The first MotoGP session of the Motul Grand Prix of Japan got underway on Friday morning, with Francesco Bagnaia fastest overall. The #63 looked strong and confident throughout the session, prompting thoughts that last year’s Motul Grand Prix of Japan winner is well and truly back. His Ducati Lenovo teammate and current championship leader, Marc Márquez, finished the session in third as the reigning champion, Jorge Martín, split the two to finish in second. Catch up on the MotoGP FP1 results at Motegi below.
Fans Out in Force for Home Heroes Nakagami and Ogura
Japanese fans have a lot to look forward to this weekend with two of their own out on track. Takaaki Nakagami made a home return as the HRC Test Team wildcard entry. The last time the #30 raced was in the Sprint Race at the Automotodrom Brno, where he was declared unfit to continue for the rest of the weekend. Meanwhile, it was rookie Ai Ogura’s first MotoGP session on home soil. The Trackhouse MotoGP Team rider sported a brand-new helmet design, drawing inspiration from the traditional Japanese summer jinbei.
As the searing heat climbed, Ogura and Nakagami were quick to burn rubber and push track limits. Both had a clean couple of runs on the circuit but remained in the midfield. Ogura finished the Free Practice 1 session in eighteenth, while Nakagami was ahead of him in seventeenth.
Márquez Prepares for Match Point Showdown
In fact, a few riders had put some thought into their helmet designs for the Japanese GP, including M. Márquez, as he looks set to clinch his seventh world title. The current championship leader made quick work to get out of the pit lane as forty-five minutes started on the clock. The #93 had a relatively quiet first run before coming in to make some handling adjustments. This quick break didn’t stop fans from showing their dedication and admiration for M. Márquez as he builds up to a championship decider in Japan.
Meanwhile, his Ducati Lenovo teammate, Bagnaia, was at the top of the board for the majority of the Free Practice 1 session. His performance was a much-needed boost of confidence for the #63 after a string of bad luck had plagued him.
Big Crashes to Start the Weekend at Motegi
Less than ten minutes into the session, the first major crashes of the weekend occurred. Raúl Fernández, who had been at the top of the timesheet, came off at Turn 8. Mere seconds later, Marco Bezzecchi was caught out at the tight Turn 11. The #12 slid off and barrel-rolled through the gravel, his motorbike doing the same a little distance away. Thankfully, both riders were up and quickly made their way back to their respective garages as teams worked to get back-up bikes ready.
Unfortunately for Bezzecchi, his second Aprilia did not last long as he came down for the second time at Turn 5. With no more bikes left, that meant the session was over for the San Marino Grand Prix podium holder. In the final minutes of the session, a few riders crashed out. Enea Bastianini came down in Turn 10, while both Franco Morbidelli and Jack Miller slid out in separate incidents in Turn 5. There should be no penalty repercussions, however, as they were not under yellow flag conditions at the time of the crash. While it’s not ideal to crash in any MotoGP session, riders and teams would prefer it to happen in a practice rather than miss out on points in a race scenario.
Surprise Strong Performances Across All Constructors
Often in MotoGP, there is a complete Ducati domination. However, we had a very mixed top ten for the Free Practice session with one Aprilia, one KTM, two Hondas and two Yamahas joining the four Ducati riders. All of the top ten finished with times within half a second of each other. What does this mean? Well, not much for now. However, the question now is whether similar results can be replicated for the later Practice session or the qualifying on Saturday. In that case, it will give us an exciting mix for the Tissot Sprint and the main race on Sunday.
The Top 10
- Francesco Bagnaia
- Jorge Martín
- Marc Márquez
- Fabio Di Girannantonio
- Luca Marini
- Franco Morbidelli
- Pedro Acosta
- Jack Miller
- Somkiat Chantra
- Miguel Oliveira