Repsol Honda Team plan Sunday recovery in Mandalika
A complicated day saw the Repsol Honda Team unable to show their speed as falls and rear tyre issues held back Marc Marquez and Pol Espargaro.
Weather gods were not on the side of the Repsol Honda Team as Saturday dawned, torrential rain soaking the 4.3km long circuit and sporadic showers making sure it stayed wet. No chance of a dry Free Practice 3 meant both Pol Espargaro and Marc Marquez would have to contend with Q1.
As the track dried in FP3, Marquez switched over to slick tyres and showed that his incredible ability in the mixed conditions has not faded as the eight-time World Champion set a string of fastest laps. Closing the gap further to the 1’32.1 needed for a Q2 spot was simply impossible in the conditions on track but Marquez did stamp his authority down with a 1’34.067 to top the session. Q1 would be a complicated session for the #93 as he suffered a fall at Turn 13 with just under half the session remaining. Making a classic Marquez-dash back to the box, he remounted his second machine and returned to the track only to suffer a second fall, this time at Turn 12.
Pol Espargaro, like his teammate, pushed to the limit to try and make the top ten overall in FP3 after issues on Friday. With the track still drying, the #44 was unable to improve and rolled out of pit lane for Q1. Struggling to find the feeling in the dry with the revised Michelin rear slick, Espargaro set a best time of 1’31.831 – almost 0.8s slower than his fastest time from the test just a few weeks ago. An understandably frustrated Espargaro will start just behind his teammate for Sunday’s race.
Honda Team Asia in Moto3 gave the home fans something extra to cheer about as Mario Aji became the first Indonesian rider to qualify in the top three of a Grand Prix.
Forecasts remain mixed for what will happen during the race, which is scheduled to start at 15:00 Local Time. Rain could offer the Repsol Honda Team the opportunity to show their true potential as the revised rear continues to struggle for grip.
Marc Marquez
“I am more or less OK after the two crashes today, when you are in Q1 you need to take risks and this is what can happen. I can’t be happy about today, all Honda riders are struggling. The only good thing was that we were starting 15th on the clean part of the track but now we will start on the dirty side after Morbidelli’s penalty. It is what it is, tomorrow we have to attack. Our reality is much better than what today showed, even with the different rear. The objective is to try to finish the race.”
Pol Espargaro
“Today was a super tough day, I can’t say that I am anything but disappointed. The different rear tyre we have here is not working with our new bike and it’s causing us to struggle a lot and have more problems. We showed our potential here in the first test with the tyre we will use all year, you can see the impact it has because now other riders who struggled a lot during the test are flying. Tomorrow’s race will be about making it to the end, it’s all that we can do. We will be back stronger.”
Qualifying Results - Indonesian Grand Prix
| Pos. | Rider | Num | Nation | Team | Constructor | Time/Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Quartararo Fabio | 20 | FRA | Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP | Yamaha | 1'31.067 |
| 2 | Martin Jorge | 89 | SPA | Pramac Racing | Ducati | 0.213 |
| 3 | Zarco Johann | 5 | FRA | Pramac Racing | Ducati | 0.311 |
| 4 | Binder Brad | 33 | RSA | Red Bull KTM Factory Racing | KTM | 0.366 |
| 5 | Bastianini Enea | 23 | ITA | Team Gresini Racing MotoGP | Ducati | 0.437 |
| 6 | Bagnaia Francesco | 62 | ITA | Ducati Lenovo Team | Ducati | 0.440 |
| 7 | Oliveira Miguel | 88 | POR | Red Bull KTM Factory Racing | KTM | 0.499 |
| 8 | Rins Alex | 42 | SPA | Team Suzuki Ecstar | Suzuki | 0.515 |
| 9 | Miller Jack | 43 | AUS | Ducati Lenovo Team | Ducati | 0.647 |
| 10 | Espargaro Aleix | 41 | SPA | Aprilia Racing | Aprilia | 0.656 |
| 11 | Di Giannantonio Fabio | 49 | ITA | Team Gresini Racing MotoGP | Ducati | 0.762 |
| 12 | Marini Luca | 10 | ITA | Mooney VR46 Racing Team | Ducati | 0.447 Q1 |
| 13 | Bezzecchi Marco | 73 | ITA | Mooney VR46 Racing Team | Ducati | 0.476 |
| 14 | Marquez Marc | 93 | SPA | Repsol Honda Team | Honda | 0.611 |
| 15 | Morbidelli Franco | 21 | ITA | Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP | Yamaha | Penalty |
| 16 | Espargaro Pol | 44 | SPA | Repsol Honda Team | Honda | 0.612 |
| 17 | Dovizioso Andrea | 4 | ITA | WithU Yamaha RNF MotoGP Team | Yamaha | 0.651 |
| 18 | Mir Joan | 36 | SPA | Team Suzuki Ecstar | Suzuki | 0.656 |
| 19 | Marquez Alex | 73 | SPA | LCR Honda | Honda | 0.768 |
| 20 | Vinales Maverick | 12 | SPA | Aprilia Racing | Aprilia | 0.787 |
| 21 | Fernandez Raul | SPA | 0.903 | |||
| 22 | Gardner Remy | AUS | 0.921 | |||
| 23 | Binder Darryn | 40 | RSA | WithU Yamaha RNF MotoGP Team | Yamaha | 1.080 |
| 24 | Nakagami Takaaki | 30 | JPN | LCR Honda | Honda | 1.111 |
Location Information
Mandalika International Street Circuit (known as Pertamina Mandalika International Street Circuit) is located in the Mandalika resort area on the Central Lombok Regency in West Nusa Tenggara province of Indonesia. The circuit is a venue for Asia Talent Cup, Superbike World Championship and Grand Prix motorcycle racing races.
| Length | 4.3 km |
| Width | 15m |
| Left Corners | 6 |
| Right Corners | 11 |
| Longest Straight | 723 m |
| Constructed | 2021 |
Records
| Pole Position | 1'29.978 (172.0Km/h) Luca Marini (Ducati, 2023) |
| Race Lap | 1'30.909 (170.3Km/h) Enea Bastianini (Ducati, 2023) |
| Race Time | 33'27.223 (154.2Km/h) Miguel Oliveira (KTM, 2022) |
| 2023 Winner | Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati) |
| 2023 Sprint Winner | Jorge Martin (Ducati) |
