Jorge Martin springs surprise Motegi pole after Marc Marquez "mistakes"
Jorge Martin surprised even himself by snatching Japanese MotoGP pole from Marc Marquez after struggling badly on Friday at Motegi.
Jorge Martin was counting on a big step from Friday to Saturday at Motegi, but even he didn’t expect to fight for, let alone claim, Japanese MotoGP pole.
Just eighth on Friday, the title leader came out swinging on Saturday morning, finishing second to team-mate Marco Bezzecchi in final practice.
Bezzecchi set the pace on a medium rear, while Martin was the fastest rider using a used soft, giving an early indication of his qualifying potential.
Marc Marquez took the initiative at the start of qualifying, smashing the lap record on his first flying lap, but mistakes prevented him from improving and Martin saved his best for the final run to snatch pole by 0.110s.
“Well, it's a situation that I'm getting used to!” Jorge Martin said of his Saturday comeback.
“We struggle a bit on Friday, then we do a great job, try to analyse well, and make a big step for Saturday. So that was the target
“I didn't expect to fight for pole position. I was aiming maybe for first row.
“But I was able to do a great lap, honestly, even if I did one mistake in the second sector.
“I was super fast in the last sector, and honestly, I feel we have a great potential. The pace is really good, so let's go for the sprint.”
Marc Marquez endured a relatively messy session by his standards, including a trip through the gravel and several other "mistakes" that prevented him from improving on his opening lap.
“Happy, but of course with that second tyre there were too many mistakes,” he admitted.
“Just I was able to push on the last lap, and again another big mistake in T4.
“But okay, happy. Starting in the front row was the main target, and let me see if in the sprint race, we can do a good pace.”
The reigning champion will start this afternoon’s Sprint 12 points behind Martin in the world championship.
The front row is a repeat of the Red Bull Ring, with Pedro Acosta using a tow from Bezzecchi to help claim third for KTM.
“You know how difficult qualifying is for me!” the Austrian Grand Prix winner said in parc ferme.
“But anyway, again front row. We are we are in the point to fight. Let's see then, because Marco [Bezzecchi] was showing an amazing pace in FP2, also Marc with the soft.
“For this let's see what tyre choice we do. In the end, the team are working super good. We have been fast in the last couple of GPs, for this let's see what is going on.”
Bezzecchi will start fourth, ahead of the Ducatis of Alex Marquez and Fabio di Giannantonio.
Ducati has won the last seven races at Motegi, including Sprints, while Aprilia is still seeking its first premier-class podium at the Japanese circuit.
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.
