Conditions were again the theme of the day in Doha as the Repsol Honda team worked towards race day. Stefan Bradl continued to lead the Honda indictment as he prepares for 11th place.
In Free Practice 3, dust and wind couldn’t escape as the entire Losail International Circuit was hit by a violent storm. While the wind was manageable, huge amounts of dust and sand were blown over the track, meaning there was little information to be found in the first session of the day and there was certainly no chance of improving FP2 times.
The winds stayed for the evening sessions, but with less dust than in the morning, the evening running proved more productive. Espargaro and his crew completed ten laps in 30-minute Free Practice 4 and focused on Sunday’s 22-lap race. Espargaro finished 0.15 seconds behind Bradl and took valuable information from RP4 before focusing again on the first quarter.
Less than half a second separated the first five in the first quarter, when Mir, Alex Marquez and Oliveira battled for one of the two transfer spots. In a well-timed second run in the 15-minute session, Espargaro maximized his track time on his second set of tires and finished the evening in fifth place and less than two-tenths of the first two. He will take 15th place on the grid for the race on Sunday.
Stefan Bradl’s Free Practice 4 was long-term oriented and also worked towards Sunday’s race after securing a spot in the second quarter thanks to his performance on Friday. The German was able to run consistently in the top ten until he retired at turn 13 late in the session. He was able to avoid injuries but could not improve to 10th place. Bradl continued his strong form on Saturday in the second quarter and took 11th on the grid, his best qualifying since the Portuguese GP last year.
Improved performance on Sunday remains the main focus of the Repsol Honda team. Both Bradl and Espargaro showed an impressive pace last Sunday. The race is guaranteed to be close again, but the two RC213V drivers are ready to fight. On Sunday April 4th, the lights will go out for the Doha GP at 8:00 p.m. local time.