Welcome to the Portuguese Grand Prix: A Dusty Start to the Weekend
The Portuguese Grand Prix kicked off with a challenging start as heavy overnight rain left the circuit covered in sand and dust. The first Moto3 practice was red-flagged and eventually cancelled due to the unsafe conditions. However, things improved enough for the Moto2 and MotoGP classes to take to the track.
Despite the improved conditions, lap times were over three seconds slower than the lap record from last year, making for a largely unrepresentative session. However, this did not stop Marc Marquez from setting the pace on his Gresini-run GP23, with a time of 1m40.484s on his final flying lap.
The eight-time grand prix world champion, who is still adapting to the Ducati after his solid debut two weeks ago, admitted that he would be “starting from zero” again this weekend. But that didn’t stop him from leading the way, 0.165 seconds ahead of Aprilia’s Maverick Vinales, who is battling a mild illness.
The factory KTM duo of Brad Binder and Jack Miller followed closely in third and fourth, while Pramac’s Franco Morbidelli completed the top five. Miller initially set the pace with a 1m46.870s, but as the riders swept the dust off the racing line, lap times began to fall.
Marquez’s time of 1m40.484s remained the fastest of the session, with last year’s pole time set by the Spaniard on a Honda at 1m37.226s. Binder looked like he would end FP1 on top, but was ultimately pushed down to third by Marquez and Vinales.
Morbidelli, who suffered a nasty accident during a training session at this circuit, completed the most laps of any rider at 21. He was closely followed by his Pramac teammate Jorge Martin, with Alex Rins in seventh for Yamaha.
Honda came to Portugal with some new items to try, following a private test earlier this week at Jerez with Luca Marini and recent running by Stefan Bradl at the Algarve circuit. Championship leader Francesco Bagnaia finished 13th on his factory Ducati, while rookie sensation Pedro Acosta finished 15th on his Tech3 GasGas.
As the first practice session came to an end, it was clear that the dusty conditions had made for a challenging start to the weekend. But with more track time and improved conditions expected for the rest of the weekend, it’s anyone’s game for the Portuguese Grand Prix.
FP1 Results:
- Marc Marquez – Gresini Ducati – 1m40.484s
- Maverick Vinales – Aprilia – 1m40.649s
- Brad Binder – KTM – 1m40.689s
- Jack Miller – KTM – 1m40.870s
- Franco Morbidelli – Pramac Ducati – 1m40.915s
- Jorge Martin – Pramac Ducati – 1m40.960s
- Alex Rins – Yamaha – 1m41.026s
- Miguel Oliveira – Trackhouse Aprilia – 1m41.045s
- Alex Marquez – Gresini Ducati – 1m41.065s
- Joan Mir – Honda – 1m41.089s
Stay tuned for more updates and analysis from Kosport Magazine as the action continues at the Portuguese Grand Prix.
