Austin, MotoGP, Warmup: Marc Márquez still in line for the pass of 7!

Still favorite for the Grand Prix of the Americas, although less dominant than expected, Marc Márquez, like Valentino Rossi and Cal Crutchlow interviewed at a press conference, made it clear that this warmup would be crucial in terms of the respective levels of the MotoGP riders during the race.

With FP3 canceled due to lightning and FP4 reduced to its bare minimum in the dry, the drivers in the premier category did not have time to adjust their machines to racing configuration, nor even for the majority choose the rear tire they will use this afternoon.

Fortunately the weather is great this morning at the Circuit Of The Americas for this last 20-minute free practice session, even if the wind is still blowing a little strong.

Marc Márquez will he be able to achieve his 7 consecutive victories on North American soil? This warmup which takes place with temperatures of only 12 degrees in the air and 17 degrees on the ground will give us a first indication...

Here are the available references:

MotoGP ™	2018	2019
FP1	2'05.530 Marc Márquez (See here)	2'05.311 Marc Márquez (See here)
FP2	2'04.599 Andrea Iannone (See here)	2'03.857 Maverick Viñales (See here)
FP3	2'04.608 Marc Márquez (See here)	Canceled due to storms (See here)
FP4	2'04.686 Marc Márquez (See here)	Marc Marquez (See here)
Q1	2'05.169 Pol Espargaró (See here)	2'05.855 Jorge Lorenzo (See here)
Q2	2'03.658 Marc Márquez (See here)	2'03.787 Marc Márquez (See here)
warm up	2'04.988 Marc Márquez (See here)	2'04.573 Marc Márquez
Course	Marquez, Vinales, Iannone (See here)
All time lap record	2'02.135 Marc Márquez 2015

When the red lights go out, it's this time John Zarco who benefits from a completely free track. Conversely, Jorge Lorenzo the last one rushes.

Most drivers opted for a soft front tire while the choices are more divided between medium and soft for the rear.

At the end of the first round, Jack Miller imposes a reference in 2'06.432 ahead Fabio Quartararo et Franco Morbidelli. On the next pass, the Australian driver, who had a nice heat at the famous turn 10, still leads the way in 2'05.866, but this time in front Valentino Rossi.

During the 3rd round launched, Marc Márquez however seizes the leadership in 2'05.560, only 5 hundredths ahead of a Jack Miller who definitely didn't give up and scored 2'04.932 straight away.

Alone Andrea Iannone stops around mid-session where we observe the following hierarchy: Jack Miller, Marc Marquez, Cal Crutchlow, Andrea Dovizioso, Alex Rins, Franco Morbidelli, Valentino Rossi, Takaaki Nakagami and Joan Mir.
fabio quartararo is then 11th, Jorge Lorenzo 12th, Danilo Petrucci 13th, Pol Espargaro 17th, Miguel Oliveira 18th and Johann zarco 20e.

6 minutes from the checkered flag, Maverick Vinales takes 4th position while Pol Espargaro rises to 12th.

At the start of the last 5 minutes, Marc Marquez takes the advantage in 2'04.573 while fabio quartararo wins a place. The Honda driver then arrives at a group much slower than him, like a billiard ball in a bowling game...

In extremis, Marc Márquez, Andrea Dovizioso et Maverick Vinales light the first sector in red but only the Ducati rider will benefit by positioning himself 2nd.

At the last moment, Valentino Rossi, who had previously had his rear shock absorber changed, moved up to provisional 6th place.

Finally, Marc Márquez still appears to be the big favorite for this MotoGP Grand Prix of the Americas, facing opposition made up of Ducati and Yamaha.

Conversely, the KTMs still appear to be in great difficulty despite the magnificent performance of Pol Espargaro yesterday, while the Suzukis disappointed a little on this very technical circuit, barely faster than the best Aprilia led by Aleix Espargaró.

See you at 21 p.m.!

In the meantime, it’s time for the live pilot parade (below)!

Warmup standings for the MotoGP Grand Prix of the Americas in Austin:

Classification credit: MotoGP.com