Mandalika MotoGP Test Results, Indonesia - Sunday, Day 3 (FINAL)
2022 MotoGP pre-season testing has come to an end with Pol Espargaro and Repsol Honda fastest on the third and final day at Indonesia's new Mandalika circuit.
Espargaro and then Luca Marini (VR46 Ducati) had led the timesheets on the opening two days, when the best lap time dropped from a 1m 32.466s to a 1m 31.289s as more rubber was laid down on the dusty track.
That trend continued at the start of Sunday morning, with Espargaro setting what would be the 1m 31.060s test best in the opening hour as reigning world champion Fabio Quartararo also beat yesterday's best.
Espargaro remained quickest despite a late time attack from Quartararo putting the Yamaha rider just 0.014s adrift.
Espargaro's older brother Aleix (Aprilia) held third for Aprilia for most of the day, with Quartararo's team-mate Franco Morbidelli leaping to fourth in the final minutes of testing.
The top 19 riders were covered by less than one-second.
On combined times, Luca Marini's day two best put him third fastest behind Espargaro and Quartararo.
Sunday's track action was suspended shortly after 1pm for some (unscheduled) practice starts. It then took until shortly after 2:30pm for normal testing to resume, with officials appearing to check the surface. Some more riders then completed race simulations this afternoon, but it seems some were on the (faster) soft rear tyre rather than medium that is expected to be brought for the race weekend.
2020 world champion Joan Mir was absent today due to 'gastrointestinal problems... experiencing some stomach pain and vomiting. Doctor Michele Zasa suspects a troublesome but fairly mild form of food poisoning and Joan will be treated with tablets for now'.
Although some Suzuki team members were isolated yesterday after failing PCR tests, Suzuki state that 'with his current symptoms, and diagnosis from Dr. Zasa, there is no reason to suspect that [Mir] is Covid positive.'
Also finishing the test unexpectedly early was rookie Raul Fernandez, who suffered a big accident on day two and went for more medical checks after Sunday morning fall after which, 'the doctor decided that the safest option was to stop riding for the day'.
The Marquez brothers, Aleix Espargaro, Jorge Martin and Johann Zarco are among the others to have fallen on Sunday.
Testing at Mandalika took place from 9am to 5pm.
The next time MotoGP bikes will be on track is for the Qatar season-opener on March 4-6. That will be followed by the Mandalika race, Indonesia's first grand prix since 1997, on March 18-20...
| 2022 Official Mandalika MotoGP Test - Sunday (FINAL) | ||||||
| Rider | Nat | Team | Time | Lap | ||
| 1 | = | Pol Espargaro | SPA | Repsol Honda (RC213V) | 1m 31.06s | 10/38 |
| 2 | = | Fabio Quartararo | FRA | Monster Yamaha (YZR-M1) | +0.014s | 77/79 |
| 3 | = | Aleix Espargaro | SPA | Aprilia Racing (RS-GP) | +0.325s | 11/51 |
| 4 | ^15 | Franco Morbidelli | ITA | Monster Yamaha (YZR-M1) | +0.356s | 68/69 |
| 5 | ˅1 | Francesco Bagnaia | ITA | Ducati Lenovo (GP22) | +0.376s | 13/57 |
| 6 | ˅1 | Alex Rins | SPA | Suzuki Ecstar (GSX-RR) | +0.417s | 27/46 |
| 7 | ˅1 | Maverick Viñales | SPA | Aprilia Racing (RS-GP) | +0.418s | 18/78 |
| 8 | ˅1 | Johann Zarco | FRA | Pramac Ducati (GP22) | +0.428s | 42/82 |
| 9 | ^1 | Brad Binder | RSA | Red Bull KTM (RC16) | +0.514s | 64/68 |
| 10 | ˅2 | Alex Marquez | SPA | LCR Honda (RC213V) | +0.543s | 16/75 |
| 11 | ^7 | Miguel Oliveira | POR | Red Bull KTM (RC16) | +0.560s | 71/73 |
| 12 | ˅3 | Luca Marini | ITA | Mooney VR46 Ducati (GP22) | +0.605s | 7/50 |
| 13 | ˅1 | Takaaki Nakagami | JPN | LCR Honda (RC213V) | +0.627s | 88/91 |
| 14 | ˅3 | Marc Marquez | SPA | Repsol Honda (RC213V) | +0.733s | 52/74 |
| 15 | ˅2 | Jack Miller | AUS | Ducati Lenovo (GP22) | +0.810s | 19/78 |
| 16 | ˅2 | Andrea Dovizioso | ITA | WithU Yamaha RNF (YZR-M1) | +0.830s | 19/62 |
| 17 | ˅2 | Marco Bezzecchi | ITA | Mooney VR46 Ducati (GP21)* | +0.841s | 10/42 |
| 18 | ˅2 | Fabio Di Giannantonio | ITA | Gresini Ducati (GP21)* | +0.855s | 15/38 |
| 19 | ˅2 | Enea Bastianini | ITA | Gresini Ducati (GP21) | +0.950s | 19/35 |
| 20 | = | Jorge Martin | SPA | Pramac Ducati (GP22) | +1.484s | 10/18 |
| 21 | = | Remy Gardner | AUS | KTM Tech3 (RC16)* | +1.800s | 39/42 |
| 22 | = | Darryn Binder | RSA | WithU Yamaha RNF (YZR-M1)* | +1.989s | 22/61 |
| 23 | = | Raul Fernandez | SPA | KTM Tech3 (RC16)* | +3.836s | 3/7 |
*Rookie
Fastest Day 2 Time:
Luca Marini ITA Ducati 1m 31.289s
Fastest Day 1 Time:
Pol Espargaro SPA Honda 1m 32.466s
2021 Mandalika WorldSBK lap records:
Best lap:
Toprak Razgatlioglu TUR Yamaha 1m 32.877s
Fastest race lap:
Toprak Razgatlioglu TUR Yamaha 1m 34.288s
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.
