A quite astonishing 1:52.772 helped Ducati Lenovo Team’s Francesco Bagnaia to pole position at Barwa Grand Prix of Qatar, setting us up very nicely for a sensational first Sunday of 2021. But what other statistics surfaced from qualifying? Delve into some right here to whet your appetite further ahead of race day in Qatar.
1. Bagnaia has qualified on pole position for the first time in MotoGP™, setting a new all-time lap record at the Losail International Circuit.
2. Bagnaia became the sixth different polesitter in six MotoGP™ races; a sequence that started at the Aragon GP last year with Fabio Quartararo followed by Takaaki Nakagami (Teruel), Pol Espargaro (Europe), Franco Morbidelli (Valencia) and Miguel Oliveira (Portugal). The last time there were six different polesitters in six MotoGP™ races was in 2018 from Argentina to Catalunya.
3. Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) has qualified second, which is his first front-row start since he was on pole position at the Aragon GP last year.
4. Valentino Rossi (Petronas Yamaha SRT) has qualified fourth for his best qualifying result at Losail since 2010 when he was second on the grid on his way to win the race. This is also his best qualifying since he was third in Catalunya last year.
5. Second fastest Ducati rider, Jack Miller (Ducati Lenovo Team), who is scheduled to start his 100th MotoGP™ race, has qualified fifth and will be aiming to take three podiums in a row for the first time in the class.
6. Johann Zarco (Pramac Racing) set a new top speed record in FP4 in MotoGP™ at the Losail circuit, clocking 362.4 km/h, more than 100 m/s. He qualified sixth for his third front two rows start at Losail since he stepped up in MotoGP™ in 2017 (including a pole in 2018).
7. Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia Racing Team Gresini) has qualified eighth, which is the best qualifying result of an Aprilia rider at Losail so far in MotoGP™. He will be aiming to give Aprilia their first top five finish since the introduction of MotoGP™ in 2002.
8. Alex Rins (Team Suzuki Ecstar) qualified ninth for his best qualifying since he was second at the European GP last year. He will be aiming to give Suzuki their first podium finish in MotoGP™ at Losail.
9. 2020 MotoGP™ World Champion Joan Mir (Team Suzuki Ecstar) passed through Q1 for the 12th time in MotoGP™ and managed to join Q2 for the third time, along with Catalunya and San Marino in 2019. He qualified in 10th for his best qualifying since he was fifth at the European GP on his way to take his only MotoGP™ win so far.
10. After passing through Q1, Takaaki Nakagami (LCR Honda Idemitsu) qualified 11th as the highest-placed Honda rider. This is the first time there is no Honda rider inside the top 10 in MotoGP™ qualifying at Losail.