZUKI ECSTAR IN MISANO FP2

Maverick Viñales – 10th

Aleix Espargaró – 11th

Team SUZUKI ECSTAR had a positive first day at the World Misano Circuit Marco Simoncelli in Italy today for the first two practice sessions of the weekend, consistently-improving their feeling and confidence; although the classification-position still needs to be improved tomorrow.

Maverick Viñales settled his GSX-RR in the top-three for many laps in the morning, focusing his job on the finalisation of a base set-up for the pace. His position in the classification could be have better though, but some of his best laps had been ruled-out for alleged course-cutting infringements, pushing him down the leaderboard from a potential top-three overall: It was a matter of inches in exiting corner 13 that the new rule applied – and which all riders will be called to adapt-to quickly this weekend and for the rest of the season.

Team-mate Aleix Espargaró also had a positive first day with many improvements and a renewed competitiveness. He sits right behind Viñales in the classification but his potential for the ‘time attack’ is still to be exploited.

Davide Brivio – Team Manager:

“The final classification doesn’t show how positive our day was. With race configuration we did a good performance and with both riders we developed a good base set-up. Tomorrow we will work on all information we gathered today, and finalise the best package, but we are pretty happy with the job we’ve done. We will exploit this hard work tomorrow for the attack to Q2 to get a good place in classification. This was an approach we have decided to use, focusing on the pace before looking for the fastest lap, and hopefully this strategy will pay back tomorrow.”

Maverick Viñales:

“I’m happy with today because we did a very good job, we are utilising the information we collected from the test in Brno and we decided to focus on the pace to finalise the base set-up for the race. Especially in the afternoon I worked mostly with the hard tyre and I felt confident, we improved a lot and also covered the race distance, in the top-10; which means we have a good potential. Also some of my best laps were cancelled for exceeding the track limit, the truth is that it’s just the exit of a corner where you go on the curb that has been changed this year, but everybody has the same problem and we must adapt to it. I also tried a time attack with the soft tyre in the last run but I didn’t feel confident, so we need more time to try it and adapt the set-up. Maybe if I had more time with the soft I could have improved my lap-time also, but this was not our priority for today. The job we’ve done leaves me confident that we are in good a condition for the race and tomorrow we’ll be able to focus on the time attack.”

Aleix Espargaró:

“My feeling today was positive, we did many improvements and I found a positive efficiency. We are not so good in the classification but we worked hard on the pace and this is a very important job we’ve done in preparation for the race. The feeling with the new tyre is good, but we still need to better-understand it in order to exploit it better. We wanted to also check the performance with the drop of the tyres, our consistency on the pace is good, we have room for improvement, but the actual point is not bad. Also the temperature of the circuit will be important, it rises a lot in the afternoon and so we have so much of a difference in performance between morning and afternoon.”