When we look at the general classification of the Friday day of a Grand Prix of the Qatar which opens the 2018 MotoGP season, we say to ourselves that the Honda patrol has never achieved such a nice group shot. Starting from sixth to eighth place, the HRC drivers are only separated by a single thousandth. But the leading Ducati whipped by Dovizioso is almost half a second. A gap that does not worry Dani Pedrosa.
Un Dani Pedrosa who is in the game and especially since he is negotiating the renewal of his contract with Honda on the basis of a rumor which presents Johann zarco as his potential successor. During tests, he fell on two occasions on the Losail track, damaging his left hand. But this time, he is in great shape and shows that these off-season performances in Sepang and Buriram were not random accidents.
On his Friday, he explains: “ the first laps were unusual because the track did not offer the same grip as during the tests. Maybe because of the wind and the different temperatures since we don't drive at the same time. I didn't feel comfortable at first, then I progressed and I was very good at the end of the day, which is positive. We see that the Ducatis are fast, but in fact the gap is not that big. For the moment, the question of tires remains open. But the choice of the front medium seems to garner the most votes among the pilots ».
« But we are still missing elements to make our decision. When the temperature remains high, the choice of tires is complicated. Everything remains possible ". On technical development, he concludes: “ I have not used the carbon swingarm and there are no plans to do so. It offers different sensations to the aluminum one. The movements are both similar but different. We don't have enough perspective on the subject, but we need to work on this type of swinging arm ».
This Sunday, Dani Pedrosa will celebrate its 200rd departure in MotoGP.
MotoGP #QatarGP Losail J.1: Chronos
| 1 | 4 | Andrea Dovizioso | Ducati | 1'54.361 | ||
| 2 | 9 | Danilo PETRUCCI | Ducati | 1'54.367 | 0.006 | 0.006 |
| 3 | 42 | Alex Rins | Suzuki | 1'54.458 | 0.097 | 0.091 |
| 4 | 99 | Jorge Lorenzo | Ducati | 1'54.831 | 0.470 | 0.373 |
| 5 | 29 | Andrea Iannone | Suzuki | 1'54.841 | 0.480 | 0.010 |
| 6 | 93 | Marc Márquez | Honda | 1'54.850 | 0.489 | 0.009 |
| 7 | 26 | Dani PEDROSA | Honda | 1'54.851 | 0.490 | 0.001 |
| 8 | 35 | Cal Crutchlow | Honda | 1'54.852 | 0.491 | 0.001 |
| 9 | 46 | Valentino ROSSI | Yamaha | 1'54.853 | 0.492 | 0.001 |
| 10 | 5 | johann zarco | Yamaha | 1'54.912 | 0.551 | 0.059 |
| 11 | 25 | Maverick VIÑALES | Yamaha | 1'55.195 | 0.834 | 0.283 |
| 12 | 41 | Aleix Espargaro | Aprilia | 1'55.236 | 0.875 | 0.041 |
| 13 | 53 | Tito RABAT | Ducati | 1'55.308 | 0.947 | 0.072 |
| 14 | 43 | Jack Miller | Ducati | 1'55.360 | 0.999 | 0.052 |
| 15 | 30 | Takaaki NAKAGAMI | Honda | 1'55.694 | 1.333 | 0.334 |
| 16 | 45 | Scott REDDING | Aprilia | 1'55.718 | 1.357 | 0.024 |
| 17 | 44 | Pol Espargaró | KTM | 1'55.919 | 1.558 | 0.201 |
| 18 | 21 | Frank MORBIDELLI | Honda | 1'55.965 | 1.604 | 0.046 |
| 19 | 12 | Thomas LUTHI | Honda | 1'56.242 | 1.881 | 0.277 |
| 20 | 38 | Bradley SMITH | KTM | 1'56.260 | 1.899 | 0.018 |
| 21 | 17 | Karel ABRAHAM | Ducati | 1'56.394 | 2.033 | 0.134 |
| 22 | 55 | Hafiz Syahrin | Yamaha | 1'56.454 | 2.093 | 0.060 |
| 23 | 19 | Alvaro BAUTISTA | Ducati | 1'56.990 | 2.629 | 0.536 |
| 24 | 10 | Xavier SIMEON | Ducati | 1'57.765 | 3.404 | 0.775 |
