Cycle News Staff | May 14, 2023
Sunday MotoGP
Marco Bezzecchi (Mooney VR46 Racing Team) takes a special place in history as the race winner at the 1000th FIM Grand Prix after a stunning break for glory in front of a record crowd at Le Mans, and there was drama, drama, drama throughout the field.
First, Bezzecchi is now just one point behind Championship leader Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team) after the Italian crashed out of the race in a dramatic clash with Aprilia Racing’s Maverick Viñales… gravel trap shouting match included, but both riders ok. Then, Jorge Martin (Prima Pramac Racing) vs Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team) lit up the fight for second in a tough but fair tussle, but that then ended in late race heartbreak for the number 93 as he slid out. However, for the French fans it did mean Johann Zarco (Prima Pramac Racing) was then promoted to a glorious home podium after some impressive Sunday pace, giving the 278,805 record crowd even more to cheer about.
The grid formed in front of the biggest crowd MotoGP™ has ever seen and it was Marc Marquez who shot into the lead as Bagnaia dropped down the order to P5. Jack Miller (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) slotted himself into P2 with Bezzecchi putting his VR46 Ducati into P3. Bagnaia then quickly snapped back at Martin as the Ducati riders duked it out on lap 1.
It was Marquez, Miller, Luca Marini (Mooney VR46 Racing Team), Bagnaia, and then Martin as they came across the line for the first time, and we had a race on our hands in MotoGP™. Miller wasn’t intimated by the eight-time World Champion by any means as the Aussie tried to force his way through on Marquez, but the Spaniard wouldn’t give in and hit straight back in true Marquez fashion.
Miller hit the front at the Dunlop chicane, meanwhile, the reigning World Champion was on the move as Bagnaia had now climbed his way back up into a podium position with 25 laps remaining.
Bez blasted them in Le Mans for a second career win.
The laps ticked away as a seven-bike battle for victory formed with Viñales carving his way into the 3rd place, the Aprilia seriously on the move. But then came the drama: the Spaniard collided with Bagnaia as both riders competed for the same piece of tarmac, both careening off into the gravel. Riders ok and to their feet… and then a fair few yells exchanged.
Half a lap later, there was more drama in the Le Mans gravel traps as Marini suffered a big crash coming out of the Dunlop chicane, just cutting the kerb. Alex Marquez (Gresini Racing MotoGP™) then got caught in the Italian’s crash as the field behind avoided the incident, riders again ok but another huge moment of adrenaline shaking the race up.
As the chaos subsided, we had a race on our hands. A four-rider battle for victory had formed as Miller now found himself with Marquez, Bezzecchi, and Martin for company, before Bezzecchi pushed his way through on Marc Marquez – and dropped the Spaniard from 2nd to 4th. The number 93 was sent into another postcode although no harm done, with both regrouping and Bezzecchi then told to drop a position for the move: a penalty he expected, and a penalty he also served wisely as he chose his moment to let Martin back through. And then took it back, with Marquez following suit too.
Miller’s face says it all with a second race crash in as many days.
Bezzecchi now had an open goal to make huge gains in the title fight as Bagnaia sat in the garage, and the VR46 rider took the lead from Miller as they barreled into the Dunlop chicane once again. Marquez quickly followed him through half a lap later too, with Bezzecchi already stretching out half a second at the front.
With 15 laps to go, Bezzecchi had 1.2s in his pocket to Marquez behind, who was 0.5s up the road from Martin, who had found his way through on Miller. The Aussie was starting to fall into the clutches of Zarco and Augusto Fernandez (GASGAS Factory Racing Tech3). It didn’t take long for Zarco to push his way through either as the Frenchman moved up into P4 and Fernandez followed, leaving Miller in sixth.
With six to go, Martin thought it was time to pounce on Marc Marquez. The Spaniard tried to push his way through on the eight-time World Champion, but the Repsol Honda man was not giving in easy and bit back at the Prima Pramac Racing rider at every opportunity. That allowed Zarco to edge closer and closer… and the crowd had definitely noticed.
Marquez (93) was keeping Martin at bay until he threw it away with a few laps remaining.
Martin finally pushed his way through with one and a half laps remaining, and this time the drama was for the number 93. Trying to hang in there, the returning Repsol Honda rider tucked the front and ended his French Grand Prix in the gravel trap, but after quite a return to the upper echelons of the timesheets.
That meant one thing to a partisan crown: Zarco was on the podium. The grandstands erupted around the French circuit as Bezzecchi crossed the line for a first dry weather win, Martin ensured he’s the top scorer at Le Mans this year, and then the home hero reached the flag. The noise made for an impressive welcome.
Fourth place was also something to shout about as Tech3’s Fernandez took an impressive result after an impressive weekend. First time in Q2, the GASGAS rider had had the speed all weekend and made it pay to perfection on Sunday to bounce back.
The crash between Alex Marquez and Luca Marini was a nasty one.
Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia Racing) rounded out the top five as Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) recovered from being battered down the order on the first lap to fight his way back through the pack, take a long penalty for a shortcut, and still manage to take sixth.
Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP™) had a tougher home Grand Prix but took a chunk of points on Sunday as the 2021 World Champion ended his weekend in Le Mans with a P7, with Fabio Di Giannantonio (Gresini Racing MotoGP™), Takaaki Nakagami (IDEMITSU Honda Team Asia), and Franco Morbidelli taking 8th, 9th, and 10th – just ahead of Danilo Petrucci (Ducati Lenovo Team) on his MotoGP™ return deputizing for the injured Enea Bastianini.
A home podium for Johann Zarco kept the French fans happy.
2023 French MotoGP—Sunday GP
| 1 |
Marco Bezzecchi |
(Duc) |
|
| 2 |
Jorge Martin |
(Duc) |
+ 4.256 |
| 3 |
Johann Zarco |
(Duc) |
+ 4.795 |
| 4 |
Augusto Fernandez |
(GASGAS) |
+6.281 |
| 5 |
Aleix Espargaro |
(Apr) |
+ 6.726 |
| 6 |
Brad Binder |
(KTM) |
+ 13.638 |
| 7 |
Fabio Quartararo |
(Yam) |
+ 15.023 |
| 8 |
F. Di Giannantonio |
(Duc) |
+ 15.826 |
| 9 |
Takaaki Nakagami |
(Hon) |
+ 16.370 |
| 10 |
Franco Morbidelli |
(Yam) |
+ 17.828 |
Sunday Moto2
Tony Arbolino (Elf MarcVDS Racing Team) took an important victory for his Championship campaign as he commanded the race from the front putting the pressure on his Championship rival Pedro Acosta (Red Bull KTM Ajo), who crashed out on 2nd place whilst trying to reel in the Italian at the front. Filip Salac (QJMOTOR Gresini Moto2™) put pressure on the MarcVDS man as the chequered flag drew closer, but Arbolino held strong forcing the Czech rider was forced to settle for 2nd. Alonso Lopez (Lightech SpeedUp) was in the mix as well as the Spaniard hung unto the coattails of the leading duo to take 3rd place in France.
It was Arbolino who got the holeshot as the Moto2™ grid barreled into the first two corners for the initial start. Lopez dived up the inside to take the lead pushing Arbolino back to 2nd, and it was drama one lap later as Arbolino took the lead into Turn 1 with his teammate Sam Lowes (Elf MarcVDS Racing Team) crashing out of 3rd place at Turn 2. Meanwhile, the red flags came out for a incident involving multiple riders at turn 5.
Tiger Tony attacked when the going was good to claim the win and the championship lead.
With the countdown to the restart underway Lowes was sent to the medical centre as the MarcVDS box swarmed The Brit’s damaged Kalex machine in a desperate rush to repair the damage before the restart. The polesitter rushed his way back to the box with under a minute left until the green light went on to open pit lane. The crowd watched on with baited breath as Lowes missed the deadline for the pitlane closing time by just one second, forcing the Brit to start from the back of the grid.
The riders lined back onto the grid for the restart but this time without the polesitter. The red lights went out once again and it was Arbolino who took the holeshot fending off Lopez through the Dunlop chicane with Acosta latched onto to the leading duo.
Arbolino, Lopez, Acosta, and Salac was the order as the came across the line for the first time with the top 3 stretching out a little bit of breathing space to the Czech rider. Lopez and Acosta were swapping paintwork as the two Spaniards battled it out letting Arbolino sail away at the front and allowing Salac to join the P2 party.
Arbolino began to stretch a lead at the front as he set a new race lap record on his very first flying lap. This stretched out the riders behind as Acosta began to pull away from Lopez who had Salac and Celestino Vietti (Fantic Racing) for company in the battle for 3rd.
Lowes bailed at high speed going into turn two on lap two.
Acosta responded one lap later setting the new fastest lap but still with 0.6s to find to catch the Italian. Incredible Championship drama came soon after as the Championship protagonist Acosta crashed out of the race with 10 laps to go with his title rival Arbolino sat in comfortable victory contention.
This promoted the battle for 3rd to the battle for 2nd as Salac led Lopez in P2. Arbolino had 1.8s in his pocket until he began to lose ground at an alarming rate with Salac getting within under half a second of the Italian with seven laps to go.
The MarcVDS man judged it to perfection as he controlled the gap at 0.5s at the front, taking the race victory as Acosta watched the #14 stretch out a 25-point lead in the Championship.
Despite the efforts from Salac, it wasn’t enough for the Czech rider to take victory as he took 2nd place with Lopez keeping him honest to round out the podium.
A costly crash for Acosta (37) saw him slip down the championship ladder.
Vietti looked strong in the opening stages of the race but wasn’t able to keep up with the incredible pace of the top 3 as the Italian finished 0.6s back from the podium fight in P4. Jake Dixon (Inde GASGAS Aspar M2) rounded the top 5 after carving through an incredible scrap involving Somkiat Chantra (IDEMISTU Honda Team Asia), Barry Baltus (RW Racing GP) and Fermin Aldeguer (Ligthtech SpeedUp) who finished 6th, 7th, and 8th respectively.
The Lowes watch was a dramatic one as the Brit carved his way through from the back of the grid picking off rider after rider in hopes of finishing in a point-scoring position. Although it’s not the result the Brit would have wanted, the MarcVDS man recovered his FrenchGP hopes climbing his way up to P15 as he walked away from Le Mans with a single Championship point.
2023 French Moto2—Sunday GP
| 1 |
Tony Arbolino |
(Kal) |
|
| 2 |
Filip Salac |
(Kal) |
+ 0.620 |
| 3 |
Alonso Lopez |
(Bos) |
+ 1.537 |
| 4 |
Celestino Vietti |
(Kal) |
+ 2.193 |
| 5 |
Jake Dixon |
(Kal) |
+ 3.041 |
Sunday Moto3
Holgado kept the wolves at bay for the French Moto3 win.
The stage was set in Moto3™ as the two Championship protagonists were locked together from the moment the lights went out to the moment the chequered flag dropped. Daniel Holgado (Red Bull KTM Ajo) extended his lead in the Championship to 19 points as the Spaniard fended off Ayumu Sasaki (Liqui Moly Husqvarna Intact GP) to return to the top step for the first time since Round 1. With 2nd placed man in the Championship Diogo Moreira (MT Helmets – MSI) crashing out of the GP, the Tech3 man’s Championship campaign takes another step in the right direction. Leopard Racing’s Jaume Masia was in the mix as well, as the Spaniard took back-to-back podiums onboard his Honda machine.
2023 French Moto3—Sunday GP
| 1 |
Daniel Holgado |
(KTM) |
|
| 2 |
Ayumu Sasaki |
(Hus) |
+ 0.150 |
| 3 |
Jaume Masia |
(Hon) |
+ 0.946 |
| 4 |
Ivan Ortola |
(KTM) |
+ 1.113 |
| 5 |
Ryusei Yamanaka |
(GASGAS) |
+ 2.409 |
2023 French MotoGP News—Saturday
No sweet homecoming for Quartararo
Fabio Quartararo has endured a tough home Grand Prix to date. The Frenchman was once again frustrated by his Yamaha M1’s lack of performance in qualifying and was 13th on the grid. He recovered well in the Sprint before crashing out.
“I’m able to ride really fast in the race, but not in the qualifying. And I need to put everything together in qualifying. And this is the hardest part that right now, maybe in the past I was doing, I’m saying a number, 5 mistakes in one practice, but right now I’m doing 10.
Quartararo’s crash has just compounded his problems.
“I’m always on the limit on the pace. I remember in the past I always ask my crew chief how intense I need to make the race pace. ‘Keep a little bit of margin for the tyre’. Right now I never ask. I go in the track and just go for it and this is the thing that when I go for time attack, I’m already on the limit. You try to find a little bit more, but you don’t have. So it’s difficult to make that perfect lap.”
FIM Stewards meet riders face to face
Several riders were left confused after the Sprint race, when tough moves by Brad Binder on Luca Marini and Marc Marquez on Pecco Bagnaia went unpunished.
The reason for confusion? When FIM Stewards met the riders in Friday evening’s Safety Commission, they stated they would punish moves similar to what Bagnaia put on Jack Miller in the Spanish Grand Prix, where there was minimum contact.
“At the end of all the Safety Commission,” explained Luca Marini, “I asked, ‘so now the line is, if there is a contact and a rider hit the other rider and gain the position, disturb and cause a consequence to the other rider, there is the drop one position?’ They say yes.”
Marc Marquez asks, “what are you complaining about?!” (not really) to Bagnaia. But in all seriousness, the riders have not been happy with the Stewards this year.
But Marc Marquez was pleased there were no further penalties. “The situation is clear. We need to stop speaking about these kinds of racing incidents. This is stupid for me. Already yesterday, for me it was nice that the Stewards come to the Safety Commission and I appreciate it a lot. We were there, 15 riders, and everybody has their own opinion. My opinion, and I said to them, it’s like everything that happened this year were racing incidents, only my one [with Miguel Oliveira] must be penalized. Because it was a big mistake. All the rest were racing incidents, and this is MotoGP.
“And then they started to speak about putting more different penalizations, different warnings. If we have more penalizations, we will speak more and more and more about this. This is MotoGP, sometimes you have small contacts, like today.”
Saturday MotoGP Sprint Race
The Tissot Sprint at Le Mans was another jaw-dropper throughout the field, and we have a new name in the history books as Jorge Martin (Prima Pramac Racing) put in an inch-perfect ride to take his first Sprint win in MotoGP™. Just behind him, Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) fought his way through the pack to storm to another podium in second, and Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team) completed the podium.
‘Completed the podium’ isn’t quite the correct product description, however, as the #1 actually had a gloves-off melee with Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team) that was intense, spectacular, and left both giving some fantastic reviews of the sport they compete in.
Let’s rewind first. It was Bagnaia who stormed off the line to take the holeshot as the lights went out, whilst Jack Miller (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) shot into P2. Turn 2 came and Martin made an incredible around-the-outside move to take 2nd place from Miller though, and as the riders crossed the line for the first time it remained Bagnaia, Martin, Miller, shadowed by Luca Marini (Mooney VR46 Racing Team) and Marquez in hot pursuit. Sector two came around and it was disappointment in the KTM camp though as Miller crashed out at Museum corner, by then promoting Marquez to P3. Some spirits were lifted for the Austrian manufacturer as Binder was on the move though, pushing his way past Marini to set the fastest lap and latch himself onto the back of the top three.
With 11 laps to go, and it was a four-rider scrap for Tissot Sprint glory as Bagnaia led Martin, Marquez, and Binder respectively with Marini in a distant 5th. That didn’t last long, however, as Martin lunged up the inside of Bagnaia to take the lead away from the Ducati Lenovo rider. The number 89 then began to put the hammer down and pulled out 0.7s in just one lap. From there on out, he was untouchable. For the fight behind, a different word should be sought.
Jorge Martin scored his first-ever Sprint Race win with a formidable performance in France.
Marquez and Binder were queuing up behind Pecco, and a big reshuffle at the Dunlop chicane saw Binder take full advantage to go into P2, demoting Bagnaia to P3 and Marquez to P4. Marini then caught the battle as Bagnaia was struggling to hold onto the pace of the leaders, and it became a four-rider scrap. But Binder decided he was out, and the KTM started to edge away.
Marquez pushed his way through at the Dunlop chicane with 8 laps to go, seeing Bagnaia drop to 5th behind Marquez and Marini. With the Italian clearly struggling he did his best to cling on, and snapped straight back at Marini. Next target: Marquez. Bagnaia was coming back at it, and made a move on the eight-time World Champion at the 200mph Turn 1 with 4 laps of racing still remaining.
The Italian then put the hammer down, and Marquez was unable to hang onto the coattails of the factory Ducati as the Spaniard faded slightly into the clutches of Marini. Martin crossed the line to take his first Sprint win as well as his first Grand Prix points at Le Mans, bouncing back in style as Binder took second to gain in the title fight, ahead of Bagnaia completing the podium.
Binder (33) and Bagnaia (1) hard at it. The World Champion wasn’t pleased about the move Binder put on him for second place.
After Bagnaia pulled away from the pack to defend his top 3, Marini got the better of Marquez to take 4th place. Johann Zarco (Prima Pramac Racing) was all over the rear of the battle for 4th in the last couple of laps, but lost ground after a crucial mistake in the closing stages halted his progress and saw the Frenchman settle for 6th.
Meanwhile, further back there was a gaggle of riders swapping paintwork as Marco Bezzecchi (Mooney VR46 Racing Team) got the better of the chasing Aprilia Racing riders of Aleix Espargaro and Maverick Viñales to take 7th place with the Aprilias 8th and 9th respectively. Takaaki Nakagami (LCR Honda Idemitsu) completed the top ten.
The tough home Grand Prix for Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP™) continued as the Frenchman crashed out of the Sprint to the dismay of the home crowd. Rider perfectly ok. He’d made an absolutely charge up from 13th on the grid, but lost the chance to move forward to the podium battle.
2023 French MotoGP Results—Sprint Race
| 1 |
Jorge Martin |
(Duc) |
|
| 2 |
Brad Binder |
(KTM) |
+1.840 |
| 3 |
Francesco Bagnaia |
(Duc) |
+2.632 |
| 4 |
Luca Marini |
(Duc) |
+ 3.418 |
| 5 |
Marc Marquez |
(Hon) |
+ 3.541 |
| 6 |
Johann Zarco |
(Duc) |
+ 4.483 |
| 7 |
Marco Bezzecchi |
(Duc) |
+ 5.224 |
| 8 |
Aleix Espargaro |
(Apr) |
+ 6.359 |
| 9 |
Maverick Viñales |
(Apr) |
+ 8.336 |
| 10 |
Takaaki Nakagami |
(Hon) |
+ 9.439 |
Saturday MotoGP Qualifying
Francesco Bagnaia took pole in France.
MotoGP qualifying was unpredictable right until the final seconds as Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team) showed us exactly why he has the number 1 plate on his factory Ducati. The Italian will line up on pole position after setting a scintillating 1:30.705, as Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team) put in an incredible performance on his return to bag 2nd place just 0.058s shy of the top spot. The eight-time World Champion never fails to impress as he’s joined by Luca Marini (Mooney VR46 Racing Team) on the front row.
2023 French MotoGP Results—Qualifying
| 1 |
Francesco Bagnaia |
(Duc) |
1:30.705 |
| 2 |
Marc Marquez |
(Hon) |
+ 0.058 |
| 3 |
Luca Marini |
(Duc) |
+ 0.137 |
| 4 |
Jack Miller |
(KTM) |
+0.279 |
| 5 |
Jorge Martin |
(Duc) |
+ 0.318 |
| 6 |
Maverick Viñales |
(Apr) |
+ 0.415 |
| 7 |
Marco Bezzecchi |
(Duc) |
+ 0.468 |
| 8 |
Alex Marquez |
(Duc) |
+ 0.570 |
| 9 |
Johann Zarco |
(Duc) |
+ 0.593 |
| 10 |
Brad Binder |
(KTM) |
+ 0.740 |
Saturday Moto2 Qualifying
Sam Lowes is proving anything but SLow in 2023 with another pole position.
Sam Lowes (Elf MarcVDS Racing Team) was the only rider to drop into the 1:35s in qualifying at the SHARK Grand Prix de France, as the Brit’s 1:35.791 secured him a new all-time lap record as well as pole position by 0.245s. Alonso Lopez (Lightech SpeedUp) put in a strong effort to take P2 whilst the Marc VDS squad put both their riders on the front row with Tony Arbolino (Elf MarcVDS Racing Team) snatching P3 as Pedro Acosta (Red Bull KTM Ajo) sits down in fifth.
2023 French Moto2 Results—Qualifying
| 1 |
Sam Lowes |
(Kal) |
1:35.791 |
| 2 |
Alonso Lopez |
(Bos) |
+ 0.245 |
| 3 |
Tony Arbolino |
(Kal) |
+ 0.262 |
| 4 |
Filip Salac |
(Kal) |
+ 0.344 |
| 5 |
Pedro Acosta |
(Kal) |
+ 0.378 |
Moto3
Ayumu Sasaki added another pole to his growing tally.
Ayumu Sasaki (Liqui Moly Husqvarna Intact GP) did what he does best as the Japanese rider put in a dominant performance to take pole position at the SHARK Grand Prix de France with a stunning 1:41.630. Diogo Moreira (MT Helmets – MSI) secured the 2nd spot on the front row 0.309s shy of Sasaki, with Daniel Holgado (Red Bull KTM Tech3) right on the tail of the Brazilian in P3.
2023 French Moto3 Results—Qualifying
| 1 |
Ayumu Sasaki |
(Hus) |
1:41.630 |
| 2 |
Diogo Moreira |
(KTM) |
+ 0.309 |
| 3 |
Daniel Holgado |
(KTM) |
+ 0.328 |
| 4 |
Deniz Öncü |
(KTM) |
+ 0.498 |
| 5 |
Andrea Migno |
(KTM) |
+ 0.702 |
2023 French MotoGP News—Friday
The 1000th GP
Le Mans has hosted the 1000th Grand Prix in history. The Grand Prix World Championship is now in its 75th year and is a far cry from its initial iteration when a six-round series took place from June to early September in 1949.
In the time since, a total of 393 riders have won at least one Grand Prix race, while 125 have clinched at least one World Championship. Honda is the most successful manufacturer with 817 victories, while Giacomo Agostini is the most successful rider, both in terms of race wins (122) and World Championships (15).
Unsurprisingly, Valentino Rossi is the rider with most GP starts (432), as he took to the grid in over 43 percent of all Grand Prix events.
Marquez is back, tries Kalex chassis
Marc Marquez made his first competitive appearance since the opening race of the season after returning from an injury to his right hand. Le Mans offered him the chance to test the Kalex chassis for the first time, after the German manufacturer produced a frame at the behest of HRC in the months after the Sepang test. Stefan Bradl and Joan Mir has tested the new frame at the post-race test at Jerez.
It was a big day for Mr. Marquez.
“It’s true that we tried both chassis,” Marquez said. “It was also not easy, it was a busy day, because every time I went out on the track, it was a different bike, different chassis, different riding style, different way to approach the corner. So this makes the life more difficult, but it was the time to do it, and it was positive.”
Oliveira in trouble
Miguel Oliveira was absent from France as he recovered from the serious shoulder injury sustained in the main race at the Spanish GP. While immediate medical attention successfully repositioned his dislocated left shoulder, further assessments revealed a more severe injury, including a fracture in the humerus and an anterior ligamentous labrum injury.
It goes from bad to worse for Miguel Oliveira.
“Ideally, he needs to have surgery,” admitted RNF Aprilia Team Principle Razlan Razali. “But that would take three to four months. A MotoGP rider doesn’t have this luxury to sit out this long. So he’s letting it heal naturally, with a lot of physio and treatment. He’s off the shoulder brace now, doing some kind of training. But we’re a bit wary of course because a shoulder injury for a MotoGP rider takes a long time. It’s not his first injury in that area, and when you reinjure there, it’s hard. I’ve got no words to describe how we were feeling in Jerez. We started the year really well. We could smell that first podium. But this thing happens.”
Teammate Raul Fernandez withdrew after doing three laps in P1 as his arm hadn’t recovered enough strength from surgery he got to alleviate arm pump. Aprilia test rider Lorenzo Savadori stood in for Oliveira at Le Mans.
Friday MotoGP
Jack Miller (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) took centre stage on Day 1 of the Shark Grand Prix de France, with the Australian topping both P1 and P2 to sail through to an automatic place in Q2. The day was full of headlines once again, with Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia Racing) and Marco Bezzecchi (Mooney VR46 Racing Team) making two to end the day in second and third, respectively, and Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team) already back in the limelight.
First, for getting through to Q2 as the number 93 was back on track and back on the pace. Second, for two crashes, one in P1 and one in P2, rider ok. Third, for a little on-track discussion with Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team) as the eight-time World Champion followed the rider currently holding that throne. Both played it down but it made for some good spectating.
Miller was perfectly o song during Friday action in France.
As ever, the fight for a place in Q2 went to the wire, and it had to be all or nothing for Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP™), who was well aware of the importance of bagging a Q2 spot at his home Grand Prix. The Frenchman began to put on the afterburners in the final twenty minutes. Riding on the ragged edge, Quartararo’s first flyer ended early with a big moment onboard his Yamaha, seeing him make a dramatic save to regroup and put the hammer down once again.
Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) was the first to reshuffle the order as the South African hit the top of the timesheets to beat his teammates P1 time to make it a KTM one-two, however, until the final 10 minutes came and Miller retook the top spot. But then came Bezzecchi as he grabbed P1, with Miller nearly able to reply but not quite.
Meanwhile, Aleix Espargaro was on a flyer as the Spaniard set red sectors to slot himself into P2, and with two and half minutes remaining the timing screens really began to light up.
Jorge Martin bounced back from a tough Spanish GP to take fourth on Friday.
Espargaro, Bezzecchi, Jorge Martin (Prima Pramac Racing) was the order with just one minute left, and the fans were on their feet as their home hero Johann Zarco (Prima Pramac Racing) began to put down red sectors as he chased down the flying Miller. Miller wasn’t to be caught though, going top to set the first and only 1:30, but Zarco put himself into P5 to push Aleix Espargaro and Bezzecchi down a spot each… and push Bagnaia out of Q2 as it stood.
With Espargaro and Bezzecchi holding strong in 2nd and 3rd, Martin consolidated P4 just ahead of his teammate, as Aprilia Racing’s Maverick Viñales then bagged P6 ahead of Binder in P7. The South African crashed in the latter stages and couldn’t quite get his teeth into the shootout.
It was, in some ways, a familiar sight for Bagnaia as he looked behind with eleven minutes to go to see Marc Marquez right on his rear wheel. The Repsol Honda rider was looking to use the reigning World Champion to tow him into a Q2 position, but Bagnaia wasn’t giving into the mind games as the Italian rode back into pitlane to shake off the Spaniard.
That left Pecco with a final push and as Bagnaia headed back out onto the circuit, it was a last-chance saloon scenario for the Ducati man as he was sat outside of Q2 contention in P12. A swarm of riders followed him with just six minutes left on the clock, but this time Marquez slotted himself behind Martin, who in turn was shadowing Bagnaia. That did the trick.
Marco Bezzecchi was third as he attempts to regain his title lead.
Bagnaia just bagged a Q2 spot to put himself into P9, whilst Marc Marquez then has different dramas to worry about. He took a second tumble of the day, rider perfectly ok if looking encouragingly angry at the error, but makes it into Q2 on his return to competition. Need we remind what he achieved last time he competed in that session…
Alex Marquez (Gresini Racing MotoGP™) just made it into the top ten, leaving some fellow fast faces in Q1. Quartararo is the headline act, certainly for the home fans, as the Frenchman looks to find a way through. After deciding to go back to the same chassis as raced in Jerez and those fast lap woes continuing, he’ll have to fight it out against the likes of Luca Marini (Mooney VR46 Racing Team), COTA winner Alex Rins (LCR Honda Castrol) and Joan Mir (Repsol Honda Team). Mir had a solid morning in France and then suffered an adventurous afternoon session with a crash and a run-off.
2023 French MotoGP Results—Friday
| 1 |
Jack Miller |
(KTM) |
1:30.950 |
| 2 |
Aleix Espargaro |
(Apr) |
+ 0.119 |
| 3 |
Marco Bezzecchi |
(Duc) |
+ 0.200 |
| 4 |
Jorge Martin |
(Duc) |
+ 0.285 |
| 5 |
Johann Zarco |
(Duc) |
+ 0.326 |
| 6 |
Maverick Viñales |
(Apr) |
+ 0.392 |
| 7 |
Brad Binder |
(KTM) |
+ 0.402 |
| 8 |
Marc Marquez |
(Hon) |
+ 0.482 |
| 9 |
Francesco Bagnaia |
(Duc) |
+ 0.517 |
| 10 |
Alex Marquez |
(Duc) |
+ 0.558 |
Friday Moto2
The podium finishers from Jerez kept their roll on Friday in France, with Sam Lowes (Elf Marc VDS Racing Team) back on top to end Day 1 fastest, followed by Pedro Acosta (Red Bull KTM Ajo) and Alonso Lopez (Lightech SpeedUp). The three were covered by just 0.093 and Acosta was only 0.005 off the top.
Lowes crashed twice in P1 but gathered it together in the afternoon to take back to the top, and the double crasher moniker went the way of fellow frontrunner Aron Canet (Pons Wegow Los40). Riders ok. Canet, however, didn’t improve in P2 and ended Day 1 in 13th.
It was another top day for the in-form Sam Lowes as he headed the timesheets in France.
Behind the top three back up near the top, Filip Salač (QJMotor Gresini Moto2™) takes P4 overall after going fastest in the morning, with Celestino Vietti (Fantic Racing) next up after a solid day from the Italian as he looks to get back to winning ways. Jake Dixon (Inde GASGAS Aspar Team) takes P6, with Tony Arbolino (Elf Marc VDS Racing Team), who starts the weekend equal on points with Acosta at the top of the title table, in seventh.
Sokmiat Chantra (Idemitsu Honda Team Asia), Albert Arenas (Red Bull KTM Ajo) and Manuel Gonzalez (Correos Prepago Yamaha VR46 MasterCamp) complete the top ten on Day 1, edging out Ai Ogura (Idemitsu Honda Team Asia) by just 0.005.
2023 French Moto2 Results—Friday
| 1 |
Sam Lowes |
(Kal) |
1:36.178 |
| 2 |
Pedro Acosta |
(Kal) |
+ 0.005 |
| 3 |
Alonso Lopez |
(Bos) |
+ 0.093 |
| 4 |
Filip Salac |
(Kal) |
+ 0.299 |
| 5 |
Celestino Vietti |
(Kal) |
+ 0.313 |
Friday Moto3
Jaume Masia (Leopard Racing) ends Day 1 at the Shark Grand Prix de France on top, just over a tenth clear of fellow veteran Ayumu Sasaki (Liqui Moly Husqvarna Intact GP) after the Japanese rider was also fastest in P1. Masia had been nine tenths off the Husqvarna rider before hitting back in the afternoon.
Can Jaume Masia finally convert his Friday speed into a race win?
Xavier Artigas (CFMoto Racing PrüstelGP) was third overall, ahead of veteran Romano Fenati (Rivacold Snipers Team) and Championship leader Daniel Holgado (Red Bull KTM Tech3).
One rider having a tougher day of it was COTA and Jerez winner Ivan Ortola (Angeluss MTA Team). He crashed in both sessions, and had ended P1 in 18th, but moved up to seventh overall on a good recovery mission, just behind rookie Jose Antonio Rueda (Red Bull KTM Ajo). Diogo Moreira (MT Helmets – MSI) was eighth after having been second in the morning, and was the only rider in the top 20 to not improve his time in P2, with Joel Kelso (CFMoto PrüstelGP) and Deniz Öncü (Red Bull KTM Ajo) locking out the top 10.
2023 French Moto3 Results—Friday
| 1 |
Jaume Masia |
(Hon) |
1:41.846 |
| 2 |
Ayumu Sasaki |
(Hus) |
+ 0.137 |
| 3 |
Xavier Artigas |
(CFMOTO) |
+0.318 |
| 4 |
Romano Fenati |
(Hon) |
+ 0.346 |
| 5 |
Daniel Holgado |
(KTM) |
+ 0.413 |
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