Autosolar GasGas Aspar Team's Jake Dixon quickly put his Portimao disappointment to the back of his mind by taking a comfortable top spot in the opening Moto2™ session of the Red Bull Spanish Grand Prix. The Brit was 0.275 seconds clear of his compatriot Sam Lowes (Elf Marc VDS Racing) and was the only man to break the 1:42 barrier on Friday morning, setting a 1:41.938.
Nearly a smackdown as teammates @AlbertArenas75 and @jakedixonracing say good morning and have a few friendly words with each other! ????#SpanishGP ???????? pic.twitter.com/PujXfp0d39
— MotoGP™???? (@MotoGP) April 29, 2022
Despite taking top spot, Dixon did have a run-in with his teammate Albert Arenas. The Spaniard, who eventually ended up fifth on the timesheets, was cruising on the exit of Turn 1 and had a close call as he drifted back onto the racing line in front of a disgruntled Dixon. Third fastest was Red Bull KTM Ajo's Augusto Fernandez, with Idemitsu Honda Team Asia's Ai Ogura a further spot back in fourth.
American Racing's Cameron Beaubier was three tenths behind the pacesetter in sixth despite crashing in the closing stages, ahead of Pedro Acosta (Red Bull KTM Ajo) and Championship leader Celestino Vietti (Mooney VR46 Team). Rounding out the top ten were Fermin Aldeguer (Lightech Speed Up) and Tony Arbolino (Elf Marc VDS Racing). Join us for Moto2™ FP2 at 15:10 local time (GMT+2).
The American @cameronbeaubier takes an early bath for an unwanted hiccup to his early runs! ????#SpanishGP ???????? pic.twitter.com/mSGNzacDzR
— MotoGP™???? (@MotoGP) April 29, 2022
Moto2™ Top 10 in FP1:
1. Jake Dixon (Autosolar GASGAS Aspar team) – 1:41.938
2. Sam Lowes (Elf Marc VDS Racing Team) + 0.275
3. Augusto Fernandez (Red Bull KTM Ajo) + 0.307
4. Ai Ogura (Idemitsu Honda Team Asia) + 0.335
5. Albert Arenas (Autosolar GASGAS Aspar Team) + 0.348
6. Cameron Beaubier (American Racing) + 0.354
7. Pedro Acosta (Red Bull KTM Ajo) + 0.428
8. Celestino Vietti (Mooney VR46 Racing Team) + 0.584
9. Fermin Aldeguer (Lightech Speed Up) + 0.593
10. Tony Arbolino (Elf Marc VDS Racing Team) + 0.597