In the most breathtaking of Q1 sessions, Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team) was cool, calm and collected to top the timesheets thanks to a 1.31.219. The Italian avoided the chaos unfolding across the track to give himself almost half a second over Fabio Di Giannantonio in P2. The Gresini Racing rookie is a surprise name in the top two, with several heavy hitters falling by the wayside in a dramatic session.
Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team) pushed his RC213V to the absolute limits in order to find a time, but downed twice, at Turns 13 and 12, in short succession to rule him out of contention and he will start Sunday’s race from P15. His factory Honda teammate Pol Espargaro will join him in down the pack, with the Qatar GP podium finisher never really getting going. The same can be said for Joan Mir, with the Suzuki rider preparing to launch from P18 after a dismal qualifying performance, which ended in a crash.
Marco Bezzecchi (Mooney VR46 Racing Team) was right in the mix for a Q2 place, but a crash in the final sector put paid to those plans moments after he slipped out of the top two and he will see lights out from P13, one pace ahead of his VR46 teammate Luca Marini.
Next up is Q2, with the battle for pole promising to be just as exciting.