Collin Veijer edged Ayumu Sasaki and Deniz Oncu to take the final Moto3 pole position of the 2023 season. Veijer was just short of the outright lap record, set in 2020 by Darryn Binder.  

Maverick Vinales turned the first sub-1:29 lap at Valencia to take pole for the final MotoGP races of the season. Vinales’ 1:28.931 was 0.092 second quicker than Championship leader Francesco Bagnaia. Title contender Jorge Martin was sixth and will start in the back of the second row.

More, from a press release issued by Dorna:

#PECCOvsMARTIN: Bagnaia second, Martin sixth as Viñales sets stunning new lap record for pole

Bagnaia keeps his cool in Q1, Martin loses out on the front row… and Viñales steals the Q2 show for a first pole position with Aprilia

Saturday, 25 November 2023

The grid is decided as we prepare to crown the 2023 MotoGP™ World Champion at the Gran Premio Motul de la Comunitat Valenciana, and it sets the stage for quite a showdown – or two. Despite a trip through Q1, Championship leader Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team) kept cool grab the upper hand on the grid, and he’ll line up second with a clean line of sight down to Turn 1.

After some serious speed but a dash of drama, rolling out of his final attempt after a second moment of Q2, Jorge Martin (Prima Pramac Racing) will line up in P6 on the outside of the second row. 

Between the two, Johann Zarco (Prima Pramac Racing) and Red Bull KTM Factory Racing duo Jack Miller and Brad Binder head into the race with likely very different targets… and ahead of them all, Friday’s fastest Maverick Viñales (Aprilia Racing) took a stunning first pole position since the 2021 Dutch TT. 

Here’s how the final qualifying of the year unfolded!

Q1

After the first runs, Alex Marquez (Gresini Racing MotoGP™) led the way from Bagnaia, but when the field headed back out for a final crack at it, the #1 was setting red sectors to take over on top with just over four minutes remaining, beating the previous benchmark by three tenths.

Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP™) had been on to challenge Alex Marquez but wasn’t able to best Bagnaia’s new best effort, but next time around the Frenchman was close again.

Enea Bastianini (Ducati Lenovo Team), meanwhile, was sat behind Bagnaia. But the number 23 wasn’t seriously threatening the top on first time of asking. Were there team instructions? Would there be should the ‘Beast’ take over in P1? Red sectors with two minutes to go made that question relevant, but the lap went away from him just enough for Bastianini to cross the line and take fourth.

And then Bagnaia pitted. With just over a minute still left on the clock, it was a confident move. Would it pay off? Alex Marquez didn’t seem to have anything left in the locker to improve, Augusto Fernandez (GASGAS Factory Racing Tech3) slotted into third… and it all came down to Bastianini. But a red first sector went grey in the second on the timing screens, and Bagnaia headed through on top, joined in Q2 by Alex Marquez.

Q2

In Q2, Bagnaia’s first lap put him sixth over the line and then 11th by the time the field pitted. And when they did, it was Binder on provisional pole with Martin missing out by hundredths. But then the reigning Champion headed back out… and took over on top. 

The next one was a fast one too, and Bagnaia shaved a tenth and a half off his own best. Next it was Martin’s turn to light up the timing screens, however, and with some company from Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team). There was an absolute heart in mouth moment not long after too: Martin headed wide and the open door was most definitely a tempting one, with Marquez setting red sectors behind the number 89. The two came very, very close to contact but there was none made as Marquez slotted back in behind the Ducati, and both finished the lap – with Marquez improving his time enough, still, to take P8.

Meanwhile, Viñales was on the move. Amongst the drama of the title contenders’ quite contrasting Saturday mornings, the Aprilia Racing rider pulled a stunner out of the hat. He was fastest on Friday and did it again to take a first pole with Aprilia and first since Assen in 2021, beating Bagnaia to it by 0.092.

Zarco slotted into third, Miller was able to leapfrog that former fastest effort from teammate Binder, and Martin now completes the second row after his one final shot at the top ended with a wobble.

THE GRID

Viñales heads Bagnaia as the reigning Champion stayed overwhelmingly cool despite the pressure, with Martin’s teammate Zarco an interesting presence alongside on the front row.

Miller and Binder, holeshot kings earlier in the season, are also quite a threat in fourth and fifth – adding a bit of an extra hurdle for Martin. For his part, the number 89 will want to make sure he has two very different starts to the one he suffered under the floodlights on Sunday at Lusail.

Marco Bezzecchi (Mooney VR46) lines up in P7 ahead of Q1 graduate Alex Marquez, with Marc Marquez bumped down to P9 by the end of play – crashing out of his final effort at Turn 2, rider ok.

Raul Fernandez (CryptoDATA RNF MotoGP™ Team) completes the top ten ahead of Qatar GP winner Fabio Di Giannantonio (Gresini Racing MotoGP™), with Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia Racing) last in Q2.

The stage is set for a first match point for Bagnaia, and after on Friday it seemed it was advantage Martin – on track, at least – it looks a little different heading into the Tissot Sprint. Can Martin hit back once the lights go out? He’ll need to, as Bagnaia needs to gain just four points on him to take the crown, with the #1 21 ahead on the way in. The magic number for Bagnaia to wrap it up is a gap of 25 or more…

Francesco Bagnaia headed the first MotoGP qualifying session over Alex Marquez, with Augusto Fernandez third on his GASGAS Factory Racing Tech3 machine. Bagnaia’s factory Ducati teammate Enea Bastianini was fourth, failing to transfer to the final qualifying session.

Maverick Vinales led the field during MotoGP Free Practice Two (FP2) Friday at Ricardo Tormo Circuit, near Valencia, Spain. Riding his factory Aprilia RS-GP, the Spaniard lapped the recently surfaced 2.5-mile (4.0 km) course in 1:29.142, which broke Jorge Lorenzo’s All-Time Lap Record of 1:29.401 set way back in 2016!

Championship hopeful Jorge Martin was the best of the rest with a 1:29.289 on his Prima Pramac Racing Ducati, and Martin’s teammate Johann Zarco finished the session in third with a 1:29.296.

Defending World Champion and current Championship point leader Francesco Bagnaia did a best time of 1:29.801, which left him 15th in the session and heading to Qualifying One (Q1) on Saturday to try to fight his way into Q2 and the top 12 grid spots.

The top 16 riders in the session were separated by only 0.860 second, and the entire field was covered by just 1.798 seconds.

More, from a press release issued by Dorna:

#PECCOvsMARTIN: the mind games begin on Day 1

Viñales breaks the lap record to head Martin, Bagnaia heads for Q1 as Friday serves up some serious talking points

Friday, 24 November 2023

The heat has officially hit fever pitch in the title battle and a huge Saturday at the Gran Premio Motul de la Comunitat Valenciana awaits. For one, Championship leader Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team) is heading for Q1. Two, amid some interesting mind games from Jorge Martin (Prima Pramac Racing) as the Spaniard looks to overturn that 21-point deficit. He was also second quickest on Friday as Bagnaia took only P15. And all that as Maverick Viñales (Aprilia Racing) set the pace thanks to a 1:29.142 – a new Circuit Ricardo Tormo all-time lap record.

Mind games aplenty 

After FP1 saw Martin take P3 and Bagnaia P13, all eyes were on Practice and the soft rubber went in early with qualifying incredibly important at the tight and twisty Valencia layout – especially for the two title protagonists. The final five minutes of the Practice session is when things got even more interesting as Martin headed out armed with a definite game plan. 

Plenty of red sectors came flying in but all eyes were on the title duo, who were locked together in the pitlane after being out on track together. Martin latched himself onto the back of Pecco and shadowed him around the out-lap – including running wide at Turn 8 – as Pecco tried his best to find a time to propel him into the top 10. 

That didn’t happen on his first flying lap and with time only allowing for one final lap to be laid in the session, the pressure was on Bagnaia. But it would prove too late as a crash for Pol Espargaro (GASGAS Factory Racing Tech3) at Turn 3 brought out the yellow flags, and that was that. Bagnaia ended Practice in P15, meaning Q1 awaits for the Championship leader… and Martin’s tactics seemingly worked a treat as he headed straight into Q2 as the second fastest rider on track. 

A top 15 covered by just 0.659s 

With just over half a second covering the top 15, fine margins again made all the difference, and Viñales ends Friday with that freshly-pressed lap record. Behind Martin in second, his teammate Johann Zarco enjoyed a positive day and ended Friday as one of three riders underneath the seven-year-old lap record too. How crucial could Zarco’s pace prove to be for the rest of the weekend for Prima Pramac Racing and Martin? 

Elsewhere, Fabio Di Giannantonio (Gresini Racing MotoGP™) continued his strong form to claim P4, with compatriot Marco Bezzecchi (Mooney VR46 Racing Team) – despite a crash at Turn 8 – completing the top five.   

Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) ended the 60-minute Practice stint in P6, while eight-time World Champion Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team) gets set for a Q2 appearance following a positive day as the #93 finished Friday in seventh. Raul Fernandez (CryptoDATA RNF MotoGP™ Team), Jack Miller (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) – another crasher in Practice – and Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia Racing) are the other riders who bagged automatic Q2 spots. 

The reigning Champion’s Q1 hurdle  

Bagnaia will have teammate Enea Bastianini (Ducati Lenovo Team) for company in the biggest 15 minutes of the season, while the likes of Alex Marquez (Gresini Racing MotoGP™), Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP™), Franco Morbidelli (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP™), and Luca Marini (Mooney VR46 Racing Team) will also fancy their chances of processing.

A mouthwatering day awaits in Valencia. The 2023 title tale has taken a twist on Friday, but what does qualifying and Tissot Sprint Saturday have in store? You’ll have to tune in to find out!

SHOWTIME IN VALENCIA

The stage is set for Qualifying and the Tissot Sprint! Make sure you tune in:

MotoGP™ FP2: 10:10

MotoGP™ Q1: 10:50

MotoGP™ Q2: 111:15

MotoGP™ Sprint: 15:00

Acosta vs Aldeguer: a duel for the top on Friday

Pedro Acosta (Red Bull KTM Ajo) is the rider to beat after the opening day of the Gran Premio Motul de la Comunitat Valenciana, exchanging lap times with Fermin Aldeguer (CAG SpeedUp) at the top of the timesheets until a decisive new all-time lap record from the reigning Champion: a 1:33.768. Aldeguer fell 0.132s short of #37 by the close of P2, with Aron Canet (Pons Wegow Los40) rounding out the top three following Friday’s running. 

Jake Dixon (Inde GASGAS Aspar Team) made a step in Practice 2 to put himself within 0.238s off the pace. The Brit finished the day in 4th place ahead of his compatriot Sam Lowes (Elf MarcVDS Racing Team) who enjoyed a positive opening day to round out the top five. Celestino Vietti (Fantic Racing) also took well to the Circuit Ricardo Tormo and put his Triumph Kalex in P6 ahead of Marcos Ramirez (OnlyFans American Racing).

Joe Roberts (Italtrans Racing Team) knocked one second off his lap time in Practice 2 as he found his feet in Valencia. The American bagged 8th place ahead of his teammate Dennis Foggia, with Tony Arbolino (Elf MarcVDS Racing Team) kicking off his Valencia GP with a Friday P10. 

Moto2™ will be back in action on Saturday for Practice 3 at 09:25 and qualifying at 13:45 local (GMT +1)! Will the Acosta-Aldeguer duel continue?

Moto3™: Holgado dominates Day 1

Daniel Holgado (Red Bull KTM Tech3) ended Day 1 of the Gran Premio Motul de la Comunitat Valenciana fastest after his 1:38.706 saw him top the timesheets in Practice 2. Deniz Öncü (Red Bull KTM Ajo) got the closest to the Spaniard’s time despite bringing out the red flags with a mid-session high side. The Turk was taken to the medical centre for a check-up and will be reviewed before Practice 3 in the morning, but his time stood strong as he remained the only rider to join Holgado in the 1:38 club in 2nd place. Joel Kelso (CFMoto Racing PrüstelGP) finished the day in 3rd place overall after clocking a time just under three-tenths away from the top spot.

Adrian Fernandez (Leopard Racing) missed out on the top three by just 0.047s as he took P4. Next up behind the Spaniard was Ivan Ortola (Angeluss MTA Team), with 2023 World Champion Jaume Masia (Leopard Racing) taking sixth. Ryusei Yamanaka (GASGAS Aspar Team) finished the day in P7 as half a second covered the top eight – the eighth of those riders being Collin Veijer (Liqui Moly Husqvarna Intact GP). Diogo Moreira (MT Helmets – MSI) and Vicente Perez (BOE Motorsports) rounded out the top 10.

Rookie of the Year David Alonso (Valresa GASGAS Aspar Team) suffered two big crashes in Practice 2, the second one involved Ayumu Sasaki (Liqui Moly Husqvarna Intact GP) with the Japanese rider hitting the Colombian’s machine on the exit of Turn 11. Both riders were up on their feet, Sasaki rider ok and Alonso heading to the medical centre for a check-up – he’ll be reviewed tomorrow morning ahead of Practice 3.

That session will decide entrants to Q2, before the final grid of the season is decided from 12:50 (GMT +1).

Pedro Acosta set the fastest time during Moto2 World Championship Free Practice Two (FP2) Friday at Ricardo Tormo Circuit, near Valencia, Spain. Red Bull KTM Ajo’s newly crowned World Champion rode the recently repaved 2.5-mile (4.0 km) course in 1:33.768, eclipsing the new All-Time Lap Record of 1:34.024 he set hours earlier in the day.

American Joe Roberts improved his standing from 21st in FP1 to eighth in FP2 with a lap of 1:34.243 on his Italtrans Racing Kalex.

Roberts’ countryman Sean Dylan Kelly (SDK) finished the session 32nd out of 32 riders with a time of 1:36.237, which was faster than the 1:36.576 he did in FP1.

Johann Zarco led MotoGP World Championship Free Practice One (FP1) Friday morning at Ricardo Tormo Circuit, near Valencia, Spain. Riding his Prima Pramac Racing Ducati, the Frenchman lapped the recently repaved 2.5-mile (4.0 km) course in 1:30.191 to lead the field of 22 riders.

Qatar race winner Fabio Di Giannantonio was second-best on his Gresini Racing Ducati with a time of 1:30.378, and Zarco’s teammate Jorge Martin was third-quickest with a lap at 1:30.450.

Defending World Champion and current Championship point leader Francesco Bagnaia finished FP1 13th with a 1:30.969 on his Lenovo Ducati

Just 1.061 seconds separated the top 16 riders in FP1, and the entire field was covered by only 1.8 seconds.