Repsol Honda Team land in Le Mans
From the Iberian Peninsula, the Repsol Honda Team head in-land for round seven of the 2022 season with Marc Marquez and Pol Espargaro targeting further improvements.
The 2022 MotoGP World Championship season is now well and truly underway as the Grand Prix paddock arrives at the Le Mans circuit in France. Consistently on the calendar since 2000, the French track enjoys an enthusiastic crowd and often produces surprising races with unpredictable weather. For this year’s French Grand Prix, the forecast is looking decidedly more consistent with sun and clear skies currently on the horizon.
Marc Marquez arrives in Le Mans still full of fire after a fighting fourth in the Spanish Grand Prix. Battling hard with Aleix Espargaro and Jack Miller, the eight-time World Champion amazed fans around the world as he made another of his trademark saves during the race. More important than his performance in the race was the test on Monday where Marquez and his team were able to explore several setting and parameters for the new Repsol Honda Team RC213V. With this extra information, Marquez will be hoping to fight at the front of the race once again and potentially add to his three French GP wins and four total podiums in the premier class.
There was no one who put in more work than Pol Espargaro on the Monday Test in Jerez, the #44 completing the most laps of any rider. Espargaro is aiming to put this knowledge to work immediately at the French GP, a race where he has classically enjoyed success. Having only missed the top ten twice in France in the premier class and claiming a podium in the rain-soaked 2020 race, Espargaro’s history speed and the new RC213V have the potential to once again run at the front. The generally cooler conditions of Le Mans should also help Espargaro to show his and the bike’s full potential.
With 44 points, Marc Marquez holds ninth in the MotoGP World Championship and nine points further behind is Pol Espargaro with 35 points.
The Repsol Honda Team’s most recent podium at the French GP came in 2020 when Alex Marquez raced to second in the wet.
Marc Marquez
“Overall the Jerez weekend was good when we also include the test because we were able to learn a good amount. Now we arrive in France to see what’s possible. The important thing is to keep building, keep improving and keep closing the distance to the front. In Jerez we made progress and now we must keep on going, especially after the test it’s important to see how everything is. I have had some good races in Le Mans and some more challenging races there, it can depend a lot on the conditions but they’re looking good for this weekend.“
Pol Espargaro
“Last year I think Le Mans was one of the first weekends where we could really start to show our potential. I know how myself and the bike have improved since then so I am looking forward to going back and putting into action what we found during the test. I’ve had some good races in Le Mans, the cooler conditions and the high levels of grip suit my riding style a lot. MotoGP is very close at the moment so we can’t rely on the past, no matter what we need to work well from the start of the weekend – qualify well and fight hard during the race.”
Rider standings
| Pos. | Rider | Num | Nation | Points | Team | Constructor |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Quartararo Fabio | 20 | FRA | 89 | Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP | Yamaha |
| 2 | Espargaro Aleix | 41 | SPA | 82 | Aprilia Racing | Aprilia |
| 3 | Bastianini Enea | 23 | ITA | 69 | Team Gresini Racing MotoGP | Ducati |
| 4 | Rins Alex | 42 | SPA | 69 | Team Suzuki Ecstar | Suzuki |
| 5 | Bagnaia Francesco | 62 | ITA | 56 | Ducati Lenovo Team | Ducati |
| 6 | Mir Joan | 36 | SPA | 56 | Team Suzuki Ecstar | Suzuki |
| 7 | Zarco Johann | 5 | FRA | 51 | Pramac Racing | Ducati |
| 8 | Binder Brad | 33 | RSA | 48 | Red Bull KTM Factory Racing | KTM |
| 9 | Marquez Marc | 93 | SPA | 44 | Repsol Honda Team | Honda |
| 10 | Oliveira Miguel | 88 | POR | 43 | Red Bull KTM Factory Racing | KTM |
| 11 | Miller Jack | 43 | AUS | 42 | Ducati Lenovo Team | Ducati |
| 12 | Espargaro Pol | 44 | SPA | 35 | Repsol Honda Team | Honda |
| 13 | Martin Jorge | 89 | SPA | 28 | Pramac Racing | Ducati |
| 14 | Vinales Maverick | 12 | SPA | 27 | Aprilia Racing | Aprilia |
| 15 | Nakagami Takaaki | 30 | JPN | 21 | LCR Honda | Honda |
| 16 | Morbidelli Franco | 21 | ITA | 18 | Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP | Yamaha |
| 17 | Marquez Alex | 73 | SPA | 16 | LCR Honda | Honda |
| 18 | Bezzecchi Marco | 73 | ITA | 15 | Mooney VR46 Racing Team | Ducati |
| 19 | Marini Luca | 10 | ITA | 14 | Mooney VR46 Racing Team | Ducati |
| 20 | Dovizioso Andrea | 4 | ITA | 8 | WithU Yamaha RNF MotoGP Team | Yamaha |
| 21 | Binder Darryn | 40 | RSA | 6 | WithU Yamaha RNF MotoGP Team | Yamaha |
| 22 | Gardner Remy | AUS | 3 | |||
| 23 | Fernandez Raul | SPA | 0 | |||
| 24 | Di Giannantonio Fabio | 49 | ITA | 0 | Team Gresini Racing MotoGP | Ducati |
| 25 | Savadori Lorenzo | 32 | ITA | 0 | Aprilia Racing Test Team | Aprilia |
| 26 | Bradl Stefan | 6 | GER | 0 | HRC Test Team | Honda |
Location Information
Built in 1965 around the existing 24-Hour track, the Le Mans Bugatti Grand Prix race circuit lies 5km south of the city of Le Mans and 200km south-west of Paris. The venue has hosted Grand Prix since the late sixties but a serious accident to Spanish rider Alberto Puig in… read more.
| Length | 4.185 kilometres / 2.6 miles |
| Width | 13 metres |
| Left corners | 5 |
| Right corners | 9 |
| Longest straight | 0.674 kilometres / 0.419 miles |
| Constructed | 1966 |
| Modified | 2008 |
| Resurfacing | Resurfaced before 2017 round |
Automobile Club de l'Ouest, Le Mans, France - View in Google Maps
Records
| Pole Position | 1m 30.450s (166.5km/h) Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati, 2022) |
| Race Lap | 1m 31.778s (164.1km/h) Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati, 2022) |
| Race Time | 41m 34.613s (163 km/h) Enea Bastianini (Ducati, 2022) |
| 2023 Race Winner | Marco Bezzecchi (Ducati) |
| 2023 Sprint Winner | Jorge Martin (Ducat) |
