Another milestone for Marc Marquez after returning from injury when he secured third place on the grid, his first front row of the season. Pol Espargaro faces a tough fight on Sunday from 12th place.
Both Marc Marquez and Pol Espargaro achieved their goals in the first session on Saturday and moved up into Q2 with fourth and seventh positions respectively in Free Practice 3.
After leading the way in both Friday sessions, eyes were on Marc Marquez to see what he could do at the Red Bull Grand Prix of the Americas on Saturday. With a stable FP3 in his back, the six-time COTA winner used Free Practice 4 to refine his attitude for the race and to make a final assessment of the bumps before Q2. Marquez’s first run brought a 2’03.209 – which put him at the top of the timesheet. This would be his best time of the session as Marquez’s second run was hampered by traffic.
441 days since his last front row at the 2020 Spanish GP, Marc Marquez returns with a third place on the grid. Tomorrow’s 20-lap Red Bull Grand Prix of the Americas will be a long and physically demanding affair, but the # 93 is feeling confident with its racing pace.
Saturday in Texas was a complicated day for Pol Espargaro. Espargaro suffered a fall at Turn 12 during Free Practice 4 but walked away unharmed and returned to the garage before getting back on his second Repsol Honda Team RC213V. In Q2 the # 44 finished 12th on the grid with 2,03,875 – its fastest lap of the weekend so far. Espargaro had to regret his second tire of qualifying due to a timing miscalculation and is ready to grit his teeth for a long and demanding American GP.
The 20-lap race starts on Sunday, October 3, at 2:00 p.m. local time. The predictions predict another hot day under the Texas sun.