Pecco Bagnaia took pole (1:38.641) in Montmeló as expected. The Italian had to do everything possible to delay Jorge Martín’s title and that’s what he did. He was the fastest on Friday and he was also the fastest on Saturday. The record was 1:38.1, achieved by Aleix in May, but this time, due to track conditions, they ran slower. He will be accompanied on the front row by Aleix Espargaró, second, and Marc Márquez, third. Martinateur will start from fourth position.
Martín left behind the wheel of his friend Aleix Espargaró, who already demonstrated on Friday that no matter the date, he always goes fast on this circuit. His “sporty father” gestures to let the rest of the drivers pass and the championship leader brakes suddenly to obey orders. Once this group passed, Aleix began to pull Jorge.
On the other hand, Pecco Bagnaia pulled Marc Márquez. The situation was repeated on Friday, Jorge Martín driving Aleix and the 93 driving the one who will be his teammate next year. The Italian was the fastest with the medium, while the Madrilenian had mounted the soft front. This is why the man from Lleida, who recognized this Friday that he was in pain and needed a wheel, looked for him on the track to achieve a good time.
After crossing the finish line, Pecco reduced his time by seven tenths and Márquez finished second, just over a tenth behind. Behind, Martinator placed third after his friend’s wheel during the first stint. After passing through the pits, a guest joined the group of Pecco and Marc, Morbidelli, who entered Q2 from Q1 with Fabio Quartararo.
Franco kicked his teammate off the front row with just over a minute left in Q2. Bagnaia’s wheel was the best of this session and Morbidelli and Márquez knew it. Marc pushed the Desmosedici GP23 to the limit, shaving a tenth off Pecco’s best time. But in the end it was not possible to improve the two-time MotoGP champion’s time, which dropped to 1:38.641.
The only one capable of beating the Italian seemed Aleix Espargaró. Il Capitano had marked all the stages in red in search of pole in his last race as an official MotoGP rider. But it wasn’t possible. He fought until the end, but escaped by 55 thousandths. He stayed close after lapping at the limit and will start second. He slipped between Pecco and Marc and left Martín fourth, who managed to pass Morbidelli on his final lap but it was not enough to move to the front row.
