MotoGP’s return to Brazil has been steeped in drama with a rainy Friday leading to a crash-heavy, dry Saturday. The evolving track tested the riders’ precision as grip levels constantly shifted through the sessions. Despite the challenges and a late crash, Fabio Di Giannantonio, beginning with Q1, secured Pole.
Drivers Wrestle with the Asphalt in Q1
Q1 set the tone early. The first runs were dominated by Marco Bezzecchi, Diogo Moreira, Joan Mir, Di Giannantonio and Raúl Fernández. The second set of runs shuffled the order. Bezzecchi and Giannantonio secured their advancement to Q2. Home favourite Moreira ended the session in fourth, meaning, he will be starting from P14.
Luca Marini suffered his second crash of the morning at Turn 4 towards the middle of the session. Meanwhile, Jack Miller crashed at Turn 1—his second fall of the weekend—highlighting just how unforgiving the new venue is. It was a difficult session overall for the three KTMs, save for Pedro Acosta. They languished as the three slowest on the timesheets.
While Q1 was chaotic, Q2 was outright carnage.
Fabio Quartararo and Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP, and Toprak Razgatlıoğlu with Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP put in surprise appearances in Q2. Meanwhile, Bezzecchi entered Qualifying with only 1 bike owing to his late crash in FP2.
The crashes, however, kept coming. Francesco Bagnaia saw his front end wash out at Turn 10 and starts at a disappointing P11. Championship leader, Pedro Acosta went down at Turn 4, putting him in P9. A couple of laps later, Marc Márquez suffered a similar fate at the same corner, eventually ending the session in P3.
Jorge Martin crashed at Turn 6, while Di Giannantonio—already through the wringer in Q1—went down again at Turn 4 after setting the fastest lap of the session, securing Pole. The successive yellows flags impeded several others as lap times were deleted.
In a moment that captured the spirit of the session, Di Giannantonio walked his crashed bike back into parc fermé. It embodied the qualifying session defined by razor-sharp precision and trackside chaos.
A Dramatic Prelude to the Sprint
Several teams have their work cut out for the Sprint, particularly the Ducati Lenovo Team, who have to fix a bike each of both Bagnaia and Márquez. With Di Giannantonio, Bezzecchi and Márquez locking out the front row, the run to Turn 1 is set to be exciting. However, if the sessions so far are anything to go by, the weekend in Brazil is set to spring surprises as riders attempt to navigate the tricky asphalt with high stakes.