The ‘starting shot’ has been given for the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix weekend, with the Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli hosting MotoGP activity for the second time in two weeks.
In Free Practice 1 of the premier class, which opened the track activity, the riders were forced to exercise some caution. This is because, unlike two weeks ago, the Misano region is currently facing heavy rain.
Although TL1 was not conducted in the rain, the truth is that the asphalt of the Italian track continued to show compromised grip and was far from ideal, as some areas of the circuit remained wet or damp. In fact, some MotoGP riders opted to start their training this morning with rain tires mounted on their bikes.
However, with no rain affecting the session, the asphalt was positively evolving in terms of grip. A dry and well-defined racing line appeared, and thus Michelin slick tires were the choice for MotoGP riders to achieve their fastest times.
Naturally, the rubber that accumulated on the racing line throughout the morning session led to the fastest lap times being set in the final moments, with various riders significantly climbing the leaderboard of Free Practice 1 of the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix.
As for the Portuguese rider Miguel Oliveira, the Trackhouse Racing pilot positioned himself well ‘within’ the top ten in Misano. The #88 had already indicated that the solutions tested during the Misano test nearly two weeks ago could yield good results this weekend, and his best lap time of 1m32.823s leaves him on the brink of the ‘Top 10’.
Miguel Oliveira thus finished 11th in this session, achieving a time that stands in stark contrast to his time from the same session at the San Marino GP, where he managed 1m33.267s under significantly better track conditions than today.
Regarding the fastest riders on the track, Spanish rider Marc Márquez (Gresini Racing), who won the last two Grands Prix to clearly enter the discussion for the 2024 MotoGP title, kicked off the weekend with a lap time of 1m32.082s.
The Spaniard beat fellow countryman Jorge Martin (Prima Pramac Ducati), with the third fastest time on track belonging to the ‘reborn’ Franco Morbidelli (Prima Pramac Ducati), who in a final effort set a time that knocked Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team) down to 4th position.
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Results of MotoGP Free Practice 1 of the Emilia Romagna GP
1 – Marc Márquez (Gresini Racing) – 1m32.082s
2 – Jorge Martin (Prima Pramac Ducati) – 1m32.145s
3 – Franco Morbidelli (Prima Pramac Ducati) – 1m32.268s
4 – Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team) – 1m32.373s
5 – Maverick Viñales (Aprilia Racing) – 1m32.491s
6 – Alex Márquez (Gresini Racing) – 1m32.546s
7 – Pedro Acosta (Red Bull GasGas Tech3) – 1m32.618s
8 – Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Factory) – 1m32.654s
9 – Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha) – 1m32.741s
10 – Jack Miller (Red Bull KTM Factory) – 1m32.748s
11 – Miguel Oliveira (Trackhouse Racing) – 1m32.823s
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