Repsol Honda have set the benchmark on the opening day of the Tissot Grand Prix of Portugal with Marc Marquez and Pol Espargaro sitting first and second in the combined standings. Marquez left it late to top FP1 this morning and he was joined inside the top two by teammate Espargaro thanks to an excellent lap in FP2. Tricky conditions plagued the day and deteriorated into the afternoon meaning only three riders were able to improve on Friday afternoon.
Espargaro was able to get within just 0.041 of a second of Marquez but the eight-time World Champion's 1:50.666 in the final moments of FP1 was good enough to hold on to top spot through to the close of the day's action. The pair also sat first and second in FP2 as well, asserting their early Portimao dominance even further.
That lap from @polespargaro makes it a Honda 1-2 on the overall times! ????#PortugueseGP ???????? pic.twitter.com/WnUV7i6Ry6
— MotoGP™???? (@MotoGP) April 22, 2022
The other two riders to improve from FP1 were the Yamaha pair of Andrea Dovizioso (WithU Yamaha RNF) and Franco Morbidelli (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP). Dovizioso's half a second gain saw him move up from 22nd to 14th and, as a result, take the honour of top Yamaha on a tough day for the blue brand, whereas Morbidelli found a tenth to jump up a place into 18th.
After Takaaki Nakagami (LCR Honda Idemitsu), Jack Miller (Ducati Lenvo Team) and Luca Marini (Mooney VR46 Racing) all crashed out this morning, we had three further fallers in the afternoon. The first to go down was Miller's factory Ducati teammate Francesco Bagnaia when the front end of his GP22 folded without warning at Turn 3. Mooney VR46 Racing's Marco Bezzecchi then suffered a nasty highside at Turn 9, before Johann Zarco (Pramac Racing) was spat over the top of his Pramac Racing machine at Turn 2.
Behind the Repsol Honda pairing in the combined standings was factory Suzuki's Joan Mir. Team boss Livio Suppo confirmed to motogp.com reporter Simon Crafar this morning that he was using the rear ride-height device in wet conditions for the first time and it clearly helped as the Team Suzuki Ecstar man clinched a top three spot. Despite their crashes in the afternoon, Bezzecchi ended up fourth with Zarco a place behind in fifth.
Home hero Miguel Oliveira showed promising pace on the opening day in sixth ahead of Aprilia's Maverick Viñales and Pramac Racing's Jorge Martin. The factory Ducati duo of Bagnaia and Miller rounded out the top ten on the first day in Portimao. World Champion Fabio Quartararo's struggles continued as he was only able to find a lap good enough for 20th, whereas form man Alex Rins (Team Suzuki Ecstar) sits a place back in 21st. The pair will be hoping for better conditions on Saturday with the forecast, to their delight, looking promising at this moment in time.
Absolutely no saving that! ????@PeccoBagnaia loses the front into Turn 3! ????#PortugueseGP ???????? pic.twitter.com/FuyY6zfEpb
— MotoGP™???? (@MotoGP) April 22, 2022
MotoGP™ will return to the Algarve International Circuit for a vital FP3 session at 10:55 local time (GMT+1) on Saturday morning, where all 25 riders will aim to make the absolute most of some more favourable weather.
MotoGP™ top ten on Friday:
1. Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team) – 1:50.666
2. Pol Espargaro (Repsol Honda Team) + 0.041
3. Joan Mir (Team Suzuki Ecstar) + 0.0365
4. Marco Bezzecchi (Mooney VR46 Racing Team) + 0.470
5. Johann Zarco (Pramac Racing) + 0.504
6. Miguel Oliveira (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) + 0.557
7. Maverick Viñales (Aprilia Racing) + 0.643
8. Jorge Martin (Pramac Racing) + 0.677
9. Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team) + 0.721
10. Jack Miller (Ducati Lenovo Team) + 0.771
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