Saturday and qualifying at the Gran Premio Octo di San Marino e della Riviera di Rimini has come to a close as attentions now turn to race day. But what are the ten things you need to know ahead of the San Marino GP?
Well, look no further – it seems we’re set for a magnificent battle at the Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli on Sunday:
1 - Jorge Lorenzo (Ducati Team) has qualified on pole position for the third time this season and the 68th in his Grand Prix career. This is Lorenzo’s first back-to-back pole position since joining Ducati in 2017 and his first overall since the finale race of 2015 and the opening race of 2016.
2 - Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda Team) in 2010 is the last rider to win the MotoGP™ race at the San Marino GP after qualifying in pole position.
3 - Jack Miller (Alma Pramac Racing) starts from second on the grid as the top Independent Team rider, which is his best qualifying result since he was on pole in Argentina earlier this year, and his second front-row start on what is his 60th Grand Prix race in the premier class.
4 - The highest-placed Yamaha rider on the grid is Maverick Viñales (Movistar Yamaha MotoGP) in third place. This is his best qualifying result since he was also third at Mugello earlier this year.
5 - Marc Marquez (Respol Honda Team) has qualified in fifth place on the grid, which is his worst qualifying result at Misano since he stepped up to the MotoGP™ class in 2013.
6 - Heading the third row is Valentino Rossi (Movistar Yamaha MotoGP), who is back at Misano after missing the race last year due to a leg injury. This is Rossi’s worst qualifying at his home track since 2011 when he was 11th on the grid riding a Ducati.
7 - Danilo Petrucci (Alma Pramac Racing), who fought for the win until the final lap last year at Misano from eighth on the grid, has also qualified in eighth this year.
8 - The highest-placed Suzuki rider is Alex Rins (Team Suzuki Ecstar) in 10th on the grid for the third successive time. Rins won twice in the Moto3™ class in 2013 and 2014 at the San Marino GP.
9 - After passing through Q1 for the fifth time this year, Pedrosa, who won in both 2010 and 2016 at Misano, has qualified in 11th place on the grid.
10 - Franco Morbidelli (EG 0,0 Marc VDS), who starts from 12th on the grid, is the second of the five rookies this year along with Takaaki Nakagami (LCR Honda Idemitsu) to have joined Q2 more than once.