Clear intentions: Marquez and Espargaro fly on Friday in Austin 02.10.2021: Grand Prix of the Americas MotoGP 2021 Round 15 Marc Marquez and Pol Espargaro set the pace in Austin as the Red Bull Grand Prix of the Americas got underway, the pair consistently strong in the wet and dry.

Grand Prix of the Americas
MotoGP 2021   Round 15



Marc Marquez and Pol Espargaro set the pace in Austin as the Red Bull Grand Prix of the Americas got underway, the pair consistently strong in the wet and dry.


The MotoGP World Championship’s return to the Circuit of the Americas started on a damp note as heavy rains soaked the Texas tarmac before Free Practice 1 on Friday. Conditions would quickly improve with a dry line starting to emerge towards the end of the session and Free Practice 2 being run without issue as the hot Austin sun quickly dried the water. Even more than the weather, the bumps around the 5.5-kilometer-long track were a major area of contention and focus across the opening day of practice.



Marc Marquez was eager to stake his claim at COTA, topping Free Practice 1 in the wet with a 2’15.872 before going on to dominate the afternoon session. A 2’04.164 saw Marquez edge out the likes of Miller and Quartararo who put in late flying laps but neither was able to show the overall pace Marquez had during the session. Despite his speed on the opening day, Marquez is still looking for further improvements ahead of Sunday’s race.


On the other side of the Repsol Honda Team garage, Pol Espargaro was raring to go as pitlane opened for Free Practice 1. With a fruitful Misano Test in his pocket, Espargaro was excited to see how he and the Honda RC213V would perform in Texas.


Both Friday practices for the Red Bull Grand Prix of the Americas showed the potential is there for Espargaro to put together a strong weekend as he took fifth in FP1 and fourth in FP2. Like his Repsol Honda Team teammate, Espargaro continues to look for improvements between the bumps of COTA.


Takaaki Nakagami made it three Hondas inside the top five to end Friday practice as he put his LCR Honda machine in fifth.   
    


       
    
Marc Marquez  93
1ST  2'04.164


“It was a tricky day today, the track conditions weren’t easy today. With all of the bumps it’s very hard to be consistent with your laps and to understand where you can push and where the limit is. I feel good in the wet and dry today and in the afternoon we were able to try some different options as well.


We still have some areas to work on, to extract the maximum from the bike and myself here in Austin. It’s our best Friday so far this year and the goal is to of course keep this up for the rest of the weekend.”         

    
       
    
Pol Espargaro  44
4TH  2'04.552


“I have always been comfortable in extreme situations; super cold, super windy or super bumpy and today I was able to use this to make a good lap time. But I have a lot of pain in my neck from the bumps around the track, it’s really physical with the circuit this weekend.


The race will be difficult, both physically and trying to be consistent over the full distance. The bike is working well here and we have been strong in the wet and the dry so let’s see what the rest of the weekend brings.”         

    
       
    
Red Bull Grand Prix of the Americas Combined Free Practice Classification



1    MARQUEZ Marc     93    SPA    Repsol Honda Team    Honda    2'04.164
2    MILLER Jack     43    AUS    Ducati Lenovo Team    Ducati    0.015
3    QUARTARARO Fabio     20    FRA    Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP    Yamaha    0.202
4    ESPARGARO Pol     44    SPA    Repsol Honda Team    Honda    0.388
5    NAKAGAMI Takaaki     30    JPN    LCR Honda    Honda    0.448
6    BAGNAIA Francesco     63    ITA    Ducati Lenovo Team    Ducati    0.499
7    MARTIN Jorge     89    SPA    Pramac Racing    Ducati    0.513
8    ZARCO Johann     5    FRA    Pramac Racing    Ducati    0.559
9    RINS Alex     42    SPA    Team Suzuki Ecstar    Suzuki    0.638
10    BASTIANINI Enea     23    ITA    Avintia Esponsorama    Ducati    0.672
11    BINDER Brad     33    RSA    Red Bull KTM Factory Racing    KTM    0.688
12    MARINI Luca     10    ITA    SKY VR46 Avintia    Ducati    0.769
13    MIR Joan     36    SPA    Team Suzuki Ecstar    Suzuki    0.930
14    DOVIZIOSO Andrea     4    ITA    Petronas Yamaha SRT    Yamaha    0.973
15    MORBIDELLI Franco     21    ITA    Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP    Yamaha    1.132
16    MARQUEZ Alex     73    SPA    LCR Honda    Honda    1.450
17    ROSSI Valentino     46    ITA    Petronas Yamaha SRT    Yamaha    1.467
18    OLIVEIRA Miguel     88    POR    Red Bull KTM Factory Racing    KTM    1.518
19    ESPARGARO Aleix     41    SPA    Aprilia Racing Team Gresini    Aprilia    2.045
20    PETRUCCI Danilo     9    ITA    Tech 3 KTM Factory Racing    KTM    2.071
21    LECUONA Iker     27    SPA    Tech 3 KTM Factory Racing    KTM    2.093
    
    



    


    
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