For once, the weather forecasts proved reliable and the rain, who wet the track this morning during FP1, gradually disappeared under the influence of the Andalusian sun.
It is therefore on an almost dry track despite some traces of humidity, and with slicks, that the drivers will now be able to compete in conditions similar to those expected next Sunday for the race.
This is therefore the first 2017 dry session since Valentino Rossi took command of the championship in Austin. On a circuit that he particularly likes and where he won the event last year, it will be interesting to see at what pace the one who took pole position last year will get into the rhythm.
Facing him, Maverick Vinales will be keen to make up for their American blunder while the Honda drivers continue their remake of last year, with a machine that was reluctant at the start of the season but becomes more and more competitive as the meetings progress.
At Ducati, we expect difficult times but we are not giving up, just like at Suzuki where the only remaining starter seems, for the moment, a little less incisive than last year.
Technically, the key to the Grand Prix will go to whoever knows how to best manage skating on this track with its uncertain grip when it's hot.
|
#SpanishGP MotoGP |
2016 |
2017 |
| FP1 | 1'40.270 Jorge Lorenzo | 1'51.648 Dani Pedrosa |
| FP2 | 1'39.555 Jorge Lorenzo | |
| FP3 | 1'39.244 Valentino Rossi | |
| FP4 | 1'39.241 Jorge Lorenzo | |
| Q1 | 1'39.907 Cal Crutchlow | |
| Q2 | 1'38.736 Valentino Rossi | |
| Warm Up | 1'39.513 Marc Marquez | |
| Course | Rossi, Lorenzo, Marquez | |
| All time lap record | 1'37.910 Jorge Lorenzo 2015 |
The start of the session is mainly marked by the fall of Aleix Espargaro at turn #9 then through that of Maverick Vinales in the same place, without gravity, while Johann zarco was positioned in third position behind the latter, himself preceded by Cal Crutchlow in 1'41.
# MV25 slides out unhurt at turn 9… some quick work needed to get him back out.
4th with 30mins to go! #SpanishGP pic.twitter.com/WNic90XRiy
- MotoGP @ 🏁 (@MotoGP) May 5, 2017
The first run ends with the following hierarchy:
Crutchlow, Marquez, Miller, Vinales, Zarco, Pedrosa, Folger, Petrucci, Lorenzo et Redding.
Valentino Rossi only appears in 16th position.
The second output allows Johann zarco to recover a position before Dani Pedrosa
(medium/medium) takes command in 1'41.135. With new tires, many of them light up the partials in red and
Johann zarco took the opportunity to place himself 2 tenths behind the Honda driver.
But the Tokyo drivers seem particularly energetic today, Cal Crutchlow and Marc Marquez managing to precede the holder of the Tech3 team by breaking the 1'41 mark.
The second run therefore ends with the following ranking:
Pedrosa, Crutchlow, Marquez, Zarco, Miller, Folger, Redding, Pol Espargaro, Dovizioso and Vinales.
Red, which uses the fairing encompassing the ailerons, moved up to 12th place, a second and a half behind the best time, Lorenzo 14e.
Maverick Vinales is the first to return to the track to attack the final rush. He quickly positioned himself fourth ahead of Johann Zarco. The surprise, however, comes from another pilot, in this case Jorge Lorenzo (medium/soft), who snatches second place seven minutes from the checkered flag, just 6 hundredths behind Dani Pedrosa. Continuing his effort, he even took the lead on the next pass, achieving 1'40.291.
More Cal Crutchlow replies in 1'40.045 while Dani Pedrosa clocks a 1'39.420 and receives reinforcement from another "Honda man", Jack Miller.
In the end, we still found 3 Hondas in the lead, in the dry and in the rain, in a rather astonishing session in which we noticed the 9th place of an Aprilia and the 10th of a KTM, all in rather fast…
Impressive in the wet, even more impressive in the dry..#DP26 is on fire at the #SpanishGP! pic.twitter.com/RLnOl2jJnx
- MotoGP @ 🏁 (@MotoGP) May 5, 2017
Ranking compiled by our friends at crash.net:
1. Dani Pedrosa ESP Repsol Honda Team (RC213V)
1m 39.420s [Lap 17/20] 286km/h (Top Speed)
2. Jack Miller AUS Estrella Galicia 0,0 Marc VDS (RC213V) 1m 39.964s +0.544s [18/20] 284km/h
3. Cal Crutchlow GBR LCR Honda (RC213V) 1m 40.045s +0.625s [16/19] 285km/h
4. Jorge Lorenzo ESP Ducati Team (Desmosedici GP17)
1m 40.291s +0.871s [17/20] 289km/h
5. Danilo Petrucci ITA Octo Pramac Racing (Desmosedici GP17) 1m 40.378s +0.958s [18/19] 287km/h
6. Maverick Vinales ESP Movistar Yamaha MotoGP (YZR-M1) 1m 40.379s +0.959s [16/16] 284km/h
7. Alvaro Bautista ESP Pull&Bear Aspar Team (Desmosedici GP16) 1m 40.392s +0.972s [19/21] 288km/h
8. Andrea Dovizioso ITA Ducati Team (Desmosedici GP17) 1m 40.428s +1.008s [16/18] 289km/h
9. Alex Espargaro ESP Factory Aprilia Gresini (RS-GP) 1m 40.479s +1.059s [17/17] 283km/h
10. Espargaro Pol ESP Red Bull KTM Factory Racing (RC16) 1m 40.573s +1.153s [15/15] 287km/h
11. Scott Redding GBR Octo Pramac Racing (Desmosedici GP16) 1m 40.639s +1.219s [17/19] 286km/h
12. Valentino Rossi ITA Movistar Yamaha MotoGP (YZR-M1) 1m 40.698s +1.278s [20/20] 286km/h
13. Jonas Folger GER Monster Yamaha Tech 3 (YZR-M1)*
1m 40.773s +1.353s [20/20] 286km/h
14. Marc Marquez ESP Repsol Honda Team (RC213V) 1m 40.915s +1.495s [18/19] 284km/h
15. Johann zarco ENG Monster Yamaha Tech 3 (YZR-M1)*
1m 41.019s +1.599s [17/17] 286km/h
16. Andrea Iannone ITA Team Suzuki Ecstar (GSX-RR)
1m 41.165s +1.745s [18/19] 285km/h
17. Tito Rabat ESP Estrella Galicia 0,0 Marc VDS (RC213V) 1m 41.165s +1.745s [19/20] 282km/h
18. Bradley Smith GBR Red Bull KTM Factory Racing (RC16) 1m 41.432s +2.012s [20/20] 284km/h
19. Takuya Tsuda JPN Team Suzuki Ecstar (GSX-RR)
1m 41.887s +2.467s [18/19] 281km/h
20. Sam Lowes GBR Factory Aprilia Gresini (RS-GP)*
1m 41.905s +2.485s [16/18] 282km/h
21. Karel Abraham CZE Pull&Bear Aspar Team (Desmosedici GP15) 1m 41.909s +2.489s [14/16] 286km/h
22. Loris Baz FRA Reale Avintia Racing (Desmosedici GP15) 1m 42.515s +3.095s [10/19] 280km/h
23. Hector Barbera ESP Reale Avintia Racing (Desmosedici GP16) 1m 42.630s +3.210s [17/17] 289km/h
