Francesco Bagnaia and Jack Miller finished fourth and seventh overall, respectively, on Friday of free practices for the Catalan GP, the ninth round of the 2022 MotoGP season that will be held this weekend at the Circuit de Barcelona – Catalunya.
During today’s two free practice sessions, the Ducati Lenovo Team riders worked to try the different tyre options available for the race and improve their feeling on the Desmosedici GP bikes on the slippery Catalan track asphalt.
In the final minutes of FP2, both Bagnaia and Miller did a ‘time attack’, managing both to finish in today’s top ten. Pecco closed with the fourth-fastest time in 1:39.950, while Jack finished seventh with a time of 1:40.095, both securing a provisional spot directly into Q2, which they will have to confirm in FP3, scheduled for tomorrow at 9:55am local time.
Francesco Bagnaia (#63, Ducati Lenovo Team) – 4th (1:39.950)
“It wasn’t an easy day. The grip level of the asphalt is really low, and we’re working on this aspect. Although it was warmer in FP2 than this morning, we managed to make some big steps forward, and tomorrow morning the asphalt conditions should be better, so I’m confident. FP4 will be crucial to understand which tyre to use in the race. We continue to work in that direction to make another step forward before qualifying.”
Jack Miller (#43 Ducati Lenovo Team) – 7th (1:40.095)
“The track is quite slippery, and I suffered most from a lack of rear grip. On the other hand, with the soft tyre, we had fewer issues, but it will still be important to have a good rhythm on the harder tyres for the race. Tomorrow we will have some work to do: we will have to get the most out of our package despite the asphalt conditions and improve our pace. The goal will always be to finish in the first two rows of the grid in qualifying”.
The Catalan GP qualifying will take place tomorrow afternoon, starting at 2:10pm local time, after FP4.
