Huge qualifying round up from Portimao MotoGP | Quotes from all riders

MotoGP 2022 – Round Five – Portimao
Grande Prémio Tissot de Portugal

Johann Zarco – P1

“I am pretty happy. I didn’t expect something as good as this. It was tricky this afternoon with patches on the track. In FP4 it was clearly wet tyres but I was starting to wonder. I was pretty happy to go straight to Q2 because we saw in Q1 that the choice was difficult. They only got the slick working in the last minute, which is tough for the nerves. I could analyse Q1 well and then for Q2 the best strategy was to stay out with the same tyres and try to gain confidence. On the last lap, it then worked well for me.”

Joan Mir – P2

“I’m happy to be on the front row, and it just goes to show how we’re improving and making steps all the time. I’m very pleased about this, because I know that when we make steps forward we don’t fall back again – we continue moving in the right direction. My confidence is growing, which I think was noticeable during qualifying when I took the risk to push for the front row despite the conditions. The front row is a great thing, but the fact that I have a good feeling with the bike is an even better thing.”

Aleix Espargaró – P3

“I’m really happy, because these conditions are always difficult for me and I was also a bit worried about the many crashes we saw, especially thinking that we are only in the fifth race. So I entered calmly, wanting to use the first few minutes to understand The track is good and then push. For tomorrow we see, first of all, the weather. I was competitive in the rain, hitting the top ten, and I feel even more confident if it were dry, I am OK with the bike and with the conditions right we can fight for the podium”.

Jack Miller – P4

“First job is done for the weekend as we did a good qualifying. With the slick tyres, I was able to be fast right from the start, but on the last lap, I made a mistake in Turn 1, and I couldn’t improve further. Anyway, I am satisfied: fourth place and the second row are good places to start the race tomorrow. In the dry, the bike works well even though we haven’t had any dry sessions to work on it. If the conditions remain as they are, tomorrow morning’s warm-up will be crucial for the final touches before the race”.

Fabio Quartararo – P5

“I’m super happy today. I already said yesterday that the position was bad, but we noticed an improvement. This morning in the wet, we finished less than 0.1s behind first place, and in FP4 in mixed conditions we finished fifth. Half-half conditions with slicks, like in today’s qualifying, are the worst for me. Like I think for anyone in Q2, they cancelled my last lap, but that’s not the biggest pity. I missed the opportunity to do another lap by 2s. I took the chequered flag, and that was a real shame, but I’m super happy. If you had told me before Q2 that I would be on the second row, I would have signed for it, so I’m happy.”

Marco Bezzecchi – P6

“I am really happy with the qualifying and the feeling both in the wet and mixed conditions, one of mine characteristics from the lower classes. A pity the crash this morning, I was a bit above the limit. The Team did a great job, having Vale in the garage gave me an extra motivation and we can make a final step on the data to be competitive even in the dry.”

Álex Márquez – P7

“Second day here in Portimao, in the morning I made a mistake (in FP3) so we weren’t able to be in Q2 directly as we had a small crash. Nonetheless, we were able to turn around the situation quite quickly and I was feeling really good at the end of FP3 and also during FP4 in mixed conditions. Qualy was difficult, but I put on slick tyres and wet tyres at the right moments. The team helped me a lot to make those decisions, it was perfect. I’m really happy about our day, it was the best qualy of the season, tomorrow will be a completely different day as it’s expected to be full dry. So, we’ll need to be really focused in the warm-up to take a good step there but we’ll be ready for the race. I want to thank everyone for the birthday wishes!”

Luca Marini – P8

“What a risk in Q1 with the slick tires even if for me it has always been the right choice. It wasn’t easy, but lap by lap, the confidence in riding was better. I warmed up well the tires and tried to do my best in the last lap. I’m happy with the Q2 in any case, even if I expected to start a few positions ahead. We will continue to work in this direction: the key to the race will be the warm up to set the electronics and tires. What a great pleasure having Vale in the garage: his experience is unique.”

Marc Marquez – P9

“Today we were unlucky with the yellow flag, I was waiting until the last moments to push and do my fastest lap because I knew that the track would keep improving. But these things can happen, today it impacted my lap time but tomorrow it could affect another rider. The most important point is that the speed is there even if the result was not and we start ninth. Of course, it’s not what we would like but it could be worse. Tomorrow in Warm Up we need to understand the level and try to understand tyre choice, setup and a few other things. No one really knows who is fastest or what will happen in the dry.”

Pol Espargaro – P10

“It was a difficult situation for everyone, but I think we had good speed today and I think our position was on the second row, maybe in fourth or fifth. I made a mistake in the last corner, and I went over a wet patch and lost the front right at the end. It’s a pity because we were getting faster, and the conditions were improving and then I missed the last chance where all the other riders improved. We had a real opportunity to be on the second row tomorrow, but we missed it, tomorrow is the race and all we can do is go for it. The bike is feeling good and tomorrow morning we have an opportunity to keep working on it before the race.”

Miguel Oliveira – P11

“Changing conditions today and we were strong in every type we found. In qualifying I was feeling good but had a small technical issue halfway through. Anyway, on a changing track it was important to stay on the bike and guarantee the best starting place for tomorrow. It will be all about the warm-up and trying to understand the needs for the conditions and then just ‘go’. I don’t think we will have the perfect bike set-up but then nobody else will either.”

Brad Binder – P12

“Today wasn’t so bad. FP3 was good and it was nice to go straight through to Q2. It was clear that it was going to dry up after FP4. It was crazy to watch Q1 with all the crashes and the guys on slicks not making it around the first time! I was a little bit nervous going out for Q2 on slicks straightaway but it was definitely a good decision even if it was a terrible session for me. I made two mistakes on two laps before the end and my last lap was yellow-flagged. It did not work out too well for me. So 12th for tomorrow and it could have been better but hopefully we’ll make a strong start and try to fight with the boys.”

Jorge Martin – P13

“It’s not the result I was hoping for, I’m sure I have the pace to do better but the asphalt was drying during Q1 and I couldn’t do what I wanted. However, I remain confident for tomorrow and with a great desire to do well.”

Maverick Viñales – P14

“These were difficult conditions and the main problem was in FP3, when I was unable to push hard enough to go straight through to Q2 and that was after we had consistently been with the leaders in all the previous sessions. But the race is tomorrow and now what counts is doing a good warm-up session, pushing as hard as possible, and being fast in what will be an extremely long race.”

Fabio Di Giannantonio – P15

“We saved the day because I honestly don’t find myself in the wet at all and between yesterday and today we weren’t able to improve my feeling also due to constantly changing conditions. In qualifying we had to make a clear choice, conservative with the wet tire or try the slick tire and in the end we were rewarded. We hope to race in dry conditions tomorrow, even if never having raced here with a motogp will still be an adventure”.

Andrea Dovizioso – P16

“It has been another very difficult day from the morning. On the wet, I struggle a bit and in the afternoon the conditions have been very strange. At the end, I did a good lap time with the rain tyres in Q1, but the best tyre in that moment was the slick. I didn’t feel confident enough to put that on, it was about one lap. Some riders took the risk and it was the right decision. Unfortunately, I ended up in 16th, but my Qualifying one was pretty ok.”

Takaaki Nakagami – P17

“It was a tough day today as the weather was really unstable. In FP3 and FP4 it was wet conditions, but in Q1 it was a little bit mixed. We had decided to go straight on the slick tyre from the beginning of the session to stay on the track but it was too risky to stay on the slick tyre so we changed to the rain tyre during the session. Unfortunately, I got the timing wrong. To be honest, I’m disappointed that we couldn’t go to Q2. Anyway, tomorrow will be a dry race and we’ll be prepared.”

Enea Bastianni – P18

“We took a hard hit and it’s a shame. We entered with the idea of ​​doing a lap time with the wet tire and we succeeded. Then I saw that the track was improving and I decided to try the slicks. I wasn’t able to get them up to temperature and on the last lap I was pushing hard enough, but I exaggerated. My right wrist hurts quite a bit, nothing is broken I’m sure. So tomorrow we attack”.

Franco Morbidelli – P19

“I’m a bit upset about today. Because due to small details we didn’t put our full potential out on track at the right time, which is qualifying. Our potential was more than 19th. Anyway, we move forward. First of all, we will see if tomorrow’s race is a dry session. And if so, we will try to keep going with our process and try to confirm the good feeling that I had in some moments of some sessions also on the dry.”

Remy Gardner – P20

“I think that we made the right decision to go out with slick tyres today even if I ended up crashing in turn 9. The best way to learn about the tyres’ behaviour is to push and test the limits, and this is what I did today. I have had worst crashes, I will probably feel a bit sore tomorrow morning when I wake up, but I am feeling ok overall. Tomorrow will be tough because it should be a dry day, and we have not ridden at all on the dry. I was looking forward to trying Portimao on a dry track, so we will see tomorrow at the warm up before the race.”

Lorenzo Savadori – P21

“I’m actually not super happy because I was only able to do one lap on slicks and in these conditions I felt like I really could have aimed for the top positions. But I have to thank everyone on my team who, on our first race, had to tackle extremely difficult conditions. We’re here, above all, to further the development of the bike and, thanks to Aprilia Racing, we are getting lots of upgrades and new features to test in the race.”

Darryn Binder – P22

“It’s been a very difficult day with tricky conditions. I felt like I improved a little bit in the wet this morning, but then unfortunately, I had a little crash. The Qualifying was drying up the track slowly, some guys put slicks on in the end. I stayed out on the wets to play it safe. Slowly, but surely I’m learning a lot on how the bike works in all the different conditions. I feel like I learned quite a bit in Qualifying today, but I’m a bit disappointed with the final result.”

Alex Rins – P23

“I didn’t make the best decision in Q1 because I started on wets and then I decided to come in and switch to slicks, but when I was on the out-lap I suffered a lot and lost the rear many times, so I came in again. Because I went back into the box to change, I ran out of time and only had one fast lap left – that lap was under a yellow flag. It was a shame because my last flying lap was actually pretty fast, but it was cancelled of course. I was glad in the end though, because compared to yesterday my feeling was much better. I’m actually looking forward to the race and I’m quite optimistic, it won’t be easy from that grid spot, but I will be ready for it.”

Raul Fernandez – P24

“The day started well as I did a good Free Practice 3 session. I was quite fast and had a good feeling on the bike. For qualifying, we had difficult conditions and we chose the slick tyres. I ended up making up a mistake and hurt myself a bit. I will get some rest this evening, the most important is to be fit for Sunday and try to do the race.”

Saturday Qualifying Report

With great risk often comes great reward is an adage all 12 MotoGP riders in Q2 were following as they tackled a patchy Algarve International Circuit with slick tyres. In a thrilling final 30 seconds that saw four riders provisionally sitting at the top of the pile, pole position, in the end, went the way of the final man to cross the line: experienced Frenchman Johann Zarco (Pramac Racing). The 31-year-old denied Team Suzuki Ecstar’s Joan Mir a debut MotoGP pole seconds after Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia Racing) had sneaked his way onto the front row.

It was no surprise that the early pacesetting was done by the Q1 graduates Alex Marquez (LCR Castrol Honda) and Luca Marini (Mooney VR46 Racing), as the pair put their track knowledge to brilliant use. But as the other ten riders got up to speed, and the track dried out further, the pace began to heat up. Three minutes were left when Zarco hit the top for the first time, but he was displaced just 30 seconds later by factory Suzuki’s Mir.

With the clock now ticking down to just 90 seconds and the final flying laps being lined up, Ducati Lenovo Team’s Jack Miller joined the party. The conditions were perfect for the Australian as he eyed a first pole position since Argentina 2018 in a similar situation. Then another man who these conditions usually suit went red through the first sector.

Repsol Honda’s Marc Marquez was flying and on course to take provisional pole at the most opportune moment before his teammate Pol Espargaro went down at the final corner bringing out the yellow flags. Marquez went fastest, with World Champion Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha) going second, but both laps were swiftly cancelled due to Espargaro’s off.

It meant Miller still held pole but he was usurped, with the chequered flag now out, by Mir as he cashed in on the yellow flags being rescinded at the final corner. The 2020 World Champion’s dreams of a career-first premier class pole were dashed within seconds with Zarco’s final flying lap of 1:42.003 good enough for a first pole since last year’s German Grand Prix. No sour grapes from Mir, though, due to second place being his best-ever result in a MotoGP™ qualifying session.

Despite sitting pretty at the top of the timesheets with the chequered flag out, Miller didn’t even manage to hold on to a front row spot with Aleix Espargaro sneaking third whilst all eyes were on Zarco’s charge for pole. The Australian will be joined on row two of the grid by World Champion Fabio Quartararo, who recovered well from an early scare on a damp patch, and rookie Marco Bezzecchi, who put a big smile on the face of his trackside team owner Valentino Rossi.

Despite doing the early running, Alex Marquez and Luca Marini eventually slipped back to seventh and eighth. Marc Marquez, meanwhile, will feel he deserved more than ninth after that late lap cancellation. Pol Espargaro last corner crash saw him end up tenth on the grid ahead of a slightly underwhelming pair of KTMs in Miguel Oliveira and Brad Binder. The duo have looked competitive all weekend but never looked like challenging in Q2.

Remy Gardner qualified in P20.

If the sun shines on Sunday then it truly is anyone’s guess who will take glory in Portimao after one of the most challenging weekends in recent memory. The only thing that is guaranteed is drama.

MotoGP Championship Points Standings

Moto2

FlexBox HP40’s Aron Canet clinched his second Moto2 pole in fine style as the intermediate class enjoyed a dry track for the first time at the Tissot Grand Prix of Portugal. The Spaniard’s 1:44.151 saw him take control of Q2 halfway through and, despite the best efforts of Cameron Beaubier (American Racing) and Jake Dixon (Autosolar GasGas Aspar Team) at the very end, he comfortably held on for a first pole since the 2019 Aragon Grand Prix.

Five minutes remained on the clock when Canet made his move for top spot, jumping ahead of victor last time out in Austin and Q1 graduate Tony Arbolino (Elf Marc VDS Racing). The chequered flag was out before anyone looked like challenging the mustachioed rider with that challenge coming courtesy of America’s Beaubier. The number six’s 1:44.479 fell short of Canet’s impressive lap but it was enough for another front row start just two weeks on from his emotional debut pole on home soil.

Dixon was then throwing everything at it, both the front and rear tyre moving beneath him. He came across the line and stole the final place on the front row, pushing Arbolino back to fourth. A late lap from Augusto Fernandez (Red Bull KTM Ajo) saw him take fifth on the grid where he’ll line-up alongside former teammate Sam Lowes (Elf Marc VDS Racing).

We’ll have a pair of Idemitsu Honda Team Asia machines at the front of row three with Ai Ogura and Somkiat Chantra set to fire from seventh and eighth on the grid. Three quarters of a second back in ninth was Italtrans Racing’s Joe Roberts. Row four of the grid for Sunday’s race will comprise of Albert Arenas (Autosolar GasGas Aspar Team), Jorge Navarro (FlexBox HP40) and Marcel Schrötter (Liqui Moly Intact GP).

Moto2 Championship Standings

Moto3

Red Bull KTM Tech3’s Deniz Öncü sprinkled some Turkish delight across the Tissot Grand Prix of Portugal by timing his final flying lap perfectly to snatch a second career pole position. Having come through a wet Q1 earlier, the Turk made the most of improving track conditions to take top spot as the chequered flag came out and, in doing so, denied both Mario Aji (Honda Team Asia) and Lorenzo Fellon (SIC58 Squadra Corse) debut poles.

Öncü, Aji and Fellon took turns at leading Q2 throughout the course of the damp 15-minute session, swapping and changing lap after lap. But it was VisionTrack Racing’s Scott Ogden who sat at the top of the timesheets as the clock ticked to zero. However, in double heartbreak, the Brit’s lap was cancelled for yellow flags and Öncü then went fastest with a 2:03.955.

Indonesia’s Aji looked to threaten Öncü for pole moments later, but he fell short by just 0.017 seconds and was forced to settle for a second front row start of his rookie season. The pair will be joined there by Frenchman Lorenzo Fellon, who clinched a debut front row start just two weeks on from his first World Championship points.

Fronting the second row of the grid will CFMoto PruestelGP’s Carlos Tatay, followed by Leopard Racing’s Tatsuki Suzuki and Valresa GasGas Aspar’s Sergio Garcia. The man sat second in the Championship salvaged a second row start despite crashing an incredible three times during Q2.

SIC58 Squadra Corse’s Riccardo Rossi ended up seventh on the grid, over a second adrift of Öncü. The Italian will line-up one place ahead of Ogden, who, despite claiming a career-best result, will no doubt be frustrated after showcasing pace good enough for the front row. Joining the pair on row three will be Valresa GASGAS Aspar Team’s Izan Guevara.

Row four of the grid will see three big-hitters in the form of Sterilgarda Max Racing Team’s Ayumu Sasaki, Qatar Grand Prix winner Andrea Migno (Rivacold Snipers Team) and the World Championship leader Dennis Foggia (Leopard Racing), after he battled his way out Q1.

Australian Joel Kelso qualified in P22 heading into Sunday.

Joel Kelso – P22

“Not our day… We are unfortunately going through a period where we are struggling. Today, with the tricky conditions we just couldn’t find a way to get a good result. We are staying positive for tomorrow which looking at the weather forecast could mean a dry track. I am keeping my head up high and we will just keep chipping away at it. Thank you to everyone for the continued support.”

With the rain set to finally stay clear of the Algarve International Circuit on race day, it will be a total lottery once the lights go out for Round 5 of the Moto3 World Championship at 11:20 local time (GMT+1).

Moto3 Championship Points Standings

2022 MotoGP Calendar

2022 Grande Prémio Tissot de Portugal Schedule