A new all-time lap record from Martin sees him take pole from Bastianini and Marquez, with Bagnaia ninth and Quartararo 12th with a broken finger.
Cometh the hour, cometh the drama! As #MatchPointPecco gets in gear, there was plenty to talk about on Saturday. On pole it’s Jorge Martin (Prima Pramac Racing) as the Spaniard set a new lap record and scorched round Sepang with the first – and only – 1:57 ever. Enea Bastianini (Gresini Racing MotoGP™) is second but a whopping 0.456 back, with Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team) completing the front row. So where are the top two title contenders?
The drama began in the morning as Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team) failed to make it into Q2 and crashed. It continued for the Championship leader as he made it out of Q1 but then crashed again in Q2, rider ok but forced to settle for ninth on the grid. However…
For Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP™) it wasn’t an easy Saturday either. He crashed in FP4 and looked to be holding his hand, then heading to the Medical centre for a check up. He has a small fracture to a finger and is fit to continue, but with that added complication. He also suffered a big moment on his final effort in Q2, and the defending Champion will therefore start 12th.
That left Martin’s final stunner as the lap standing at the top as the Spaniard was absolutely unbeatable, nearly a stunning half second clear. Marquez had been following Bagnaia when the number 63 went down but completed his lap to take a front row, possibly in position to make Sunday afternoon’s fight for the crown even more interesting.
Rookie of the Year Marco Bezzecchi (Mooney VR46 Racing Team) heads Row 2 ahead of Australian GP winner Alex Rins (Team Suzuki Ecstar) after he had his best qualifying for some time, with Luca Marini (Mooney VR46 Racing Team) in sixth.
Franco Morbidelli (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP™) is the top Yamaha in seventh but has a double Long Lap penalty from earlier in the weekend to serve, and Maverick Viñales (Aprilia Racing) is down in eighth but top Aprilia – with teammate and Championship challenger Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia Racing) down in P10. Bagnaia is the rider between the two…
2020 World Champion Joan Mir (Team Suzuki Ecstar) slots in ahead of Quartararo, completing a top 12 that’s absolutely set to stun on Sunday. Jack Miller (Ducati Lenovo Team), meanwhile, crashed in Q1 and lost out to Marquez in moving through, so he’s in P14.
Can Pecco convert Match Point at the first time of asking? Will Quartararo be able to fight back? And if the fight goes down to Valencia… how many contenders will remain? Tune in from 15:00 (GMT +8) for a huge showdown at Sepang!
MotoGP™: TOP THREE
1 Jorge Martin (Prima Pramac Racing) – Ducati – 1’57.790
2 Enea Bastianini (Gresini Racing MotoGP™) – Ducati – +0.456
3 Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team) – Honda – +0.664
Jorge Martin: “Phillip Island was great, also Austin. I mean, I’m normally making good laps and when I have the feeling, so the good thing is that the feeling is back. It’s important to finish the season like this. I thought somebody would improve on the second stint so I pushed a bit harder and it came well. I thought that maybe I was a bit on my limit, almost crashing at some points of the track, but anyway happy, happy, really happy. I feel like we have the pace for the win so I am super-happy about everything.”
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