Indonesian MotoGP, Mandalika - Friday Practice Results

Friday practice results from the Indonesian MotoGP at Mandalika, round 15 of 20 in the 2023 world championship.
Aleix Espargaro, Indonesian MotoGP 13 October
Aleix Espargaro, Indonesian MotoGP 13 October
2023 Indonesian MotoGP, Mandalika - Practice (2) Results
PosRiderNatTeamTime/DiffLapMax
1Aleix EspargaroSPAAprilia Racing (RS-GP23)1'30.474s22/23314k
2Maverick ViñalesSPAAprilia Racing (RS-GP23)+0.154s25/25313k
3Marco BezzecchiITAMooney VR46 Ducati (GP22)+0.170s20/25314k
4Brad BinderRSARed Bull KTM (RC16)+0.288s17/19314k
5Jorge MartinSPAPramac Ducati (GP23)+0.400s25/27312k
6Marc MarquezSPARepsol Honda (RC213V)+0.632s24/26312k
7Miguel OliveiraPORRNF Aprilia (RS-GP22)+0.725s26/26312k
8Fabio Di GiannantonioITAGresini Ducati (GP22)+0.733s20/22308k
9Jack MillerAUSRed Bull KTM (RC16)+0.742s20/22313k
10Fabio QuartararoFRAMonster Yamaha (YZR-M1)+0.755s21/26312k
11Pol EspargaroSPATech3 GASGAS (RC16)+0.802s22/23313k
12Luca MariniITAMooney VR46 Ducati (GP22)+0.893s20/20311k
13Johann ZarcoFRAPramac Ducati (GP23)+0.983s24/24313k
14Raul FernandezSPARNF Aprilia (RS-GP22)+1.026s25/25311k
15Franco MorbidelliITAMonster Yamaha (YZR-M1)+1.087s21/23311k
16Francesco BagnaiaITADucati Lenovo (GP23)+1.161s18/23314k
17Takaaki NakagamiJPNLCR Honda (RC213V)+1.181s23/27309k
18Augusto FernandezSPATech3 GASGAS (RC16)*+1.332s21/23310k
19Joan MirSPARepsol Honda (RC213V)+1.653s14/21312k
20Enea BastianiniITADucati Lenovo (GP23)+1.734s19/20309k
21Alex RinsSPALCR Honda (RC213V)+1.952s12/20309k

*Rookie.

Official Mandalika MotoGP records
Best lap: Fabio Quartararo 1m 31.067s (2022)
Fastest race lap: Jack Miller 1m 45.198s (2022)

Factory Aprilia duo Aleix Espargaro and Maverick Vinales dominate Friday practice for the 2023 Indonesian MotoGP, setting new Mandalika lap records.

But title leader Francesco Bagnaia missed out on the top ten, sending him into Saturday's Qualifying 1.

Bagnaia looked agitated on several occasions, including holding his arms wide open as he walked into the factory Ducati garage early on, and missed out on his final chance of a direct Qualifying 2 place when the rear of his Desmosedici stepped out.

By contrast, there was a round of applause for VR46 Ducati's Marco Bezzecchi, who was third fastest despite undergoing collarbone surgery just five days ago.

Bagnaia's closest title rival Jorge Martin was a safe fifth for Pramac Ducati.

Vinales and team-mate Espargaro exchanged places at the top of the timesheets for much of the hour as the RS-GP's low grip prowess - highlighted last month in Catalunya - continued.

The Aprilias were then among the first to fit new soft rubber for time attacks, extending their advantage even further, until Espargaro fell at Turn 10 while on course to set a new lap record.

Vinales duly beat the 2022 record shortly after. However it was to be a brief reign with the injured Bezzecchi, who only arrived at the track this morning, rocketing from 11th to 1st!

But Espargaro wasn't done, dusting himself off to set a 1m 30.474s, 0.170s under Bezzecchi's best, with Vinales then getting within 0.154s of his team-mate.

The final minutes had seen the likes of Marc Marquez and Brad Binder outside the top ten. Binder soon removed the pressure with what became fourth place, while team-mate Jack Miller fell for a second time in the hour but held onto the top ten.

The yellow flags for Miller piled pressure on Bagnaia, who had just one more chance to avoid Qualifying 1. But that lap ended with the off-throttle slide, leaving Bagnaia in just 16th place.

It was an eventful opening 15 minutes for KTM/GASGAS with Binder and Augusto Fernandez suffering synchronised falls at Turn 11. Binder's bike took down Fernandez who had run wide just ahead of him. Miller was then sent sliding off at high speed after catching a slow-moving Enea Bastianini (with his hand in the air) on the racing line.

Bastianini later crashed out on his own, leaving him at the tail end of the timesheets, ahead of only Alex Rins.

Bezzecchi had been passed fit to ride for the remainder of the weekend despite a fast fall at the end of FP1.

However, Alex Marquez abandoned his return from rib injuries after FP1, due to the pain. 

2023 Indonesian MotoGP, Mandalika - Practice (1) Results
PosRiderNatTeamTime/DiffLapMax
1Jorge MartinSPAPramac Ducati (GP23)1'31.811s20/21313k
2Maverick ViñalesSPAAprilia Racing (RS-GP23)+0.102s21/21309k
3Aleix EspargaroSPAAprilia Racing (RS-GP23)+0.536s15/20311k
4Franco MorbidelliITAMonster Yamaha (YZR-M1)+0.730s22/22309k
5Marco BezzecchiITAMooney VR46 Ducati (GP22)+0.741s18/18308k
6Francesco BagnaiaITADucati Lenovo (GP23)+0.759s13/20310k
7Jack MillerAUSRed Bull KTM (RC16)+0.835s21/21312k
8Brad BinderRSARed Bull KTM (RC16)+0.857s17/17311k
9Enea BastianiniITADucati Lenovo (GP23)+0.952s18/19307k
10Luca MariniITAMooney VR46 Ducati (GP22)+1.000s13/19307k
11Fabio Di GiannantonioITAGresini Ducati (GP22)+1.040s13/20305k
12Fabio QuartararoFRAMonster Yamaha (YZR-M1)+1.057s11/19310k
13Takaaki NakagamiJPNLCR Honda (RC213V)+1.067s20/20309k
14Marc MarquezSPARepsol Honda (RC213V)+1.082s15/22311k
15Johann ZarcoFRAPramac Ducati (GP23)+1.290s19/19310k
16Augusto FernandezSPATech3 GASGAS (RC16)*+1.328s20/20308k
17Raul FernandezSPARNF Aprilia (RS-GP22)+1.437s15/19307k
18Joan MirSPARepsol Honda (RC213V)+1.620s14/19311k
19Miguel OliveiraPORRNF Aprilia (RS-GP22)+1.636s14/15309k
20Alex MarquezSPAGresini Ducati (GP22)+1.745s11/13309k
21Alex RinsSPALCR Honda (RC213V)+1.849s17/18306k
22Pol EspargaroSPATech3 GASGAS (RC16)+2.736s8/18308k

*Rookie.

Official Mandalika MotoGP records
Best lap: Fabio Quartararo 1m 31.067s (2022)
Fastest race lap: Jack Miller 1m 45.198s (2022)

Title contender Jorge Martin gets the better of factory Aprilia riders Maverick Vinales and Aleix Espargaro on his penultimate lap to lead opening practice for the 2023 Indonesian MotoGP at a slippery Mandalika.

Marco Bezzecchi, riding just five days after surgery on a fractured collarbone, only arrived at Mandalika this morning. The Italian completed 18 laps and stunned by breaking into the top four late in the session - but then fell at high speed. 

Fortunately, the Italian did not appear to redamage his collarbone. Bezzecchi was already set to be reviewed by doctors after the session.

The dusty track surface had caught out Moto3 title leader Jaume Masia and Moto2 leader Pedro Acosta in their opening practice sessions, with Miguel Oliveira the first MotoGP faller of the weekend, after 15mins.

Marc Marquez, who suffered a massive highside that ruled him out of last year's race and caused another episode of diplopia, saved a near highside as the rear of his Repsol Honda slid out on corner entry.

Younger brother Alex and Yamaha's Fabio Quartararo later suffered similar scares before Alex, returning from rib fractures in India, crashed at Turn 1 and then Bezzecchi at Turn 11.

Reigning MotoGP champion Francesco Bagnaia is just 3 points clear of a charging Jorge Martin heading into the final six rounds of the season.

Martin has outscored Bagnaia for the past seven races in a row heading into Mandalika, where Miguel Oliveira took a wet victory in the inaugural 2022 event.

The circuit has been resurfaced (again) since last year’s race. There has been no prior MotoGP testing on the latest asphalt, while the extreme temperatures mean Michelin brings special heat-resistant stiffer construction rear tyres (as well as for the hard front).

Having slipped 54 points from Bagnaia, Marco Bezzecchi’s title hopes took another blow when he fractured his collarbone in a training accident last weekend, the same injury suffered by team-mate Luca Marini when he hit the back of Bezzecchi at the start of the Indian Sprint.

Undergoing surgery on Sunday, Bezzecchi aims to join Marini in being back on track this weekend but will need to pass a second medical check after FP1.

Also attempting comebacks are LCR Honda’s Alex Rins (broken leg at Mugello), Lenovo Ducati’s Enea Bastianini (hand and ankle injuries at Catalunya) and Gresini Ducati’s Alex Marquez (fractured ribs in India).

Marini and Bastianini both have a long lap penalty waiting to be served, for causing accidents.

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