Why MotoGP Assen qualifying could be as important as Monaco for F1

Pecco Bagnaia believes heat wave conditions at the MotoGP Dutch Grand Prix will make qualifying even more important to lessen the risk of crashing.

Europe is baking under a heat dome this week, with temperatures going above 35C at Assen on Friday.

Those conditions have been likened by some, including Pecco Bagnaia, to what they experienced in India in 2023.

The Ducati rider, who was fifth at the end of Practice, believes the spate of crashes in the afternoon - which included big ones for the Gresini duo - were a direct result of the heat.

As such, he believes qualifying will be even more important on Saturday morning in order to have clear air and mitigate the crash risk.

“Yeah, I think all the crashes we saw were for the temperature,” he said on Friday at Assen.

“I think it's the first time I feel like India again, in terms of temperature.

“And also the tyres; the tyres were suffering, because the more laps you put on the tyres, the more movement you were having for the temperature of the tyres.

“Tomorrow, if you start in the front, it's okay, but if you're behind someone, you can have a big issue with the front, so I want to be very fast in qualifying.”

Bagnaia’s place in Q2 was in jeopardy with just over three minutes to go when the session was red-flagged due to Alex Marquez’s crash at Turn 12.

The Ducati rider was 17th and had a previous lap cancelled due to yellow flags for Fermin Aldeguer’s fall, as well as Jorge Martin’s.

He was forced to run a used rear tyre for his final flying lap when the session resumed, but managed to secure a Q2 place.

“I lost two tenths in the last fast corner, I went too wide,” Bagnaia said.

“I was feeling fantastic, so it's true that I was making a very good lap time, with six laps on the rear, but it was still the same good, so I'm happy about it.

“It was a bit of a roller-coaster session, because I was expecting a bit more from the first exit with the soft new, but the set-up we did was not working as we expected and I was struggling a bit.

“And then we understood that we needed to change in the third exit, so after that I was happier, I was feeling good, and even if the temperature was that high, I was able to be constant with the pace, so happy.

“Time attack, the first one didn't go as we expected, because I wasn't feeling well with the rear.

“Second one, we had yellow flag, red flag, everything. So, just one lap to be in the top 10 and I was quite sure that I was able to do it.”

He added: “I was expecting a red flag after the crash of Aldeguer, because it takes a lot of time to remove the bikes and to transport Aldeguer out of the track.

“But they didn't do that, so I started, but a lap later, [Jorge] Martin [crashed].

“And the yellow flag was still out, but he wasn't on track, so it takes time to remove.

“And then with Alex, it was correct to put the red flag, because the crash they had, both Gresini riders were huge.

“But apart from that, it's true that with six laps in the rear, I wasn't grippy as we expected, but it was good enough to be in the top ten.”