Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati) confirmed his world champion status in the first race sprint of the history of the MotoGP World Championship, which begins on Sunday with the Portuguese Grand Prix (2 p.m., Sport TV). The champion started second, but eventually won the mini race, which almost brought Miguel Oliveira to the podium.
After a first day to forget, the driver from Almada passed the first qualifying round (Q1) and secured fourth place on the starting grid for today’s race and yesterday’s mini-race. The Portuguese rider was third on the final lap, after Mir gave up and Italian Luca Marini (Ducati) crashed out, dragging compatriot Enea Bastianini (Ducati) along but making a mistake four corners from the finish at the Algarve’s Autódromo Internacional and finished seventh “somewhat disappointed”.
“I widened the track a bit, missed the right braking point and went wide with all the wind blowing and I couldn’t finish the corner and lost all those positions,” Miguel Oliveira complained at the end and after a great ovation from the central grandstand. Despite this, Falcão said the day was “positive” and that today, in the main race, there is still a chance to get a good result: “We started fourth again. We need to improve some points on the bike and finish some details that were a bit short today.”
a head position belongs to Marc Marquez. The six-time world champion set the best time – 1.37.226 minutes – beating the record of the Autódromo Internacional do Algarve, held by Jack Miller. It’s the 64th head position of the Spanish super champion’s career. Apart from Márquez, only Pecco Bagnaia (Ducati), who starts second, and Jorge Martin (Ducati), who finished the qualifying podium, will start ahead of Miguel Oliveira in the GP Portugal.
The roller coaster of Portimão gets a beautiful human frame, witness the Friday and Saturday monsters. The organization expects 65,000 people, many of whom would like to see the number 88 repeat the triumph of 2020. Miguel Oliveira also wants that.
Bastianini from GP Portugal
Enea Bastianini (Ducati) crashed in the sprint race, forcing him to the hospital, where the fracture of his right shoulder blade was confirmed. The Italian therefore has no conditions to be present on the starting grid of the Portuguese Grand Prix. Race management is considering a penalty for Marini for hitting Bastianini, the second rider to be taken to hospital since Friday, the day Pol Espargaró had to be taken to hospital by helicopter, where he still has lung problems and suffered several fractures . .
Yesterday, inflatable barriers were already placed in the area where the Spaniard fell from Gasgas. And if the champion Bagnaia regretted that yesterday the organization did not accept the request of the athletes to make some changes in the level of track safety, he was the 2021 champion and one of the candidates for this year’s title and put his finger on the wound, read sprint races, after a disastrous day: he took 11th in Q2 and finished the sprint race in 10th.
Fabio Quartararo justified that the track in the Algarve doesn’t like his Yamaha, saying he didn’t like the races sprint: “No [gostei], not at all, and a great accident will happen soon. It’s a jungle. We are not in cars. We’re not in cars that hit each other and okay, no problem, it’s much safer. I was very late, I tried to do my best but luckily nothing happened but there are still 20 sprint races to go. I do not like.”
Source: DN
