They had arrived with their heads down or even backwards on this Sachsenring track where they have been taught a lesson since 2013 in MotoGP by a certain Marc Márquez. Given the appearance of the current championship, everything was still in place for a new spanking administered by the Honda official. But this Friday raised the heads of the drivers who discovered that the German Grand Prix could also be like the others. The master of the place finished fifth on this first day marked by Ducatis in good form and a Iannone third with the Suzuki.
Precisely, it didn't take much for the soon to be ex-Suzuki official and next Aprilia factory rider to feel like he was growing wings. Certainly, he remains the man of a fast lap, of course he still carries this handicap of the tires which collapse halfway through the race and put him in the line. But before heading into a Saturday where he feels capable of playing the leading roles during qualifying, he warns:
« No, Márquez is not unbeatable! It is still possible to defeat him. Like everyone else, like any pilot. He is strong, no doubt about it, but he is not invincible. He is a great champion, he has been good in recent years to stay at the top. But this apparent strength comes from several factors ».
He specifies : " First of all, he has a way of taking turns that excels here on this type of tormented track. Currently, in MotoGP, there is no better osmosis between the rider, the team and the bike. It is a whole. Maybe soon someone will show themselves even stronger ».
German Grand Prix Sachsenring MotoGP J.1: Chronos
| 1 | 99 | Jorge Lorenzo | Ducati | 1'20.885 | ||
| 2 | 9 | Danilo PETRUCCI | Ducati | 1'21.142 | 0.257 | 0.257 |
| 3 | 29 | Andrea Iannone | Suzuki | 1'21.204 | 0.319 | 0.062 |
| 4 | 4 | Andrea Dovizioso | Ducati | 1'21.309 | 0.424 | 0.105 |
| 5 | 93 | Marc Márquez | Honda | 1'21.349 | 0.464 | 0.040 |
| 6 | 25 | Maverick VIÑALES | Yamaha | 1'21.384 | 0.499 | 0.035 |
| 7 | 30 | Takaaki NAKAGAMI | Honda | 1'21.447 | 0.562 | 0.063 |
| 8 | 43 | Jack Miller | Ducati | 1'21.497 | 0.612 | 0.050 |
| 9 | 35 | Cal Crutchlow | Honda | 1'21.540 | 0.655 | 0.043 |
| 10 | 19 | Alvaro BAUTISTA | Ducati | 1'21.568 | 0.683 | 0.028 |
| 11 | 42 | Alex Rins | Suzuki | 1'21.616 | 0.731 | 0.048 |
| 12 | 44 | Pol Espargaró | KTM | 1'21.680 | 0.795 | 0.064 |
| 13 | 41 | Aleix Espargaro | Aprilia | 1'21.718 | 0.833 | 0.038 |
| 14 | 38 | Bradley SMITH | KTM | 1'21.743 | 0.858 | 0.025 |
| 15 | 53 | Tito RABAT | Ducati | 1'21.777 | 0.892 | 0.034 |
| 16 | 55 | Hafiz Syahrin | Yamaha | 1'21.777 | 0.892 | |
| 17 | 46 | Valentino ROSSI | Yamaha | 1'21.784 | 0.899 | 0.007 |
| 18 | 5 | johann zarco | Yamaha | 1'21.787 | 0.902 | 0.003 |
| 19 | 45 | Scott REDDING | Aprilia | 1'22.003 | 1.118 | 0.216 |
| 20 | 26 | Dani PEDROSA | Honda | 1'22.305 | 1.420 | 0.302 |
| 21 | 6 | Stefan BRADL | Honda | 1'22.457 | 1.572 | 0.152 |
| 22 | 17 | Karel ABRAHAM | Ducati | 1'22.555 | 1.670 | 0.098 |
| 23 | 12 | Thomas LUTHI | Honda | 1'22.767 | 1.882 | 0.212 |
| 24 | 36 | Mika Kallio | KTM | 1'23.194 | 2.309 | 0.427 |
| 25 | 10 | Xavier SIMEON | Ducati | 1'23.437 | 2.552 | 0.243 |
