MotoGP LIVE Indonesia FP1: Pol Espargaro stays the course!

To compose the undoubtedly spicy soup of the Indonesian MotoGP Grand Prix on the Mandalika circuit, pour into a new cauldron a good quantity of Ducatis, elevated to the status of scarecrows since the second part of the 2021 season and winners of the first 2022 GP in Qatar thanks to Enea Bastianini on a GP21, even if the official team equipped with GP22 experienced a human-technical Bérézina for Francis Bagnaia et Jack Miller. 

Add half a portion of Honda, whose Factory team seems on the verge of transforming into a two-headed hydra thanks to the progress of the RC213V, unlike in past years where only Marc Marquez was able to domesticate the wild beast: in Qatar, Espargaro Pol led more laps in a single race than he had ever done before and was fastest in the test on the island of Lombok!

Immerse yourself in a surprising KTM, frozen and timid during the pre-season but very present at the forefront led by Brad Binder in Qatar. Also pour in a half-ration of Aprilia, in this case that ofAlex Espargaro, 4th at Losail after the closest race to the winner that the Noale factory has ever done.

Even if for the moment they have proven to be less spicy elements in terms of taste, we will not forget to mix everything with two Suzuki GSX-RR and a quarter of Yamaha YZR-M1, latest titles to date with Joan mir et fabio quartararo, therefore essential ingredients of a good recipe, especially since the first 21 of the third day of the Test in Mandalika were separated by only eight and a half tenths!

Finally, sprinkle everything with a pinch of resurfaced asphalt, Michelin tires on the carcass not unused during the test,still very uncertain weather in these eastern regions and with a track temperature exceeding 70° in the afternoon, then continue to heat over low heat until Sunday 8 a.m. to discover what exotic flavor this Indonesian recipe will have on our taste buds; after the heavy morning rain of which there are now traces of damp areas on the asphalt off the trajectory... and a lot of mud on the Moto3s!

In the meantime, with 28° in the air and 34° on the ground and the occasional return of raindrops, let's take advantage of these few live moments thanks to the official website MotoGP.com as the 24 drivers prepare in uncertainty for this first 45-minute session:

First Grand Prix on this new track requires, the references are limited for the moment to:

MotoGP™ Indonesia	2022
Test 2022	1'31.060 Pol Espargaro (See here)
FP1	1'33.499 Pol Espargaro (See here)
FP2
FP3
FP4
Q1
Q2
Warm up
Course
All time lap record

When the red lights go out...Franco Morbidelli continues the tradition by rushing first in front Johann zarco et alex rins while Marc Márquez prefers to stay in his box and observe the first antics.

In terms of tires, some are on rain tires, others on slicks, but the display does not work at the moment. However, it seems that those who started on wet tires returned to their box after a lap to change to slicks.

The first reference is entered by John Zarco in 1'44.994 at the end of the first flying lap. In the next passage, Miguel Oliveira leads the way in 1'42.301 on wet tires, before handing over the lead to Jack Miller in 1'40.460 on slicks.

After 10 minutes, Jack Miller is in 1'40.386 then 1'38.827 while the Honda drivers have still not taken to the track, or only for one lap: Marc Marquez, Pol Espargaro, Alex Marquez and Takaaki Nakagami. 

The tires finally appear, just as Marc Marquez put on your helmet...

After a quarter of an hour, no one is on rain tires anymore, even though fabio quartararo achieves 1…

We are still very far from the times of testing and Miguel Oliveira, this time on slicks, recorded 1'37.978 at the top of the table. In the process, Maverick Vinales improves in 1'37.599 but the sectors continue to light up in red: Miguel Oliveira regains his good position in 1'36.435 then passes the baton Marc Márquez in 1'35.958 which is only in its fourth flying lap!

A little after mid-session, Johann zarco takes the lead in 1'35.681 then improves in 1'35.288 and 1'35.046.

Marc Márquez returns to the charge in 1'34.987, preceding Johann Zarco, Pol Espargaro, Franco Morbidelli, Maverick Vinales, Brad Binder, Miguel Oliveira, Fabio Quartararo, Joan Mir, Alex Márquez, Takaaki Nakagami, Luca Marini, Aleix Espargaro, Marco Bezzecchi, Remy Gardner, Francesco Bagnaia, Raul Fernandez, Jack Miller , Alex Rins, Fabio Di Giannantonio, Darryn Binder, Andrea Dovizioso, Enea Bastianini and Jorge Martin before the final rush.

When almost all the drivers stop in their box to prepare the final packaging, Espargaro Pol achieves 1'34.476, still with the soft front / medium rear combination chosen unanimously by the drivers.

Among the leading men, no one really seems in a hurry to challenge the clock, except Miguel Oliveira who goes back to fifth position, while the Yamaha riders Franco Morbidelli et Andrea Dovizioso are the first to use a soft rear tire.

Six minutes from the checkered flag, Marc Márquez positions himself just behind his teammate while Jack Miller places his Ducati in third position, ahead of that of Johann Zarco. Miguel Oliveira is inserted between the two, but it is indeed the soft tire of Franco Morbidelli which makes the difference, the latter taking command in 1'33.881 while Andrea Dovizioso jumped to fifth place.

Oddly enough, no one else tries the soft tire and, on the contrary, fabio quartararo tested a hard tire at the front for the first time, which allowed him to move up to provisional fifth position.

There is less than a minute left when Brad Binder places his KTM RC16 in second position, just before being overtaken by Alex Espargaro then his brother Pol.

Marc Márquez then slaps a 133578 but it's finally Miguel Oliveira who seems to have the last word in 1'33.543! Or almost, since in extremis Espargaro Pol achieves 1!

Indonesia MotoGP Grand Prix FP1 Results at Mandalika Circuit:

Classification credit: MotoGP.com