UPDATED MotoGP Argentina, Termas de Rio Hondo - Full Qualifying Results

Update: Jack Miller penalised 3 places for 'disturbing' Fabio Quartararo 'at the entry of Turn 7 in Qualifying 2', which will drop the Ducati rider from 11th to 14th on the grid.

* Rookie

Aleix Espargaro delivers Aprilia’s first MotoGP pole

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Official Termas de Rio Hondo MotoGP records:
Best lap:
Marc Marquez SPA Honda 1m 37.683s (2014
Fastest race lap:
Valentino Rossi ITA Yamaha 1m 39.019s (2015)

Aleix Espargaro gives the Aprilia RS-GP its first pole position at the end of a long Saturday schedule, following the cancellation of all Friday practice sessions due to freight delays.

The Spaniard will be joined on the front row by the Ducatis of Jorge Martin and Luca Marini, on a day when factory stars Jack Miller and Francesco Bagnaia both suffered.

Fastest from team-mate Maverick Vinales after the pair of extended free practice sessions, Espargaro promptly put the black bike back on top in qualifying, then calmly sat in the pits as others tried and failed to beat it.

The Spaniard, whose last pole position was at Catalunya 2015 for Suzuki, headed back out for the final minutes and was soon forced to go on the attack when Pramac Ducati's Jorge Martin took pole away.

But Espargaro responded in perfect style, dipping 0.151s under Martin's time.

Repsol Honda's Pol Espargaro fought through Qualifying 1 to take fourth on the grid ahead of Vinales and reigning champion Fabio Quartararo, who was left fuming after being held up by Jack Miller on one of his laps.

Miller had earlier lost the front of his factory Ducati at Turn 1 moments, after slotting into second behind Espargaro, then returned on his spare bike when he held up Quartararo. The incident is being investigated by the Stewards.

The Australian is currently eleventh on the grid, but team-mate and reigning title runner-up Francesco Bagnaia had an even tougher day; left outside the top ten after FP2, the Italian failed to advance beyond Qualifying 1 and is due to start 14th.

Suzuki riders Alex Rins and Joan Mir will line-up seventh and eighth on the grid, a problem starting Mir's GSX-RR forcing the former world champion to switch to his second bike.

Johann Zarco, Takaaki Nakagami, Miller and Brad Binder - who ran wide on a fast lap - completed the Q2 riders.

World championship leader Enea Bastianini will line-up just ahead of Bagnaia in 13th, with Franco Morbidelli completing the fifth row of the grid. KTM's Mandalika winner Miguel Oliveira heads row six.

Updated schedule - 2022 Argentine MotoGP

Saturday

08:15-09:05 Moto3 FP1 (12:15-13:05 UK)
09:20-10:10 Moto2 FP1 (13:20-14:10 UK)
10:25-11:15 Moto3 FP2 (14:25-15:15 UK)
11:30-12:20 Moto2 FP2 (15:30-16:20 UK)
12:35-13:35 MotoGP FP1 (16:35-17:35 UK)
13:50-14:05 Moto3 Qualifying 1 (17:50-18:05 UK)
14:15-14:30 Moto3 Qualifying 2 (18:15-18:30 UK)
14:45-15:00 Moto2 Qualifying 1 (18:45-19:00 UK)
15:10-15:25 Moto2 Qualifying 2 (19:10-19:25 UK)
15:40-16:40 MotoGP FP2 (19:40-20:40 UK)
17:05-17:20 MotoGP Qualifying 1 (21:05-21:20 UK)
17:30-17:45 MotoGP Qualifying 2 (21:30-21:45 UK)

Sunday

09:20-09:40 Moto3 Warm-up (13:20-13:40 UK)
09:50-10:10 Moto2 Warm-up (13:50-14:10 UK)
10:20-11:00 MotoGP Warm-up (14:20-15:00 UK)

12:00 Moto3 Race - 21 laps (16:00 UK)
13:20 Moto2 Race - 23 laps (15:20 UK)
15:00 MotoGP Race - 25 laps (19:00 UK)

Marc Marquez, who suffered a new episode of double vision in the aftermath of his huge warm-up accident in Indonesia, is missing this weekend's event and is replaced by HRC test rider Stefan Bradl.

After a medical check on Monday, Marquez's Ophthalmologist Dr Sánchez Dalmau said there had been a “a very favourable evolution in the paralysis of the fourth right nerve affected by the fall that occurred at the Indonesian Grand Prix." But he added: "Recovery is not yet complete, and Marc Marquez must follow the established therapeutic regime with conservative treatment.”

It is thus not yet known if Marquez will return for COTA next weekend, one of his most successful circuits, or re-join sometime during the European season, which begins in Portimao on April 22-24.

Fellow Honda rider Takaaki Nakagami also looked set to miss this weekend, after testing positive for Covid-19 and being unable to leave Japan.

However, the cancellation of Friday combined with subsequent negative Covid results meant Nakagami was able to get to Termas in time for Saturday's start.

MotoGP is returning to Termas de Rio Hondo for the first time since March 2019, with the event cancelled for the past two years due to the Covid pandemic. That also means the current 'standard' rear tyre construction, introduced in 2020, has not previously been used at the track.