Ducati rider Pecco Bagnaia set the best time of the first day in Barcelona, once again demonstrating the competitiveness of his Desmosedici GP24. This performance places Bagnaia in a strong position for this Saturday where he will try to reduce the gap that separates him from Jorge Martin in the championship.
The first day of the Motul Solidaire Barcelona Grand Prix was marked by ideal conditions, with a mild temperature of 16ºC and partly cloudy skies, providing dry conditions for the drivers. After a surprising morning led by
Takaaki Nakagamithe afternoon saw Pecco Bagnaia take back control and set a better time to end the day.
The pilot Ducati posted a time of 1'38.918 during the afternoon session, a performance eight tenths faster than the absolute Montmelò record, set by
Aleix Espargaró during the last Catalan Grand Prix. Bagnaia got the best of its rivals, notably on Marco Bezzecchi (2nd, +0.080) and Aleix Espargaró (3rd, +0.107), the latter signing a solid performance in front of his audience.
Johann Zarco delivered an excellent session, climbing into fourth position, just two tenths behind
Bagnaiawhile Jorge Martinchampionship leader, had to settle for fifth place, at +0.296, after having problems with the choice of tires. Indeed, Martin encountered difficulties in turn 5, which forced him to abandon his fast attempt at the end of the session.
Maverick Viñales finished in sixth position, three tenths behind Bagnaiafollowed by the two Ducati Gresini Racing ofAlex Marquez (7th, +0.377) and Marc Marquez (8th, +0.443), the latter still struggling to adapt to his GP23.
The top 10 was completed by Pedro Acosta (9th, +0.500) and Enea Bastianini (10th, +0.549), who showed that they still had progress to make to regain their usual rhythm.
On the other hand, the day was not favorable for
KTM nor to Yamaha. Chez KTM,
Pedro Acosta was the only one to go directly to Q2, while Jack Miller (11th, +0.570) and
Brad Binder (17th, +1.096) finished far from the top 10. For Yamaha, Fabio Quartararo was unable to maintain its recent rise, settling for 13th place, with Alex Rins just behind him in 14th position.
The day ended with a feeling of uncertainty for many pilots, particularly those of KTM et
Yamaha who will have to give everything from this FP2. The fight for pole position will begin at 10:50 a.m., and at 3:00 p.m. an exciting 12-lap Sprint race will offer Jorge
Martin his first opportunity to win his 2024 world champion title. In the meantime, here is the table which summarizes the facts known so far.
| MotoGP™ Barcelona, Spain | 5-2024 | 11-2024 |
| FP1 | 1’39.579 Jorge Martin (See here) | 1'40.501 Takaaki Nakagami |
| Practice | 1’38.562 Aleix Espargaro (See here) | 1'38.918 Francesco Bagnaia |
| FP2 | 1’39.294 Aleix Espargaro (See here) | 1'40,208 Maverick Viñales |
| Q1 | 1'38.208 Fabio Di Giannantonio (See here) | |
| Q2 | 1’38.190 Aleix Espargaro (See here) | |
| Sprint | Espargaro, Marc Marquez, Acosta (See here) | |
| Warm Up | 1'39.505 Enea Bastianini (See here) | |
| Grand Prix | Bagnaia, Martin, Marc Marquez (See here) | |
| Record | 1’38.190 Aleix Espargaro (See here) |
It's fight day under the Barcelona sun today!!
It's going to be heavy while the paddock is already in turmoil with the FP2 session which is about to begin: make yourself comfortable, fasten your seat belts, takeoff imminent!!
This session will last 30 minutes, let's go!!
RFernandez launches and takes control in 1.40.799s. He was taken by Miller in 1.40.531s then by Vinales in 1.40.246s.
Vinales improved again in 1.40.208s ahead of RFernandez, Morbidelli, Acosta, Miller, AEspargaro, Binder, Martin, Quartararo and Nakagami.
Bagnaia is in the spot… 8th
11min left.. Vinales is in the lead ahead of RFernandez in 1.40.208s, Morbidelli, Acosta, Miller, AEspargaro, Binder, Bagnaia, Martin and Quartararo
With 2 minutes of finishing, the top 10 consisted of Vinales, Morbidelli, AMarquez, RFernandez, Acosta, Nakagami, Miller, MMarquez, AEspargaro, Binder
End of session, Vinales the fastest ahead of Morbidelli and AMarquez
