MotoGP

Aprilia 1-2 again in MotoGP practice amid Honda/Yamaha disaster

by Valentin Khorounzhiy
3 min read

Aleix Espargaro led another Aprilia 1-2 in the second MotoGP practice session of the Barcelona weekend, as the Japanese bikes locked out the bottom six.

Key moments:

> Espargaro sets new lap record

> Two Aprilias, seven Ducatis and one KTM head straight to Q2

> Yamaha and Honda in strife

After topping the opening session, Espargaro – who along with brother Pol hails from the nearby Granollers – surpassed his own pole time from last year in the second practice, therefore recording the new lap record.

He was the only rider in the 1m38s range, with team-mate Maverick Vinales 0.362s off in second place and championship leader Pecco Bagnaia close behind Vinales in third.

Brad Binder was fifth for KTM – a somewhat remarkable result, given the rest of the top 10 was locked out by Ducatis.

Gresini’s Alex Marquez was sixth, followed by VR46 Ducati rider Marco Bezzecchi and Marquez’s team-mate Fabio Di Giannantonio, the Italian – thought to be on his way out of MotoGP – guaranteeing his first Q2 appearance of the season.

Factory rider Enea Bastianini and Pramac rider Jorge Martin completed the top 10, Martin just seeing off the KTM RC16s of Pol Espargaro and Jack Miller for that final Q2 spot of those available on Friday.

Despite the Aprilia 1-2, its 2022-spec bikes didn’t make the Q2 cut, with 13th-placed Raul Fernandez – who had a Turn 12 tip-off earlier in the session – just ahead of RNF Aprilia team-mate Miguel Oliveira.

Luca Marini was the only Ducati rider to miss out on a direct pathway to Q2, and this was because of a technical issue on his final push lap, which left him stranded mid-circuit and also brought out yellow flags that hindered others.

But it was overall a dreadful showing for MotoGP’s Japanese brands Yamaha and Honda.

Fabio Quartararo looked despondent on the Yamaha M1 as he led the marque’s efforts in 17th, at a track he has historically excelled at.

And Marc Marquez, who had crashed in the morning, was top Honda in 19th.

Practice 2 Results

Pos Name Team Bike Gap Next Gap Leader Best Time
1 Aleix Espargaró Aprilia Racing Aprilia 1m38.686s
2 Maverick Viñales Aprilia Racing Aprilia +0.362s +0.362s 1m39.048s
3 Francesco Bagnaia Ducati Lenovo Team Ducati +0.013s +0.375s 1m39.061s
4 Johann Zarco Prima Pramac Racing Ducati +0.196s +0.571s 1m39.257s
5 Brad Binder Red Bull KTM Factory Racing KTM +0.089s +0.66s 1m39.346s
6 Alex Marquez Gresini Racing MotoGP Ducati +0.203s +0.863s 1m39.549s
7 Marco Bezzecchi Mooney VR46 Racing Team Ducati +0.001s +0.864s 1m39.55s
8 Fabio Di Giannantonio Gresini Racing MotoGP Ducati +0.071s +0.935s 1m39.621s
9 Enea Bastianini Ducati Lenovo Team Ducati +0.007s +0.942s 1m39.628s
10 Jorge Martin Prima Pramac Racing Ducati +0.065s +1.007s 1m39.693s
11 Pol Espargaró GASGAS Factory Racing Tech3 KTM +0.028s +1.035s 1m39.721s
12 Jack Miller Red Bull KTM Factory Racing KTM +0.031s +1.066s 1m39.752s
13 Raul Fernandez CryptoDATA RNF MotoGP Team Aprilia +0.005s +1.071s 1m39.757s
14 Miguel Oliveira CryptoDATA RNF MotoGP Team Aprilia +0.022s +1.093s 1m39.779s
15 Luca Marini Mooney VR46 Racing Team Ducati +0.028s +1.121s 1m39.807s
16 Augusto Fernandez GASGAS Factory Racing Tech3 KTM +0.084s +1.205s 1m39.891s
17 Fabio Quartararo Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Yamaha +0.215s +1.42s 1m40.106s
18 Franco Morbidelli Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Yamaha +0.049s +1.469s 1m40.155s
19 Marc Marquez Repsol Honda Team Honda +0.094s +1.563s 1m40.249s
20 Takaaki Nakagami LCR Honda IDEMITSU Honda +0.637s +2.2s 1m40.886s
21 Iker Lecuona LCR Honda CASTROL Honda +0.009s +2.209s 1m40.895s
22 Joan Mir Repsol Honda Team Honda +0.118s +2.327s 1m41.013s
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