2024 San Marino MotoGP: Martin pips Marquez in FP1
Championship leader Martin tops firs﷽t Misano practice
MotoGP championship leader Jorge Martin led Marc Marquez in the first practice session for the San Marino Grand Prix, while an inj😼ured Francesco Bagnaia was eighth.
Pramac rider Martin comes into this weekend’s 13th round of t🌞he season 23 po𒆙ints clear of Bagnaia and kicked off Friday in strong form.
The 2023 San Marino GP winner topped the order with a 1m💫31.707s, though was only 0.0🥃37s clear of Marc Marquez.
KTM wildcar🔴d Pol Espargaro completed the top three as he makes his third appearance of the season, while former Misano race winners Franco Morbidelli (Pramac Ducati) and Fab▨io Quartararo (Yamaha) rounded out the top five.
Conditions wer𝕴e perfect for the start of the 45-minute FP1 at Misano on Friday morning, with top spot changing 💝hands frequently inside the opening moments of the session.
After 15 mi𒆙nutes of running, Marc Marque﷽z led the way with a 1m32.077s on his Gresini Ducati.
The Aragon GP winner looked to kick off the Misano weekend wi💧th the same feeling on his bike that he had in Austria - and that seems to be the case at this early stage of the roun✃d.
Marquez’s lap stood as the benchmark until just under 20 minutes to go, when Martin took over with a 1m3ꦬ2.030s.
This began a run of three strai♊ght session-best laps for the Pramac Ducati rider, with the best a 1m31.707s.
This would keep him top of the order through to the chequered flag, tho𒀰ugh Marquez would come close to dethroning him with a 1m31.744s.
Completing the top three was Espargaro on the experimental RC16 KTM he rode at the Red Bull Ring in August. He posted a 1m31.920s, placing him ahead of Morbidelli and Q🍸uartararo.
Quartararo enjoyed a strong morning on the Yamaha, having recently tested at Misano as the Japanese marque looks to boost itself up the gr﷽id and improve its troubled M1.
Aleix Espargaro was sixth on the first of the Aprilias, with Brad Binder (KTM) 0.03𒀰7s adrift in seventh.
Bagnaia, carrying some minor injuries from hi♓s Aragon GP tangle with Alex Marquez, made a steady start to the weekend in FP1 and was eighth on his factory Ducati - 0.462s off the pace.
Maverick Vin📖ales (Aprilia) and Pedro Acosta (Tech3 GASGAS) rounded out the top 10.
Former San Marino GP Moto3 winner Enea Bastianini was 12th on the sister factory team Ducati, while Johann Zarco led the Honda charge in 14th for LCR🐬.
Factory Honda rider Joan Mir was absent from FP1 and will miss the second session due🎉 to illness.
St💙efan Bradl, HRC’s wildcard this weeke༺nd, was 23rd on the development RC213V.
There were no crashes in FP1.
