The Japanese Grand Prix opens with rain, which fell during the night and in the early morning, making the asphalt particularly treacherous. In this particular condition, the activity on the track in the first free practice session was very little, but enough to understand what the values on the field are. The tracks change, the conditions change, but the result of the ranking does not change. It is always Pecco Bagnaia and Jorge Martin who make the difference over the whole group and this is also the case in the first free practice session at Motegi.
In the first minutes of the session, all the drivers took to the track to test the conditions and, with slick tyres, set the first times which were then the reference for the rest of the session. The reigning world champion set the best time in this particular round, not exceeding 1’45”209.
Despite the high time which had no opportunity to be improved, Bagnaia archived the morning session at Motegi as leader, followed closely by Jorge Martin, only 109 thousandths of a second away. Nine laps in total for both the reigning champion and the world championship leader, a sign of a session that was not particularly useful for ranking purposes.
Almost three tenths behind is Fabio Di Giannantonio, who on this Japanese Friday tried to take to the track for the first time without painkillers. Eight laps for the driver of the Pertamina Enduro VR46 team, who stopped with the third fastest time, closing the round as the best GP23. Behind him was Marc Marquez, also with eight laps completed, the best of which allowed him to move into fourth position.
Unlike the first three, who had a pair of mediums, the Gresini rider opted for a soft front, which was also confirmed after the first stop. In fact, half an hour before the end of the session, rain was reported on the track, which forced everyone to return to the pits. The drivers didn’t trust the treacherous conditions, but ten minutes before the checkered flag they returned to the track to test the conditions again.
Only one or two laps for the riders, who restarted from where they left off at the start of the session, trying to carry on that little bit of work that could however come in handy in the next few days, given that the weather seems rather unstable. Thus, at the end of a session marked more by rain than by the clock, the Ducatis dominated, with Jack Miller in fifth position.
Pay attention to the KTMs, which have proven to be very competitive in the past at Motegi and, in these conditions which enhance the Australian’s riding, they are back in the limelight. However, Miller remained over half a second behind leader Bagnaia, but he is still the only one in the top 10. To find the second RC16 we have to scroll down to 13th position, where we find Pedro Acosta. The rookie didn’t want to overdo it and remained outside the top 10, as did Brad Binder, 16th.
Thus, Miller is the only KTM to “ruin” the Ducati party and preceded Marco Bezzecchi’s GP23. The driver of the Pertamina Enduro VR46 team closed the session with the sixth fastest time ahead of a surprising Joan Mir. Did the uncertain weather contribute to putting the Majorcan in seventh place or is Honda’s work starting to bear fruit? Undoubtedly it is a great start to the home weekend for HRC, which also saw Johann Zarco in the top 10.
The Frenchman confirmed himself in great form and, after the excellent performances of the previous races, brought his LCR-designed RC213V to eighth position, almost eight tenths from the top. Takaaki Nakagami was further behind, closing the first round in his last home race with the 12th fastest time, while Luca Marini did not go beyond 19th place with eight laps under his belt.
The first of the Aprilias is that of Maverick Vinales, who set the ninth fastest time in the early stages of the session, remaining in the top 10 ahead of the official Ducati of Enea Bastianini, who once again started by recurring and, in particular conditions, remained in tenth position. There are also few risks for Franco Morbidelli, who is the last of the Ducati riders in 18th position.
Among the Aprilias, Aleix Espargaro remained the furthest behind, with the other official RS-GP not exceeding the 15th time, while Raul Fernandez remained in 20th position. Lorenzo Savadori was also present, replacing the injured Miguel Oliveira and 22nd in particular conditions.
If Honda can smile (always with caution) in this first Japanese session, Yamaha appeared less aggressive. On a damp track that saw rain falling on and off, Fabio Quartararo took no risks and placed himself in 17th place, but Alex Rins did better than him, bringing the M1 to 14th place. Closing the group we find Remy Gardner, present at Motegi as a wild card and 23rd.
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