It is the momentous moment of the season, and it is beginning to be noticed session by session, in a year in which the little details count a lot. The Motorland de Aragón has a first corner quite close to the starting line, which makes it even more important to find a good position on the grid to avoid getting into a risky situation or staying in a funnel and losing the front positions.
After the problems on Friday generated by the cold and the wind, the day turned towards normal after the change of schedules this Saturday. Although what was perceived on the first day did not change, with the Yamaha in front, the Suzuki at a good level, the Honda in the best overall situation of the year and the Ducati in trouble. So much so that they all had to go through the repechage, Q1, to find the two extra places that gave access to Q2 in which the first four lines of the grid are at stake and, obviously, the ‘pole’. With a goal for the four who fight for the title: to enter the top six, in the front two lines. Something that the only one who did not comply was Andrea Dovizioso, who lost one of the first two positions of that Q1 in favor of his teammate Danilo Petrucci. Dovizioso, third overall, did not pass, while at his wheel in each of his three attempts Petrucci did.
“He did the lap three times behind me because he didn’t have the speed. Without me it wouldn’t have been this fast. If you win a tenth because you follow me three times it means that you want to be in Q2 thanks to my speed. I’m not asking for help. We have a very good relationship. I have done what I have done for him, and it has not been a smart move, “Dovizioso complained, at the same time that he considered it very difficult to have a good race starting thirteenth, despite the improvements shown this Saturday. “I think it will be different from last year because the tires have changed, but we can have a good race because I have a good pace. But it is very difficult to get a good result starting from so far behind, due to the wear on the tires that the effort to come back can generate, ”explained a rider who was second to Marc Márquez in 2018 and 2019.
The one who did more than meet the goal was Quartararo, who signed his fourth pole of the course in a tight fight with Maverick Viñales (46 thousandths of difference between the two Yamaha), although the Frenchman went to bed with him. prize of being the fastest and with the pain of the aftermath of the heavy fall he suffered in the third free practice and which sent him straight to the circuit clinic, where luckily for his aspirations, the doctors ruled out major injuries. “I’m not well at all but on the bike it doesn’t hurt much and that’s the most important thing,” the MotoGP leader said. “When I’m focused on other things it doesn’t hurt much, but when I’m walking it is true that it hurts, although the most important thing is that we will be able to endure the race tomorrow,” he said. Quartararo tested himself in the free quarter and was able to do a long run in which, despite his positive message, he showed a certain slowdown in his last laps. Quite the opposite of what was reflected on the track by Viñales, fourth overall, and by Joan Mir, second.
Everything passes through the exit. You have to do it right, get to the first corner first and push from the start, because I think I can be fast in those first laps. All the Yamaha are strong, especially Morbidelli, and I think he is the rider who could be stronger tomorrow. We will take risks in the first laps. More than risks, I will push to the maximum in the first corners. I have nothing to lose, “said Viñales, who has 20 points to cut from Quartararo in these last five races. “I’m happy with how it went, because a second row is a very good result, because it usually costs me a lot to qualify,” said Mir, who will finally have a good starting position, which until now had been his weak point. “I am also happy because in the free quarter I felt very good with the bike and I think we can achieve a good result. With the used tires it has gone especially well. We were able to do a few laps in good temperature to simulate the race and I feel good. The Yamaha are also very strong here, but we are not behind ”, recalled the Balearic rider.
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