Special feature

2022 MotoGP French Grand Prix: Full Friday practice results

Gresini Ducati rider Enea Bastianini headed practice times on Friday at MotoGP's French Grand Prix, setting a new lap record at the Le Mans Bugatti circuit.

The Italian, twice a winner in the 2022 season on his year-old GP21 bike, lapped 0.202s faster than Aprilia's Aleix Espargaro in a soft rubber time attack late in the second free practice session.

Bastianini had already seen a lap quicker than Espargaro's benchmark scrubbed, having set the time under yellow flags caused by a crash for VR46 Ducati rider Luca Marini.

But Bastianini responded with a 1m31.148s lap that put him atop the times, before taking his second fall of the day after an early FP1 tumble at the Dunlop Chicane.

Espargaro remained second ahead of Suzuki's Alex Rins, who had set the early pace in FP2.

Fabio Quartararo, Yamaha Factory Racing

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

Prior to the soft tyre runs, the winner of MotoGP's previous round at Jerez Francesco Bagnaia had been quickest on the medium rubber. The 2021 series runner-up slipped to fifth at the end of the session behind fellow Ducati runner Johann Zarco (Pramac).

The top eight runners in FP2, concluded by reigning champion Fabio Quartararo (Yamaha), Brad Binder (KTM) and Joan Mir (Suzuki) all dipped under FP1 pace-setter Pol Espargaro's 1m31.771s effort.

Mir had been an early faller in FP2, the 2020 champion having to switch to a second bike after dropping his primary machine on the approach to Turn 7.

Espargaro ended FP2 in 13th spot, failing to improve on the FP1 lap that had put the Honda rider top of the times by 0.109s over Rins and Bagnaia.

As Zarco's team-mate Jorge Martin completed the top 10 on combined times, 2021 French GP winner Jack Miller was only 11th on combined times with the second factory Ducati.

The Australian improved fractionally on his FP1 time before shunting at Turn 11.

2022 MotoGP Spanish Grand Prix: Friday practice results:

Free Practice 1

Cla	Rider	Time	Gap	Interval
1	Pol Espargaro	Honda	1'31.771
2	Alex Rins	Suzuki	1'31.880	0.109	0.109
3	Francesco Bagnaia	Ducati	1'31.893	0.122	0.013
4	Fabio Quartararo	Yamaha	1'31.912	0.141	0.019
5	Aleix Espargaro	Aprilia	1'31.933	0.162	0.021
6	Joan Mir	Suzuki	1'31.942	0.171	0.009
7	Jack Miller	Ducati	1'31.961	0.190	0.019
8	Maverick Viñales	Aprilia	1'32.078	0.307	0.117
9	Johann Zarco	Ducati	1'32.112	0.341	0.034
10	Luca Marini	Ducati	1'32.128	0.357	0.016
11	Takaaki Nakagami	Honda	1'32.165	0.394	0.037
12	Enea Bastianini	Ducati	1'32.255	0.484	0.090
13	Marc Marquez	Honda	1'32.266	0.495	0.011
14	Jorge Martin	Ducati	1'32.491	0.720	0.225
15	Marco Bezzecchi	Ducati	1'32.674	0.903	0.183
16	Andrea Dovizioso	Yamaha	1'32.736	0.965	0.062
17	Fabio Di Giannantonio	Ducati	1'32.755	0.984	0.019
18	Brad Binder	KTM	1'32.756	0.985	0.001
19	Alex Marquez	Honda	1'32.762	0.991	0.006
20	Franco Morbidelli	Yamaha	1'32.937	1.166	0.175
21	Miguel Oliveira	KTM	1'33.021	1.250	0.084
22	Remy Gardner	KTM	1'33.302	1.531	0.281
23	Raúl Fernández	KTM	1'34.151	2.380	0.849
24	Darryn Binder	Yamaha	1'34.624	2.853	0.473
View full results

Free Practice 2

Cla	Rider	Bike	Time	Gap	Interval
1	Enea Bastianini	Ducati	1'31.148
2	Aleix Espargaro	Aprilia	1'31.350	0.202	0.202
3	Alex Rins	Suzuki	1'31.445	0.297	0.095
4	Johann Zarco	Ducati	1'31.508	0.360	0.063
5	Francesco Bagnaia	Ducati	1'31.635	0.487	0.127
6	Fabio Quartararo	Yamaha	1'31.640	0.492	0.005
7	Brad Binder	KTM	1'31.657	0.509	0.017
8	Joan Mir	Suzuki	1'31.666	0.518	0.009
9	Jorge Martin	Ducati	1'31.912	0.764	0.246
10	Jack Miller	Ducati	1'31.914	0.766	0.002
11	Franco Morbidelli	Yamaha	1'32.025	0.877	0.111
12	Maverick Viñales	Aprilia	1'32.051	0.903	0.026
13	Pol Espargaro	Honda	1'32.076	0.928	0.025
14	Marc Marquez	Honda	1'32.153	1.005	0.077
15	Fabio Di Giannantonio	Ducati	1'32.275	1.127	0.122
16	Marco Bezzecchi	Ducati	1'32.314	1.166	0.039
17	Luca Marini	Ducati	1'32.416	1.268	0.102
18	Alex Marquez	Honda	1'32.505	1.357	0.089
19	Andrea Dovizioso	Yamaha	1'32.536	1.388	0.031
20	Miguel Oliveira	KTM	1'32.695	1.547	0.159
21	Remy Gardner	KTM	1'32.737	1.589	0.042
22	Takaaki Nakagami	Honda	1'33.397	2.249	0.660
23	Raúl Fernández	KTM	1'33.557	2.409	0.160
24	Darryn Binder	Yamaha	1'33.561	2.413	0.004
View full results