On the second day of qualifying in two weeks, lap records were broken as the MotoGP field battled for pole. Marc Marquez and Pol Espargaro both improved their times and starting positions last weekend.
Saturday at the Red Bull Ring started well for the Repsol Honda Team as both Marc Marquez and Pol Espargaro finished 3rd free practice in the combined top ten. Marquez was particularly impressive as he improved his time by eight tenths and finished the morning in fourth place with a 1: 23.132 – just a tenth less than his pole time in 2019.
A small fall at the beginning of free practice 3 didn’t disturb Marc Marquez’s session, the eight-time world champion immediately rose again and finished his run. After the hard work in the morning, Marquez hit the track again for Q2 to fight for the grid position. With a best time of 1’23.227 minutes, he drove two tenths faster than in qualifying last week and secured fifth place – which brought his best starting position of the year from Germany. After proving his speed off the line last weekend, Marquez will try again to put together a strong opening lap.
Pol Espargaro managed another consistent day on the 4.3 kilometer course, improving his pace with each session. After free practice 4 in eighth place, Espargaro’s work on used tires began to bear fruit on Friday. In Q2, the # 44 put together a 1’23.738 to join its teammate in order to drive faster than in the previous week and to improve its starting position. In the lap time, Espargaro starts in 11th place with his Honda RC213V, just ahead of Takaaki Nakagami. Espargaro felt that he could have delivered more than one lap with a different front tire choice in qualifying, but is more confident for the race with the tough front.
Both Repsol Honda Team riders will be ready to attack when the lights go out at 2:00 p.m. local time tomorrow, Sunday 15 August. The forecasts for the weather on Sunday remain extremely mixed.