Pecco Bagnaia and Ducati were the great protagonists of the final part of the 2021 MotoGP season and seem willing to show up at the starting blocks of 2022 as favorites. The Piedmontese rider in fact finished in front of everyone on the final day of the collective tests in Jerez de la Frontera, but it is not so much this that should worry, but the way in which he did it.
The vice-world champion, who tested a new aerodynamics, an evolved engine and also a new exhaust, was the only one to break the 1’37 “wall with his 1’36” 872. A time trial that allowed him to clear the Yamaha of world champion Fabio Quartararo by 452 thousandths, who in any case gave a nice climb to the rankings compared to yesterday.
Bagnaia, however, tried to scare away the competition, saying at the end of the day that Ducati was able to further improve a bike that was already practically perfect. Returning to Quartararo, the Frenchman tried a new frame and other small details today, but he gave the feeling that he was still not too satisfied with the development work done by Yamaha, from which he expected more for the two Andalusian days.
Despite a crash in the morning, Alex Rins completed 59 laps aboard the new Suzuki GSX-RR 2022, confirming the good feeling he had already expressed yesterday and thus managing to set the third fastest time at 551 thousandths. Fourth time for Pol Espargaro, who on the Honda in the 2022 version seems to have taken a decisive step forward, finally finding that rear grip he had been asking for all season.
To complete the top 5 we find Aprilia with a Maverick Vinales who at the end of the session said he was convinced that he understood what aspects to improve on the RS-GP and that he wants to spend a few days in Noale to work on them. To complete Suzuki’s good day there is then the sixth time of the outgoing world champion Joan Mir, who like Mir finally seems satisfied with the upgrades brought by the Hamamatsu manufacturer.
The confirmation that the answers seem to be positive also at Honda with the 2022 prototype is the seventh time of Takaaki Nakagami, who preceded an Enea Bastianini once again very fast on the Ducati GP21. For the moment, however, the KTM seems a little behind, with Brad Binder who was the best of his riders, finishing in 11th position despite a crash. At this stage, however, especially when there are so many new things to try, performance is not the first thing to look for.
Compared to yesterday, Andrea Dovizioso, author of the 13th fastest time, behind Luca Marini’s Ducati, seems to have taken a step forward with the base of the Yamaha 2022. Instead, you have to go down to 15th place to find the other M1 of Franco Morbidelli.
As far as rookies are concerned, the step forward made by Fabio Di Giannantonio was notable, despite being 19th, he reduced the gap from the top of his Gresini Racing Ducati to 1 “6. The Roman rider preceded by a whisker Raul Fernandez’s KTM, slower by just 163 thousandths, but the Moto2 world champion Remy Gardner also came close, 22nd but only 37 thousandths behind.
Marco Bezzecchi and Darryn Binder, on the other hand, close the group, with the South African from Yamaha RNF having to deal with his first crash as a MotoGP rider.
Pos | Pilot | Weather | Gap | Prev. Gap | Turns |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | BAGNAIA, Francesco | 1: 36.872 | 12/42 | ||
2 | QUARTARARO, Fabio | 1: 37.324 | 0.452 | 0.452 | 67/68 |
3 | RINS, Alex | 1: 37.423 | 0.551 | 0.099 | 54/59 |
4 | ESPARGARO, Pol | 1: 37.496 | 0.624 | 0.073 | 46/46 |
5 | VIÑALES, Maverick | 1: 37.622 | 0.750 | 0.126 | 67/82 |
6 | MIR, Joan | 1: 37.634 | 0.762 | 0.012 | 59/73 |
7 | NAKAGAMI, Takaaki | 1: 37.672 | 0.800 | 0.038 | 4/36 |
8 | BASTIANINI, Aeneas | 1: 37.698 | 0.826 | 0.026 | 20/25 |
9 | MILLER, Jack | 1: 37.717 | 0.845 | 0.019 | 38/39 |
10 | MARQUEZ, Alex | 1: 37.760 | 0.888 | 0.043 | 56/56 |
11 | BINDER, Brad | 1: 37.942 | 1,070 | 0.182 | 45/56 |
12 | MARINI, Luca | 1: 38.025 | 1.153 | 0.083 | 11/56 |
13 | DOVIZIOSO, Andrea | 1: 38.029 | 1.157 | 0.004 | 54/58 |
14 | OLIVEIRA, Miguel | 1: 38.085 | 1.213 | 0.056 | 6/56 |
15 | MORBIDELLI, Franco | 1: 38.100 | 1,228 | 0.015 | 5/30 |
16 | ESPARGARO, Aleix | 1: 38.149 | 1,277 | 0.049 | 47/55 |
17 | ZARCO, Johann | 1: 38.160 | 1,288 | 0.011 | 20/65 |
18 | MARTIN, Jorge | 1: 38.435 | 1,563 | 0.275 | 11/34 |
19 | DI GIANNANTONIO, Fabio | 1: 38.528 | 1,656 | 0.093 | 43/45 |
20 | FERNANDEZ, Raul | 1: 38.691 | 1,819 | 0.163 | 53/55 |
21 | SAVADORI, Lorenzo | 1: 38.724 | 1,852 | 0.033 | 45/60 |
22 | GARDNER, Remy | 1: 38.728 | 1,856 | 0.004 | 62/64 |
23 | GUINTOLI, Sylvain | 1: 39.040 | 2,168 | 0.312 | 54/56 |
24 | PEDROSA, Dani | 1: 39.185 | 2,313 | 0.145 | 45/58 |
25 | BEZZECCHI, Marco | 1: 39.312 | 2,440 | 0.127 | 54/62 |
26 | BINDER, Darryn | 1: 39.941 | 3,069 | 0.629 | 53/55 |
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