Fabio Quartararo defied injuries and the weather and took pole position for his home Grand Prix at Le Mans on Sunday.
Inconsistent rainfall made life difficult for the MotoGP field at the Bugatti circuit, but Quartararo was at the forefront of timing ahead of his Yamaha teammate, Maverick Vinales, and Ducati’s Jack Miller, who completed the front row.
Quartararo recovers from the operation and takes pole
Quartararo’s Pole Grab comes just 11 days after arm pump surgery after problems with his right forearm that slipped him to 13th place last time in Jerez.
Franco Morbidelli on Yamaha’s satellite SRT bike is in the second row after setting the fourth fastest time in the second quarter alongside fellow home hopes Johann Zarco and six-time world champion Marc Marquez.
Both reigning world champion Joan Mir and the championship leader of the 2021 drivers’ standings, Francesco Bagnaia, failed to make it through the first and second quarters and the battle for pole, leaving the pair far down on the grid for Sunday’s race.
Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP French rider Fabio Quartararo drove his motorcycle and took pole position in Q2 qualifying in 1’32,600 before the French Moto GP Grand Prix at Le Mans in northwestern France on May 15, 2021. (Photo by Jean -François MONIER / AFP)
The South African Brad Binder had a nightmare day in qualifying and starts from 21st place.
French Grand Prix Full Results
| FRENCH MOTOGP, LE MANS – FULL QUALIFYING RESULTS | ||||||
| POS | DRIVER | NAT | TEAM | TIME / DIFF | ROUND | MAX |
| 1 | Fabio Quartararo | OF | Monster Yamaha (YZR-M1) | 1’32.600s | 9/9 | 312k |
| 2 | Maverick Viñales | SPA | Monster Yamaha (YZR-M1) | + 0.081 s | 9/9 | 311k |
| 3 | Jack Miller | OUT | Ducati Team (GP21) | + 0.104 s | 9/9 | 322k |
| 4th | Franco Morbidelli | ITA | Petronas Yamaha (YZR-M1) | + 0.166 s | 9/9 | 309k |
| 5 | Johann Zarco | OF | Pramac Ducati (GP21) | + 0.277 s | 9/9 | 323k |
| 6th | Marc Marquez | SPA | Repsol Honda (RC213V) | + 0.437 s | 6/8 | 313k |
| 7th | Takaaki Nakagami | JPN | LCR Honda (RC213V) | + 0.520 s | 5/7 | 321k |
| 8th | Pol Espargaro | SPA | Repsol Honda (RC213V) | + 0.550s | 5/8 | 320k |
| 9 | Valentino Rossi | ITA | Petronas Yamaha (YZR-M1) | + 0.791s | 9/9 | 310k |
| 10 | Miguel Oliveira | TO THE | Red Bull KTM (RC16) | + 1.267s | 6/6 | 311k |
| 11 | Lorenzo Savadori | ITA | Aprilia Gresini (RS-GP) * | + 1.658s | 5/7 | 303k |
| 12th | Luca Marini | ITA | Sky VR46 Avintia Ducati (GP19) * | + 1.665s | 9/9 | 319k |
| Qualification 1: | ||||||
| 13th | Aleix Espargaro | SPA | Aprilia Gresini (RS-GP) | 1’43.418s | 8/9 | 307k |
| 14th | Joan Mir | SPA | Suzuki Ecstar (GSX-RR) | 1’43.422s | 9/9 | 304k |
| fifteen | Alex Rins | SPA | Suzuki Ecstar (GSX-RR) | 1’43.523s | 9/9 | 306k |
| 16 | Francesco Bagnaia | ITA | Ducati Team (GP21) | 1’43.53s | 9/9 | 312k |
| 17th | Danilo Petrucci | ITA | KTM Tech3 (RC16) | 1’43.857s | 9/9 | 301k |
| 18th | Iker Lecuona | SPA | KTM Tech3 (RC16) | 1’44.324s | 9/9 | 303k |
| 19th | Alex Marquez | SPA | LCR Honda (RC213V) | 1’45.146s | 5/6 | 306k |
| 20th | Tito Rabat | SPA | Pramac Ducati (GP21) | 1’45.59s | 6/7 | 300k |
| 21 | Brad Binder | RSA | Red Bull KTM (RC16) | 1’45.911s | 5/8 | 301k |
| 22nd | Enea Bastianini | ITA | Avintia Ducati (GP19) * | 1’46.123s | 5/8 | 292k |
