Rennie Scaysbrook | June 7, 2021
2021 Catalunya MotoGP News—Sunday
Quartararo comes apart – as do his leathers
On Saturday, a Fabio Quartararo victory in Spain was being spoken of as though it was a given. Yet for all the Frenchman’s free practice pace, he came unstuck in the most bizarre circumstances. His leather supplier’s Alpinestars relayed how his chest protector started to move up toward his neck, possibly because his race suit wasn’t zipped tightly.
Quartararo, here with his suit unzipped in a much more relaxed way on the grid, was lucky to escape a black flag in the race when his suit zipper blew open.
It led to the bizarre sight of him unzipping the leathers and throwing away the chest protector at turn three in the closing laps. Just how Quartararo escaped a black flag in those closing laps—more for his own safety than his breaking of the letter of the law—was the subject of fierce post-race debate. Ultimately, a three-second penalty was handed out, demoting him to sixth place. He could count himself fortunate to leave Catalonia with 10 points.
After the race, he didn’t give anything away. “I just know that I had the leathers completely opened in the first corner, I think five laps to go, and I just tried to put [the zip] in a normal position again,” he said. “I couldn’t do it.” It’s rare a challenge quite literally comes apart at the seams as it did here.
KTM back and here to stay
Sunday in Catalunya was further proof of KTM’s brilliant gains with its RC16. Miguel Oliveira was flawless, producing his best performance to date for his third premier class win, backing up his excellent second at Mugello.
Oliveira and KTM have found the key and now look like serious title contenders.
A revised chassis brought to Italy has allowed both Oliveira and teammate Brad Binder to square corners off and maximize traction on corner exit. And the Portuguese rider believes he should be strong at any track he faces in the coming months.
“Right now I have to say that the bike is working well everywhere. Even racetracks where we struggled in the past, like Mugello, we come in, we have a strong weekend. Right now we have a stable bike. We have a good package for different tracks. This was something that we lacked in the past. We also have a bike which is not such of a beast anymore like it was in 2019, so I think it makes also for other riders more friendly to ride.
“Already in Mugello the updates we got, they were helping a lot. That’s it. Nothing else I can go deeper on the subject. There is no reason why not to think I’m not on a good form.”
Honda mired
It was another miserable weekend for Honda. Both Marc Marquez and Pol Espargaro crashed out when riding over the limit. The problem of the ’21 RC213V is the chronic lack of rear grip that currently affects corner entry and exit.
As Marquez explained, “It’s true that we have a problem, which is that in the acceleration side we cannot get the grip and in the entry we cannot stop the bike because the rear we don’t have the grip also. So it’s two different problems, in two different areas, but I think it’s going in the same way, the solution. So like in stopping we are braking late but we stop with a lot of banking, and when you stop with a lot of banking these things [falls] happen, like me and Pol today.”
For seven laps, Marquez could ride how he wanted. Then it all came unstuck again.
On his approach for Sunday, where he risked a lot to fight among the top six before crashing, he said, “I was Marc and for me, it was the best seven laps of the year. I was riding as I want. On the grid, I said, ‘today it’s time to take a risk’. I mean it doesn’t matter where we are, doesn’t matter where I come from. I mean I don’t care what people say just I believe that today was the day to take a risk because for me just burn fuel and tires riding for P12, P14 is not me.”
Sunday
MotoGP
Miguel Oliveira (Red Bull KTM) put in one of the rides of his career when he took victory in the 2021 Catalunya MotoGP, outlasting Pramac Ducati’s Johann Zarco and Australian Jack Miller (Lenovo Ducati).
Oliveira battled pre-race favorite and pole sitter Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha) for the majority of the race but a mystery problem for the Frenchman and his Alpinestars suit put paid to his race winning chances.
Miguel Oliveira just managed to fend off Johann Zarco with his first win of the season.
While lying second with five laps to go, Quartararo’s suit bizarrely fully unzipped. He flung his compulsory chest protector to the ground at turn three and continued on, but then became entangled in a brawl first with Zarco and later Miller.
It got worse for Quartararo after running wide at turn one and rejoining ahead of Miller when the rules dictate he needed to drop one place. He would cross the line third but his three-second penalty dropped him to fourth, and was then announced he would receive another three-second penalty for defying the FIM rule that states, “The (safety) equipment must be worn, correctly fastened, at all times during on-track activity.” Quartararo would eventually be classified in sixth place, behind fourth placed Joan Mir (Suzuki) and teammate Maverick Vinales.
For Oliveira, the win marked his first of the season and first as an official Red Bull KTM factory rider, his previous two triumphs coming last year while riding for the satellite Tech3 KTM team.
“This is almost hard to put into words,” Oliveira said in parc ferme. “I had one of the best races of my career so far. Everything was so hard; the tire management and keeping my cool when Fabio was putting pressure on me for so many laps. I really kept cool when he overtook me and took my chance on the straight to get him back. It was a perfect race.”
Quartararo’s suit blew open with five laps remaining. The Frenchman continued on but was handed a three-second penalty which, along with another three-second penalty for running off track, dropped him to sixth.
Johann Zarco, once he finally dispensed of Jack Miller, slowly hunted Oliveira down but came up an agonizing 0.175s short for another second place. However, the result and Quartararo’s penalties means he narrowed Quartararo’s lead in the standings to just 14 points.
Behind the top six, Francesco Bagnaia (Lenovo Ducati) never really got going and finished 8.1 seconds behind Oliveira. Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM), Franco Morbidelli (Petronas Yamaha) and Enea Bastianini (Avintia Esponsarama Ducati) rounded out the top 10.
The Catalan round saw a third race crash in a row for Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda). The eight time World Champion started 13th and battled up to sixth and would eventually slip off at turn 10, the same corner that claimed Aleix Espargaro (Gresini Aprilia) and Valentino Rossi (Petronas Yamaha). Despite the crash on lap eight, Marquez stated he felt the best he has been in a race since returning from his arm injury suffered at the 2020 Spanish Grand Prix, and will doubtless be looking forward to the next round at German Grand Prix on June 20 at the Sachsenring, a circuit he has won at many times in the past due to its predominately left-hand corner nature.
Other crashes for the 2021 Catalunya MotoGP included Tech3 KTM riders Danilo Petrucci and Iker Lecuona, and Pol Espargaro (Repsol Honda).
In the championship, Quartararo leads on 115 to Zarco’s 101. Miller is third on 90, while Oliveira’s win hoists him to seventh on 54 points.
2021 Catalunya MotoGP Results
| 1 |
Miguel Oliveira |
(KTM) |
|
| 2 |
Johann Zarco |
(Duc) |
+ 0.175 |
| 3 |
Jack Miller |
(Duc) |
+ 1.990 |
| 4 |
Joan Mir |
(Suz) |
+ 5.325 |
| 5 |
Maverick Vinales |
(Yam) |
+ 6.281 |
| 6 |
Fabio Quartararo |
(Yam) |
+ 7.815 |
| 7 |
Francesco Bagnaia |
(Duc) |
+ 8.175 |
| 8 |
Brad Binder |
(KTM) |
+ 8.378 |
| 9 |
Franco Morbidelli |
(Yam) |
+ 15.652 |
| 10 |
Enea Bastianini |
(Duc) |
+ 19.297 |
Moto2
For the first time since Casey Stoner in 2005, an Australian has won two intermediate class races in a row after Remy Gardner (Red Bull KTM Ajo) took the Catalunya Moto2 race with a masterful performance. Gardner defeated teammate Raul Fernandez by 1.8s in another 1-2 finish for the Red Bull KTM Ajo’s riders, as Xavi Vierge (Petronas Sprinta Racing) earned a first podium since Phillip Island 2018.
Gardner’s win was classy, the Australian hounding his teammate until two laps from the end where he passed at turn one and easily pulled away.
It wasn’t a happy weekend for Americans Joe Roberts (Italtrans Kalex) and Cameron Beaubier (American Racing Team Kalex). Roberts would profit from a number of crashes to move up to 10th by the flag, however, Beaubier’s race would see him finish outside the points in 19th.
Gardner’s win sees him move 11 points clear of Fernandez on 139 points. Marco Bezzecchi lies third on 101, while former championship leader Sam Lowes, seventh today (Marc VDS Kalex), sits fourth on 75.
2021 Catalunya Moto2 Results
| 1 |
Remy Gardner |
(Kal) |
|
| 2 |
Raul Fernandez |
(Kal) |
+ 1.872 |
| 3 |
Xavi Vierge |
(Kal) |
+ 2.866 |
| 4 |
Marco Bezzecchi |
(Kal) |
+ 3.207 |
| 5 |
Augusto Fernandez |
(Kal) |
+ 3.899 |
| 6 |
Bo Bendsneyder |
(Kal) |
+ 4.541 |
| 7 |
Sam Lowes |
(Kal) |
+ 4.875 |
| 8 |
Marcel Schrötter |
(Kal) |
+ 15.973 |
| 9 |
Somkiat Chantra |
(Hon) |
+ 17.515 |
| 10 |
Joe Roberts |
(Kal) |
+ 19.838 |
| 19 |
Cameron Beaubier |
(Kal) |
+37.129 |
Moto3
In an absolutely thrilling race, Sergio Garcia (Solunion GASGAS Aspar Team) claimed a second Moto3 victory of the season. The Spaniard beat compatriot Jeremy Alcoba (Indonesian Racing Gresini Moto3) by just 0.015s over the line, as Deniz Öncü (Red Bull KTM Tech3) got promoted to a maiden Grand Prix podium as Jaume Masia (Red Bull KTM Ajo) was demoted one position for exceeding track limits on the last lap.
Garcia (11) came out on top of this utterly hectic battle in Catalunya.
Leopard Racing’s Dennis Foggia and Xavier Artigas were involved in a last lap crash at turn eight with Ayumu Sasaki (Red Bull KTM Tech3) on the last lap, Sasaki taken to the medical center for a check-up. This brought out the red flags, but the top 11 finishers crossed the line before the race was halted.
Earlier on, race leader John McPhee (Petronas Sprinta Racing) highsided out of contention at turn two, with Tatsuki Suzuki (SIC58 Squadra Corse) and Andrea Migno (Rivacold Snipers Team) also going down in a separate incident.
In the championship, Pedro Acosta, seventh today) holds a 39 point lead over Garcia, 120-81. Third is Masia on 72 points.
2021 Catalunya Moto3 Results
| 1 |
Sergio Garcia |
(GasGas) |
|
| 2 |
Jeremy Alcoba |
(Hon) |
+ 0.015 |
| 3 |
Deniz Öncü |
(KTM) |
+ 0.118 |
| 4 |
Jaume Masia |
(KTM) |
+ 0.218 |
| 5 |
Darryn Binder |
(Hon) |
+ 0.343 |
| 6 |
Gabriel Rodrigo |
(Hon) |
+ 0.456 |
| 7 |
Pedro Acosta |
(KTM) |
+ 0.519 |
| 8 |
Niccolo Antonelli |
(KTM) |
+ 0.937 |
| 9 |
Kaito Toba |
(KTM) |
+ 1.072 |
| 10 |
Stefano Nepa |
(KTM) |
+ 1.122 |
MotoE
Rookie Miquel Pons (LCR E-Team) produced a fantastic FIM Enel MotoE World Cup performance in Catalunya to win his first race in the Cup by an impressive 0.531s after fighting at the front from the start. Dominique Aegerter (Dynavolt Intact GP) claimed second to get within one point of Cup standings leader Alessandro Zaccone (Octo Pramac MotoE), with reigning World Cup winner Jordi Torres (Pons Racing 40) occupying the final step on the rostrum.
Pons took the first win of his MotoE career.
In the championship, Zarconne leads on 54 to Aegerter’s 53 with Torres third on 36.
2021 Catalunya MotoE Results
| 1 |
Miguel Pons |
(Ene) |
|
| 2 |
Dominique Aegerter |
(Ene) |
+0.531 |
| 3 |
Jordi Torres |
(Ene) |
+0.577 |
| 4 |
Alessandro Zaccone |
(Ene) |
+1.121 |
| 5 |
Yonny Hernandez |
(Ene) |
+1.790 |
| 6 |
Fermin Aldeguer |
(Ene) |
+1.790 |
| 7 |
Matteo Ferrari |
(Ene) |
+1.764 |
| 8 |
Lukas Tulovic |
(Ene) |
+2.352 |
| 9 |
Hikari Okubo |
(Ene) |
+3.214 |
| 10 |
Corentin Perolari |
(Ene) |
+5.160 |
2021 Catalunya MotoGP News—Saturday
Binder signed up for the long-term
Marc Marquez isn’t alone in signing for the long-term. KTM showed how highly it values Brad Binder by announcing the South African had signed a monster three-year contract extension that keeps him with the Austrian factory until the end of 2024.
Brad Binder’s future is secure with KTM until 2024.
While his season hasn’t gone entirely to plan, Binder has still scored brilliant against-the-odds finishes at the Doha and Portuguese GPs. Add to that his history with KTM – a Moto3 world title in 2016, the factory’s first MotoGP win last year, and a total of 16 wins in all classes – and it is clear why they added an extra two years to his current deal.
“I always knew I wasn’t going anywhere, that I’d be here for the coming years, just not sure how long exactly,” said Binder in Catalonia. “It’s really nice to have a contract all sewn up and be able to concentrate on the important things at the weekend. This is where I want to be. I’m excited to see what the future brings.”
Motosports Direction Pit Beirer said of the deal: “Sometimes you find a racer and a mentality that really fits with your own philosophy and the fact that Brad has come all the way to the top with us in a ten-year period is a very special story.”
Marc and Jack: A Love Story
Qualifying was once again lit up by the tactics of Marc Marquez. Like Mugello, Honda’s RC213V has been uncompetitive around the Circuit of Barcelona. That coupled with Marquez’s physical state meant he was once again reliant on finding a tow during the Q1 session.
Miller leaves the pits with his #44 of Pol Espargaro shadow.
In Mugello, he used the tow of Maverick Viñales. On this occasion, he found Jack Miller. As he prepared to tuck in behind the Ducati, Miller motioned with his thumb and middle finger in Marquez’s direction, as if to say, ‘How much will you pay?’
Marquez appreciated the gesture. “Yesterday we were joking in the Clinica Mobile with Miller. I was 15th place and he said to me, ‘How much will you pay me?’ And today was the time! In Qualifying 1 all of the riders – me, Pol – we were waiting for somebody and this was the fastest guy – Miller. We went behind him and of course he said to me ‘how much?’ and I said ‘later, later we will speak about it!’”
Unlike Viñales last Saturday, Miller was unfazed. “It doesn’t disturb me,” he said after qualifying second, having made it through Q1 at Marquez’s expense. “It’s a mindset. If you go out there thinking only about the guy that’s behind you, you already lost.”
Mir pushing Suzuki for updates
In light of another disappointing qualifying performance, reigning world champion Joan Mir issued a rallying cry to Suzuki to up the ante and bring more parts to improve the performance of his GSX-RR over one lap.
Mir wants Suzuki to push harder if he’s to retain the title he won last year.
“I’m a bit worried because I want to defend the title,” said Mir on Saturday. “But I think that we can push a bit more (to develop the bike), honestly.” His words were borne out of frustration, as once again his stellar pace across practice failed to materialize into a strong performance over one lap. While the GSX-RR performs well, KTM and Ducati’s recent improvements have made his life more difficult.
“A lot of manufacturers improved and we didn’t improve,” he said. “Our bike is really good. we have a good base. But I have the same bike as last year. I’ve been 2 tenths faster than last year in qualifying. I was 8th I last year and with 2 tenths faster I’m tenth. So, this means we are not improving. We need always to push a bit more to have more material and test more things to improve.”
Saturday
MotoGP
Fabio Quartararo made it five pole positions in a row when he clinched the fastest Q2 time for the 2021 Catalunya MotoGP at Montmelo.
The Frenchman set a new lap record of 1:38.853 in Q2 to best Jack Miller (Ducati Lenovo Team), who came through Q1 to bag P2 despite a late crash at turn three. Second in the title race, Johann Zarco (Pramac Racing), picked up an important front row start in P3.
Quartararo is on another level right now and he proved it in Catalunya.
Miguel Oliveira was unlucky to miss out on a front row start, but P4 for the Portuguese rider is still a brilliant result. 0.010s behind the leading KTM rider is Franco Morbidelli in P5. Maverick Viñales will start sixth after getting demoted from P3 in the closing stages. Despite being just 0.304s down on pole, Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia Racing Team Gresini) lines up seventh ahead of Brad Binder and Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team). Reigning World Champion Joan Mir (Team Suzuki Ecstar) is 0.578s off Quartararo’s time but has to settle for P10 in Barcelona.
Valentino Rossi (Petronas Yamaha SRT) crashed on his second flying lap at turn four to hinder his Q2 session, the nine-time World Champion will start P11. Pol Espargaro was just over a tenth off Quartararo’s time heading into the final sector on his last lap, but the Spaniard tucked the front at Turn 10 – it’s P12 for the number 44.
2021 Catalunya MotoGP Results—Saturday
| 1 |
Fabio Quartararo |
(Yam) |
1:38.853 |
| 2 |
Jack Miller |
(Duc) |
+ 0.037 |
| 3 |
Johann Zarco |
(Duc) |
+ 0.196 |
| 4 |
Miguel Oliveira |
(KTM) |
+ 0.246 |
| 5 |
Franco Morbidelli |
(Yam) |
+ 0.256 |
| 6 |
Maverick Vinales |
(Yam) |
+ 0.304 |
| 7 |
Aleix Espargaro |
(Apr) |
+ 0.365 |
| 8 |
Brad Binder |
(KTM) |
+ 0.490 |
| 9 |
Francesco Bagnaia |
(Duc) |
+ 0.506 |
| 10 |
Joan Mir |
(Suz) |
+ 0.578 |
Moto2
It’s another Red Bull KTM Ajo 1-2 as World Championship leader Remy Gardner secured his second pole position of the season in Moto2 qualifying in Catalunya, the Australian’s 1:42.977 was enough to fend off teammate Raul Fernandez by 0.158s. Bo Bendsneyder (Pertamina Mandalika SAG Team) bags his second front row of the year in third.
Gardner celebrated his MotoGP promotion for next year by taking the Catalunya pole.
It was a tough day for Americans Joe Roberts (Italtrans Kalex) and Cameron Beaubier (American Racing Team Kalex), who will start 17th and 28th, respectively.
2021 Catalunya Moto2 Results—Saturday
| 1 |
Remy Gardner |
(KTM) |
1:42.977 |
| 2 |
Raul Fernandez |
(KTM) |
+ 0.158 |
| 3 |
Bo Bendsneyder |
(Kal) |
+ 0.423 |
| 4 |
Augusto Fernandez |
(Kal) |
+ 0.524 |
| 5 |
F. Di Giannantonio |
(Kal) |
+ 0.589 |
| 6 |
Xavi Vierge |
(Kal) |
+ 0.590 |
| 7 |
Ai Ogura |
(Hon) |
+ 0.632 |
| 8 |
Sam Lowes |
(Hon) |
+ 0.716 |
| 9 |
Somkiat Chantra |
(Hon) |
+ 0.739 |
| 10 |
Marco Bezzecchi |
(Kal) |
+ 0.761 |
Moto3
It was a first pole position since the 2020 Styrian GP for Gabriel Rodrigo (Indonesian Racing Gresini Moto3) as the Argentine beat teammate Jeremy Alcoba by 0.317s in Moto3 Q2 in Catalunya. Avintia Esponsorama Moto3’s Niccolo Antonelli completed the front in Barcelona as World Championship leader Pedro Acosta (Red Bull KTM Ajo) fails to make it out of Q1 and will start from down in 25th.
Rodrigo loves Catalunya and took his first pole since Styria last year in Moto3.
2021 Catalunya Moto3 Results—Saturday
| 1 |
Gabriel Rodrigo |
(Hon) |
1:47.597 |
| 2 |
Jeremy Alcoba |
(Hon) |
+ 0.317 |
| 3 |
Niccolo Antonelli |
(KTM) |
+ 0.361 |
| 4 |
Stefano Nepa |
(KTM) |
+ 0.698 |
| 5 |
Izan Guevara |
(GasGas) |
+ 0.721 |
| 6 |
John McPhee |
(Hon) |
+ 0.753 |
| 7 |
Darryn Binder |
(Hon) |
+ 0.892 |
| 8 |
Tatsuki Suzuki |
(Hon) |
+ 0.901 |
| 9 |
Jaume Masia |
(KTM) |
+ 0.903 |
| 10 |
Riccardo Rossi |
(KTM) |
+ 0.955 |
MotoE
It’s three E-Poles in three at the beginning of 2021 for Eric Granado (One Energy Racing) after the Brazilian produced a 1:50.446 to beat reigning World Cup winner Jordi Torres (Pons Racing 40) by less than a tenth on Saturday afternoon. Dominique Aegerter (Dynavolt Intact GP) completed the front row.
Another E-pole for Saturday man Eric Granado.
2021 Catalunya MotoE Results—Saturday
| 1 |
Eric Granado |
(Ene) |
1:50.446 |
| 2 |
Jordi Torres |
(Ene) |
+ 0.071 |
| 3 |
Dominique Aegerter |
(Ene) |
+ 0.273 |
| 4 |
Miquel Pons |
(Ene) |
+ 0.280 |
| 5 |
Lukas Tulovic |
(Ene) |
+ 0.326 |
| 6 |
Alessandro Zaccone |
(Ene) |
+ 0.367 |
| 7 |
Fermin Aldeguer |
(Ene) |
+ 0.545 |
| 8 |
Mattia Casadei |
(Ene) |
+ 0.631 |
| 9 |
Matteo Ferrari |
(Ene) |
+ 0.741 |
| 10 |
Xavi Cardelus |
(Ene) |
+ 0.952 |
2021 Catalunya MotoGP News—Friday
Rins KO’d
As if crashing out of the past four races wasn’t bad enough, Alex Rins is contemplating another painful recovery from injury after a freak incident on Thursday, ruling him out of the 2021 Catalunya MotoGP. Riding the track on his bicycle that morning, the Spaniard fell, suffering trauma to his right wrist, as well as an impact on his head.
Alex Rins’ season is pretty much shot after a bicycling accident broke his arm.
It soon became apparent all was not well. Rins was diagnosed with a fracture of the distal radius bone in his right arm, and underwent surgery on Friday morning in Barcelona’s Dexeus University Hospital. There Dr Xavier Mir inserted screws and was confident the rider could start his recovery on Monday after the race.
Any slim chances that remained of Rins challenging for this year’s title are gone. “The whole episode has left a bad taste in my mouth,” he said. But he is aiming to make his comeback at the German Grand Prix in a fortnight’s time.
Remy’s MotoGP promotion
When Remy Gardner signed to Aki Ajo’s Red Bull-backed team, there was a clear pathway to the top. Start the 2021 Moto2 season well, and there would be a place in KTM’s MotoGP stable for the following year.
Gardner will be aiming to replicate his famous father Wayne’s exploits when he moves to MotoGP next year.
The Australian kept up his end of the deal. After six races, the son of 1987 500cc World Champion Wayne tops the standings of the intermediate category with one win and four further podiums. And prior to the Grand Prix of Catalunya, KTM confirmed he will step up to Hervé Poncharal’s Tech 3 team for a debut campaign in the premier class next year.
“For me it’s a dream come true, you know, it’s been many years fighting to reach the MotoGP class,” said Remy. “It hasn’t been easy but in the end it looks like I made it, so yeah, for sure, I can’t wait to ride the beast but at the moment we still need to keep the focus on the job you know which is fighting for the Championship.”
Vinales Crew Chief switch
Faced with the indignity of finishing 17s behind his teammate at Mugello, Maverick Vinales confirmed Crew Chief Esteban Garcia had left the team, with Silvano Galbusera—formerly by Valentino Rossi’s side and working in Yamaha’s MotoGP test team before now—taking over the reins.
Maverick Vinales now has Silvano Galbusera (left) to look after him.
“Basically, from 3 or 4 races ago I wasn’t feeling good, I didn’t feel the maximum potential,” Vinales said. “So basically I was talking a lot with Yamaha, and Yamaha decided to face this with another strategy, which was to change the Crew Chief. Sometimes it was difficult to find a good setting on the bike, a good balance, and for the last four races I’ve been very fast in FP1 and then gone backwards all weekend.”
Asked if there could be no more excuses after a second crew chief change in three years, Vinales said, “I never had excuses honestly. I just have facts. The fact is we have our teammate winning every race, and we are doing top 10. So something is not working. The bike is fantastic, and we cannot lose that opportunity.”
Rejigging his team mid-season is a risk. As Jack Miller explained, “It changes a fair bit; it’s the heart and soul of your team right there.”
Friday
MotoGP
Johann Zarco topped the Friday running for the 2021 Catalunya MotoGP at Montmelo, putting in a 1:39.235 at the end of the session to lead Franco Morbidelli (Petronas Yamaha SRT) by just 0.021 seconds.
Zarco left it until the final seconds of FP2 to top the session.
Last year’s winner and championship leader Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) completed the top three, a tenth and a half down.
Brad Binder put the KTM in fourth with Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati) completing the top five. Maverick Vinales (Yamaha), Jack Miller (Ducati), Enea Bastianini (Ducati), Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia) and Pol Espargaro (Honda) completed the top 10.
That left Takaaki Nakagami (LCR Honda Idemitsu) as the first looking to move forward in FP3 as the Japanese rider ended Friday in 11th, ahead of Danilo Petrucci (Red Bull KTM Tech3) as the Italian put in a solid performance ahead of Tech3 expecting to receive the new KTM chassis for the post-race test on Monday. Luca Marini (Sky VR46 Avintia) had a solid day in P13 despite a run off at turn four, able to rejoin with no big drama, with Oliveira shuffled down to P14.
2021 Catalunya MotoGP Results—Friday
| 1 |
Johann Zarco |
(Duc) |
1:39.235 |
| 2 |
Franco Morbidelli |
(Yam) |
+ 0.021 |
| 3 |
Fabio Quartararo |
(Yam) |
+ 0.166 |
| 4 |
Brad Binder |
(KTM) |
+ 0.427 |
| 5 |
Francesco Bagnaia |
(Duc) |
+ 0.525 |
| 6 |
Maverick Vinales |
(Yam) |
+ 0.586 |
| 7 |
Jack Miller |
(Duc) |
+ 0.679 |
| 8 |
Enea Bastianini |
(Duc) |
+ 0.742 |
| 9 |
Aleix Espargaro |
(Apr) |
+ 0.748 |
| 10 |
Pol Espargaro |
(Hon) |
+ 0.748 |
Moto2
Rookie Raul Fernandez (Red Bull KTM Ajo) continued to raise eyebrows in 2021 as the Spaniard beat FP1 pacesetter Augusto Fernandez (Elf Marc VDS Racing Team) to end Friday in Catalunya fastest. Just 0.016s splits the Fernandez duo at the top while Sam Lowes makes it two Elf Marc VDS Racing Team bikes in the top three, the British rider is 0.166s off P1.
Friday man Fernandez topped the day once again in Moto2.
2021 Catalunya Moto2 Results—Friday
| 1 |
Raul Fernandez |
(Kal) |
1:43.687 |
| 2 |
Augusto Fernandez |
(Kal) |
+ 0.016 |
| 3 |
Sam Lowes |
(Kal) |
+ 0.150 |
| 4 |
Remy Gardner |
(Kal) |
+ 0.169 |
| 5 |
Marco Bezzecchi |
(Kal) |
+ 0.390 |
| 6 |
Xavi Vierge |
(Kal) |
+ 0.458 |
| 7 |
Hector Garzo |
(Kal) |
+ 0.555 |
| 8 |
Bo Bendsneyder |
(Kal) |
+ 0.587 |
| 9 |
Ai Ogura |
(Hon) |
+ 0.617 |
| 10 |
Aron Canet |
(Bos) |
+ 0.635 |
Moto3
Gabriel Rodrigo (Indonesian Racing Gresini Moto3) was the only rider in the 1:47s on Day 1 at Catalunya, as the Argentine pips Darryn Binder (Petronas Sprinta Racing) by 0.078s on Friday afternoon. Rodrigo’s 1:47.950 was 0.258s ahead of third place Romano Fenati (Sterilgarda Max Racing Team).
Rodrigo went fastest on Friday in Moto3.
2021 Catalunya Moto3 Results—Friday
| 1 |
Gabriel Rodrigo |
(Hon) |
1:47.950 |
| 2 |
Darryn Binder |
(Hon) |
+ 0.078 |
| 3 |
Romano Fenati |
(Hus) |
+ 0.258 |
| 4 |
Izan Guevara |
(GasGas) |
+ 0.458 |
| 5 |
Ayumu Sasaki |
(KTM) |
+ 0.492 |
| 6 |
Jeremy Alcoba |
(Hon) |
+ 0.499 |
| 7 |
Sergio Garcia |
(GasGas) |
+ 0.517 |
| 8 |
Andrea Migno |
(Hon) |
+ 0.576 |
| 9 |
Tatsuki Suzuki |
(Hon) |
+ 0.580 |
| 10 |
Stefano Nepa |
(KTM) |
+ 0.681 |
MotoE
A 1:50.808 in FIM Enel MotoE World Cup FP2 sees Tech3 E-Racing’s Lukas Tulovic climb to the top of the day one combined standings, the German edging out Jordi Torres (Pons Racing 40) by 0.049s. Electric class rookie Yonny Hernandez (Octo Pramac MotoE) claims an impressive P3 on Friday.
Lukas Tulovic topped MotoE on Friday.
2021 Catalunya MotoE Results—Friday
| 1 |
Lukas Tulovic |
(Ene) |
1:50.808 |
| 2 |
Jordi Torres |
(Ene) |
+ 0.049 |
| 3 |
Yonny Hernandez |
(Ene) |
+ 0.324 |
| 4 |
Eric Granado |
(Ene) |
+ 0.408 |
| 5 |
Fermin Aldeguer |
(Ene) |
+ 0.453 |
| 6 |
Dominque Aegerter |
(Ene) |
+ 0.494 |
| 7 |
Miquel Pons |
(Ene) |
+ 0.623 |
| 8 |
Alessandro Zaccone |
(Ene) |
+ 0.767 |
| 9 |
Mattia Casadei |
(Ene) |
+ 0.810 |
| 10 |
Xavi Cardelus |
(Ene) |
+ 0.988 |
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