Not even the time to archive the Aragon Grand Prix which is already time to think about the next round of the hat-trick of the 2022 MotoGP World Championship, the Japanese Grand Prix. The World Championship returns to Motegi for the first time in three years, so there is great curiosity to find out how the values on the Japanese track will have changed in the meantime.
Among other things, we get there with a World Championship more open than ever, given that now the first three are all enclosed in the space of just 17 points. The leader Fabio Quartararo has just returned from a very heavy zero, remedied by hitting the returning Marc Marquez after just a few corners, so he will certainly be eager to make up for a track he said he particularly appreciated (in 2018 he had won in Moto2, before being disqualified for a problem related to tire pressure).
The positive thing for him is that Pecco Bagnaia was unable to maximize the recovery in terms of points at Motorland, being beaten right on the last lap by the other Ducati of Enea Bastianini, his future teammate with whom he is establishing a crackling sporting rivalry: after Misano, in fact, the two fought for the sprint victory for the second consecutive race. With the second place, however, the Piedmontese returned to only 10 points. Few, especially if you consider that just five races ago they were even 91.
Then be careful not to make the mistake of considering Aleix Espargaro cut off. The return to the podium at Aragon was certainly a breath of fresh air for the Aprilia rider, who continues to strongly believe in the possibility of becoming world champion and will certainly want to be a third wheel in the duel between “El Diablo” and the Ducati rider. .
At Honda home, Marc Marquez will certainly want to make up for it, because his return after the fourth operation was certainly not one to be framed, with two accidents in the space of a few corners. Among other things, Motegi will be a very important test for his arm, given that it is a track with very violent braking, therefore very demanding from a physical point of view.
Below, here is the slightly modified program for the occasion of the weekend, including television and Motorsport.com LIVE programming.
The winner of the Aragon GP Enea Bastianini, Gresini Racing
Photo by: Dorna
MotoGP 2022: the times of the Japanese Grand Prix (Italian time)
In addition to imposing early risings, thanks to the time zone, the Motegi weekend will be held with a particular format, which will partly resume the one already seen in Argentina this year. The “back to back” between Aragon and Japan made it necessary to review the program on Friday, with only one free practice session, even if the MotoGP one will be longer and will last 75 minutes. Everything is regular on Saturday and Sunday, with the only difference that MotoGP will follow Moto2 also on qualifying day.
Friday 23 September
FP1 Moto3: 6: 15-6: 55
FP1 Moto2: 7: 10-7: 50
FP1 MotoGP: 8: 05-9: 20
Saturday 24th September
FP2 Moto3: 2: 00-2: 40
FP2 Moto2: 2: 55-3: 35
FP2 MotoGP: 3: 50-4: 35
Moto3 qualifications: 5: 35-6: 15
Moto2 qualifications: 6: 30-7: 10
FP3 MotoGP: 7: 25-7: 55
MotoGP qualifications: 8: 05-8: 45
Sunday 25th September
Moto3 Warm-Up: 3: 00-3: 10
Moto2 Warm-Up: 3: 20-3: 30
MotoGP Warm-Up: 3: 40-4: 00
Moto3 Race: 5:00
Moto2 race: 6:20
MotoGP race: 8:00
MotoGP 2022: how can I see the Japanese GP
Sky Sport MotoGP HD (Sky Channel 208) and Now: full live coverage of all the weekend sessions.
TV8 HD (digital terrestrial channel 8): summary of qualifications and deferred races of all classes.
Saturday 24 September: summary of the qualifications of Moto3, Moto2 and MotoGP at 12:00.
Sunday 25 September: Moto3 race at 9:15 am; Moto2 race at 10:30 am; MotoGP race at 12:15.
MotoGP 2022: Motorsport.com LIVE from the Japanese GP
Saturday 24th September
FP3 and MotoGP Qualifying: from 7:00
Sunday 25th September
MotoGP race: from 7:30
Detail of the start / finish straight
Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images
MotoGP 2022: let’s discover the Motegi circuit
The Twin Ring Motegi circuit is located in the Tochigi prefecture. It was built in 1997 as a test track for Honda before becoming the venue for a Grand Prix in 1999. It has a capacity of around 100,000 spectators. It hosted the first Japanese Grand Prix in 1999, although it wasn’t until 2004 that it became a regular venue for the event. Since then, it has been continuously on the MotoGP calendar, with the exception of the 2020 and 2021 seasons, when the race was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Track length |
4.8 km |
MotoGP race distance |
115.2 km |
Track width |
15 m |
Curves | 14 (8 on the right, 6 on the left) |
Longer straight |
762 m |
MotoGP 2022: the records of the Motegi track
The highest number of wins at Motegi is shared between Marc Marquez, Dani Pedrosa and Jorge Lorenzo, all with three wins each. In terms of pole position, Jorge Lorenzo leads the standings with four, followed by Andrea Dovizioso and Loris Capirossi, both with three. The last winner at Motegi, in 2019, was Marc Marquez, ahead of Fabio Quartararo and Andrea Dovizioso.
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