MotoGP Comb Qual
More from a press release from Dorna:
Homerun: Quartararo takes Le Mans by storm to bring Viñales to pole
The first factory Yamaha team 1-2 since 2017 leads Miller in the front row while qualifying starts in France
Fabio Quartararo (20). Photo courtesy of Dorna.
Saturday 15th May 2021
Rain, sunshine or something in between? Saturday at the SHARK Grand Prix de France was quite a challenge for the MotoGP ™ tribe, but the final minutes of the second quarter ended up delivering a breathtaking shootout for the pole on a dry track. And who is ahead? Home hero Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP), the Frenchman who has two consecutive poles at Le Mans to bring teammate Maverick Viñales to the top and make it a factory Yamaha team for the first time since 2017 that 1-2 is on the grid. Third place went to Jack Miller (Ducati Lenovo Team), the Jerez winner just a tenth away from pole.
In the first quarter, a drying stretch made it everyone’s game and there were a few leaks, some thrills, and definitely a few surprises. Lorenzo Savadori (Aprilia Racing Team Gresini) pitted early, despite his impressive pace in a damp RP3, as the rest of them headed out to really test the conditions … but there was a real phoenix moment along the way .
As the track continued to improve, the lap times at the top also improved. But no more than Savadori. The Italian was back outside showing his skills again in wet weather when the clock ran out. As he crossed the line, the Italian outperformed the session by a whopping eight tenths of a second. By whom? Rookie colleague Luca Marini (Sky VR46 Avintia). Standing on the back of championship leader and compatriot Francesco Bagnaia, Marini improved and improved on his last attempt to win the session, just before Savadori’s final miracle.
The two rookies then pulled through, leaving Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia Racing Team Gresini), who had just retired from his teammate, as well as reigning champion Joan Mir (Team Suzuki Ecstar) next and his teammate Alex Rins. Championship leader Bagnaia? He will be 16th on the grid …
And so the second quarter began without it having rained any more. At the start of the battle for pole position, decisions had to be made for the Q2 runners and we saw Valentino Rossi and Petronas Yamaha SRT teammate Franco Morbidelli play on slick tires. Was it inspired by VR46 Acadamy rider Andrea Migno (Rivacold Snipers Team) after his breathtaking Moto3 ™ qualifier?
It looked like the Petronas Yamaha SRT squad made the right call when Miller, Quartararo and Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team) drove straight back to switch. Pol Espargaro (Repsol Honda Team), Takaaki Nakagami (LCR Honda Idemitsu) and Savadori were all on slicks as well, but Johann Zarco (Pramac Racing) wasn’t and was soon on his way back to the pit lane to change tires – just like Viñales.
Until then, the drivers lit the timing screens with smooth tires. Rossi had disappeared from the square in the last corner; His lap was ruined and Morbidelli eclipsed Zarco’s best wet tire lap, but then Miller destroyed them all to go 1.2 seconds faster than anyone else. Pol Espargaro landed in an early P2 when Quartararo and Savadori punched in at P3 and P4. Morbidelli next improved, moving up to second place. Incredible that Miller then cut his best by a second and Pol Espargaro came through as the Aussie’s closest challenger again.
It was far from over. Everyone improved steadily and Zarco briefly took provisional pole, Miller beat him by nine tenths and Pol Espargaro eventually downgraded Miller to second place by 0.157 seconds. Marc Marquez joined his teammate in the front row with four minutes to go, and Nakagami made it into the top four with three Hondas for the time being.
Morbidelli hit back in second, but not for long. Marc Marquez defeated teammate Pol Espargaro by 0.113 seconds before Nakagami separated the two into a Honda 1-2-3. It started to rain at turn 1. It looked like the three HRC men had their laps perfectly coordinated. but no. Suddenly Viñales and Zarco set red sectors before Quartararo did too.
Viñales was the first to cross the finish line and Repsol Honda’s hearts broke to secure Marc Marquez provisional pole position. Zarco finished second and Morbidelli also won the number 93 time. Quartararo was the rider to watch and when he got everything on the line in the last sector it was all about the pole position between Yamaha and Yamaha. Could he hold on? he could. El Diablo beat his teammate’s time by 0.081 seconds, and a shadowing Miller came through to grab a late front row as well.
The first factory Yamaha 1-2 since 2017, when a certain Viñales won, along with the youngest race winner? Another outstanding Saturday that belonged to Quartararo for the third time in a row. The arm pump operation on the GP bar at home is the story of his last few weeks, which Quartararo completed twice in a row at Le Mans.
The last flight laps by Morbidelli and Zarco ensure that they have solid starting positions for the French GP in positions four and five. Marc Marquez stays out of the second row at the end of the shuffle. Nakagami and Pol Espargaro, who suffered a late fall at Turn 7, also have to settle for les as promised and take P7 and P8 respectively.
Rossi was able to improve his time on the final lap to reach P9 and his best starting position since the season opener. Miguel Oliveira (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) completed the top 10 despite a crash ahead of the first-quarter graduates Savadori and Marini. Since Bagnaia and the Suzukis are also looking for quick progress, Sunday promises a lot.
A French GP qualifying for the ages with a French on pole position. What does Sunday bring? At 2:00 p.m. local time (GMT + 2) we will find out that Ducati is ready with their Holeshot devices, the skies are uncertain … and history is at stake again.
MotoGP ™ first row
1 Fabio Quartararo – Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP – Yamaha – 1: 32.600
2 Maverick Viñales – Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP – Yamaha – +0.081
3 Jack Miller – Ducati Lenovo Team – Ducati – +0.104
Top independent team driver
4 Franco Morbidelli – Petronas Yamaha SRT – Yamaha – +0.166
Fabio Quartararo: “It feels amazing because I was so nervous before the QP before I wanted to use a middle stern for the first time and thought it would be difficult, but on the outside lap it was dry and I immediately thought I had to go back in in the pit lane we had a strategy. And then on the last lap I thought … ok, crash or first row. In the last sector I pushed myself to the limit. I didn’t even know I had a pole before I got here. Saw three motorcycles here and thought, ah, that’s a shame, I didn’t make it in the front row … that was before I saw my mechanics! But I’m so happy to get pole at my house GP two years in a row. “