2021 Austin MotoGP, COTA - Free Practice (4) Results
Jack Miller builds momentum by staying on top of the timesheets during final practice for the 2021 Americas MotoGP at a bumpy COTA.
World champion Joan Mir began FP4 with an engine failure but finished it in second place, 0.152s behind the Ducati rider, whose team-mate and title contender Francesco Bagnaia was third.
Mir's Suzuki spat out smoke and flames as he accelerated onto the back straight, with Miguel Oliveira forced to take avoiding action just behind.
Mechanical problems for @JoanMirOfficial!
— MotoGP (@MotoGP) October 2, 2021
His Suzuki has expired on the back straight! #AmericasGP pic.twitter.com/eEUiFT5bDD
Pol Espargaro then fell from his Repsol Honda, meaning he also missed vital track time, with brother Aleix Espargaro crashing at the fast Turn 2 at the end of the session.
While all riders selected the hard front tyre, there was a variety of rear compounds in use. Most riders opted for the medium rear but Johann Zarco was fastest for most of the session on a soft.
By contrast Miller (including his fastest lap), Marc Marquez, Andrea Dovizioso, Valentino Rossi and Franco Morbidelli used part of the session to gather data on the hard rear. Bagnaia, Marquez, Nakagami, Oliveira and Aleix Espargaro finished the session on the soft rear.
Qualifying 1, for those outside the top ten after third free practice, including Mir, will now get underway.
Marc Marquez has a perfect pole record at the Texan track and has won six of the seven MotoGP races, falling while leading in 2019.
Johann Zarco is riding for the first time since arm pump surgery, while Mir has a Kevin Schwantz-style helmet and racing number this weekend.
MotoGP is returning to COTA for the first time since the 2019 event, after which further resurfacing work was carried out on around 40% of the track (Turns 1-2, 9-10, 16-19, plus the back straight) to alleviate bumps. However, bikes and riders are still being badly kicked around, especially through Turns 2 and 10.
As a result of the resurfacing and change of date from April, Michelin is providing a fourth rear tyre option (two hard compounds), while wet weather is also forecast.
COTA has the most corners (20) in MotoGP, including the slowest of the season at just 50km/h (Turn 11). The following back straight is the longest in MotoGP at 1.2km and ends with the hardest braking on the calendar, from over 330km/h to less than 60km/h.
Maverick Vinales has withdrawn from the COTA event after the tragic death of his young cousin Dean Berta Vinales in last weekend's Jerez WorldSSP300 race...
| Austin MotoGP, COTA - Free Practice (4) Results | ||||||
| Pos | Rider | Nat | Team | Time/Diff | Lap | Max |
| 1 | Jack Miller | AUS | Ducati Team (GP21) | 2'04.028s | 10/12 | 347k |
| 2 | Joan Mir | SPA | Suzuki Ecstar (GSX-RR) | +0.152s | 5/8 | 340k |
| 3 | Francesco Bagnaia | ITA | Ducati Team (GP21) | +0.327s | 11/13 | 347k |
| 4 | Johann Zarco | FRA | Pramac Ducati (GP21) | +0.347s | 3/12 | 350k |
| 5 | Fabio Quartararo | FRA | Monster Yamaha (YZR-M1) | +0.351s | 5/12 | 338k |
| 6 | Takaaki Nakagami | JPN | LCR Honda (RC213V) | +0.376s | 10/12 | 343k |
| 7 | Alex Rins | SPA | Suzuki Ecstar (GSX-RR) | +0.434s | 9/11 | 340k |
| 8 | Marc Marquez | SPA | Repsol Honda (RC213V) | +0.516s | 6/12 | 342k |
| 9 | Miguel Oliveira | POR | Red Bull KTM (RC16) | +0.683s | 4/13 | 341k |
| 10 | Aleix Espargaro | SPA | Aprilia Gresini (RS-GP) | +0.683s | 5/10 | 344k |
| 11 | Luca Marini | ITA | Sky VR46 Avintia Ducati (GP19)* | +1.021s | 9/10 | 338k |
| 12 | Enea Bastianini | ITA | Avintia Ducati (GP19)* | +1.043s | 8/11 | 347k |
| 13 | Jorge Martin | SPA | Pramac Ducati (GP21)* | +1.187s | 9/12 | 346k |
| 14 | Brad Binder | RSA | Red Bull KTM (RC16) | +1.284s | 7/11 | 344k |
| 15 | Andrea Dovizioso | ITA | Petronas Yamaha (YZR-M1) | +1.321s | 10/11 | 338k |
| 16 | Alex Marquez | SPA | LCR Honda (RC213V) | +1.379s | 6/12 | 345k |
| 17 | Pol Espargaro | SPA | Repsol Honda (RC213V) | +1.401s | 5/10 | 344k |
| 18 | Valentino Rossi | ITA | Petronas Yamaha (YZR-M1) | +1.523s | 10/13 | 336k |
| 19 | Iker Lecuona | SPA | KTM Tech3 (RC16) | +1.538s | 4/9 | 342k |
| 20 | Franco Morbidelli | ITA | Monster Yamaha (YZR-M1) | +1.586s | 4/9 | 335k |
| 21 | Danilo Petrucci | ITA | KTM Tech3 (RC16) | +2.157s | 3/11 | 341k |
* Rookie
Official COTA MotoGP records:
Best lap:
Marc Marquez SPA Honda 2m 2.135s (2015)
Fastest race lap:
Marc Marquez SPA Honda 2m 3.375s (2014)
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.
