Pecco Bagnaia needed to take a painkiller to compete in the second free practice session of the Gran Premio di San Marino e della Riviera di Rimini, but it seems to have paid off. After suffering in his neck this morning, still as a consequence of the accident with Alex Marquez last Sunday in Aragon, the reigning world champion made up for it in a big way in his Misano, setting the fastest time.
The Ducati rider showed a clear step forward almost immediately when he was already using the medium tyre, but then he put everyone in line when it was time to go for the time attack, managing to show off a time of 1’30″685. In this way, the Piedmontese responded promptly to Marc Marquez and Jorge Martin, who were nevertheless his direct pursuers.
The winner of the Aragon Grand Prix managed to move into second place right under the checkered flag, finishing 185 thousandths behind Bagnaia. The #93 slipped right in front of the world championship leader, third at 281 thousandths with the other Ducati of Prima Pramac Racing. The rider from Madrid, therefore, is slowly regaining his strength after being the victim of bad indigestion a couple of days ago.
The Borgo Panigale manufacturer monopolised the first five positions, as the other two GP24s of Franco Morbidelli and Enea Bastianini followed, and on their home track they managed to find the key to climbing the standings in the finale, placing themselves respectively two and three tenths behind Bagnaia.
The first of the “others” was Pedro Acosta, who with the KTM branded GasGas Tech3 was also in the lead for a long time until they worked with the medium tire. In the time attack however he also ran into a slide at turn 8 that prevented him from improving in the final. However, his 1’31″203 keeps him in sixth place.
The “Shark of Mazarron” is the only intruder among the Ducatis, because in seventh place there is the GP23 of Pertamina Enduro VR46 entrusted to Marco Bezzecchi. Even if it is their second home race, the Aprilias unfortunately did not shine instead: the only one to have scored the pass for Q2 is that of Maverick Vinales with the eighth time, while Aleix Espargaro paid for a fall in the change of direction between curve 1 and curve 2 and finds himself only 12th, so he will have to go through Q1.
Finally Fabio Quartararo also had a positive day, with the latest updates introduced by Yamaha after the private test held in Romagna that allowed him to place ninth and therefore reach the direct Q2, reducing the gap from the top to six tenths. Not bad if you consider that the weak point of the M1 at the moment is precisely the time attack.
The last rider to qualify for Q2 was Jack Miller, who beat his teammate Brad Binder by just over a tenth on his KTM. Pol Espargaro’s RC16 laboratory will also go through Q1. After the third fastest time in the morning session, the Spanish wild card did not go beyond the 13th fastest time.
You have to go down to 15th place instead to find the best of the Hondas, which was once again the one with the LCR colors entrusted to Johann Zarco. The French rider is also behind the Aprilia Trackhouse and ahead of the Ducati GP23 of Fabio Di Giannantonio, who here is probably suffering more than in Aragon from the injury to his left shoulder suffered in Austria.
Luca Marini’s session was negative, as he was only 22nd at 1″6 with the only surviving Honda HCR. Joan Mir, in fact, was forced to raise the white flag also in the afternoon due to the violent attack of gastroenteritis that struck him. The Majorcan’s conditions are not at all good, to the point that Dr. Angel Charte, the championship’s medical director, has questioned his presence on the track tomorrow too.
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