2022 Qatar MotoGP, Lusail - Free Practice (3) Results
Enea Bastianini put Ducati at the top of the timesheets during Free Practice 3 for the season-opening Qatar MotoGP at Lusail.
The Gresini GP21 rider returned to the top shortly after being stripped of what would have been the best lap of the weekend, for exceeding track limits.
Bastianini's cancelled time fired the starting gun for a spate of late time attacks, with many teams and riders predicting that the hotter afternoon conditions would mean last night's FP2 times couldn't be challenged.
The final top three of Bastianini, Pol Espargaro (Repsol Honda) and Francesco Bagnaia (Lenovo Ducati) were covered by just 0.065s.
But there was despair for reigning world champion Fabio Quartararo, who took the underpowered M1 to fourth in the session (+0.149s) but still bumped out of the combined top ten.
The Yamaha star will now need to compete in Qualifying 1 along with the likes of Brad Binder, Takaaki Nakagami, Miguel Oliveira, Johann Zarco (fastest for much of FP3), Andrea Dovizioso, Alex Marquez and Maverick Vinales.
Franco Morbidelli, the top Yamaha rider in fifth on Friday, crashed at turn 6 halfway through the session.
Bastianini's FP3 lap put him fifth overall with Alex Rins remaining quickest on combined times from Honda's Marc Marquez, Suzuki team-mate Joan Mir and Pramac Ducati's Jorge Martin.
Martin made his displeasure clear at wheelspin on the exit of the final corner, an issue that is believed to have prompted the factory Ducati team to switch Francesco Bagnaia and Jack Miller to a 'hybrid' 2021-2022 engine.
Unlike in previous years, there has been no pre-season testing held at the circuit, meaning teams and riders go into the event without any track data since last year's Doha double. The race start time has also been moved forwards, to 18:00, shortly after sunset.
The opening MotoGP sessions of each day, plus all of the Moto3 and Moto2 track action will thus take place in daylight.
Yamaha took victory in both of last year's races courtesy of a win each for Maverick Vinales and Fabio Quartararo.
| Qatar MotoGP, Lusail - Free Practice (3) Results | ||||||
| Pos | Rider | Nat | Team | Time/Diff | Lap | Max |
| 1 | Enea Bastianini | ITA | Gresini Ducati (GP21) | 1'53.790s | 15/15 | 351k |
| 2 | Pol Espargaro | SPA | Repsol Honda (RC213V) | +0.013s | 15/15 | 351k |
| 3 | Francesco Bagnaia | ITA | Ducati Lenovo (GP22) | +0.065s | 15/16 | 348k |
| 4 | Fabio Quartararo | FRA | Monster Yamaha (YZR-M1) | +0.149s | 15/15 | 341k |
| 5 | Brad Binder | RSA | Red Bull KTM (RC16) | +0.221s | 16/16 | 345k |
| 6 | Johann Zarco | FRA | Pramac Ducati (GP22) | +0.315s | 16/17 | 347k |
| 7 | Miguel Oliveira | POR | Red Bull KTM (RC16) | +0.614s | 15/17 | 341k |
| 8 | Joan Mir | SPA | Suzuki Ecstar (GSX-RR) | +0.786s | 15/16 | 347k |
| 9 | Jorge Martin | SPA | Pramac Ducati (GP22) | +0.829s | 17/17 | 348k |
| 10 | Maverick Viñales | SPA | Aprilia Racing (RS-GP) | +0.868s | 14/15 | 345k |
| 11 | Alex Rins | SPA | Suzuki Ecstar (GSX-RR) | +1.008s | 11/13 | 347k |
| 12 | Luca Marini | ITA | Mooney VR46 Ducati (GP22) | +1.025s | 15/15 | 347k |
| 13 | Fabio Di Giannantonio | ITA | Gresini Ducati (GP21)* | +1.112s | 14/15 | 347k |
| 14 | Aleix Espargaro | SPA | Aprilia Racing (RS-GP) | +1.226s | 3/14 | 347k |
| 15 | Marc Marquez | SPA | Repsol Honda (RC213V) | +1.307s | 4/18 | 346k |
| 16 | Remy Gardner | AUS | KTM Tech3 (RC16)* | +1.326s | 14/16 | 343k |
| 17 | Takaaki Nakagami | JPN | LCR Honda (RC213V) | +1.364s | 10/16 | 346k |
| 18 | Marco Bezzecchi | ITA | Mooney VR46 Ducati (GP21)* | +1.401s | 15/16 | 351k |
| 19 | Andrea Dovizioso | ITA | WithU Yamaha RNF (YZR-M1) | +1.403s | 15/17 | 344k |
| 20 | Jack Miller | AUS | Ducati Lenovo (GP22) | +1.536s | 17/20 | 345k |
| 21 | Darryn Binder | RSA | WithU Yamaha RNF (YZR-M1)* | +1.593s | 14/15 | 345k |
| 22 | Alex Marquez | SPA | LCR Honda (RC213V) | +1.612s | 15/17 | 346k |
| 23 | Franco Morbidelli | ITA | Monster Yamaha (YZR-M1) | +1.641s | 11/12 | 341k |
| 24 | Raul Fernandez | SPA | KTM Tech3 (RC16)* | +1.900s | 12/14 | 342k |
| Riders directly to Qualifying 2 - Top 10 Combined Practice Times: | |||
| Pos | Rider | Nat | Team |
| 1 | Alex Rins | SPA | Suzuki Ecstar (GSX-RR) |
| 2 | Marc Marquez | SPA | Repsol Honda (RC213V) |
| 3 | Joan Mir | SPA | Suzuki Ecstar (GSX-RR) |
| 4 | Jorge Martin | SPA | Pramac Ducati (GP22) |
| 5 | Enea Bastianini | ITA | Gresini Ducati (GP21) |
| 6 | Pol Espargaro | SPA | Repsol Honda (RC213V) |
| 7 | Franco Morbidelli | ITA | Monster Yamaha (YZR-M1) |
| 8 | Francesco Bagnaia | ITA | Ducati Lenovo (GP22) |
| 9 | Jack Miller | AUS | Ducati Lenovo (GP22) |
| 10 | Aleix Espargaro | SPA | Aprilia Factory (RS-GP) |
Fastest Friday time:
Alex Rins SPA Suzuki 1m 53.432s
Official Qatar MotoGP records:
Best lap:
Francesco Bagnaia ITA Ducati 1m 52.772s (2021)
Fastest race lap:
Francesco Bagnaia ITA Ducati 1m 54.491s (2021)
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.
