Hard knocks and complications for the Repsol Honda Team in Qatar
A mixed evening at the Lusail International Circuit for the Repsol Honda Team as Marc Marquez made the most of Q2 before overcoming a Sprint full of hard knocks.
Conditions in Qatar remained calm and stable as the premier class rolled out of pit lane under the setting sun to start their Saturday. Both Repsol Honda Team riders completed their final preparations in ‘morning’ practice before heading into Qualifying.
Marc Marquez continued to achieve his targets for each session, transforming a top-ten on Friday into a solid seventh place in Qualifying. Having entered the weekend with reserved expectations, the continual improvements buoyed the eight-time World Champion for the Sprint. A strong start to the short race saw the #93 hustling in and around the top five with a flurry of hard moves shuffling the pack around. Unfortunately, a racing incident with Brad Binder forced Marquez off track, dropping him back from the group battling at the front. The fighting resumed for Marquez who did his best to defend before crossing the line in 11th, just outside of the Sprint points.
The complications continued for Joan Mir who was unable to make major improvements to his overall position throughout Saturday. Qualifying in 20th, the 2020 MotoGP World Champion started well and made up several places in the opening laps. The 11-lap Sprint would conclude with Mir battling alongside Takaaki Nakagami, ending the race in 19th.
Now the main event awaits the MotoGP field, the 22-lap Qatar Grand Prix scheduled to commence at 20:00 on Sunday, November 19.
Marc Marquez
“We made a really good start to the race and had a strong first lap. Unfortunately, I had a race incident with Binder soon after, it happens. Then I got a bit stuck behind Zarco and I couldn’t get past him which limited us. Towards the end of the race I went wide at Turn 1 and had some contact with Raul Fernandez – sorry to him. At a track like Qatar, these things can happen because when you go off line even a little bit it is very slippery. Another one to try tomorrow.”
Joan Mir
“Today was really tough and we obviously can’t be happy with the result. There are some things that we need to check deeply to understand our situation better for the race tomorrow. I was expecting more from today because it looked like we had found the direction to follow on Friday. There’s another chance tomorrow so let’s see what’s possible.”
Qatar GP - Sprint Race
| Pos. | Rider | Num | Nation | Points | Team | Constructor | Time/Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Martin Jorge | 89 | SPA | 12 | Pramac Racing | Ducati | 20'52.634 |
| 2 | Di Giannantonio Fabio | 49 | ITA | 9 | Team Gresini Racing MotoGP | Ducati | 0.391 |
| 3 | Marini Luca | 10 | ITA | 7 | Mooney VR46 Racing Team | Ducati | 2.875 |
| 4 | Marquez Alex | 73 | SPA | 6 | Team Gresini Racing MotoGP | Ducati | 3.370 |
| 5 | Bagnaia Francesco | 1 | ITA | 5 | Ducati Lenovo Team | Ducati | 3.957 |
| 6 | Vinales Maverick | 12 | SPA | 4 | Aprilia Racing | Aprilia | 4.239 |
| 7 | Binder Brad | 33 | RSA | 3 | Red Bull KTM Factory Racing | KTM | 5.761 |
| 8 | Quartararo Fabio | 20 | FRA | 2 | Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP | Yamaha | 6.454 |
| 9 | Fernandez Augusto | 37 | SPA | 1 | Tech3 GASGAS Factory Racing | KTM | 8.285 |
| 10 | Zarco Johann | 5 | FRA | 0 | Pramac Racing | Ducati | 8.314 |
| 11 | Marquez Marc | 93 | SPA | 0 | Repsol Honda Team | Honda | 9.596 |
| 12 | Miller Jack | 43 | AUS | 0 | Red Bull KTM Factory Racing | KTM | 10.173 |
| 13 | Bezzecchi Marco | 72 | ITA | 0 | Mooney VR46 Racing Team | Ducati | 10.646 |
| 14 | Fernandez Raul | 25 | SPA | 0 | RNF MotoGP Team | Aprilia | 11.117 |
| 15 | Morbidelli Franco | 21 | ITA | 0 | Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP | Yamaha | 12.163 |
| 16 | Espargaro Pol | 44 | SPA | 0 | Tech3 GASGAS Factory Racing | KTM | 12.745 |
| 17 | Lecuona Iker | 27 | SPA | 0 | LCR Honda | Honda | 19.285 |
| 18 | Nakagami Takaaki | 30 | JPN | 0 | LCR Honda | Honda | 26.238 |
| 19 | Mir Joan | 36 | SPA | 0 | Repsol Honda Team | Honda | 28.446 |
| 20 | Bastianini Enea | 23 | ITA | 0 | Ducati Lenovo Team | Ducati | 35.553 |
| 21 | Espargaro Aleix | 41 | SPA | DNF | Aprilia Racing | Aprilia | DNF |
| 22 | Oliveira Miguel | 88 | POR | DNF | RNF MotoGP Team | Aprilia | DNF |
Rider standings
| Pos. | Rider | Num | Nation | Points | Team | Constructor |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bagnaia Francesco | 1 | ITA | 417 | Ducati Lenovo Team | Ducati |
| 2 | Martin Jorge | 89 | SPA | 410 | Pramac Racing | Ducati |
| 3 | Bezzecchi Marco | 72 | ITA | 323 | Mooney VR46 Racing Team | Ducati |
| 4 | Binder Brad | 33 | RSA | 257 | Red Bull KTM Factory Racing | KTM |
| 5 | Zarco Johann | 5 | FRA | 200 | Pramac Racing | Ducati |
| 6 | Espargaro Aleix | 41 | SPA | 198 | Aprilia Racing | Aprilia |
| 7 | Vinales Maverick | 12 | SPA | 179 | Aprilia Racing | Aprilia |
| 8 | Marini Luca | 10 | ITA | 178 | Mooney VR46 Racing Team | Ducati |
| 9 | Quartararo Fabio | 20 | FRA | 158 | Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP | Yamaha |
| 10 | Miller Jack | 43 | AUS | 156 | Red Bull KTM Factory Racing | KTM |
| 11 | Marquez Alex | 73 | SPA | 155 | Team Gresini Racing MotoGP | Ducati |
| 12 | Di Giannantonio Fabio | 49 | ITA | 109 | Team Gresini Racing MotoGP | Ducati |
| 13 | Morbidelli Franco | 21 | ITA | 93 | Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP | Yamaha |
| 14 | Marquez Marc | 93 | SPA | 84 | Repsol Honda Team | Honda |
| 15 | Bastianini Enea | 23 | ITA | 76 | Ducati Lenovo Team | Ducati |
| 16 | Oliveira Miguel | 88 | POR | 76 | RNF MotoGP Team | Aprilia |
| 17 | Fernandez Augusto | 37 | SPA | 70 | Tech3 GASGAS Factory Racing | KTM |
| 18 | Rins Alex | 42 | SPA | 54 | LCR Honda | Honda |
| 19 | Nakagami Takaaki | 30 | JPN | 52 | LCR Honda | Honda |
| 20 | Fernandez Raul | 25 | SPA | 40 | RNF MotoGP Team | Aprilia |
| 21 | Pedrosa Dani | 26 | SPA | 32 | KTM Test Team | KTM |
| 22 | Mir Joan | 36 | SPA | 24 | Repsol Honda Team | Honda |
| 23 | Espargaro Pol | 44 | SPA | 13 | Tech3 GASGAS Factory Racing | KTM |
| 24 | Savadori Lorenzo | 32 | ITA | 9 | RNF MotoGP Team | Aprilia |
| 25 | Folger Jonas | 94 | GER | 9 | Tech3 GASGAS Factory Racing | KTM |
| 26 | Bradl Stefan | 6 | GER | 8 | Repsol Honda Team | Honda |
| 27 | Petrucci Danilo | 9 | ITA | 5 | Ducati Lenovo Team | Ducati |
| 28 | Pirro Michele | 51 | ITA | 5 | Ducati Lenovo Team | Ducati |
| 29 | Crutchlow Cal | 35 | GBR | 3 | Yamaha Test Team | Yamaha |
| 30 | Lecuona Iker | 27 | SPA | 0 | Repsol Honda Team | Honda |
| 31 | Bautista Alvaro | 19 | SPA | 0 | Ducati Test Team | Ducati |
Location Information
The fabulous Lusail International Circuit lies on the outskirts of Doha, the capital city of Qatar. Built in little over a year, the track cost $58 million USD and required round-the-clock dedication from almost 1,000 workers in order to get it ready for the inaugural event – the Marlboro Grand… read more.
| Length | 5.380 kilometres / 3.343 miles |
| Width | 12 metres |
| Left corners | 6 |
| Right corners | 10 |
| Longest straight | 1.068 kilometres / 0.664 miles |
| Constructed | 2004 |
Losail International Circuit, Al Daayen, Qatar - View in Google Maps
Records
| Pole Position | 1m 50.789s (174.8km/h) Jorge Martin (Ducati, 2024) |
| Race Lap | 1m 52.978s (171.4 km/h) Enea Bastianini (Ducati, 2023) |
| 2024 Sprint Winner | Jorge Martin (Ducati) |
| 2024 Race Winner | Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati) |
