13th in FP1 by 8 tenths, Marc Marquez raised the bar by obtaining the 5th time in FP2 just 0.339 seconds behind Andrea Dovizioso. What’s more, without changing to a new tire for your last run…
From then on, the Honda driver becomes a very serious challenger for this San Marino Grand Prix, although he did not participate in the August tests.
Explanations of the man whose hand is not shaken: “Yes, this morning we took a big risk, but we had to do it because the other drivers had done a test here, and had the clearest ideas on how to work. At the end of the first session, I had made different choices and I was not very fast. I actually wanted to change the tire in FP1 as well, but I miscalculated the time during the reentry lap and didn't have the chance to come in and do a lap with new tires. Then I prayed that it wouldn't rain, and in the afternoon I went out with a soft rubber to be immediately fast. We never have a real plan, we try to figure out during the session whether or not we should try with the tender. Unfortunately, in these circumstances, I miscalculated the time, and did not return when I was supposed to. So we didn't change the tires and I went out just to do a test start. Sometimes, even if you want to do things perfectly, it becomes difficult.”
Asked if the test that Cal Crutchlow did at Misano helped him, the four-time MotoGP world champion replied: “Not much because for some reason Cal and I use very different settings here. Today, however, I tried its configuration, but I didn't like it and went back to mine I used previously. We analyzed the information gathered during the test, but continued to work on our foundations. We knew that the first day here would be very important to work hard and well. And in the end, everything went very well, I realized that we had taken the right direction of work in the box. I think we have reached a similar level to Ducati and Vinales, who are the fastest. For now, I don't think we are really fighting for victory, but maybe more for the podium.”
Marc Márquez still has a carbon swingarm which he regularly alternates during testing sessions with its aluminum counterpart. An apparent indecision that the man from Cervera explains as follows: “Since Brno we still use the carbon swingarm, although in reality the potential is very similar between the two solutions. It is very difficult to identify the differences, it seems that carbon has a slightly higher potential. The choice depends a lot on the circuits. For example in Assen, I raced with the aluminum one. On certain tracks, it also depends on the tires available. With the carbon swingarm you have a little more grip at the start of the ride, but then you start to have big problems. Each time, you have to understand whether to use one or the other. In this second part of the season we have already tried to change several times, like at Silverstone. But I think we'll be mostly in the right direction with carbon from now on. The main reason we haven't started with it this season is because of quantity. If you fall and break the carbon swingarm, it takes a long time to produce another one.”
San Marino Grand Prix, Misano, MotoGP J.1: Chronos FP2
| 1 | 4 | Andrea Dovizioso | Ducati | 1'32.198 | ||
| 2 | 99 | Jorge Lorenzo | Ducati | 1'32.358 | 0.160 | 0.160 |
| 3 | 35 | Cal Crutchlow | Honda | 1'32.385 | 0.187 | 0.027 |
| 4 | 25 | Maverick VIÑALES | Yamaha | 1'32.411 | 0.213 | 0.026 |
| 5 | 93 | Marc Márquez | Honda | 1'32.537 | 0.339 | 0.126 |
| 6 | 9 | Danilo PETRUCCI | Ducati | 1'32.722 | 0.524 | 0.185 |
| 7 | 42 | Alex Rins | Suzuki | 1'32.775 | 0.577 | 0.053 |
| 8 | 46 | Valentino ROSSI | Yamaha | 1'32.786 | 0.588 | 0.011 |
| 9 | 21 | Frank MORBIDELLI | Honda | 1'32.980 | 0.782 | 0.194 |
| 10 | 5 | johann zarco | Yamaha | 1'32.985 | 0.787 | 0.005 |
| 11 | 26 | Dani PEDROSA | Honda | 1'32.999 | 0.801 | 0.014 |
| 12 | 51 | Michael PIRRO | Ducati | 1'33.005 | 0.807 | 0.006 |
| 13 | 19 | Alvaro BAUTISTA | Ducati | 1'33.183 | 0.985 | 0.178 |
| 14 | 43 | Jack Miller | Ducati | 1'33.193 | 0.995 | 0.010 |
| 15 | 30 | Takaaki NAKAGAMI | Honda | 1'33.274 | 1.076 | 0.081 |
| 16 | 29 | Andrea Iannone | Suzuki | 1'33.423 | 1.225 | 0.149 |
| 17 | 45 | Scott REDDING | Aprilia | 1'33.517 | 1.319 | 0.094 |
| 18 | 41 | Aleix Espargaro | Aprilia | 1'33.654 | 1.456 | 0.137 |
| 19 | 6 | Stefan BRADL | Honda | 1'33.660 | 1.462 | 0.006 |
| 20 | 38 | Bradley SMITH | KTM | 1'33.815 | 1.617 | 0.155 |
| 21 | 17 | Karel ABRAHAM | Ducati | 1'33.878 | 1.680 | 0.063 |
| 22 | 10 | Xavier SIMEON | Ducati | 1'33.896 | 1.698 | 0.018 |
| 23 | 12 | Thomas LUTHI | Honda | 1'34.278 | 2.080 | 0.382 |
| 24 | 44 | Pol Espargaró | KTM | 1'34.461 | 2.263 | 0.183 |
| 25 | 55 | Hafiz Syahrin | Yamaha | 1'34.539 | 2.341 | 0.078 |
| 26 | 23 | Christophe PONSSON | Ducati | 1'38.154 | 5.956 | 3.615 |
