Mugello MotoGP qualifying
Live Text
Sort by
Vinales is now on his second run, and take a wild guess as to who is riding right behind him.
You got it. Rabat. Again.
You got it. Rabat. Again.
Almost half a second between Rabat in the second Q2 transfer spot and his nearest rival Miller. Following Vinales - who is three tenths faster and looks quite likely to advance - might have been a masterstroke.
Information
Current order: 1 Vinales; 2 Rabat; 3 Miller; 4 P Espargaro; 5 Syahrin; 6 Nakagami; 7 Bautista; 8 Smith; 9 Luthi; 10 Pedrosa; 11 Abraham; 12 Redding; 13 A Espargaro; 14 Simeon.
It's not looking good for Pedrosa at all. The Honda works rider is only ninth in this session at the moment, some 1.690s off the pace.
Vinales improves to a 1m46.815s, Rabat also betters his time in second place.
And wouldn't you know it, Rabat is following Vinales.
Stopwatch
Vinales goes top with his first flyer, a 1m47.105s. It's his quickest lap so far this weekend, but Rabat is just 0.138s back.
Pedrosa backs out of his first flying lap at Turn 1, as Redding runs into the gravel in the background.
That worked out very well for Franco Morbidelli earlier in FP3. The Marc VDS Honda rider latched onto Marquez's tail during the Honda rider's weekend-best lap, and was rewarded with his first-ever Q2 appearance.
There will be some on-track games here, for sure - immediately Aleix Espargaro drops back to follow former teammate Vinales on a flying lap.
Green flag
Q1 is now underway.
It's a big session for Jack Miller, too - a Q2 spot seems to be there for the taking, and he needs it if he's to convince Ducati to take a punt on him over Pramac teammate Danilo Petrucci as Jorge Lorenzo's replacement in the works outfit.
Information
Q1 roster: Vinales; Miller; Pedrosa; A Espargaro; Nakagami; Syahrin; Rabat; Abraham; P Espargaro; Redding; Bautista; Smith; Luthi; Simeon.
So, Q1 next up - and two riders who surely must make it to Q2.
There's Yamaha's Maverick Vinales, who looks to have decent race pace, but won't be able to make use of it without a decent qualifying effort.
And there's Dani Pedrosa, whose Honda contract renewal remains in doubt despite the main alternatives - Zarco and Mir - having opted for KTM and (seemingly) Suzuki respectively.
There's Yamaha's Maverick Vinales, who looks to have decent race pace, but won't be able to make use of it without a decent qualifying effort.
And there's Dani Pedrosa, whose Honda contract renewal remains in doubt despite the main alternatives - Zarco and Mir - having opted for KTM and (seemingly) Suzuki respectively.
Checkered flag
FP4 has wrapped up. Iannone is quickest, from Lorenzo, Dovizioso, Marquez and Vinales. The top five is split by 0.268s.
Jorge Lorenzo has five victories from the last seven races at Mugello, so this weekend could be his best chance to record a win during his ill-fated Ducati stint.
A word for Ducati test rider and wildcard Michele Pirro, who had started the weekend so well but had it cut short by a genuinely terrifying FP2 crash – in which he was chucked well into the air and lost consciousness upon landing.
Remarkably – and very thankfully – he looks to have escaped any significant injury. But it will still be a shame not have him racing this weekend:![Pirro concussed, dislocated shoulder in Mugello crash]()
Remarkably – and very thankfully – he looks to have escaped any significant injury. But it will still be a shame not have him racing this weekend:
Twitter
The up-and-down form of Maverick Vinales at Yamaha has become almost the most predictable part of MotoGP. A supposed breakthrough in a recent Barcelona test, a strong Friday showing here – and yet he's headed to Q1. Go figure.
Crash
The race-pace simulation FP4 is on right now, and we've had several reasonably high-speed crashes in the past few minutes. Zarco, Pedrosa and Rins have all had a tumble through the gravel - all seemingly unhurt.
Iannone led much of FP3 too, but couldn't quite deliver when it counted late on on soft tyres. Instead, it was Marc Marquez's time to shine after an indifferent Friday showing - and the Spaniard duly lapped under the pole record.
Mugello is not one of Marquez's stronger tracks by any stretch of the imagination, but that doesn't seem to count for much this year. Honda has looked reasonable everywhere in 2018, allowing its prodigious team leader to run up front week in, week out.
Mugello is not one of Marquez's stronger tracks by any stretch of the imagination, but that doesn't seem to count for much this year. Honda has looked reasonable everywhere in 2018, allowing its prodigious team leader to run up front week in, week out.
Suzuki's Andrea Iannone has been the form man this weekend, and you simply have to appreciate the timing – given that on Thursday it came out that he would lose his ride in 2019.
The Italian, who swept Friday's sessions, has not-so-subtly suggested Suzuki has made the wrong decision.
The Italian, who swept Friday's sessions, has not-so-subtly suggested Suzuki has made the wrong decision.
Hello and welcome to our live coverage of qualifying for the Italian motorcycle Grand Prix at Mugello, the sixth round of the 2018 MotoGP season.
By: Matt Beer
Published:
Lap:
