• Enea Bastianini (Gresini Racing MotoGP) wins the Red Bull Grand Prix of the Americas
• Jorge Martín (Pramac Racing) sets a new circuit record in 2mins02s039
• Bastianini beats the race lap record in 2min03s521
• New record for race duration in 41min23s111
Enea Bastianini took the crown as King of COTA this weekend after crossing the line in the lead in the fourth round of the MotoGP World Championship™, the Red Bull Grand Prix of the Americas in Austin, Texas. Álex Rins (Team Suzuki Ecstar) took second place ahead of Jack Miller (Ducati Lenovo Team).
Most drivers opted for MICHELIN Power Slicks Hard front and Soft rear tires for the race. Only two KTM riders had chosen the Medium rear in the hope of benefiting from the performance of a harder compound at the end of the race.
Thanks to the constant grip of his tires, Bastianini completed very fast laps throughout the race, setting a new race lap record in 2min03s521 at 14e turn.
Friday's Free Practice allowed drivers to familiarize themselves with a new layer of asphalt applied to eradicate the famous bumps that had caused so many problems in 2021. If the bumps were indeed reduced, the new asphalt was "green" and needed time to be covered with rubber and improve its grip level. In Free Practice 1, the drivers chose the MICHELIN Power Slicks Soft front and Medium rear. Then during the 2nd Free Practice session, while the temperatures had increased, the choices were more diversified and the times began to fall. Johann Zarco (Pramac Racing) then achieved 2min02s542 with a Hard front and a Soft rear.
Saturday was similar to Friday in terms of track temperature evolution, with a Free Practice session 3 in the cool and a 4e session and very hot Qualifications in the afternoon. Some teams began Free Practice 3 with long runs on broken-in tires, then the drivers went on the attack to directly secure a place in Qualification 2 (Q2). The majority of the board was shod with Soft front and rear.
The Qualifications were of rare intensity. The drivers pushed the machines and tires to the limits to secure the best places on the starting grid. At the end of the session, Jorge Martin took pole position with a time of 2min02s039, beating the circuit record which dated from 2015. Ducati Lenovo Team riders Jack Miller and Francesco Bagnaia completed the front row. All these drivers benefited from the grip and stability of the front Hard and Rear Soft tires.
After the Austin race, Piero Taramasso, Michelin Motorsport Two-Wheel Manager, said: “ It was another very interesting weekend for us with this new asphalt between Turns 2 and 10, and Turns 12 and 15. Our tire allocation worked very well. It allowed our drivers to set very fast laps from the first day, and these performances were underlined by the fact that two drivers broke the circuit record in Q2. »
« During the race, the wind was an additional challenge for the drivers, but the constant grip of the tires, from start to finish, contributed to a magnificent spectacle to the delight of the fans. And the icing on the cake for us was a new circuit record, a new race lap record and a new race duration record of almost 20 seconds. »
