Qatar MotoGP Test II, Losail - Thursday lap times (4pm)
Day two of the final 2021 Official MotoGP pre-season test is underway at Losail in Qatar.
After the March 5 Shakedown (led by Stefan Bradl) and then opening Official Test from March 6-7 (which saw new Monster Yamaha signing Fabio Quartararo fastest), Jack Miller beat the lap record en route to putting Ducati on top of the timesheets on day one of the final three-day test.
The MotoGP regulars are again joined by Factory test riders Bradl (Honda) - also substituting for the injured Marc Marquez - new Yamaha signing Cal Crutchlow, Dani Pedrosa (KTM), Sylvain Guintoli (Suzuki) and Michele Pirro (Ducati).
Crutchlow is again sharing M1s with Yamaha's Japanese test riders Katsuyuki Nakasuga and Kohta Nozane. The three bikes, which appear to include 2019 (A-Spec) plus 2020 and 2021 Factory-spec machines, are labelled '#T1', '#T2' and '#T3'. Official timing only lists the bike, not the rider, although one of Crutchlow's (Factory-spec) bikes is in a special 60th anniversary Yamaha livery for the final test.
Testing takes place from 2pm to 9pm each day, followed by ten minutes reserved for practice starts.
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| Qatar MotoGP Test II - Thursday (4pm) | ||||
| Pos | Rider | Nat | Team | Time |
| 1 | Aleix Espargaro | SPA | Aprilia Gresini (RS-GP) | 1m 54.942s |
| 2 | Danilo Petrucci | ITA | KTM Tech3 (RC16) | +0.747s |
| 3 | Iker Lecuona | SPA | KTM Tech3 (RC16) | +1.423s |
| 4 | Pol Espargaro | SPA | Repsol Honda (RC213V) | +1.498s |
| 5 | Yamaha Test Bike 1 | N/A | Yamaha Test Rider (YZR-M1) | +1.699s |
| 6 | Michele Pirro | ITA | Ducati Test Rider (GP21) | +1.790s |
| 7 | Brad Binder | RSA | Red Bull KTM (RC16) | +2.152s |
| 8 | Dani Pedrosa | SPA | KTM Test Rider (RC16) | +2.613s |
| 9 | Jack Miller | AUS | Ducati Team (GP21) | +2.887s |
| 10 | Francesco Bagnaia | ITA | Ducati Team (GP21) | +3.008s |
| 11 | Yamaha Test Bike 2 | N/A | Yamaha Test Rider (YZR-M1) | +3.291s |
| 12 | Takuya Tsuda | JPN | Suzuki Test Rider (GSX-RR) | +3.495s |
| 13 | Luca Marini | ITA | Sky VR46 Avintia (GP19)* | +4.029s |
* Rookie
2021 Qatar Tests - Fastest Time:
Jack Miller AUS Ducati 1m 53.183s (Wednesday)
Official Qatar MotoGP records:
Best lap:
Marc Marquez SPA Honda 1m 53.380s (2019)
Fastest race lap:
Jorge Lorenzo SPA Yamaha 1m 54.927s (2016)
Peter has been in the paddock for 20 years and has seen Valentino Rossi come and go. He is at the forefront of the Suzuki exit story and Marc Marquez’s injury issues.
