MotoGP Japan Motegi FP1 LIVE: The three championship leaders in 40/1000 behind Jack Miller!

With only the top three contenders for the world crown grouped on 17 points with 5 events to go, fabio quartararo, francesco bagnaia Y Alex Espargarothe MotoGP World Championship is more open than ever, not to mention the forthcoming fourth man who could well join the final showdown!

Given the current dynamics of each, francesco bagnaia emerges as the strong man of the championship. Author of six victories in the last seven races that he has contested, the Ducati official does not beat around the bush and shows a certain serenity before the current leader, fabio quartararotriple champion who only precedes him by 10 points after having an advantage of 91 units over the Turinese in Germany.

In third position, just 7 points behind the Borgo Panigale driver, Alex Espargaro He has only one success in Argentina but it is based on an unbreakable perseverance, being the only driver who has scored points in each Grand Prix. Facing two tough opponents from him, it may be a bit of a squeeze to claim the world title, and the top step of the podium would again be welcome, both morally and in terms of scoring.

Before Aragón we thought that the crown would be played by three, but that was forgetting the three trophies already won by Enea Bastianinialready completed with a fourth victory in Alcañiz, which now brings the future teammate closer francesco bagnaia 48 points from the top after a hectic Spanish round.

A general situation that is all the more uncertain since the 16th round of the World Cup will be held for the 22nd time on a Twin Ring Motegi circuit that has not been visited since 2019 and in still very uncertain weather conditions.

Without even knowing how the surface has evolved in three years, we can point out that of the 24 riders registered, no less than 10 of them have never ridden there in MotoGP (Enea Bastianini, Luca Marini, Jorge Martin, Alex Marquez, Fabio Di Giannantonio, Brad Binder, Darryn Binder, Marco Bezzecchi, Raul Fernandez and Remy Gardner).

Two wildcards were to complete the troop, the HRC test pilot Tetsuta NagashimaTeam Suzuki Ecstar test rider, takuyatsuda but the package joan mir forced Team Suzuki to register takuyatsuda as a replacement driver. “It is an honor to join the Suzuki Ecstar team for this special weekend in Japan. I have been a member of the test team since the start of the project and have already done a few races for the team, but this weekend will be something different; It’s Suzuki’s last MotoGP race in Japan and I can’t wait to race the GSX-RR in front of the home crowd. »
Still in the chapter of wounded pilots, Takaaki Nakagami has been declared fit to participate in FP1after which it will be reviewed by doctors.

fabio quartararo He still suffers a bit from his crash in Aragon, but said it shouldn’t get in the way of his driving.

Waiting to know more, while the 25 pilots prepare for this first free practice session extended to 75 minutes on a track that has already received two light showers this afternoon but that seems dry again with temperatures of 26° in the air and 28° on the ground, let’s enjoy these few moments live thanks to the official website motogp.com :

Past references:

Motegui MotoGP™	2019	2022
FP1	1’45.572 Maverick Viñales (Look here)	1’44,509 Jack Miller (Look here)
FP2	1’44.764 Fabio Quartararo (Look here)	(Look here)
FP3	1,54,710 Danilo Petrucci (Look here)	(Look here)
FP4	1’48.940 Marc Marquez (Look here)	(Look here)
Q1	1’46.695Cal Crutchlow (Look here)	(Look here)
Q2	1’45.763 Marc Marquez (Look here)	(Look here)
Heating	1’45.816 Marc Marquez (Look here)	(Look here)
The race	Mr. Marquez, Quartararo, Dovizioso (Look here)	(Look here)
Record	1’43.790 Jorge Lorenzo (2015)

When the red lights go out…drivers don’t get delayed when the track is dry, and that’s for once. alex rin who leads the platoon, while Franco Morbidelli Y fabio quartararo leave the last to help the struggling Italian driver a bit.

At the tire level, the rear half is almost unanimous while the options for the front ones are more divided.

After the first fast lap, Marc Márquez set the first benchmark at 1’46.888 ahead of fabio quartararo Y Franco Morbidelli. The Honda rider uses the aluminum Kalex swingarm.

alex rin he is immediately called to his box for a poorly arranged fairing.

In the next pass, The devil scored 1’46.661 before handing over to jack miller at 1’46.291 then regains the lead at 1’46.072.

jack miller he regained the lead in 1’45.903 while the first riders were already beginning to return to their garage.

After this first salvo, the hierarchy is therefore made up of Jack Miller, Alex Rins, Fabio Quartararo, Franco Morbidelli, Marc Márquez, Miguel Oliveira, Johann Zarco, Francesco Bagnaia, Enea Bastianini, Cal Crutchlow, Maverick Vinales, Jorge Martin, Marco Bezzecchi, Aleix Espargaro, Pol Espargaro, Alex Márquez, Fabio Di Giannantonio, Brad Binder, Luca Marini, Tetsuta Nagashima, Takaaki Nakagami, Darryn Binder, Raúl Fernández, Remy Gardner, and Takuya Tsudaall staggered in 2.7 seconds.

After 20 minutes, fabio quartararo He hasn’t stopped yet and regains control at 1’45.807 before returning to his box.

Raul Fernandez it is then shown with a rain tire on the rear and jumps to position 12 – labeling error?

Shortly after a third of the session, there are three Yamahas in the top 10, a situation not seen for a long time! This is when the raindrops are announced…

It doesn’t turn into a downpour and everyone is still in slicks.

Midway through the session, the leaderboard now consists of Fabio Quartararo, Jack Miller, Alex Rins, Francesco Bagnaia, Johann Zarco, Franco Morbidelli, Marc Márquez, Miguel Oliveira, Aleix Espargaro, Cal Crutchlow, Maverick Vinales, Jorge Martin, Luca Marini, Raul Fernandez, Marco Bezzecchi, Alex Márquez, Takaaki Nakagami , Pol Espargaró, Brad Binder, Fabio Di Giannantonio, Remy Gardner, Tetsuta Nagashima, Darryn Binder and Takuya Tsuda.

Right after, alex rin lowers the reference to 1’45.738 equipped with soft tires front and rear. Your Suzuki is equipped with small fins on the rear seat.

Tetsuta Nagashima made a small mistake on turn #11 while johann zarco achieved the best time in 1’45.309, also equipped with a soft tire at the rear, just like Alex Espargaro who then takes over in 1’45.223.

johann zarco he took the lead by 1’45.210 29 minutes from the checkered flag.

Therefore, two strategies have been mapped out, the drivers who continue to work for the race on worn tires and those who have already switched to a soft rear tire to ensure a time when we remind them that only FP1 and FP2 will count this weekend. week. -end for the direct step in qualification 2.

fabio quartararo He is part of this second category and, after mounting a soft rear tire on his Yamaha M1, he rises to third position behind johann zarco Y Alex Espargaro. Incidentally, the niçois scored 1’45.029 at the top of the table, almost 2/10 ahead of his compatriot.

Enea Bastianini is then the first driver to break the bar of 1’45, in 1’44.978, while Miguel Oliveira he places his KTM in third position.

Marc Márquez returns to fourth position with a medium rear tire, then alex rin took command in 1’44.961: all six manufacturers in the top seven!

With seven minutes to go in the session, everyone is now on a soft rear tire and jack miller achieves 1’44.660 and then 1’44.509 on the handlebars of his Ducati despite being hampered by takuyatsuda.

Marc Márquez then succeed the second time, johann zarco the third, whileEnea Bastianini did a minor somersault on turn #5.

johann zarco also made a minor mistake on turn #7, just like darryn folder at #5.

During this time, Luca Marina after Alex Espargaro enter the top 5 before francesco bagnaia he comes to stand right behind his teammate.

In the end, while we wait for a rainy Saturday, Jack Miller, Francesco Bagnaia, Fabio Quartararo, Aleix Espargaro, Luca Marini, Marc Márquez, Pol Espargaro, Brad Binder, Miguel Oliveira and Maverick Vinales they are currently pre-qualified for Q2.

Results of the MotoGP FP1 Japanese Grand Prix at Motegi:

Credit Classification: motogp.com